Disequilibrium,Adaptation, and the Norse Settlement of Greenland

There is increasing evidence to suggest that arctic cultures and ecosystems have followed non-linear responses to climate change. Norse Scandinavian farmers introduced agriculture to sub-arctic Greenland in the late tenth century, creating synanthropic landscapes and utilising seasonally abundant marine and terrestrial resources. Using a niche-construction framework and data from recent survey work, studies of diet, and regional-scale climate proxies we examine the potential mismatch between this imported agricultural niche and the constraints of the environment from the tenth to the fifteenth centuries. We argue that landscape modification conformed the Norse to a Scandinavian style of agriculture throughout settlement, structuring and limiting the efficacy of seasonal hunting strategies. Recent climate data provide evidence of sustained cooling from the mid thirteenth century and climate variation from the early fifteenth century. Archaeological evidence suggests that the Norse made incremental adjustments to the changing sub-arctic environment, but were limited by cultural adaptations made in past environments.     

Linkage analysis of chromosome 17q markers and breast-ovarian cancer in Icelandic families, and possible relationship to prostatic cancer.

Seven families, selected for breast cancer segregation, have been analyzed for chromosome 17q12-q23 linkage to breast and ovarian cancer. In two of them, linkage is seen with most markers tested, increasing toward the most proximal region, but without informative recombinations above NM23. In the remaining families, no linkage is observed. Families with 17q linkage are not easily distinguished by clinical characteristics such as early onset (mean age at diagnosis < or = 45 years) or organs involved. In fact, the family with the highest lod scores (> or = 2.3) belongs to the "later onset" (> 45 years) category of families. Interestingly, prostatic cancer is the most frequent malignancy, after breast cancer, in the families that we studied (13 cases total, all metastasizing) and is especially prevalent in males presumed to carry the trait. Of 16 paternal carriers, 7 (44%) had developed prostatic cancer. Haplotype analysis in families with 17q linkage reveals two further prostatic cases as potential carriers. We propose that breast cancer genes may predispose to prostatic cancer in male carriers.     

Palatine torus in the Greenlandic Norse.

Physical anthropologists have long been intrigued by the distinctive oral tori expressed by the medieval Norse populations of Iceland and Greenland. To assess the temporal and spatial variation of one form of oral tori, palatine torus, observations were made on all available Greenlandic Norse skeletons, as well as on samples of medieval Icelanders and Norwegians. In terms of temporal variation, 12th to 14th century (medieval) Greenlanders from the Eastern and Western settlements exhibited higher frequencies and more pronounced expressions of palatine torus compared with early 11th century Greenlanders. The early Greenlandic sample closely approximated the medieval Icelandic and Norwegian samples for total torus frequency, although the Norwegians exhibited the trait to a less pronounced degree. As degree of expression is the most distinctive aspect of torus variation among the Norse, some combination of environmental factors, including increased masticatory stress and chronic undernutrition, probably accounts for most of the difference between settlement period and medieval Greenlanders. Although palatine torus may be hereditary in part, environmental factors play a significant role in the expression of this trait.     

Cows,harp seals,and churchbells: Adaptation and extinction in Norse Greenland

The extinction of the Norse colony in West Greenland (ca A.D. 985–1500) has intrigued generations of historians, medieval archaeologists, and climatologists. This longstanding interest has generated a considerable body of basic paleoclimatic and paleoecological data, as well as a number of largely monocausal explanations for the communities' end. The 1976–1977 Inuit-Norse Project and a variety of recent geophysical and palynological studies have provided the greater detail necessary for a more systematic analysis of cultural adaptation and extinction in Norse Greenland. A dual maritime/terrestrial Norse subsistence economy, combined with a transatlantic trade and long- range arctic hunting, supported a hierarchical social organization and elaborate ceremonial architecture. Elite information management and economic decision- making seems to have been a source of ultimately fatal Norse conservatism in the face of fluctuating resources and Inuit competition.     

Support for association of schizophrenia with genetic variation in the 6p22.3 gene,dysbindin, in sib-pair families with linkage and in an additional sample of triad families

Genetic variants in a gene on 6p22.3, dysbindin, have been shown recently to be associated with schizophrenia (Straub et al. 2002a). There is no doubt that replication in other independent samples would enhance the significance of this finding considerably. Since the gene is located in the center of the linkage peak on chromosome 6p that we reported earlier, we decided to test six of the most positive DNA polymorphisms in a sib-pair sample and in an independently ascertained sample of triads comprising 203 families, including the families for which we detected linkage on chromosome 6p. Evidence for association was observed in the two samples separately as well as in the combined sample (P=.00068 for SNP rs760761). Multilocus haplotype analysis increased the significance further to .00002 for a two-locus haplotype and to .00001 for a three-locus haplotype. Estimation of frequencies for six-locus haplotypes revealed one common haplotype with a frequency of 73.4% in transmitted, and only 57.6% in nontransmitted, parental haplotypes. All other six-locus haplotypes occurring at a frequency of >1% were less often transmitted than nontransmitted. Our results represent a first successful replication of linkage disequilibrium in psychiatric genetics detected in a region with previous evidence of linkage and will encourage the search for causes of schizophrenia by the genetic approach.     

