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In geoarchaeological studies, there is an issue with distinguishing between natural and anthropogenic signals in pedological paleoarchives. With the pedostratigraphy of the Upper Paleolithic site of Kostenki 14, this issue is reflected by problems with the determination of features of pedogenic and pyrogenic processes. This issue was addressed by means of a thorough analysis of the magnetic properties of paleosols accompanied by micromorphological observations. Most of the humic samples were shown to be a result of pedogenesis, but two samples (a Paleolithic hearth sample and a sample from paleosol IIc) had features of intensely burnt material. The difference in the typical intensity of large‐scale (natural or human‐induced) and local‐scale anthropogenic fire allowed for suggesting that the magnetic properties of the burnt sample were the result of an anthropogenically controlled fire event, that is, a hearth. This study shows that the magnetic properties of paleosols can be used to differentiate anthropogenic activity, in particular—burning, from pedogenic processes. This indicator is especially helpful in finding disturbed combustion features when the hearth structure is lost. This methodology used to demonstrate the local human‐induced pyrogenic effect at the Upper Paleolithic site can contribute to the discussion of the niche construction effect of human activities in the Pleistocene. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new Upper Palaeolithic occupation layer has been discovered in 2000 at the site of Markina Gora (Kostenki 14) on the River Don (the Voronezh Oblast), in Russia. The layer was sealed by volcanic ash, suggesting that a natural catastrophe had put an end to a human settlement there, just as Pompeii, Herculaneum and Stabiae were destroyed and buried following the powerful eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in AD 79. The Palaeolithic site is notable for its assemblage of ornaments Keywords: Upper Palaeolithic, Aurignacian, volcanic eruptions, Russia, The occurrence of volcanic tephra in Upper Pleistocene deposits in the central part of the Russian Plain is a remarkable phenomenon, not least because the plain lies at a great [...]

We develop an atomistic model of a cerium dioxide CeO2 nanoparticle, which we then extend to our model of a ceria nanoparticle with a varied Ce3 + /Ce4 + composition. For a pure CeO2 particle we compute the radial distribution function for all pairs of atoms in the nanoparticle, which we find is in excellent agreement with the reported experimental data. For a particle with a mixed Ce3 + /Ce4 + we adjust the parameters and modify the crystallization procedure to produce a realistic distribution of Ce3 + atoms on the particle. We improve our initial guess of the Lennard-Jones parameters by melting and recrystallizing the nanoparticle, as well as computing the radial distribution function for the nanoparticle at room temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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