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Digital and spatial techniques, such as reality-based surveying and 3D modelling, have long been used in archaeology. However, in recent years the use of these techniques has gained importance also in the history of architecture, a discipline in which these data can help to interpret traditionally used, but often incomplete, written sources (Tucci et al. 2021; Fiorini et al. 2023).This paper is about an aspect of the eighteenth-century renovations of Palazzo Vecchio. It focuses attention on a small terrace that runs alongside the exterior facade of the Sala dei Cinquecento and to which there is no entrance. The question this paper seeks to answer is: why during eighteenth-century renovations it was decided to exclude the existing entrance to the terrace from the accessible spaces? Using geomatics techniques, it has been possible to identify the location of the enclosed spaces in relation to other parts of the building (Tucci, 2017).In accordance with the criteria of Spatial Humanities, the present research is characterized by an interdisciplinary approach based on the analysis and interpretation of data obtained from archival sources (Archivio Storico Comunale di Firenze, Fototeca Comunale di Firenze, Archivio Centrale di Stato di Roma, Archivio di Stato di Firenze, Gabinetto fotografico degli Uffizi, Catalogo Generale Beni Culturali, Biblioteca Nazionale), the consultation of relevant published iconographic sources in libraries, and the interpretation of 3D data and architectural elements discovered during the onsite survey of the area between the inner and outer southern façades of the Sala dei Cinquecento.The first part of this essay focus on the southern façade of the Sala dei Cinquecento and aims to demonstrate to what extent the Carlo Falconieri's modification altered the general appearance of the façade. The second part, aims to clarify the architectural phases or aspects of the southern façade of the Sala dei Cinquecento before Falconieri's works. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Additive manufacturing, commonly known as 3D printing, represents the forefront of modern manufacturing technology. Its growing popularity spans across research and development, material science, design, processes, and everyday applications. This review paper presents a crucial review of nano-level 3D printing, examining it from the perspectives of processes, materials, industrial applications, and future trends. The authors have synthesized the latest insights from a wide range of archival articles and source books, highlighting the key findings. The primary contribution of this study is a condensed review report that consolidates the newest research on nano-level 3D printing, offering a broad overview of this innovative technology for researchers, inventors, educators, and technologists. It is anticipated that this review study will significantly advance research in nanotechnology, additive manufacturing, and related technological fields. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent decades, there has been a growing number of studies exploring the historical dimensions of the interconnectedness of human societies and the environment. A core approach in this field is historical ecology. We analyzed 544 historical-ecological papers to assess patterns and trends in the field. We found a high degree of interdisciplinarity with a focus on local case studies, of periods of fewer than 500 years, analyzing archival sources through quantitative approaches. The proportion of papers containing management recommendations has increased over time. To make historical ecology globally relevant, more effort should be made to utilize studies across languages, borders and worldviews. We call for high standards regarding the use of social scientific methodologies. Lastly, we argue that fostering longer-term studies and assessing the real-life impact of policy recommendations emerging from historical ecology can help the discipline better contribute solutions to the challenges facing humanity in an uncertain future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Futuro del Pasado: Revista Electrónica de Historia is the property of Futuro del Pasado: Revista Electronica de Historia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Cross-border tourism marketing and promotion is a widely endorsed approach for encouraging regional tourism development. The aim in this paper is to uncover an early historical example of regional tourism development which occurred in colonial Southern Africa. Using archival sources the study pinpoints the contributions of publicity material produced by South African Railways for the promotion of tourism in the territories of colonial Zimbabwe and Mozambique. In encouraging international tourism to South Africa during the 1920s and 1930s there was an understanding that South Africa's leading national tourism assets were best packaged together for transnational tourism development' with marketing for the iconic attraction of Victoria Falls as well as Lourenço Marques. The destination which was promoted as 'South Africa' in tourism guidebooks did not correspond with the geopolitical entity of the Union of South Africa, instead it embraced the attractions of Portuguese-controlled Mozambique and several tourism products in the British-controlled territory of Rhodesia. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The idea of a Jewish invasion in Romania appeared during the debates on the first constitution (1866) and was revitalized after 1918, as the recently occupied territory of Bessarabia hosted many Jewish groups fleeing revolutionary Russia, the civil war, and pogroms. In this context, the immigrants were depicted by nationalist propaganda as invaders wishing to exploit Romania's wealth and hospitality, and this image was combined with the myth of Judeo-Bolshevism. Thanks to the archival sources of the High Commission for Refugees and of relief organizations such as the Joint Distribution Committee, this paper aims to present in detail the controversial encounter between national security policies and humanitarian concerns for the fate of the refugees. At the same time, it will discuss how the refugee question influenced the Romanian political context, fostering sentiments of antisemitism and xenophobic anxiety. As will be argued, the idea of an invasion was very influential before and after World War I, and conditioned not only the definition of the policies regarding citizenship and minorities, but also the whole political discourse and the shaping of Romanian identity. At the same time, the emergence of refugees and the juxtaposition of humanitarian versus national security was not a purely Romanian affair, and in many aspects anticipated the topics of today's debates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Archival resources, a photogrammetric survey, analysis of materials and techniques, and evaluation of the state of conservation were interconnected phases in the interdisciplinary research on the perspective scenery of the Teatro Olimpico in Vicenza. To fill existing gaps related to the history of this unique artefact and to the undocumented retouching of paint layers on the scenery during post-war reconstruction work, a broad analytical approach (optical microscopy, XRPD, SEM–EDX, μFTIR and μRaman) was applied to micro-samples, the selection of which was guided by consolidated geometrical and archival data. The aims were to obtain a characterisation of the pigments and binders and to evaluate the microstratigraphic sequence, the state of conservation of the scenery flats, and the deterioration processes involved. The findings unveiled a discernible variability in the production techniques of the finishes, frequently lacking the classic microstratigraphic sequence associated with the traditional method for painting on wooden panels from the sixteenth century. Moreover, by identifying many pigments that could be used as temporal markers we were able unequivocally to establish, for the first time, that a significant part of the scenery designed by the architect Vincenzo Scamozzi was heavily repainted in the post-WWII period. These analytical results and all the data collected on the artefacts over time were related through an HBIM model, enabling the historical and technical-analytical information to be linked to the geometrical survey and thus to provide guidance for actions based on current and future knowledge for the maintenance and monitoring of the Teatro Olimpico. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article unpacks the archival, textual, and encoded layers that comprise the Maria Edgeworth Letters Project (MELP), an open-access digital archive containing the correspondence of the Anglo-Irish Regency author Maria Edgeworth and her circle. These layers reveal the impossibility of flattening or standardizing our work and instead advocate for a more inclusive and collaborative digital humanities model that accommodates both institutional and volunteer labor. Just as different methods were used to approach each archive and manage our project across multiple institutions, each transcription requires a different level of care, especially as various notes and collaborators are cited in the final project. Through the use of TEI, we can flexibly represent diverse aspects of each letter while still maintaining a database-readable structure. We endeavor to connect each person, place, or work identified in Edgeworth 's letters and our database to a larger network of linked data in order to place our project in conversation with other archival resources. For entities that are unidentified or unknown, we create new name authority files or produce internal data files that can be viewed by our collaborators and users. MELP 's flexible structure thus allows it to strive for interoperability while refusing to efface the individual traces of its collaborators, entities, and material artifacts. Our article describes how we are building the Maria Edgeworth Letters Project , an open-access archive containing Maria Edgeworth 's correspondence, tracing our steps including image retrieval and processing, metadata generation, transcription, linked open data, and TEI encoding. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: To measure incidence of conflicts of interest (COI) with food and pharmaceutical industry actors on the advisory committee for the 2020–2025 US Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) and assess the adequacy of current mechanisms to disclose and manage COI among the committee's members. Design: We compiled longitudinal data from archival sources on connections between members of the DGA's advisory committee and actors. We hypothesised that these committee members, who oversee the science for the most influential dietary policy in the USA, might have significant COI that would be relevant to their decision making. Disclosure of COI on this committee was recommended in 2017 by the National Academies of Sciences in order to increase transparency and manage bias, but public disclosure of the committee's COI does not appear to have taken place. Setting: The committee was composed of twenty experts. Participants: None. Results: Our analysis found that 95 % of the committee members had COI with the food and/or pharmaceutical industries and that particular actors, including Kellogg, Abbott, Kraft, Mead Johnson, General Mills, Dannon and the International Life Sciences, had connections with multiple members. Research funding and membership of an advisory/executive board jointly accounted for more than 60 % of the total number of COI documented. Conclusions: Trustworthy dietary guidelines result from a transparent, objective and science-based, process. Our analysis has shown that the significant and widespread COI on the committee prevent the DGA from achieving the recommended standard for transparency without mechanisms in place to make this information publicly available. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focuses on assessing the defensiveness of medieval fortresses situated along the Mediterranean coast, including the Northern Algerian coast and Southeastern Spain. The proposed methodology involved a two-fold process comprising identification and evaluation. Initially, we identified and geolocated our case studies, deriving their locations from archival sources. We then seamlessly integrated them into a Geographic Information System (GIS) for precise georeferencing on a rasterized landscape. Subsequently, we conducted assessments of visibility, intervisibility, and elevation, which we consider pivotal in determining the degree of defensibility of the fortified sites. Specifically, the aim of this research was to investigate the intricate relationship between natural landscapes and architectural defensive features, with a focus on discerning the influence that the chosen location has on the strategic and defensive significance of the studied fortresses. Our findings reveal that the evolution of those defensive systems within our study context is intricately tied to the physical elements comprising the landscape. These natural constituents have served as a foundation for the architectural and defensive characteristics adopted by medieval builders. Furthermore, we delineated two distinct typologies: the isolated type, intentionally designed to obscure visibility, and the exposed type, characterized by a higher visibility index. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The system of information support of the authorities of the Ukrainian early modern state, as well as implementing internal and external policies, contributed to protecting Ukrainian lands from external aggression and the expansion of Ukrainian interests in the world. The main purpose of the study is to analyze this statement. The methodological basis of the research is a comprehensive analysis of archival sources and historiography, which is based on the main principles of historicism and scientific objectivity. The scientific novelty of this publication is to prove the hypothesis that thoughtful information activity in its various segments was an important component of the policy of the Ukrainian early-modern state and contributed to protecting its lands and interests from foreign encroachments. Conclusions. Information activity was an important component of the security activities of the Ukrainian Cossacks and a means of implementing power policy. The principles and approaches developed in working with information will help reveal the secrets of the Cossacks' information skills and will contribute to the deepening of interest in the study and revival of Cossack traditions, which is necessary both for filling research gaps and for training specialists in the field. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Scholarship on special interest tourism has burgeoned since the 1980s. Although this expanding research interest is relatively new, the phenomenon of special interest tourism is not of recent origin as many of its forms, such as mountaineering, exhibit a long historical record. Most research on special interest tourism concentrates on contemporary issues. The objective is to present a historical perspective on special interest tourism. Using archival sources an analysis is undertaken of the evolution of mountaineering in South Africa as a recreational sport and incipient form of special interest tourism. Cape Town's Table Mountain and the Drakensberg mountains provide the geographical focus of discussion. The results demonstrate that during the 1920s and 1930s tourism promoters in South Africa acknowledged the potential of special interest mountaineers to contribute to tourism growth. The documented experience of early mountaineering in South Africa provides an example of racism in recreation by showing that the country's recreational practices became constructed around politically-imposed racial hierarchies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the connections between Estonian and Finnish lesbian communities in the early 1990s, based on oral history interviews along with media and archival sources. The Estonian lesbian community formed very quickly in the spring and summer of 1990 and from the very start developed a strong bond with the Finnish lesbian community that then lasted for several years. We have interviewed both Finnish and Estonian lesbian women about the period to learn about the activities of this transnational network and the meaning it carried for its members. In our analysis, we focus on personal and social challenges and tensions, national differences and diverse identities and ways of living as a lesbian woman, but also on the fun and rewarding connections. Our study portrays the transnational network as an example of a relatively equal community, despite the stark economic differences, and addresses how the translocal connections formed as a natural, important and integral part of the development of both these communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]