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Abstract This article examines the works of the Argentinian naturalist Florentino Ameghino (1854-1911) and the German zoologist Hermann von Ihering (1850-1930) concerning the origin and classification of human 'races' and the development of human culture. The research is primarily founded on an analysis of letters exchanged between these two scholars, emphasizing the significance of skulls as tangible evidence in the reconstruction of human evolution. The article delves into Ihering's pivotal role in the formulation of a standardized craniometric system, following which it explores Ameghino's propositions regarding the origin and local development of the human species. Subsequently, the reception of Ameghino's ideas by Ihering and the latter's investigations into the origins of human culture are scrutinized. This investigation illuminates a network of local, transnational, and transatlantic connections, within which study objects, instruments, and epistemes were disseminated. The collective nature of anthropological practices is underscored, underpinned by the principles of collaboration, alliance, and competition at multiple levels. In conclusion, the authors argue that the relationship between Ameghino and Ihering demonstrates the extent to which anthropological knowledge evolved into a collective, transnational, and dialogical endeavor. Even theories and hypotheses that have subsequently become marginalized in the history of anthropology are recognized as crucial stepping stones in the construction of anthropological knowledge.

This study offers an overview of the low-frequency (i.e., monthly to seasonal) evolution, dynamics, predictability, and surface impacts of a rare Southern Hemisphere (SH) stratospheric warming that occurred in austral spring 2019. Between late August and mid-September 2019, the stratospheric circumpolar westerly jet weakened rapidly, and Antarctic stratospheric temperatures rose dramatically. The deceleration of the vortex at 10 hPa was as drastic as that of the first-ever-observed major sudden stratospheric warming in the SH during 2002, while the mean Antarctic warming over the course of spring 2019 broke the previous record of 2002 by similar to 50% in the midstratosphere. This event was preceded by a poleward shift of the SH polar night jet in the uppermost stratosphere in early winter, which was then followed by record-strong planetary wave-1 activity propagating upward from the troposphere in August that acted to dramatically weaken the polar vortex throughout the depth of the stratosphere. The weakened vortex winds and elevated temperatures moved downward to the surface from mid-October to December, promoting a record strong swing of the southern annular mode (SAM) to its negative phase. This record-negative SAM appeared to be a primary driver of the extreme hot and dry conditions over subtropical eastern Australia that accompanied the severe wildfires that occurred in late spring 2019. State-of-the-art dynamical seasonal forecast systems skillfully predicted the significant vortex weakening of spring 2019 and subsequent development of negative SAM from as early as late July. ; Australian Government Department of Agriculture, Rural R&D for Profit programme National Science Foundation (NSF) NSF - Directorate for Geosciences (GEO) Met Office Hadley Centre Climate Programme - BEIS Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) NASA's Atmospheric Composition Modeling and Analysis Program Victorian Government (DELWP) Australian Government Department of Industry, Innovation and Science ...

AbstractAlthough ingestion of plastic by tubenosed seabirds has been documented regularly, identification of the polymer composition of these plastics has rarely been described. Polymer assessment may assist in identifying sources and may indicate risks from additives occurring in specific types of polymers. Using known test materials, two identification methods Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and near infrared spectroscopy (FTIR and NIR) were compared. Although both methods were found to be similarly suitable for identification of plastic polymers, a significant difference was observed in identification of natural materials. FTIR frequently misclassified natural materials as being a synthetic polymer. Within our results, an 80% match score threshold functioned best to distinguish between natural items and synthetics. Using NIR, the historical variability of plastics ingested by northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) from the Dutch sector of the North Sea was analysed for three time periods since the 1980s. For the more recent decade, variability between fulmars from different regions in the northeast Atlantic was investigated. Regional variation was further explored by analysing plastics obtained from the stomachs of southern hemisphere relatives of the fulmar (southern fulmar, cape petrel, snow petrel) and Wilson's storm petrel. Results show that proportional abundance of polymer types in these seabirds is closely related to the plastic categories that they ingest (e.g. pellets, foam, fragments). The uptake of different plastic categories and related polymer types most likely reflects spatial and temporal variations in availability rather than ingestion preferences of the birds.

Before 1890, German emigrants were one of the largest European groups to emigrate overseas in the middle of the nineteenth century. Most of them settled in North America, but a handful of Germans landed in countries south of the equator. This article examines those who chose uncommon paths and settled in the Southern Hemisphere, focusing on Hessians who went to either Australia or South America. Those who emigrated to the Southern Hemisphere were quite different from the Hessians who moved to the United States. More striking, however, are the contrasting backgrounds of the Australian-bound versus the South American–bound groups: These two groups were comparable in size, but in terms of any identifying socioeconomic characteristic they were poles apart from each other. Those bound for Australia were poorer, less skilled, and more likely to use a multiyear migration strategy to get their family members across the ocean, typical of the ways of those bound for the United States. In contrast, those who went to South America were wealthier, more skilled, and mostly emigrated as intact families without the use of such migration networks. This work shows that the choice of destination mattered for individuals and that certain destinations attracted particular types of individuals and groups, reemphasizing the role of self-selection in the migration experience.

This paper is concerned with a recently formed regional organisation called the Group of Temperate Southern Hemispheric Countries on Environment (the Valdivia Group) and its attempts to devise common environmental strategies on a range of issues such as biodiversity, climate change and ozone depletion. Using the examples of climate change and the illegal, unregulated and unreported fishing of the Patagonian Toothfish, the paper concludes that southern oceanic regionalism remains fraught with contradiction and difficulty. (DSE/DÜI)

To assess air pollution emitted in Southern Hemisphere mid-latitudes and transported to Antarctica, we investigate the climatological mean and temporal trends in aerosol optical depth (AOD), carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide (NO2), and formaldehyde (HCHO) columns using satellite observations. Generally, all these measurements exhibit sharp peaks over and near the three nearby inhabited continents: South America, Africa, and Australia. This pattern indicates the large emission effect of anthropogenic activities and biomass burning processes. High AOD is also found over the Southern Atlantic Ocean, probably because of the sea salt production driven by strong winds. Since the pristine Antarctic atmosphere can be polluted by transport of air pollutants from the mid-latitudes, we analyze the 10-day back trajectories that arrive at Antarctic ground stations in consideration of the spatial distribution of mid-latitudinal AOD, CO, NO2, and HCHO. We find that the influence of mid-latitudinal emission differs across Antarctic regions: western Antarctic regions show relatively more back trajectories from the mid-latitudes, while the eastern Antarctic regions do not show large intrusions of mid-latitudinal air masses. Finally, we estimate the long-term trends in AOD, CO, NO2, and HCHO during the past decade (2005–2016). While CO shows a significant negative trend, the others show overall positive trends. Seasonal and regional differences in trends are also discussed. ; This work was supported by the Korea Polar Research Institute (KOPRI, PE18010). Additionally, this work was supported by grant (NRF2018R1C1B6008223) from the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), funded by the Korean government.