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Key Message: We present a comprehensive survey of cytogenetic and genomic diversity of the GGA t A t genepool of wheat, thereby unlocking these plant genetic resources for wheat improvement. Wheat yields are stagnating around the world and new sources of genes for resistance or tolerances to abiotic traits are required. In this context, the tetraploid wheat wild relatives are among the key candidates for wheat improvement. Despite its potential huge value for wheat breeding, the tetraploid GGA t A t genepool is largely neglected. Understanding the population structure, native distribution range, intraspecific variation of the entire tetraploid GGA t A t genepool and its domestication history would further its use for wheat improvement. The paper provides the first comprehensive survey of genomic and cytogenetic diversity sampling the full breadth and depth of the tetraploid GGA t A t genepool. According to the results obtained, the extant GGA t A t genepool consists of three distinct lineages. We provide detailed insights into the cytogenetic composition of GGA t A t wheats, revealed group- and population-specific markers and show that chromosomal rearrangements play an important role in intraspecific diversity of T. araraticum. The origin and domestication history of the GGA t A t lineages is discussed in the context of state-of-the-art archaeobotanical finds. We shed new light on the complex evolutionary history of the GGA t A t wheat genepool and provide the basis for an increased use of the GGA t A t wheat genepool for wheat improvement. The findings have implications for our understanding of the origins of agriculture in southwest Asia., (© 2021. The Author(s).)

The Siwa archaeological culture (ca. 3350 and 2650 cal yr BP) has often been associated with the tribes referenced in textual sources as Qiang and Rong: prized captives commonly sacrificed by the Shang and marauding hordes who toppled the Western Zhou dynasty. In early Chinese writings, food plays a key role in accentuating the 'sino-barbarian' dichotomy believed to have taken root over 3000 years ago, with the Qiang and Rong described as nomadic pastoralists who consumed more meat than grain and knew little of proper dining etiquette. To date, however, little direct archaeological evidence has allowed us to reconstruct the diet and foodways of the groups who occupied the Loess Plateau during this pivotal period. Here we present the results of the first ceramic use-wear study performed on the Siwa ma'an jars from the site of Zhanqi, combined with the molecular and isotopic characterization of lipid residues from foodcrusts, and evidence from experimental cooking. We report molecular data indicating the preparation of meals composed of millet and ruminant dairy among the Siwa community of Zhanqi. Use-wear analysis shows that Zhanqi community members were sophisticated creators of ceramic equipment, the ma'an cooking pot, which allowed them to prepare a wide number of dishes with limited fuel. These findings support recent isotope studies at Zhanqi as well as nuance the centrality of meat in the Siwa period diet., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.

Across medieval Europe, cattle commanded a major, if shifting, economic and social value, and their use for meat, milk, and traction is well established. Although the changing roles of cattle throughout this period may have influenced relationships between humans and cattle, this has been largely neglected in historical and zooarchaeological studies. Data from nearly 700 archaeological assemblages of animal remains have been used to provide an overview of the herd structures (age and sex) of cattle populations for England between AD 450 and 1400. These have been analysed alongside pathological and sub-pathological changes in over 2800 lower limb bones of cattle from seventeen archaeological sites to provide a better understanding of the use of cattle for ploughing, hauling, and carting. The findings were considered alongside historical documents and ethnographic evidence to chart changing human-cattle relationships. Results indicate that human-cattle relations varied with changing economic, agricultural, and social practices. From the mid-fifth century, cattle were a form of portable wealth, however, by the mid-ninth century, they were perceived as a commodity with monetary value. From this period, close human-cattle bonds are likely to have been widespread between plough hands and working animals. Such bonds are may have diminished with the increasing number of young beef cattle kept to supply the urban population from the mid-eleventh century.

A time frame for late Iroquoian prehistory is firmly established on the basis of the presence/absence of European trade goods and other archeological indicators. However, independent dating evidence is lacking. We use 86 radiocarbon measurements to test and (re)define existing chronological understanding. Warminster, often associated with Cahiagué visited by S. de Champlain in 1615-1616 CE, yields a compatible radiocarbon-based age. However, a well-known late prehistoric site sequence in southern Ontario, Draper-Spang-Mantle, usually dated ~1450-1550, yields much later radiocarbon-based dates of ~1530-1615. The revised time frame dramatically rewrites 16th-century contact-era history in this region. Key processes of violent conflict, community coalescence, and the introduction of European goods all happened much later and more rapidly than previously assumed. Our results suggest the need to reconsider current understandings of contact-era dynamics across northeastern North America.

Languages are being lost at rates exceeding the global loss of biodiversity. With the extinction of a language we lose irreplaceable dimensions of culture and the insight it provides on human history and the evolution of linguistic diversity. When setting conservation goals, biologists give higher priority to species likely to go extinct. Recent methods now integrate information on species evolutionary relationships to prioritize the conservation of those with a few close relatives. Advances in the construction of language trees allow us to use these methods to develop language preservation priorities that minimize loss of linguistic diversity. The evolutionarily distinct and globally endangered (EDGE) metric, used in conservation biology, accounts for a species' originality (evolutionary distinctiveness-ED) and its likelihood of extinction (global endangerment-GE). Here, we use a similar framework to inform priorities for language preservation by generating rankings for 350 Austronesian languages. Kavalan, Tanibili, Waropen and Sengseng obtained the highest EDGE scores, while Xârâcùù (Canala), Nengone and Palauan are among the most linguistically distinct, but are not currently threatened. We further provide a way of dealing with incomplete trees, a common issue for both species and language trees., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests, financial or otherwise.

We present stable isotopic analyses of collagen from 80 servicemen excavated from the late 18th/early 19th century naval hospitals at Plymouth (50) and Haslar, Gosport (30) in southern England. Historical records suggest that, the diets of these two populations should be essentially identical. While δ(15) N of the rib collagen confirmed that naval servicemen were relatively well-catered for in terms of meat allowance (Plymouth average δ(15) N = 11.1‰, Gosport = 11.9‰), stable carbon isotope analysis produced average values for the two assemblages, which were significantly different (Plymouth average δ(13) C = -18.8‰, Gosport = -20.0‰). We postulate that these differences stem from divergent naval postings, with a greater proportion of Plymouth individuals serving in areas that entailed a greater input of C(4) foodstuffs. By comparison with published data from approximately contemporary burials at Snake Hill, Ontario, Canada and Chesapeake Bay, Virginia, we suggest that this area is the east coast of North America. For 15 of the 30 individuals from Gosport, we have data on ribs, femur, and dentine from the same skeleton, which appear to show that they came from a variety of locations in their preadolescence, but converged in dietary terms onto a "naval average," which is consistent with historical evidence for recruitment patterns into the Navy at the time. By comparison with published data from skeletons recovered from the wreck of the Mary Rose (sank 1545), we conclude that this naval diet was virtually unchanged from the 16th century to the end of the 18th century., (Copyright © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)