Dataset Information

Discovery of circa 115,000-year-old bone retouchers at Lingjing, Henan, China.

ABSTRACT: Most Chinese lithic industries dated between 300,000 and 40,000 are characterized by the absence of Levallois debitage, the persistence of core-and-flake knapping, the rarity of prepared cores, their reduction with direct hard hammer percussion, and the rarity of retouched flakes. Here we report the discovery of seven bone soft hammers at the early hominin Lingjing site (Xuchang County, Henan) dated to 125,000-105,000. These artefacts represent the first instance of the use of bone as raw material to modify stone tools found at an East Asian early Late Pleistocene site. Three types of soft hammers are identified. The first consists of large bone flakes resulting from butchery of large herbivores that were utilized as such for expedient stone tools retouching or resharpening. The second involved the fracture of weathered bone from medium size herbivores to obtain elongated splinters shaped by percussion into sub-rectangular artefacts. Traces observed on these objects indicate intensive and possibly recurrent utilization, which implies their curation over time. The last consists of antler, occasionally used. Lingjing bone tools complement what we know about archaic hominin cultural adaptations in East Asia and highlight behavioural consistencies that could not be inferred from other cultural proxies. This discovery provides a new dimension to the debate surrounding the existence of the Middle Palaeolithic in the region. The attribution of East Asian sites to the Middle Palaeolithic assumes that cultural traits such as the Levallois method represent evolutionary hallmarks applicable to regions of the world different from those in which they were originally found. Here, we promote an approach that consists in identifying, possibly from different categories of material culture, the original features of each regional cultural trajectory and understanding the behavioural and cognitive implications they may have had for past hominin populations.

SUBMITTER: Doyon L

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5847243 | biostudies-other | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-other

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Discovery of circa 115,000-year-old bone retouchers at Lingjing, Henan, China.

Doyon Luc L Li Zhanyang Z Li Hao H d'Errico Francesco F

PloS one 20180312 3

Most Chinese lithic industries dated between 300,000 and 40,000 are characterized by the absence of Levallois debitage, the persistence of core-and-flake knapping, the rarity of prepared cores, their reduction with direct hard hammer percussion, and the rarity of retouched flakes. Here we report the discovery of seven bone soft hammers at the early hominin Lingjing site (Xuchang County, Henan) dated to 125,000-105,000. These artefacts represent the first instance of the use of bone as raw materi ...[more]

PMID: 29529079

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundInfertility is a reproductive health problem which affects not only individuals, families and social populations. Recently, the infertility rate in China has a trend of increase year by year, and few studies have reported the infertility rate in Henan Province, China. The aim of this study was to investigate the current prevalence and associated factors of infertility among women of childbearing age in Henan Province, China.MethodsThis cross-sectional study was conducted from March 2019 to October 2019. We sampled 765 women who were 20-49 years old in eight hospitals of four cities in Henan Province, China. This survey included a questionnaire, physical examination, vaginal ultrasound examinations, and serum anti-Mullerian hormone (AMH) assessment, all of which were conducted under uniform standards by trained personnel. According to the data collected from questionnaire, participants were divided into infertile and fertile groups and analyzed associated factors.ResultsAmong all the 765 participants in this study, the prevalence of infertility was 24.58%. The prevalence of primary infertility was 6.54%, and the prevalence of secondary infertility was 18.04%. In logistic multivariate regression analyses, infertility was associated with age (p < 0.001), history of gynecological surgery (p < 0.001), sweet food (p = 0.003) and decreased ovarian reserve (DOR) (p < 0.001). After further analyses, factors associated with primary infertility were age of marriage (p = 0.006), age of first sexual intercourse (p = 0.003), long-term air-conditioning environment (p < 0.001), decreased ovarian reserve (p = 0.005) and age (p = 0.002). And factors associated with secondary infertility were history of gynecological surgery (p < 0.001), decreased ovarian reserve (p = 0.002), waist-to-hip ratio (WHR) above 0.85 (p = 0.043), delivery times (p = 0.001) and ages (p < 0.001).ConclusionThe prevalence of infertility among women aged 20-49 was 24.58% and only 61.17% infertile women sought medical help in Henan Province, China. Age, history of gynecological surgeries and DOR may increase the risk of infertility. Local public health departments and medical professionals need to discharge their duty of reducing the high incidence of infertility and protecting women's reproductive health.