Grazing impacts and woodland management in Eriksfjord: Betula, coprophilous fungi and the Norse settlement of Greenland

This paper focuses on the impact of Norse settlement on vegetation and landscape around the head of Tunulliarfik (Eriksfjord) in southern Greenland. Pollen, radiocarbon, microscopic charcoal and fungal spore data are presented from a peat monolith which was collected close to the ruins of a large Norse farm complex (group ?39 at Qinngua in the former Eastern Settlement). Landnám is identified at ca. cal. a.d. 1020 by a small decrease in pollen from Betula, a slight increase in Poaceae, and the appearance of pollen from Norse apophytes (native plants favoured and spread by human activity) and anthropochores (not native and unintentionally introduced by people). Increases in microscopic charcoal and palynological richness are also apparent. This pattern is broadly consistent with that seen in other pollen diagrams from this region. The sequence is unusual for Greenland, however, in that relatively high Betula pollen percentages (average 20% TLP) are recorded throughout the period of settlement, up to the end of the 14th century a.d. before the profile becomes truncated. If these data are primarily representative of the dry land vegetation, then they suggest that birch woodland and scrub may well have persisted close to the farm throughout the Norse period. Given the potential resource value of woodland to the settlers, this may imply that birch was being managed sustainably, as was the case in Iceland during the medieval period. Coprophilous fungal spores typically found on animal dung are abundant during the early phase of settlement, yet subsequently decline in abundance. This may indicate a likely decrease in grazing intensity or livestock numbers over time, possibly in response to climatic deterioration and/or soil erosion that is expected to have placed increased stress on the pastoral farming system.     

Frequent occurrence of BRCA2 linkage in Icelandic breast cancer families and segregation of a common BRCA2 haplotype.

Cloning of a breast cancer-predisposing gene (BRCA2) on chromosome 13Q12-14 has been reported recently. We analyzed seven large Icelandic breast cancer families with markers from the BRCA2 region. Five families showed strong evidence of linkage. The maximum two-point LOD scores for the five BRCA2-linked families ranged from 1.06 to 3.19. Haplotype analyses revealed a region with identical allele sizes between the families, suggesting that they have inherited the mutation from a common ancestor. Cancer types other than breast cancer occur in individuals, segregating the affected haplotype within these families. This suggests that mutations in the gene may also confer some risk of other malignancies in both males and females.     

The economics of sheep and goat husbandry in Norse Greenland

Insight into the relative importance of sheep and goat herding and of the economic significance of each species (i.e., milk vs. meat vs. wool) in Medieval Greenland is obtained through the application of Halstead et al.'s (2002) criteria for the identification of adult ovicaprine mandibles to faunal assemblages from three Norse farmsteads: Sandnes, V52a, and ?71S. The economic strategies identified are broadly comparable between the two species and the Eastern and Western Settlement sites examined, and are suggestive of the subsistence production of meat and milk. Comparison with farmsteads elsewhere in Greenland indicates that socio-economic status and/or farmstead size interacted with geographical location in determining the economic strategies employed by the Norse farmers. A broader use of resources and a more varied diet are evident at larger farmsteads in Greenland and this paper suggests that such sites would have been better able than their smaller counterparts to withstand environmental deterioration during the early Middle Ages. These analyses have also confirmed that goats were relatively more common in Norse sites in Greenland than in Norse sites in Iceland, Orkney, or Shetland.     

Observation, objectivity, and the conflict of ideas

The first two terms of this title are clear, representing, respectively, the guiding motto of the Society, and the common thread that unites members with very diverse interests and approaches to the understanding of behavior. Then, the last part of the title is elaborated: the conflict of ideas. This aspect is important both in terms of social values, and in terms of the interests of a scientific society operating in the modern world. Within science, there are forces that weaken genuine scientific discussion, and these need at least to be explicated so that their deleterious effects can be minimized. Finally, it is suggested that although the Society has done well in facilitating oral discussion, there is room for improvement in its readiness to engage in written intellectual conflict.     

