I am an interdisciplinary researcher in the impacts of global climate change on local cultural traditions. I have done considerable research on prehistoric and historic cultures around the Bermuda-Azores subtropical high in the Maya lowlands, southeastern United States of America, and southwestern Europe. I generally try to achieve a unity of perspective in global-local relations through factor and multiple regression analyses.
Multiple approaches were used to investigate agricultural and forestry practices of the Preclassi... more Multiple approaches were used to investigate agricultural and forestry practices of the Preclassic Maya in the Petén Campechano, southwestern Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Palaeoenvironmental inferences were based on pollen and geochemical data from sediment cores collected in lakes Silvituc and Uxul, and the Oxpemul Reservoir. These water bodies are near three archaeological sites that supported agricultural activity between ca. 900 bc and ad 750. After ca. ad 500 the area was under the control of the Kaan Dynasty. These sites show patterns similar to those in sediments from Lake Petén Itzá, northern Guatemala, but they are different from records from the northeastern part of the Peninsula at Lake Chichancanab. Changes in the patterns of abundance, increase and decrease of maize pollen, relative to that of other crops (Cucurbitaceae and Chenopodiaceae) reflect changes with respect to their cultivation and importance. High clay and gypsum content in the sediments may be related to deforestation, agriculture, and intervals of greater rainfall. Changes in sediment elemental concentrations were associated with droughts and human activities during the Classic Period after ad 250. The Classic droughts were more severe and prolonged than those of the Preclassic and thus had a greater impact for inhabitants of the Petén Campechano. This led to a cultural collapse by the seventh century, whereas settlements farther north on the Yucatan Peninsula persisted until the tenth century. Gradually increasing precipitation during the Postclassic (ad 1350-1850), contemporary with the Little Ice Age (LIA), is consistent with the paleoclimate history of the Guatemalan Petén. The response of ecosystems to droughts revealed the water vulnerability of the region and its influence on the sustainability of Maya settlements.
Research Reports, which record research conducted at IIASA, are independently reviewed before pub... more Research Reports, which record research conducted at IIASA, are independently reviewed before publication. Views or opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the Institute, its National Member Organizations, or other organizations supporting the work. Copyright c 2000 International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright holder. Cover design by Anka James. Printed by Remaprint, Vienna.
The world is urbanizing most rapidly in tropical to sub-temperate areas and in coastal zones. Cli... more The world is urbanizing most rapidly in tropical to sub-temperate areas and in coastal zones. Climate change along with other global change forcings will diminish the opportunities for sustainability of cities, especially in coastal areas in low-income countries. Climate forcings include global temperature and heatwave increases that are expanding the equatorial tropical belt, sea-level rise, an increase in the frequency of the most intense tropical cyclones, both increases and decreases in freshwater inputs to coastal zones, and increasingly severe extreme precipitation events, droughts, freshwater shortages, heat waves, and wildfires. Current climate impacts are already strongly influencing natural and human systems. Because of proximity to several key warming variables such as sea-level rise and increasing frequency and intensity of heatwaves, coastal cities are a leading indicator of what may occur worldwide. Climate change alone will diminish the sustainability and resilience o...
Understanding how exchange networks vary through time can provide important insights into the nat... more Understanding how exchange networks vary through time can provide important insights into the nature and extent of political control. In the Maya Lowlands, the political and economic spheres of ancient polities tend to overlap because elites sought to administer the movement of goods within their territories. We use data on the distribution of obsidian, jade, ceramics, and other commodities to reconstruct patterns of long-distance trade in the Elevated Interior Region. We suggest possible routes based on least-cost path analysis and integrate them into our analysis of the political economy. Finally, we discuss the relevance of data on long-distance exchange for studying the shifting political organization of the region.
Las ruinas de Oxpemul representan una corte real fortificada plasmada en la Cuenca de Calakmul ad... more Las ruinas de Oxpemul representan una corte real fortificada plasmada en la Cuenca de Calakmul adentro del Petén Campechano, ubicado unos 25 kms. al norte del centro regional de Calakmul. El grupo Principal de Oxpemul está organizado sobre una meseta de 45.50 m de altura que forma su corte real con un patrón de asentamiento parecido a Calakmul y El Mirador. La Meseta Suroeste y otras más pequeñas están distribuidas alrededor del Bajo central. Oxpemul incluye un total de 21 estelas con 18 altares, muchas d elas estelas están de pie y muestran figuras humanas y textos jeroglíficos en buen estado de conservación. Varios de los altares también incluyen textos y uno muestra la figura de una deidad. Oxpemul está relacionado con 11 ejemplos de su glifo emblema en la forma de un "Trono de Piedra", uno fechado alrededor del Siglo Quinto. Se ha realizado un plano de 9 km2 incluyendo su Grupo Principal y 1400 estructuras que incluye varios grupos mayores y menores, además de aguadas,...
