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Toupin R, Millerand F, Larivière V. Who tweets climate change papers? investigating publics of research through users’ descriptions. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0268999. [PMID: 35657791 PMCID: PMC9165795 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0268999] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
As social issues like climate change become increasingly salient, digital traces left by scholarly documents can be used to assess their reach outside of academia. Our research examine who shared climate change research papers on Twitter by looking at the expressions used in profile descriptions. We categorized users in eight categories (academia, communication, political, professional, personal, organization, bots and publishers) associated to specific expressions. Results indicate how diverse publics may be represented in the communication of scholarly documents on Twitter. Supplementing our word detection analysis with qualitative assessments of the results, we highlight how the presence of unique or multiple categorizations in textual Twitter descriptions provides evidence of the publics of research in specific contexts. Our results show a more substantial communication by academics and organizations for papers published in 2016, whereas the general public comparatively participated more in 2015. Overall, there is significant participation of publics outside of academia in the communication of climate change research articles on Twitter, although the extent to which these publics participate varies between individual papers. This means that papers circulate in specific communities which need to be assessed to understand the reach of research on social media. Furthermore, the flexibility of our method provide means for research assessment that consider the contextuality and plurality of publics involved on Twitter.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rémi Toupin
- Laboratory for Communication and the Digital (LabCMO), Centre Interuniversitaire de Recherche sur la Science et la Technologie (CIRST), Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
- * E-mail:
| | - Florence Millerand
- Laboratory for Communication and the Digital (LabCMO), Département de Communication Sociale et Publique (DCSP), Centre Interuniversitaire de Recherche sur la Science et la Technologie (CIRST), Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Vincent Larivière
- École de Bibliothéconomie et des Sciences de l’Information (EBSI), Université de Montréal, Montréal, Quebec, Canada
- Observatoire des Sciences et des Technologies (OST), Centre Interuniversitaire de Recherche sur la Science et la Technologie (CIRST), Université du Québec à Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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2
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Roy A, Keesari T, Pant D, Rai G, Sinha UK, Mohokar H, Jaryal A, Sharma DA. Unravelling 30 ka recharge history of an intensely exploited multi-tier aquifer system in North West India through isotopic tracers - Implications on deep groundwater sustainability. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 807:151401. [PMID: 34752874 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.151401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2021] [Revised: 10/29/2021] [Accepted: 10/30/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Northwest part of India is an agriculturally active region experiencing rapid rise in food production and steep decline in groundwater levels. The freshwater requirement is mostly met by regional aquifers which are inherently heterogeneous and undergoing extensive human inducted perturbations. These factors pose great challenge in planning sustainable groundwater management. In this study, environmental isotopes (2H, 18O, 13C, 3H and 14C) were applied to understand the regional recharge mechanism during the last 30 ka and hydrogeological controls impacting the aquifer dynamics and inter-aquifer connectivity of the Ghaggar River basin. Rayleigh distillation modeling indicates that major groundwater recharge is through monsoonal rains while rainfall during other seasons is lost either through evaporation or surface runoff. The evaporation loss is estimated to be 1.5 to 10% and more pronounced in the southern part of the study area. Regional recharge from Siwalik foothills contributes to groundwater up to a depth of 250 m below ground level (bgl). The lumped parameter modeling (LPM) using 3H data estimated groundwater ages 34.7 ± 12.1 and 95.8 ± 11.3 years for shallow and deep aquifers respectively. Radiocarbon dating indicates presence of paleogroundwater (0.4 to 28.6 ka before present, BP) in the deeper aquifer of central part of the study area. Interpretation of the paleowater and paleoprecipitation isotope data in conjunction with available paleogeomorphologic information suggests two different recharge phases. Phase I extending from ~28.6 to 10.1 ka, showed ~48-61% contribution from isotopically depleted perennial river system. Phase II spanning from ~12.5 to 0.4 ka BP showed insignificant contribution from river recharge, which can be attributed to the decreased strength of the perennial river flows. The research methodology proposed in this study will be beneficial in improving the understanding of groundwater storage and its variability with changes in regional climatic conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annadasankar Roy
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India; Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400 094, India
| | - Tirumalesh Keesari
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India; Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400 094, India.
