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Topic Review
Nicaea
Nicaea or Nicea (/naɪˈsiːə/; Greek: Νίκαια, Níkaia; Turkish: İznik) was an ancient city in northwestern Anatolia, and is primarily known as the site of the First and Second Councils of Nicaea (the first and seventh Ecumenical councils in the early history of the Christian Church), the Nicene Creed (which comes from the First Council), and as the capital city of the Empire of Nicaea following the Fourth Crusade in 1204, until the recapture of Constantinople by the Byzantines in 1261. The ancient city is located within the modern Turkish city of İznik (whose modern name derives from Nicaea's), and is situated in a fertile basin at the eastern end of Lake Ascanius, bounded by ranges of hills to the north and south. It is situated with its west wall rising from the lake itself, providing both protection from siege from that direction, as well as a source of supplies which would be difficult to cut off. The lake is large enough that it could not be blockaded from the land easily, and the city was large enough to make any attempt to reach the harbour from shore-based siege weapons very difficult. The ancient city is surrounded on all sides by 5 kilometres (3 mi) of walls about 10 metres (33 ft) high. These are in turn surrounded by a double ditch on the land portions, and also included over 100 towers in various locations. Large gates on the three landbound sides of the walls provided the only entrance to the city. Today the walls have been pierced in many places for roads, but much of the early work survives and, as a result, it is a major tourist destination.
  • 3.1K
  • 08 Nov 2022
Topic Review
New Guinea Highlands
The New Guinea Highlands, also known as the Central Range or Central Cordillera, is a long chain of mountain ranges on the island of New Guinea, including the island's tallest peak, Puncak Jaya 16,024 ft (4,884 m), the highest mountain in Oceania. The range is home to many intermountain river valleys, many of which support thriving agricultural communities. The highlands run generally east-west the length of the island, which is divided politically between Indonesia in the west and Papua New Guinea in the east.
  • 2.0K
  • 09 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Neuroarchaeology
Neuroarchaeology refers to a field of study that records neuroscientific history through archaeological methods of investigation. The term was first suggested and thus coined by Colin Renfrew and Lambros Malafouris first individually in 2004 and then collaboratively in 2008.It is a combination of the words "neuro-" from 'neuroscience' indicating its connection with the brain sciences and "archaeology" meaning study of human history and prehistory through excavations and other tools. Significant leaps in brain and cognitive sciences in the 21st century have opened up new areas of partnership between archaeology and neuroscience. This collaboration can help an archaeologist figure out biological and neural substrates of human cognitive abilities present in the archaeological objects. The knowledge of neuroscience can also be applied to critically review and challenge existing theories and assumptions about the inception of modern human cognition. The term implies a new area of research that could investigate issues relating to the collaboration between the brain and culture over the long term development of humans. So far, the goals of neuroscience and archaeology are the same- to understand human nature. But their disciplinary approaches diverge significantly. Neuroarchaeology aims at building the analytical bridge between brain and culture ""by putting material culture, embodiment, time and long-term change at centre stage in mind".
  • 980
  • 21 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Nanofarming
The agricultural sector is a vital source of human well-being that provides the necessities of daily life. A variety of farming systems are utilized in agriculture, such as a wide range of tillage options, no-till, agroforestry, precision farming, organic farming, cover cropping, crop rotations, etc. Each of these farming systems has unique challenges, and nanotechnology has successfully improved on many of them. Agricultural applications of nanotechnology include nanofertilizers, nanopesticides, nanosensors, nanobiotechnology, and nanoremediation. 