Multiple approaches were used to investigate agricultural and forestry practices of the Preclassi... more Multiple approaches were used to investigate agricultural and forestry practices of the Preclassic Maya in the Petén Campechano, southwestern Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico. Palaeoenvironmental inferences were based on pollen and geochemical data from sediment cores collected in lakes Silvituc and Uxul, and the Oxpemul Reservoir. These water bodies are near three archaeological sites that supported agricultural activity between ca. 900 bc and ad 750. After ca. ad 500 the area was under the control of the Kaan Dynasty. These sites show patterns similar to those in sediments from Lake Petén Itzá, northern Guatemala, but they are different from records from the northeastern part of the Peninsula at Lake Chichancanab. Changes in the patterns of abundance, increase and decrease of maize pollen, relative to that of other crops (Cucurbitaceae and Chenopodiaceae) reflect changes with respect to their cultivation and importance. High clay and gypsum content in the sediments may be related to deforestation, agriculture, and intervals of greater rainfall. Changes in sediment elemental concentrations were associated with droughts and human activities during the Classic Period after ad 250. The Classic droughts were more severe and prolonged than those of the Preclassic and thus had a greater impact for inhabitants of the Petén Campechano. This led to a cultural collapse by the seventh century, whereas settlements farther north on the Yucatan Peninsula persisted until the tenth century. Gradually increasing precipitation during the Postclassic (ad 1350-1850), contemporary with the Little Ice Age (LIA), is consistent with the paleoclimate history of the Guatemalan Petén. The response of ecosystems to droughts revealed the water vulnerability of the region and its influence on the sustainability of Maya settlements.
Research Reports, which record research conducted at IIASA, are independently reviewed before pub... more Research Reports, which record research conducted at IIASA, are independently reviewed before publication. Views or opinions expressed herein do not necessarily represent those of the Institute, its National Member Organizations, or other organizations supporting the work. Copyright c 2000 International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright holder. Cover design by Anka James. Printed by Remaprint, Vienna.
The world is urbanizing most rapidly in tropical to sub-temperate areas and in coastal zones. Cli... more The world is urbanizing most rapidly in tropical to sub-temperate areas and in coastal zones. Climate change along with other global change forcings will diminish the opportunities for sustainability of cities, especially in coastal areas in low-income countries. Climate forcings include global temperature and heatwave increases that are expanding the equatorial tropical belt, sea-level rise, an increase in the frequency of the most intense tropical cyclones, both increases and decreases in freshwater inputs to coastal zones, and increasingly severe extreme precipitation events, droughts, freshwater shortages, heat waves, and wildfires. Current climate impacts are already strongly influencing natural and human systems. Because of proximity to several key warming variables such as sea-level rise and increasing frequency and intensity of heatwaves, coastal cities are a leading indicator of what may occur worldwide. Climate change alone will diminish the sustainability and resilience o...
Understanding how exchange networks vary through time can provide important insights into the nat... more Understanding how exchange networks vary through time can provide important insights into the nature and extent of political control. In the Maya Lowlands, the political and economic spheres of ancient polities tend to overlap because elites sought to administer the movement of goods within their territories. We use data on the distribution of obsidian, jade, ceramics, and other commodities to reconstruct patterns of long-distance trade in the Elevated Interior Region. We suggest possible routes based on least-cost path analysis and integrate them into our analysis of the political economy. Finally, we discuss the relevance of data on long-distance exchange for studying the shifting political organization of the region.
Las ruinas de Oxpemul representan una corte real fortificada plasmada en la Cuenca de Calakmul ad... more Las ruinas de Oxpemul representan una corte real fortificada plasmada en la Cuenca de Calakmul adentro del Petén Campechano, ubicado unos 25 kms. al norte del centro regional de Calakmul. El grupo Principal de Oxpemul está organizado sobre una meseta de 45.50 m de altura que forma su corte real con un patrón de asentamiento parecido a Calakmul y El Mirador. La Meseta Suroeste y otras más pequeñas están distribuidas alrededor del Bajo central. Oxpemul incluye un total de 21 estelas con 18 altares, muchas d elas estelas están de pie y muestran figuras humanas y textos jeroglíficos en buen estado de conservación. Varios de los altares también incluyen textos y uno muestra la figura de una deidad. Oxpemul está relacionado con 11 ejemplos de su glifo emblema en la forma de un "Trono de Piedra", uno fechado alrededor del Siglo Quinto. Se ha realizado un plano de 9 km2 incluyendo su Grupo Principal y 1400 estructuras que incluye varios grupos mayores y menores, además de aguadas,...
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