| | - Diksha Pant
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India; Homi Bhabha National Institute, Mumbai 400 094, India
| | | | - Uday Kumar Sinha
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India
| | - Hemant Mohokar
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India
| | - Ajay Jaryal
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India
| | - Diana Anoubam Sharma
- Isotope and Radiation Application Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, India
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3
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Tamang JP. "Ethno-microbiology" of ethnic Indian fermented foods and alcoholic beverages. J Appl Microbiol 2021; 133:145-161. [PMID: 34821430 DOI: 10.1111/jam.15382] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2021] [Revised: 10/14/2021] [Accepted: 11/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
The concept of "ethno-microbiology" is to understand the indigenous knowledge of the Indian people for production of culturally and organoleptically acceptable fermented foods by natural fermentation. About 1000 types of common, uncommon, rare, exotic and artisan fermented foods and beverages are prepared and consumed in different geographical regions by multi-ethnic communities in India. Indian fermented foods are mostly acidic and some are alkaline, along with various types of alcoholic beverages. A colossal diversity of microorganisms comprising bacteria mostly belongs to phylum Firmicutes, filamentous moulds and enzyme- and alcohol-producing yeasts under phyla Ascomycota and Mucoromycota, and few bacteriophages and archaea have been reported from Indian fermented foods. Some microorganisms associated with fermented foods have functionalities and health promoting benefits. "Ethno-microbiology" of ethnic Indian people has exhibited the proper utilisation of substrates either singly or in combination such as fermented cereal-legume mixture (idli, dosa and dhokla) in South and West India, sticky fermented soybean food (kinema and related foods), fermented perishable leafy vegetable (gundruk and related foods), fermented bamboo shoots (soibum and related foods) and fermented fish (ngari and others) in North East India, and fermented meat and sausage-like products in the Indian Himalayas, fermented coconut beverage (toddy) in coastal regions, and various types of naturally fermented milk products (dahi and related products) in different regions of India. This review has also highlighted the "ethno-microbiology" knowledge of the people involving the consortia of essential microorganisms in traditionally prepared amylolytic starters for production of cereal-based alcoholic beverages. The novelty of this review is the interpretation of ethno-microbiological knowledge innovated by ethnic Indian people on the use of beneficial microorganisms for food fermentation to obtain the desired fermented food products for consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jyoti Prakash Tamang
- DAICENTER (DBT-AIST International Centre for Translational and Environmental Research) and Bioinformatics Centre, Department of Microbiology, School of Life Sciences, Sikkim University, Gangtok, Sikkim, India
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4
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Suryanarayan A, Cubas M, Craig OE, Heron CP, Shinde VS, Singh RN, O'Connell TC, Petrie CA. Lipid residues in pottery from the Indus Civilisation in northwest India. JOURNAL OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE 2021; 125:105291. [PMID: 33519031 PMCID: PMC7829615 DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2020.105291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/04/2023]
Abstract
This paper presents novel insights into the archaeology of food in ancient South Asia by using lipid residue analysis to investigate what kinds of foodstuffs were used in ceramic vessels by populations of the Indus Civilisation in northwest India. It examines how vessels were used in urban and rural Indus settlements during the Mature Harappan period (c.2600/2500-1900 BC), the relationship between vessels and the products within them, and identifies whether changes in vessel use occurred from the Mature Harappan to Late Harappan periods, particularly during climatic instability after 4.2 ka BP (c.2100 BC). Despite low lipid concentrations, which highlight challenges with conducting residue analysis in arid, seasonally-wet and alkaline environments, 71% of the vessels yielded appreciable quantities of lipid. Lipid profiles revealed the use of animal fats in vessels, and contradictory to faunal evidence, a dominance of non-ruminant fats, with limited evidence of dairy processing. The absence of local modern reference fats makes this dataset challenging to interpret, and it is possible that plant products or mixtures of plant and animal products have led to ambiguous fatty acid-specific isotopic values. At the same time, it appears that urban and rural populations processed similar types of products in vessels, with limited evidence for change in vessel use from the urban to the post-urban period. This study is a systematic investigation into pot lipid residues from multiple sites, demonstrating the potential of the method for examining ancient Indus foodways and the need for the development of further research in ancient organic residues in South Asia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akshyeta Suryanarayan
