Application of reflected light microscopy for non-invasive wood identification of marquetry furniture and small wood carvings

Wood identification is a basic information that should interest any wooden artefact. This typically involves invasive sampling, but sometimes sampling is unattainable either because of the object typology or because it is difficult to obtain authorizations. In the present study, reflected light microscopy potential as a non-invasive identification tool for wooden cultural artefacts is assessed on a number of marquetry furniture and small wood carvings. In more than one half of the 13 examined cases accurate wood identification was possible, while the remaining cases yielded information of diagnostic value, making it possible to exclude several potential candidate species. In a number of cases the use of optical filters improved the visibility of character states. Shape and orientation of surfaces influenced the visibility of microscopic characters. The study confirms that reflected light microscopy is a valuable tool for non-invasive wood identification. In many cases it is able to support accurate identification, in others it can anyway provide important information, useful to help decision about supposed species, or to limit the invasiveness of possible further analysis by addressing them on specific features.     

What is The Royal Statistical Society?

This is the first of a short series of articles briefly describing the organisations that sponsor Teaching Statistics. The series starts with The Royal Statistical Society.     

论唐代旧士族的婚姻问题

到了唐代,随着旧士族政治、经济特权的丧失,其对婚姻的维护更为重视,在婚姻上保持了婚姻重门第及婚姻论财的习俗,并以此来纯化旧士族的门第,维持传统的社会声望。同时,由于种种原因,旧士族一反常态,冷淡"国婚",使其与皇室在婚姻关系上的矛盾激化。唐王朝通过三次官修谱牒和下诏禁止卖婚、禁止一定范围内的通婚等措施,试图打破旧士族的婚姻壁垒,建立起与官品秩序相一致的通婚秩序。     

Making the Muscular Briton

The subject of this article is ‘The Royal Readers’, a group of reading anthologies published in Britain by Thomas Nelson between 1872 and 1881 for use in elementary schools. The focus is not on their contribution to the teaching of reading but rather on how they functioned as the tools of an education system conceived primarily as an agent of socialisation. Using examples drawn directly from the texts, it is shown by what means the educators sought to transmit the ideology of imperialism and to define for working-class children – especially boys – a future role in Empire. The article concludes by speculating on the possible impact on pupils of the kind of reading experience offered by these materials.

李贺《帝子歌》主旨析探

在剖析诸家对《帝子歌》理解的基础上,从"帝子"、"九节菖蒲"及最后两句诗的解读为突破口,并与屈原《九歌》及李贺《湘妃》等进行对读认为,《帝子歌》展示的是一个凄美的爱情故事,其中寄托着李贺的仕宦不遇、人生悲凉之感。     

大禹“岷山导江”与“开明决玉垒”传说的历史观照

20世纪80年代,学术界曾就都江堰创建史中的关键问题展开了一场激烈的争论。争论以“开明决玉垒山”说占上峰而宣告结束。二十多年过去了,成都平原上一大批古蜀文化遗址的被发现,使我们不得不对“开明决玉垒山”说产生怀疑,不得不重新审视和探讨都江堰“宝瓶口”的开凿年代以及相关的一些其他问题。     

Impact of Facility Renewal Deferment on Risk to Royal British Columbia Museum,Canada, Collections

ABSTRACT

The Royal British Columbia Museum (RBCM), Canada, houses a collection of almost 7 million artifacts, archival records, and natural history specimens. Three comprehensive collection risk assessments over the past decade have resulted in improvements to the physical environments of the collections as well as new policies and procedures to reduce risk. However, there remain ongoing risks that can only be mitigated through major facility renewal. The last collection risk assessment, completed in 2016, was revisited to review the data and build a defensible case for funding to replace the RBCM's on-site collection storage facilities. Changes to overall collections risk is a complex function of collection development and use trends, evolving risk factors both internal and external to the museum, a growing understanding of the relationship between risks and preservation, in addition to reduction due to risk mitigation projects and building systems aging and wearing out. A defensible method for illustrating the facilities-related risks over time involves estimating the expected loss of individual collection items or loss in value of a group of items that may occur if a major facility upgrade or redevelopment is not realized in the near future. Risk assessment data for representative collection units were reviewed to differentiate risk due to permanent facility characteristics versus more active controls, operations budget controlled risk versus capital budget controlled risk, and collection management-controlled risk versus facility management-controlled risk. This enabled the risk model to isolate risks that could only be mitigated through major facility upgrades. Change in collection value was expressed as Object Equivalents Lost (OEL) and its compliment Object Equivalents Remaining (OER). Projections into the future indicating the effect of varying facility renewal dates could then be clearly shown. Losses, when presented as numbers of items expected to be lost from the collection, become emotionally salient to persons in senior management and governance roles.     

唐朝宫廷音乐机构及其音乐教育职能考论

唐代宫廷音乐机构通过层层设置发展到历史上相当完备的阶段,是唐代宫廷音乐文化发展的重要载体,和繁盛的宫廷音乐活动相适应。唐代宫廷音乐机构是否可被认为是教育机构,其音乐教习行为是否属于教育行为,是研究唐代宫廷音乐教育的前提。对此,试从教育学和历史学的角度进行考证。     

明代宗学设置时间考辨

关于明代宗学开始正式设置的时间,目前学术界看法不一,有“嘉靖九年六月说”、“嘉靖二十四年说”。通过考证认为,“嘉靖九年六月说”、“嘉靖二十四年说”皆无法成立。明代宗学的设置经历了一个过程,嘉靖初至嘉靖四十二三年是明代宗学设置的探讨阶段,嘉靖四十四年,明政府将设置宗学写入《宗藩条例》,以法规的形式同定下来,确立为国家制度,然至隆庆三年,这一制度才开始得到逐步落实。明代宗学于隆庆三年开始正式设置。     

Optimising implementation of reforms to better prevent and respond to child sexual abuse in institutions: Insights from public health,regulatory theory,and Australia’s Royal Commission

The Australian Royal Commission Into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has identified multiple systemic failures to protect children in government and non-government organizations providing educational, religious, welfare, sporting, cultural, arts and recreational activities. Its recommendations for reform will aim to ensure organizations adopt more effective and ethical measures to prevent, identify and respond to child sexual abuse. However, apart from the question of what measures institutions should adopt, an under-explored question is how to implement and regulate those measures. Major challenges confronting reform include the diversity of organizations providing services to children; organizational resistance; and the need for effective oversight. Failure to adopt theoretically sound strategies to overcome implementation barriers will jeopardize reform and compromise reduction of institutional child sexual abuse. This article first explains the nature of the Royal Commission, and focuses on key findings from case studies and data analysis. It then analyzes public health theory and regulatory theory to present a novel analysis of theoretically justified approaches to the implementation of measures to prevent, identify and respond to CSA, while isolating challenges to implementation. The article reviews literature on challenges to reform and compliance, and on prevention of institutional CSA and situational crime prevention, to identify measures which have attracted emerging consensus as recommended practice. Finally, it applies its novel integration of regulatory theory and public health theory to the context of CSA in institutional contexts, to develop a theoretical basis for a model of implementation and regulation, and to indicate the nature and functions of a regulatory body for this context.