  • 251
  • 28 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Muslim World
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religions beliefs and laws of Islam, or to societies where Islam is practiced. In a modern geopolitical sense, these terms refer to countries where Islam is widespread, although there are no agreed criteria for inclusion. The term Muslim-majority countries is an alternative often used for the latter sense. The history of the Muslim world spans about 1,400 years and includes a variety of socio-political developments, as well as advances in the arts, science, philosophy, and technology, particularly during the Islamic Golden Age. All Muslims look for guidance to the Quran and believe in the prophetic mission of the Islamic prophet Muhammad, but disagreements on other matters have led to the appearance of different religious schools of thought and sects within Islam. In the modern era, most of the Muslim world came under European colonial domination. The nation states that emerged in the post-colonial era have adopted a variety of political and economic models, and they have been affected by secular and as well as religious trends. (As of 2013), the combined GDP (nominal) of 49 Muslim majority countries was US$5.7 trillion, (As of 2016), they contributed 8% of the world's total. As of 2015, 1.8 billion or about 24.1% of the world population are Muslims. By the percentage of the total population in a region considering themselves Muslim, 91% in the Middle East-North Africa (MENA), 89% in Central Asia, 40% in Southeast Asia, 31% in South Asia, 30% in Sub-Saharan Africa, 25% in Asia–Oceania, around 6% in Europe, and 1% in the Americas. Most Muslims are of one of two denominations: Sunni Islam (85-90%) and Shia (10-15%), However, other denominations exist in pockets, such as Ibadi (primarily in Oman). About 13% of Muslims live in Indonesia, the largest Muslim-majority country; 31% of Muslims live in South Asia, the largest population of Muslims in the world; 20% in the Middle East–North Africa, where it is the dominant religion; and 15% in Sub-Saharan Africa and West Africa. Muslims are the overwhelming majority in Central Asia, the majority in the Caucasus and widespread in Southeast Asia. India is the country with the largest Muslim population outside Muslim-majority countries. Sizeable Muslim communities are also found in the Americas, China, and Europe. Islam is the fastest-growing major religion in the world.
  • 3.9K
  • 26 Oct 2022
Topic Review
Multiple Attribute-based Decision-making Models
Sustainability of agricultural practices depends on economic, environmental, and social conditions. The Rajasthan state of India has arid climatic conditions where kharif crops are commonly grown. In this work, the four major criteria are considered such as the farm area, crop yield per unit area, the cost prices, and the market sales price. Merged analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and entropy techniques have been employed to give reasonable weight coefficients for the objective and subjective weights to each criterion. Multiple attribute-based decision-making models (MADM) have been developed using three proven techniques, namely the Exprom2, the technique for order of preference by similarity to ideal solution (TOPSIS), and the VlseKriterijumska Optimizacija I KompromisnoResenje (VIKOR). The crop Pennisetum glaucum emerged as the most productive kharif crop in the arid climatic conditions of Rajasthan, India under the given criteria. The sensitivity analysis of the three methods identifies the most significant criteria and validates that Pennisetum glaucum is the first ranked crop despite the interchange of the weights. The methodology used in this study may be applied across the globe to select appropriate crops for maximizing the profit, optimizing the natural resources, and promoting sustainable agricultural practices. This study may be used to enhance the agricultural gross domestic product (GDP) to make the agriculturalists self-sufficient and to help the state policymakers in making elective regional policies.
  • 1.7K
  • 05 Nov 2020
Topic Review
Mosasaurus
Mosasaurus (/ˌmoʊzəˈsɔːrəs/; "lizard of the Meuse River") is the type genus (defining example) of the mosasaurs, an extinct group of aquatic squamate reptiles. It lived from about 82 to 66 million years ago during the Campanian and Maastrichtian stages of the Late Cretaceous. The earliest fossils of Mosasaurus known to science were found as skulls in a chalk quarry near the Dutch city of Maastricht in the late 18th century, which were initially thought to have been the bones of crocodiles or whales. One skull discovered around 1780, and which was seized by France during the French Revolutionary Wars for its scientific value, was famously nicknamed the "great animal of Maastricht". In 1808, naturalist Georges Cuvier concluded that it belonged to a giant marine lizard with similarities to monitor lizards but otherwise unlike any known living animal. This concept was revolutionary at the time and helped support the then-developing ideas of extinction. Cuvier did not designate a scientific name for the new animal, and this was done by William Daniel Conybeare in 1822 when he named it Mosasaurus in reference to its origin in fossil deposits near the Meuse River. The exact affinities of Mosasaurus as a squamate remain controversial, and scientists continue to debate whether its closest living relatives are monitor lizards or snakes. Traditional interpretations have estimated the maximum length of the largest species, M. hoffmannii, to be up to 17.1 meters (56 ft), making it one of the largest mosasaurs, although some scientists consider this an overestimation