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3DZ, UK
- CEPAM (Cultures et Environnements, Préhistoire, Antiquité,Moyen Âge), UMR7264-CNRS, Université Nice Côte d'Azur, Nice, 06300, France
- Corresponding author. CEPAM (Cultures et Environnements, Préhistoire, Antiquité,Moyen Âge), UMR7264-CNRS Université Nice Côte d'Azur, 06300 Nice, France
| | - Miriam Cubas
- Department of History, University of Oviedo, C/Amparo Pedregal s/n, E-33011, Oviedo, Asturias, Spain
- BioArch, University of York, Wentworth Way, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Oliver E. Craig
- BioArch, University of York, Wentworth Way, York, YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Carl P. Heron
- Scientific Research, British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG, UK
| | | | - Ravindra N. Singh
- Department of Ancient Indian History, Culture and Archaeology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 221005, India
| | - Tamsin C. O'Connell
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3DZ, UK
| | - Cameron A. Petrie
- Department of Archaeology, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge, CB2 3DZ, UK
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5
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Malik N. Uncovering transitions in paleoclimate time series and the climate driven demise of an ancient civilization. CHAOS (WOODBURY, N.Y.) 2020; 30:083108. [PMID: 32872795 DOI: 10.1063/5.0012059] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 07/13/2020] [Indexed: 06/11/2023]
Abstract
We present a hybrid framework appropriate for identifying distinct dynamical regimes and transitions in a paleoclimate time series. Our framework combines three powerful techniques used independently of each other in time series analysis: a recurrence plot, manifold learning through Laplacian eigenmaps, and Fisher information metric. The resulting hybrid approach achieves a more automated classification and visualization of dynamical regimes and transitions, including in the presence of missing values, observational noise, and short time series. We illustrate the capabilities of the method through several pragmatic numerical examples. Furthermore, to demonstrate the practical usefulness of the method, we apply it to a recently published paleoclimate dataset: a speleothem oxygen isotope record from North India covering the past 5700 years. This record encodes the patterns of monsoon rainfall over the region and covers the critically important period during which the Indus Valley Civilization matured and declined. We identify a transition in monsoon dynamics, indicating a possible connection between climate change and the decline of the Indus Valley Civilization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nishant Malik
- School of Mathematical Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology, Rochester, New York 14623, USA
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6
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Anupma A, Tamang JP. Diversity of Filamentous Fungi Isolated From Some Amylase and Alcohol-Producing Starters of India. Front Microbiol 2020; 11:905. [PMID: 32547501 PMCID: PMC7272576 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2020.00905] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2019] [Accepted: 04/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Filamentous fungi are important organisms in traditionally prepared amylase and alcohol-producing dry starters in India. We collected 40 diverse types of amylase and alcohol-producing starters from eight states in North East India viz. marcha, thiat, humao, hamei, chowan, phut, dawdim, and khekhrii. The average fungal population was 4.9 × 105 cfu/g with an average of pH 5.3 and 10.7%, respectively. In the present study, 131 fungal isolates were isolated and characterized based on macroscopic and microscopic characteristics and were grouped into 44 representative fungal strains. Based on results of morphological characteristics and ITS gene sequencing, 44 fungal strains were grouped into three phyla represented by Ascomycota (48%), Mucoromycota (38%), and Basidiomycota (14%). Taxonomical keys to species level was illustrated on the basis of morphological characteristics and ITS gene sequencing, aligned to the fungal database of NCBI GenBank, which showed seven genera with 16 species represented by Mucor circinelloides (20%), Aspergillus sydowii (11%), Penicillium chrysogenum (11%), Bjerkandera adusta (11%), Penicillium citrinum (7%), Rhizopus oryzae (7%), Aspergillus niger (5%), Aspergillus flavus (5%), Mucor indicus (5%) Rhizopus microsporus (5%), Rhizopus delemar (2%), Aspergillus versicolor (2%), Penicillium oxalicum (2%), Penicillium polonicum (2%), Trametes hirsuta (2%), and Cladosporium parahalotolerans (2%). The highest Shannon diversity index H was recorded in marcha of Sikkim (H: 1.74) and the lowest in hamei of Manipur (H: 0.69). Fungal species present in these amylolytic starters are morphologically, ecologically and phylogenetically diverse and showed high diversity within the community.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anu Anupma
