Antonov-Schlorke and Guissani are in conflict with received wisdom, that in pregnancy the fetus and especially its brain are preferentially supplied in malnutrition. For primates and in the first trimester this is clearly not the case. An extra warning for pregnant girls is contained in “Contrary to the known benefits from this degree of dietary reduction on life span, MNR in pregnancy compromises structural fetal cerebral development, potentially having an impact on brain function throughout life“. “Known benefits” makes me think not so much of anorexic supermodels but rather of women striving for the currently conceived ideal weight.
As a science going back to palaeolithic times medicine seemingly is not in much of a hurry. Still the number of articles about the long known placebo effect finally are on the rise. Unfortunately I can’t get Bingel und Gollub and have to make do with the abstracts.
Duckworth and Mofitt explain once more, why people like me will never amount to much.
DeMenocal doesn’t tell anything new but is a good review referencing several primary articles I hadn’t known before.
Raichlen‘s conclusion is plausible if only because long distance running bestowed less of an advantage on Neanderthals. But the same is true for all moderns, who in their great majority have lived in temperate and – especially before the Holocene – cold climates. A regression of bone length over body mass does not show any clear distinction between groups.
Bendle and Shevenell offer a new curve for Antarctic palaeotemperature. Domack supplies the age model.
Not the results but rather the methods are the intersting point about the Paterson article. In my time I simply connected a fast HF-oscilloscope and viewed curve forms in detail. Their complex and indirect reasoning reminds of the current state in prehistory.
Here’s the link to this week’s complete list.