This volume presents combined proceedings of two complementary sessions of the XVIII UISPP World Congress (Paris, 2018). These sessions aimed to identify demographic variations during the Neolithic and Bronze Age and to question their causes while avoiding the potential taphonomic and chronological biases affecting the documentation.

This volume is devoted to the study of water management in ancient cities. It compares the approaches and methods adopted by researchers from different disciplinary sectors to identify the water conditions of past societies and to highlight the measures they have taken to adapt to their water resources.

Proceedings of the 22nd meeting of the ‘Archéologie et Gobelets’ Association which took place in Geneva, Switzerland in January 2021. The book is structured in three parts: Archaeological Material, Funerary Archaeology and Anthropology, and Reconstructing Bell Beaker Society.

ArcheoLogica Data wants to reach an Italian and international audience of scholars, professionals, students, and, more generally, early-career archaeologists, and it accepts contributions written both in Italian and English. ArcheoLogica Data proposes to indissolubly associate data and interpretation. It embraces that global idea of ​​archaeological data that integrates all the discipline declinations without any thematic or chronological constraints. Data is at the centre, and around lies everything that can stem from it: interpretations, hypotheses, reconstructions, applications, theoretical and methodological reflections, critical ideas, constructive discussions.

The transition from hunting and gathering to farming – the Neolithic Revolution – was one of the most signi cant cultural processes in human history that forever changed the face of humanity. Natu an communities (15,100–12,000Cal BP) (all dates in this chapter are calibrated before present) planted the seeds of change, and the Pre-Pottery Neolithic (PPN) (ca. 12,000–ca. 8,350Cal BP) people, were the rst to establish farming communities. The revolution was not fully realized until quite late in the PPN and later in the Pottery Neolithic (PN) period. We would like to ask some questions and comment on a few aspects emphas- ing the linkage between biological and cultural developments during the Neolithic Revolution. The biological issues addressed in this chapter are as follows: × Is there a demographic change from the Natu an to the Neolithic? × Is there a change in the overall health of the Neolithic populations compared to the Natu an? × Is there a change in the diet and how is it expressed? × Is there a change in the physical burden/stress people had to bear with? × Is there a change in intra- and inter-community rates of violent encounters? From the cultural perspective the leading questions will be: × What was the change in the economy and when was it fully realized? × Is there a change in settlement patterns and site nature and organization from Natu an to Neolithic? × Is there a change in human activities and division of labor?

The Oxford Handbook of the European Iron Age presents a broad overview of current understanding of the archaeology of Europe from 1000 BC through to the early historic periods, exploiting the large quantities of new evidence yielded by the upsurge in archaeological research and excavation on this period over the last thirty years. Three introductory chapters situate the reader in the times and the environments of Iron Age Europe. Fourteen regional chapters provide accessible syntheses of developments in different parts of the continent, from Ireland and Spain in the west to the borders with Asia in the east, from Scandinavia in the north to the Mediterranean shores in the south. Twenty-six thematic chapters examine different aspects of Iron Age archaeology in greater depth, from lifeways, economy, and complexity to identity, ritual, and expression. Among the many topics explored are agricultural systems, settlements, landscape monuments, iron smelting and forging, production of textiles, politics, demography, gender, migration, funerary practices, social and religious rituals, coinage and literacy, and art and design.

Knowledge of the origin and spread of farming has been revolutionised in recent years by the application of new scientific techniques, especially the analysis of ancient DNA from human genomes. In this book, Stephen Shennan presents the latest research on the spread of farming by archaeologists, geneticists and other archaeological scientists. He shows that it resulted from a population expansion from present-day Turkey. Using ideas from the disciplines of human behavioural ecology and cultural evolution, he explains how this process took place. The expansion was not the result of 'population pressure' but of the opportunities for increased fertility by colonising new regions that farming offered. The knowledge and resources for the farming 'niche' were passed on from parents to their children. However, Shennan demonstrates that the demographic patterns associated with the spread of farming resulted in population booms and busts, not continuous expansion.

The Cambridge Prehistory of the Bronze and Iron Age Mediterranean offers new insights into the material and social practices of many different Mediterranean peoples during the Bronze and Iron Ages, presenting in particular those features that both connect and distinguish them. Contributors discuss in depth a range of topics that motivate and structure Mediterranean archaeology today, including insularity and connectivity; mobility, migration, and colonization; hybridization and cultural encounters; materiality, memory, and identity; community and household; life and death; and ritual and ideology. The volume's broad coverage of different approaches and contemporary archaeological practices will help practitioners of Mediterranean archaeology to move the subject forward in new and dynamic ways. Together, the essays in this volume shed new light on the people, ideas, and materials that make up the world of Mediterranean archaeology today, beyond the borders that separate Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.

Archaeologists, anthropologists, and classicists discuss how urbanization first emerged in strikingly different sociopolitical contexts in North America, Europe, and the Near East. The pursuit for universally applicable definitions of the terms “urban” and “city” has frequently distracted scholars from scrutinizing processes of how ancient nucleated settlements evolved and developed. Based on the premise that similar social dynamics to a great extent governed nucleation trajectories throughout human history, Coming Together focuses on both prehistoric aggregated and early urban settlements. Drawing from a variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, archaeologists, anthropologists, and classicists discuss how nucleation unfolded in strikingly different sociopolitical contexts in North America, Europe, and the Near East. The major themes of the volume are nucleation’s origins, pathways to sustainability, and the transformative role of these sites in sociopolitical and cultural change.

A timely update of a highly popular handbook on statistical genomics This new, two-volume edition of a classic text provides a thorough introduction to statistical genomics, a vital resource for advanced graduate students, early-career researchers and new entrants to the field. It introduces new and updated information on developments that have occurred since the 3rd edition. Widely regarded as the reference work in the field, it features new chapters focusing on statistical aspects of data generated by new sequencing technologies, including sequence-based functional assays. It expands on previous coverage of the many processes between genotype and phenotype, including gene expression and epigenetics, as well as metabolomics. It also examines population genetics and evolutionary models and inference, with new chapters on the multi-species coalescent, admixture and ancient DNA, as well as genetic association studies including causal analyses and variant interpretation. The Handbook of Statistical Genomics focuses on explaining the main ideas, analysis methods and algorithms, citing key recent and historic literature for further details and references. It also includes a glossary of terms, acronyms and abbreviations, and features extensive cross-referencing between chapters, tying the different areas together. With heavy use of up-to-date examples and references to web-based resources, this continues to be a must-have reference in a vital area of research. Provides much-needed, timely coverage of new developments in this expanding area of study Numerous, brand new chapters, for example covering bacterial genomics, microbiome and metagenomics Detailed coverage of application areas, with chapters on plant breeding, conservation and forensic genetics Extensive coverage of human genetic epidemiology, including ethical aspects Edited by one of the leading experts in the field along with rising stars as his co-editors Chapter authors are world-renowned experts in the field, and newly emerging leaders. The Handbook of Statistical Genomics is an excellent introductory text for advanced graduate students and early-career researchers involved in statistical genetics.