- Department of Microbiology, DAICENTRE (Department of Biotechnology-National Institute of Advance Industrial Science and Technology (DBT-AIST) International Centre for Translational and Environmental Research) and Bioinformatics Centre, School of Life Sciences, Sikkim University, Gangtok, India
| | - Jyoti Prakash Tamang
- Department of Microbiology, DAICENTRE (Department of Biotechnology-National Institute of Advance Industrial Science and Technology (DBT-AIST) International Centre for Translational and Environmental Research) and Bioinformatics Centre, School of Life Sciences, Sikkim University, Gangtok, India
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7
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Chatterjee A, Ray JS, Shukla AD, Pande K. On the existence of a perennial river in the Harappan heartland. Sci Rep 2019; 9:17221. [PMID: 31748611 PMCID: PMC6868222 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-019-53489-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2019] [Accepted: 11/01/2019] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The legendary river Saraswati of Indian mythology has often been hypothesized to be an ancient perennial channel of the seasonal river Ghaggar that flowed through the heartland of the Bronze Age Harappan civilization in north-western India. Despite the discovery of abundant settlements along a major paleo-channel of the Ghaggar, many believed that the Harappans depended solely on monsoonal rains, because no proof existed for the river's uninterrupted flow during the zenith of the civilization. Here, we present unequivocal evidence for the Ghaggar's perennial past by studying temporal changes of sediment provenance along a 300 km stretch of the river basin. This is achieved using 40Ar/39Ar ages of detrital muscovite and Sr-Nd isotopic ratios of siliciclastic sediment in fluvial sequences, dated by radiocarbon and luminescence methods. We establish that during 80-20 ka and 9-4.5 ka the river was perennial and was receiving sediments from the Higher and Lesser Himalayas. The latter phase can be attributed to the reactivation of the river by the distributaries of the Sutlej. This revived perennial condition of the Ghaggar, which can be correlated with the Saraswati, likely facilitated development of the early Harappan settlements along its banks. The timing of the eventual decline of the river, which led to the collapse of the civilization, approximately coincides with the commencement of the Meghalayan Stage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anirban Chatterjee
- Physical Research Laboratory, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad, 380 009, India. .,Department of Geology, Presidency University, Kolkata, 700 073, India.
| | - Jyotiranjan S Ray
- Physical Research Laboratory, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad, 380 009, India.
| | - Anil D Shukla
- Physical Research Laboratory, Navrangpura, Ahmedabad, 380 009, India
| | - Kanchan Pande
- Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, Powai, Mumbai, 400 076, India
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8
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Ali SN, Dubey J, Ghosh R, Quamar MF, Sharma A, Morthekai P, Dimri AP, Shekhar M, Arif M, Agrawal S. High frequency abrupt shifts in the Indian summer monsoon since Younger Dryas in the Himalaya. Sci Rep 2018; 8:9287. [PMID: 29915324 PMCID: PMC6006316 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-018-27597-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2018] [Accepted: 06/01/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
Abstract
In order to quantify the Indian summer monsoon (ISM) variability for a monsoon dominated agrarian based Indian socio-economy, we used combined high resolution δ13C, total organic carbon (TOC), sediment texture and environmental magnetic data of the samples from a ~3 m deep glacial outwash sedimentary profile from the Sikkim Himalaya. Our decadal to centennial scale records identified five positive and three negative excursions of the ISM since last ~13 ka. The most prominent abrupt negative ISM shift was observed during the termination of the Younger Dryas (YD) between ~11.7 and 11.4 ka. While, ISM was stable between ~11 and 6 ka, and declined prominently between 6 and 3 ka. Surprisingly, during both the Medieval Warm Period (MWP) and Little Ice age (LIA) spans, ISM was strong in this part of the Himalaya. These regional changes in ISM were coupled to southward shifting in mean position of the Intertropical Convergence Zone (ITCZ) and variations in East Asian monsoon (EAM). Our rainfall reconstructions are broadly in agreement with local, regional reconstructions and PMIP3, CSIRO-MK3L model simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jyotsna Dubey