Project description:Since 2007, many cases of fever, thrombocytopenia and leukopenia syndrome (FTLS) have emerged in Henan Province, China. Patient reports of tick bites suggested that infection could contribute to FTLS. Many tick-transmitted microbial pathogens were tested for by PCR/RT-PCR and/or indirect immunofluorescence assay (IFA). However, only 8% (24/285) of samples collected from 2007 to 2010 tested positive for human granulocytic anaplasmosis (HGA), suggesting that other pathogens could be involved. Here, we used an unbiased metagenomic approach to screen and survey for microbes possibly associated with FTLS. BLASTx analysis of deduced protein sequences revealed that a novel bunyavirus (36% identity to Tehran virus, accession: HQ412604) was present only in sera from FTLS patients. A phylogenetic analysis further showed that, although closely related to Uukuniemi virus of the Phlebovirus genus, this virus was distinct. The candidate virus was examined for association with FTLS among samples collected from Henan province during 2007-2010. RT-PCR, viral cultures, and a seroepidemiologic survey were undertaken. RT-PCR results showed that 223 of 285 (78.24%) acute-phase serum samples contained viral RNA. Of 95 patients for whom paired acute and convalescent sera were available, 73 had serologic evidence of infection, with 52 seroconversions and 21 exhibiting a 4-fold increase in antibody titer to the virus. The new virus was isolated from patient acute-phase serum samples and named Henan Fever Virus (HNF virus). Whole-genome sequencing confirmed that the virus was a novel bunyavirus with genetic similarity to known bunyaviruses, and was most closely related to the Uukuniemi virus (34%, 24%, and 29% of maximum identity, respectively, for segment L, M, S at maximum query coverage). After the release of the GenBank sequences of SFTSV, we found that they were nearly identical (>99% identity). These results show that the novel bunyavirus (HNF virus) is strongly correlated with FTLS.

Project description:BackgroundThe choice of old-age care methods or places plays an important role in improving the quality of life and well-being of older adults. This study aimed to analyze the choices of various old-age care modes (OCMs) among middle-aged and older adults (MOA) aged 40 years and older in Henan Province, China, and to explore the influence of personal health status, perspectives on old-age (POA) and external support received on their choices.MethodsThis study analyzed the data from the previous survey which included 911 MOA. The mean comparison method was used to analyze the evaluation of MOA prior to selecting OCMs, and the effect of individual characteristics, external support received, and personal health status on the choice of OCM for MOA was assessed by Logistic regression (LR) and Concentration Index. The Mediation Effect Model was used to explore effect manner and scope of MOA' POA in their choice of OCM.ResultsThe overall scores for MOA on the choice of the home-based, community-family, retirement village, nursing homes OCM were 4.06 ± 0.81, 3.70 ± 0.88, 3.72 ± 0.90, 3.49 ± 0.97, respectively. The LR model indicated that education level, number of children, relationship between family members and the relationship with neighbors affected the choice of OCM for MOA (P < 0.05). Difference in OCM selection was relatively the largest based on the individual's POA (Concentration index = -0.0895 ~ -0.0606), and it was shown to play a mediating role in other factors influencing the choice of OCM for MOA (Mediation effect = -0.002 ~ 0.013).ConclusionsThe evaluation of MOA on choosing a non-home OCM was generally, and the number of children and external support received were shown to have a relatively substantial impact on the choice of OCM among MOA, however, their power was affected by MOA' POA. Policy makers could encourage the MOA' selection of non-home OCM by improving the relationship among MOA persons while positively transforming their POA.

Dataset Information

Discovery of circa 115,000-year-old bone retouchers at Lingjing, Henan, China.

Publications

Discovery of circa 115,000-year-old bone retouchers at Lingjing, Henan, China.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets