Milton Núñez

Sacred and Profane Livelihood: Animal Bones from Sieidi Sites in Northern Finland

In this paper, animal offerings at Sámi sacrificial sites, sieidi (SaaN), will be discussed from an archaeological and a zooarchaeological point of view. Offerings are seen as a part of daily subsistence activities where the border between sacred and profane was fuzzy and transient. We take the position that animal offerings cannot be interpreted as ritual actions clearly separated from everyday life, but, rather, we have to take into account that the relationship between offerings and livelihood was seen as a dynamic one in a holistic worldview. We discuss archaeological finds from three sieidi sites as examples and claim that the offerings taken to sieidi sites tell us about daily subsistence strategies but at the same time also about the relationship between people and animals in the worldview of the Sámi.

Cross sectional properties of the human radial tuberosity.

This study examines the cross sectional shape and biomechanical properties of the radial bone shaft at mid-radial tuberosity (RT) musculoskeletal marker (MSM). This information will provide insight into factors affecting bone modelling at muscle insertions. Radial shaft cross-sectional properties at radial tuberosity area (RTA) have not been previously studied. The material consists of 54 male skeletons derived from autopsies performed during the 1920s and 1930s and housed at the Central Natural History Museum, University of Helsinki. The age, sex and occupation of these individuals are known. We applied a pQCT (peripheral quantitative computed tomography) scan on the mid-site of the radial tuberosity to investigate the cross-sectional shape, the bone mineral density (BMD) and biomechanical properties. Our results indicate that bone modelling does not produce increased wall thickness or BMD at the RT site. Additionally we noticed that aging and physical activity affect the biomechanics of the RT and that the bone distribution at mid-RT is adapted to accommodate the biceps brachii muscle pull. We also found a clear association between RTA and biomechanical properties of mid-RT cross section.

Bone lesions from the ossuary of the Napoleonic battle of Marengo, northern Italy (14th June 1800).

The custom of burying deceased members of the elite beneath church floors was common in 17th-18th-century Finland. This practice is responsible for the mummification of the remains of an early 17th-century vicar of Kemi parish, Nikolaus Rungius. Computed tomography performed on his remains revealed a possible tuberculous infection in his spine. The purpose of this paper is to further elaborate on findings in support of this diagnosis. Whether Vicar Rungius had tuberculosis is not only interesting considering his personal history, but also in terms of the history of tuberculosis in Northern Finland where the first systematically recorded cases date back to the 18th century.

The Sea Giveth, The Sea Taketh: The Role of Marine Resources in Northern Ostrobotnia, Finland, 4000–2000 B.C.

During the fourth millennium B.C. the northern coast on the Finnish side of the Botnian Bay seems to have experienced major social and economic developments that continued to flourish throughout the third millennium. These are manifested in the form of new asbestos-tempered wares, an abundance of exotic goods, clusters of semi-subterranean houses in village-like patterns, and the erection of cairns and megastructures. All these features suggest a certain degree of sedentism and social complexity, both probably triggered by a surplus of food and goods provided by especially rich marine resources. After 2000 B.C., however, house clusters disappear, exotic goods become rare, and megastructures cease to be built. Since these cultural phenomena seem to coincide with a period of resource-rich environmental conditions in the region, this paper suggests that the rise and fall of these signs of prosperity or complexity may be related to the availability of maritime resources.

Computed tomography of mummified human remains in old Finnish churches, a case study: the mummified remains of a 17th-century vicar revisited

Summary: Mummified human remains have been preserved in the cool, well-ventilated crypts of old Finnish churches, which were popular burial sites among the elite of the early modern period. Here, the authors present the results of a computed tomography study of the remains of an early 17th-century vicar of Keminmaa. They examined the preservation of his remains and made several pathological findings; the causes of the latter possibly had a severe impact on his health. He was a large man who achieved relative longevity for his time, although he suffered from conditions related to obesity. There were also potential indications of tuberculosis. Inflammatory changes, for example, had afflicted his spine.

A new malaria protocol in a Congolese refugee camp in West Tanzania

Abstract The objective of this study was to evaluate the impact of a new malaria protocol introduced in 2007 at Nyarugusu Refugee Camp. In accordance with this protocol, the delivery of a diagnostic test (rapid diagnostic test or microscopy) was made compulsory prior to the administration of antimalarial drugs (ACTs: artemisinin-based combination therapies). We collected camp clinic records on outpatient malaria diagnoses from 2004 through 2007 and compared the morbidity percentages attributed to malaria during these years, as well as the actual incidence of malaria in 2006 and 2007. Our analyses demonstrate that malaria accounted for 45.8% of all morbidity in 2004 (64,557 malaria cases out of 1,40,669 total morbidity), followed by corresponding figures of 47.8% for 2005 (94,389 malaria cases out of 1,97,400) and 47.9% for 2006 (60,760 malaria cases out of 1,26,754); however, the values dropped sharply to 22.8% in 2007 (20,136 malaria cases out of 88,254). We found a similar drastic drop in the incidence of malaria from an average of 182.415 cases/1000 inhabitants/month in 2006 to only 35.635 cases/1000 inhabitants/month in 2007. The results of our study suggest that because of the overlap of symptoms from malarial and non-malarial febrile illnesses, diagnosing malaria on clinical and epidemiological bases may lead to its overdiagnosis. This could result in both the overprescription of antimalarials and the underdiagnosis and inappropriate treatment of non-malarial febrile processes. The use of affordable and available tests can increase the accuracy of malaria diagnoses, so that only real malaria cases would be treated as such. This would help curb the uncontrolled administration of antimalarials to prevent the development of resistance to new malarial treatments and thus decrease treatment expenses. This way, financial, material and human resources can be allocated to other health issues that currently go unnoticed.