Aspects of nitrogen and mineral nutrition in Icelandic reindeer,Rangifer tarandus

Nitrogen and mineral (Fe, Mg, Na, K, and Ca) compositions of foodstuffs consumed by and dung produced by male, pregnant and lactating female adult Icelandic reindeer and calves were determined during May of 1992. Iron levels in foodstuffs are consistently above the reported toxicity level for similar-sized sheep (0.5 ppt) and may lead to iron toxicity when consumed by reindeer during periods of high lean body mass catabolism. Male and female reindeer meet nutrient requirements for all measured elements and nitrogen with the possible exception of calcium for males during antler growth.     

Analysis of HPC1, HPCX, and PCaP in Icelandic hereditary prostate cancer

Putative prostate cancer susceptibility loci have recently been identified by genetic linkage analysis on chromosomes 1q24-25 (HPC1). 1q44.243 (PCaP), and Xq27-28 (HPCX). In order to estimate the genetic linkage in Icelandic prostate cancer families, we genotyped 241 samples from 87 families with eleven markers in the HPC1 region, six markers at PCaP, and eight at HPCX. Concurrently, we assessed allelic imbalance at the HPC1 and PCaP loci in selected tumors from the patients. For each of the candidate regions, the combined parametric and non-parametric LOD scores were strongly negative. Evidence for linkage allowing for genetic heterogeneity was also insignificant for all the regions. The results were negative irrespective of whether calculations were performed for the whole material or for a selected set of early age at onset families. The prevalence of allelic imbalance was relatively low in both the HPC1 (0%-9%) and PCaP (5%-20%) regions and was not elevated in tumors from positively linked families. Our studies indicate that the putative cancer susceptibility genes at chromosomes 1q24-25, 1q44.2-43, and Xq27-28 are unlikely to contribute significantly to hereditary prostate cancer in Iceland and that selective loss of the HPC1 and PCaP loci is a relatively rare somatic event in prostate cancers.     

Norse Greenland settlement: reflections on climate change, trade, and the contrasting fates of human settlements in the North Atlantic Islands

Changing economies and patterns of trade, rather than climatic deterioration, could have critically marginalized the Norse Greenland settlements and effectively sealed their fate. Counter-intuitively, the end of Norse Greenland might not be symptomatic of a failure to adapt to environmental change, but a consequence of successful wider economic developments of Norse communities across North Atlantic. Data from Greenland, the Faroe Islands, and medieval Iceland is used to explore the interplay of Norse society with climate, environment, settlement, and other circumstances. Long term increases in vulnerability caused by economic change and cumulative climate changes sparked a cascading collapse of integrated interdependent settlement systems, bringing the end of Norse Greenland.     

Morphological differentiation of Icelandic Redpolls,Acanthis flammea islandica

Capsule The analyses support the grouping of the three Acanthis species, although a large split is observed between the A. hornemanni subspecies.

Aims To investigate the morphological variation in A. f. islandica among different periods of the year and its morphological differentiation from the other subspecies A. f. flammea and A. f. rostrata, and also from the redpoll species, A. cabaret and the two subspecies of A. hornemanni, exilipes and hornemanni.

Methods The subspecies status of the Icelandic population was evaluated with Amadon's rule, by comparing its variation of traits to the distribution of the traits in different species/subspecies of the group.

Results A. f. islandica is characterized by intermediate wing, bill and tail lengths. Based on the 75% rule, wing length and bill depth can be used to discriminate A. f. islandica from both extreme morphs of redpolls (currently classified as different species); A. hornemanni and A. cabaret, and tail and wing length can distinguish A. f. islandica from its conspecifics A. f. flammea. The overall morphological divergence within the redpoll complex is not supported by association to the studied nuclear markers.

Conclusion The taxonomic status of the three redpoll species is supported by Amadon's rule, however the subspecies status of the Icelandic Redpoll remains unclear.     

Race,class and conflict in Britain

John Rex and Sally Tomlinson (with the assistance of David Heardon and Peter Ratcliffe), Colonial Immigrants in a British City: A Class Analysis. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1979. pp. iv plus 357 plus tables, figures. Price £10.50.

Robert Miles and Annie Phizacklea (eds), Racism and Political Action in Britain, London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1979. pp. x plus 246. Price £3.75.     

Some Botanical Aspects of a Norse Economy in Northern Scotland

Summary

In northern Scotland, there is a change from naked to hulled barley sometime around the birth of Christ, although the reason is unclear, and oats were introduced at about this time. Barley cultivation in one area stopped around AD 700; this was possibly related to isolated and early Viking incursions although soil deterioration may have moved cultivation to another part of Freswick Bay. Pollen and macrofossil analyses have been satisfactorily linked and show how they complement each other. Overall the social and economic changes occurring in the north of Scotland during the first millennium AD are obviously nowhere near as clear as those related to the Romans in northern England. Perhaps Earl's Bu will provide at least some of the missing pieces of the jigsaw.