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
| | - Ruby Ghosh
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
| | | | - Anupam Sharma
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
| | - P Morthekai
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
| | - A P Dimri
- School of Environmental Sciences, Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
| | - Mayank Shekhar
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
| | - Md Arif
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, India
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Abstract
Today the desert margins of northwest India are dry and unable to support large populations, but were densely occupied by the populations of the Indus Civilization during the middle to late Holocene. The hydroclimatic conditions under which Indus urbanization took place, which was marked by a period of expanded settlement into the Thar Desert margins, remains poorly understood. We measured the isotopic values (δ18O and δD) of gypsum hydration water in paleolake Karsandi sediments in northern Rajasthan to infer past changes in lake hydrology, which is sensitive to changing amounts of precipitation and evaporation. Our record reveals that relatively wet conditions prevailed at the northern edge of Rajasthan from ~5.1 ± 0.2 ka BP, during the beginning of the agricultural-based Early Harappan phase of the Indus Civilization. Monsoon rainfall intensified further between 5.0 and 4.4 ka BP, during the period when Indus urban centres developed in the western Thar Desert margin and on the plains of Haryana to its north. Drier conditions set in sometime after 4.4 ka BP, and by ~3.9 ka BP an eastward shift of populations had occurred. Our findings provide evidence that climate change was associated with both the expansion and contraction of Indus urbanism along the desert margin in northwest India.
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10
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Kathayat G, Cheng H, Sinha A, Yi L, Li X, Zhang H, Li H, Ning Y, Edwards RL. The Indian monsoon variability and civilization changes in the Indian subcontinent. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2017; 3:e1701296. [PMID: 29255799 PMCID: PMC5733109 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.1701296] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/13/2017] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
The vast Indo-Gangetic Plain in South Asia has been home to some of the world's oldest civilizations, whose fortunes ebbed and flowed with time-plausibly driven in part by shifts in the spatiotemporal patterns of the Indian summer monsoon rainfall. We use speleothem oxygen isotope records from North India to reconstruct the monsoon's variability on socially relevant time scales, allowing us to examine the history of civilization changes in the context of varying hydroclimatic conditions over the past 5700 years. Our data suggest that significant shifts in monsoon rainfall have occurred in concert with changes in the Northern Hemisphere temperatures and the discharges of the Himalayan rivers. The close temporal relationship between these large-scale hydroclimatic changes and the intervals marking the significant sociopolitical developments of the Indus Valley and Vedic civilizations suggests a plausible role of climate change in shaping the important chapters of the history of human civilization in the Indian subcontinent.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gayatri Kathayat
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Hai Cheng
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
| | - Ashish Sinha
- Department of Earth Science, California State University, Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA 90747, USA
| | - Liang Yi
- State Key Laboratory of Marine Geology, Tongji University, Shanghai, China
| | - Xianglei Li
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Haiwei Zhang
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Hangying Li
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - Youfeng Ning
- Institute of Global Environmental Change, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, China
| | - R. Lawrence Edwards
- Department of Earth Sciences, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN 55455, USA
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11
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Singh A, Thomsen KJ, Sinha R, Buylaert JP, Carter A, Mark DF, Mason PJ, Densmore AL, Murray AS, Jain M, Paul D, Gupta S. Counter-intuitive influence of Himalayan river morphodynamics on Indus Civilisation urban settlements. Nat Commun 2017; 8:1617. [PMID: 29184098 PMCID: PMC5705636 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-017-01643-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2016] [Accepted: 10/06/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Urbanism in the Bronze-age Indus Civilisation (~4.6–3.9 thousand years before the present, ka) has been linked to water resources provided by large Himalayan river systems, although the largest concentrations of urban-scale Indus settlements are located far from extant Himalayan rivers. Here we analyse the sedimentary architecture, chronology and provenance of a major palaeochannel associated with many of these settlements. We show that the palaeochannel is a former course of the Sutlej River, the third largest of the present-day Himalayan rivers. Using optically stimulated luminescence dating of sand grains, we demonstrate that flow of the Sutlej in this course terminated considerably earlier than Indus occupation, with diversion to its present course complete shortly after ~8 ka. Indus urban settlements thus developed along an abandoned river valley rather than an active Himalayan river. Confinement of the Sutlej to its present incised course after ~8 ka likely reduced its propensity to re-route frequently thus enabling long-term stability for Indus settlements sited along the relict palaeochannel. The Bronze-age Indus civilisation (4.6–3.9 ka) was thought to have been linked to the development of water resources in the Himalayas. Here, the authors show that along the former course of the Sutlej River the Indus settlements developed along the abandoned river valley rather than an active Himalayan river.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ajit Singh
- Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, 208016, India.,Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Kristina J Thomsen
- Centre for Nuclear Technologies, Technical University of Denmark, DTU Risø Campus, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Rajiv Sinha
- Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, 208016, India
| | - Jan-Pieter Buylaert
- Centre for Nuclear Technologies, Technical University of Denmark, DTU Risø Campus, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark.,Nordic Laboratory for Luminescence Dating, Department of Geoscience, Aarhus University, DTU Risø Campus, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Andrew Carter
- Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, WC1E 7HX, UK
| | - Darren F Mark
- Natural Environment Research Council Argon Isotope Facility, Scottish Universities Environmental Research Centre, Glasgow, G75 0QF, UK.,Department of Earth and Environmental Science, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, KY16 9AJ, UK
| | - Philippa J Mason
- Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK
| | - Alexander L Densmore
- Institute of Hazard, Risk, and Resilience and Department of Geography, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK
| | - Andrew S Murray
- Nordic Laboratory for Luminescence Dating, Department of Geoscience, Aarhus University, DTU Risø Campus, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Mayank Jain
- Centre for Nuclear Technologies, Technical University of Denmark, DTU Risø Campus, DK-4000, Roskilde, Denmark
| | - Debajyoti Paul
- Department of Earth Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur, Kanpur, 208016, India
| | - Sanjeev Gupta
- Department of Earth Science and Engineering, Imperial College London, London, SW7 2AZ, UK.
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12
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8000-year monsoonal record from Himalaya revealing reinforcement of tropical and global climate systems since mid-Holocene. Sci Rep 2017; 7:14515. [PMID: 29109454 PMCID: PMC5674060 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-15143-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 55] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2017] [Accepted: 10/19/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
We provide the first continuous Indian Summer Monsoon (ISM) climate record for the higher Himalayas (Kedarnath, India) by analyzing a 14C-dated peat sequence covering the last ~8000 years, with ~50 years temporal resolution. The ISM variability inferred using various proxies reveal striking similarity with the Greenland ice core (GISP2) temperature record and rapid denitrification changes recorded in the sediments off Peru. The Kedarnath record provides compelling evidence for a reorganization of the global climate system taking place at ~5.5 ka BP possibly after sea level stabilization and the advent of inter-annual climate variability governed by the modern ENSO phenomenon. The ISM record also captures warm-wet and cold-dry conditions during the Medieval Climate Anomaly and Little Ice Age, respectively.
