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Objectives: The Neanderthal patella differs from that of extant humans by being thicker anteroposteriorly and by having more symmetric medial and lateral articular facets. However, it is still unclear to what extent these differences affect knee kinesiology. We aim at assessing the endostructural conformation of Neanderthal patellae to reveal functionally related mechanical information comparatively to the extant human condition. In principle, we expect that the Neanderthal patella (i) shows a higher amount of cortical bone and (ii) a trabecular network organization distinct from the extant human condition., Materials and Methods: By using micro-focus X-ray tomography, we characterized the endostructure of six adult patellae from the OIS 5e Neanderthal site of Krapina, Croatia, the largest assemblage of human fossil patellae assessed so far, and compared their pattern to the configuration displayed by a sample of 22 recent humans., Results and Discussion: The first expectation is rejected, indicating that the patellar bone might have not followed the trend of generalized gracilization of the human postcranial skeleton occurred through the Upper Pleistocene. The second prediction is at least partially supported. In Krapina the trabecular network differs from the comparative sample by showing a higher medial density and by lacking a proximal reinforcement. Such conformation indicates similar load patterns exerted in Neanderthals and extant humans by the vastus lateralis, but not by the vastus medialis, with implications on the mediolateral stabilization of the knee joint. However, the patterns of structural variation of the patellar network remain to be assessed in other Neanderthal samples., (© 2023 The Authors. American Journal of Biological Anthropology published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.)

Cellar door experiences represent the core of wine tourism activities and provides wineries with an opportunity to offer a memorable experience to the visitor, which in turn can lead to the creation of a long-term relationship between customer and brand. This study aims to measure visitors experience quality perceptions within the tasting room setting. Data was collected during the summer season of 2017 at four Dalmatian wineries (Croatia). Descriptive statistics were used to analyze the collected data. Learning was the highest rated experience dimension while environment recorded the lowest mean in our study. The proposed wine experience quality scale offers an empirical framework that is easy to use and generalizable in wine tourism contexts. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Wine festivals have become an integral part of the wine tourism experience and present an opportunity for wineries and wine destinations to promote and sell their products. The purpose of the research was to examine and compare the perceptions of experience quality, experience outcomes, and food and wine personality traits of festival visitors with regard to different demographic groups. Data were collected using an on-site questionnaire that measured perceptions of experience quality (entertainment, education, environment, service providers, functional benefits), experience outcomes (satisfaction, loyalty), wine and food personality traits (involvement, neophobia) and visitor demographics. Descriptive analysis and t-tests were conducted using data collected from visitors at the VinoCOM wine and food festival on the 24th and 25th November 2017. The research findings reveal that, in general, visitors have similar perceptions of experience quality constructs, experience outcomes, and levels of food and wine involvement and neophobia with regard to their demographic characteristics. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]