with recent estimates suggesting a length closer to 13 meters (43 ft). The skull of Mosasaurus was equipped with robust jaws capable of swinging back and forth and strong muscles capable of powerful bites using dozens of large teeth adapted for cutting prey. Its four limbs were shaped into robust paddles to steer the animal underwater. Its tail was long and ended in a downward bend and a paddle-like fluke. Mosasaurus was a predator possessing excellent vision to compensate for its poor sense of smell, and a high metabolic rate suggesting it was endothermic ("warm-blooded"), an adaptation only found in mosasaurs among squamates. There is considerable morphological variability across the currently-recognized species in Mosasaurus—from the robustly-built M. hoffmannii to the slender and serpentine M. lemonnieri—but an unclear diagnosis (description of distinguishing features) of the type species M. hoffmannii led to a historically problematic classification. As a result, more than fifty different species have been attributed to the genus in the past. A redescription of the type specimen in 2017 helped resolve the taxonomy issue and confirmed at least five species to be within the genus. Another five species still nominally classified within Mosasaurus are planned to be reassessed in a future study. Fossil evidence suggests Mosasaurus inhabited much of the Atlantic Ocean and the seaways adjacent to it. Mosasaurus fossils have been found in places as diverse as North and South America, Europe, Africa, Western Asia, and Antarctica. This distribution encompassed a wide range of oceanic climates including tropical, subtropical, temperate, and subpolar climates. Mosasaurus was a common large predator in these oceans and was positioned at the top of the food chain. Paleontologists believe its diet would have included virtually any animal; it likely preyed on bony fish, sharks, cephalopods, birds, and other marine reptiles including sea turtles and other mosasaurs. It likely preferred to hunt in open water near the surface. From an ecological standpoint, Mosasaurus probably had a profound impact on the structuring of marine ecosystems; its arrival in some locations such as the Western Interior Seaway in North America coincides with a complete turnover of faunal assemblages and diversity. Mosasaurus faced competition with other large predatory mosasaurs such as Prognathodon and Tylosaurus—which were known to feed on similar prey—though they were able to coexist in the same ecosystems through niche partitioning. There were still conflicts among them, as an instance of Tylosaurus attacking a Mosasaurus has been documented. Several fossils document deliberate attacks on Mosasaurus individuals by members of the same species. Infighting likely took place in the form of snout grappling, similarly seen in modern crocodiles today.
  • 5.1K
  • 01 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Mortuary Archaeology
Mortuary archaeology, also known as bioarchaeology, is the study of human remains in their archaeological context. Mortuary archaeology aims to generate an understanding of disease, migration, health, nutrition, gender, status, and kinship among past populations. Ultimately, these topics help to produce a picture of the daily lives of past individuals. Mortuary archaeology tends to focus how individuals can contribute to understanding the population. Mortuary archaeologists draw upon the humanities, as well as social and hard sciences to have a full understanding of the individual. Mortuary archaeologists also use living groups to their advantage when studying populations that are no longer living. Mortuary archaeologists also are involved in conflict archaeology, and study mass burials from different historical events, like World War II and the Guatemalan genocide. These particular events will deal with comingled individuals. However, not all events are involved in mass burials or of historic context. One instance of a single individual involved in conflict, is that of Otzi. This is an example of a single individual that had been shot and killed. There are different methods that contribute to mortuary archaeology including analyzing different burial techniques between and within populations and creating a biological profile of the individual(s).
  • 598
  • 07 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Mortars of the UNESCO Site of Panamá Viejo
Characterization of the mortars belonging to the UNESCO site of Panamá Viejo is here presented. The monumental site is located in Panama City (Panama) and it represents the first Spanish settlement on the Pacific Coast, founded 500 years ago, in 1519.
  • 444
  • 16 May 2022
Topic Review
Monitoring Control and Surveillance
Monitoring, control and surveillance (MCS), in the context of fisheries, is defined by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations as a broadening of traditional enforcing national rules over fishing, to the support of the broader problem of fisheries management. Internationally, the basis of law for fisheries management comes from the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS). Further definition was in the Declaration of Cancun This is complemented by the work of a variety of regional organizations that cover high seas fishing areas. A key concept in international fishing laws is that of the Exclusive Economic Zone, which extends 200 miles (370 km) from the coast of nations bordering on the oceans. EEZ is not a meaningful concept in relatively small seas such as the Mediterranean and Baltic, so those areas tend to have regional agreements for MCS of international waters within those seas.
  • 425
  • 19 Oct 2022
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