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Pokharia AK, Agnihotri R, Sharma S, Bajpai S, Nath J, Kumaran RN, Negi BC. Altered cropping pattern and cultural continuation with declined prosperity following abrupt and extreme arid event at ~4,200 yrs BP: Evidence from an Indus archaeological site Khirsara, Gujarat, western India. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0185684. [PMID: 28985232 PMCID: PMC5630146 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0185684] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2017] [Accepted: 09/18/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Archaeological sites hold important clues to complex climate-human relationships of the past. Human settlements in the peripheral zone of Indus culture (Gujarat, western India) are of considerable importance in the assessment of past monsoon-human-subsistence-culture relationships and their survival thresholds against climatic stress exerted by abrupt changes. During the mature phase of Harappan culture between ~4,600–3,900yrsBP, the ~4,100±100yrsBP time slice is widely recognized as one of the major, abrupt arid-events imprinted innumerous well-dated palaeo records. However, the veracity of this dry event has not been established from any archaeological site representing the Indus (Harappan) culture, and issues concerning timing, changes in subsistence pattern, and the likely causes of eventual abandonment (collapse) continue to be debated. Here we show a significant change in crop-pattern (from barley-wheat based agriculture to ‘drought-resistant’ millet-based crops) at ~4,200 yrs BP, based on abundant macrobotanical remains and C isotopes of soil organic matter (δ13CSOM) in an archaeological site at Khirsara, in the Gujarat state of western India. The crop-change appears to be intentional and was likely used as an adaptation measure in response to deteriorated monsoonal conditions. The ceramic and architectural remains of the site indicate that habitation survived and continued after the ~4,200yrsBP dry climatic phase, but with declined economic prosperity. Switching to millet-based crops initially helped inhabitants to avoid immediate collapse due to climatic stresses, but continued aridity and altered cropping pattern led to a decline in prosperity levels of inhabitants and eventual abandonment of the site at the end of the mature Harappan phase.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anil K. Pokharia
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Rajesh Agnihotri
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
- * E-mail: ,
| | - Shalini Sharma
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Sunil Bajpai
- Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences, Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, India
| | - Jitendra Nath
- Archaeological Survey of India, Vadodara, Gujarat, India
| | - R. N. Kumaran
- Archaeological Survey of India, Vadodara, Gujarat, India
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Lukacs JR. Dental adaptations of Bronze Age Harappans: Occlusal wear, crown size, and dental pathology. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PALEOPATHOLOGY 2017; 18:69-81. [PMID: 28888395 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijpp.2017.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2017] [Revised: 05/08/2017] [Accepted: 05/11/2017] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Systematic study of dental attributes yields insights regarding diet and subsistence that cannot be gained from the archaeological record alone. This analysis documents occlusal tooth wear, tooth crown dimensions and dental pathology of an expanded dental sample from Harappa (2550-2030cal BC; Pakistan). New floral and faunal evidence of subsistence indicates a mix of agriculture and pastoralism that can be integrated with evidence of dental attributes and disease to reveal the impact of Harappan diet on oral health. An enlarged dental sample (58 specimens, 910 teeth) from mature phase Harappa was analyzed using Scott's quadrant wear system, measures of crown size, and prevalence of seven pathological dental lesions. All data were collected by the author using standard methods. Sex differences were found in wear, tooth size and prevalence of dental diseases. Females exhibit greater caries prevalence and antemortem tooth loss than men, an attribute associated with higher rates of pulp exposure and abscesses in women. At Harappa antemortem tooth loss results from penetrating caries, while in foragers the cause is severe occlusal wear. In contrast to early Holocene foragers of north India (Damdama, 8800-8600 BP), Harappans have greater occlusal wear, smaller teeth, and a distinct dental pathology profile.
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Affiliation(s)
- John R Lukacs
- Department of Anthropology, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403-1218, United States.
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Yasmin M, Rakha A, Noreen S, Salahuddin Z. Mitochondrial control region diversity in Sindhi ethnic group of Pakistan. Leg Med (Tokyo) 2017; 26:11-13. [PMID: 28549541 DOI: 10.1016/j.legalmed.2017.02.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2016] [Accepted: 02/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
The entire mitochondrial DNA control region (nt 16024-576) of 88 unrelated individuals of Sindhi ethnic group residing in different parts of Sindh province of Pakistan was sequenced. Out of 66 different observed haplotypes 50 were unique and 16 were shared by more than one individual. Results showed admixture of mtDNA pool constituting the haplogroups derived mainly from South Asia (47.6%) and West Eurasian (35.7%) whereas the contribution of the African haplogroup was very small (2.4%). High values of genetic diversity (0.992), power of discrimination (0.981) and low value of random match probability (0.018) indicates that mtDNA analysis for this population can effectively be used for forensic casework. The results are valuable contribution towards building mtDNA population variation database for this particular ethnic group from Pakistan.
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Affiliation(s)
- Memona Yasmin
- University of Health Sciences, Khayaban-e-Jamia Punjab, Lahore 54600, Pakistan.
| | - Allah Rakha
- University of Health Sciences, Khayaban-e-Jamia Punjab, Lahore 54600, Pakistan.
| | - Saadia Noreen
- University of Health Sciences, Khayaban-e-Jamia Punjab, Lahore 54600, Pakistan.
| | - Zeenat Salahuddin
- University of Health Sciences, Khayaban-e-Jamia Punjab, Lahore 54600, Pakistan.
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