Abstract: This paper shows how a society imagines human individuals and their power to act upon spirits both ritually and materially. Based on the author’s fieldwork (from 1994 to 2019), it analyzes the emic concept onnir, which is omnipresent in the daily activities and the past and present collective/individual rituals of Siberian Evenki and Even. Each human owns a specific fluctuating “charge made of spirits” and an “active imprint” that empowers the human to act, perform rituals, develop talents, and create. Even after death, this “imprint” affects everything and everyone a human ever touched. Onnir defines the interrelations between the individual, the spirits of his or her own “charge,” and the spirits of the universe in an “active agent”-“patient” relationship. This paper contributes to studies of the notions of the individual, “playing” as a ritual means, the acceptance/rejection of neoshamans, neorituals, and the (ritual) agency of ordinary individuals.

Abstract: 40 Frozen Yakutian Graves, From The 17th To The 19th Century Allow The Reconstitution Of Clothes. At The End Of the 17th Century, New Fashions Are Emerging With The Ostentatious Use Of Imported Goods And The Influences Of russian Noble Circles And Chinese And/or Mongol And/or Buriat Fashions. The Garment Does Not Only Seem To Be any More An Element Of Protection Against The Cold And A Utilitarian Object But Becomes A Way To Marking The Socialization of The Individual.

Abstract: Replacement or deterioration of seismic instruments and the evolution of the installation conditions and sites can alter the seismic signal in very subtle ways; therefore, it is notoriously difficult to monitor the signal quality of permanent seismic stations. We present a simple way to characterize and monitor signal quality, using energy ratios between each pair of the three components, as a complement to existing methods. To calculate stable daily energy ratios over a large frequency range (0.01–5 Hz), we use the daily median energy ratio over all 5 min windows within the day. The method is applied to all GEOSCOPE stations, for continuous BH channel data collected since 2001. We show applications to identify past gain problems (stations ROCAM and CRZF), to provide feedback after field interventions at remote sites (Antarctic station DRV), and to shed light on complex instrument problems (stations ECH and KIP). Our results show that component energy ratios have excellent time resolution and that they are visually simple for identification of problems. They can be used both for ongoing continuous monitoring of the signal quality, or as a tool to identify past problems. The Python code to produce the results in this work and the Python code for daily monitoring used by GEOSCOPE are available (see Data and Resources).

Abstract: The decline of sea-ice thickness, area, and volume due to the transition from multi-year to first-year sea ice has improved the under-ice light environment for pelagic Arctic ecosystems. One unexpected and direct consequence of this transition, the proliferation of under-ice phytoplankton blooms (UIBs), challenges the paradigm that waters beneath the ice pack harbor little planktonic life. Little is known about the diversity and spatial distribution of UIBs in the Arctic Ocean, or the environmental drivers behind their timing, magnitude, and taxonomic composition. Here, we compiled a unique and comprehensive dataset from seven major research projects in the Arctic Ocean (11 expeditions, covering the spring sea-ice-covered period to summer ice-free conditions) to identify the environmental drivers responsible for initiating and shaping the magnitude and assemblage structure of UIBs. The temporal dynamics behind UIB formation are related to the ways that snow and sea-ice conditions impact the under-ice light field. In particular, the onset of snowmelt significantly increased under-ice light availability (>0.1–0.2 mol photons m–2 d–1), marking the concomitant termination of the sea-ice algal bloom and initiation of UIBs. At the pan-Arctic scale, bloom magnitude (expressed as maximum chlorophyll a concentration) was predicted best by winter water Si(OH)4 and PO43– concentrations, as well as Si(OH)4:NO3– and PO43–:NO3– drawdown ratios, but not NO3– concentration. Two main phytoplankton assemblages dominated UIBs (diatoms or Phaeocystis), driven primarily by the winter nitrate:silicate (NO3–:Si(OH)4) ratio and the under-ice light climate. Phaeocystis co-dominated in low Si(OH)4 (i.e., NO3:Si(OH)4 molar ratios >1) waters, while diatoms contributed the bulk of UIB biomass when Si(OH)4 was high (i.e., NO3:Si(OH)4 molar ratios <1). The implications of such differences in UIB composition could have important ramifications for Arctic biogeochemical cycles, and ultimately impact carbon flow to higher trophic levels and the deep ocean.

Abstract: Benthic organisms depend primarily on seasonal pulses of organic matter from primary producers. In the Arctic, declines in sea ice due to warming climate could lead to changes in this food supply with as yet unknown effects on benthic trophic dynamics. Benthic consumer diets and food web structure were studied in a seasonally ice-covered region of Baffin Bay during spring 2016 at stations ranging in depth from 199 to 2,111 m. We used a novel combination of highly branched isoprenoid (HBI) lipid biomarkers and stable isotope ratios (δ13C, δ15N) to better understand the relationship between the availability of carbon sources in spring on the seafloor and their assimilation and transfer within the benthic food web. Organic carbon from sea ice (sympagic carbon [SC]) was an important food source for benthic consumers. The lipid biomarker analyses revealed a high relative contribution of SC in sediments (mean SC% ± standard deviation [SD] = 86% ± 16.0, n = 17) and in benthic consumer tissues (mean SC% ± SD = 78% ± 19.7, n = 159). We also detected an effect of sea-ice concentration on the relative contribution of SC in sediment and in benthic consumers. Cluster analysis separated the study region into three different zones according to the relative proportions of SC assimilated by benthic macrofauna. We observed variation of the benthic food web between zones, with increases in the width of the ecological niche in zones with less sea-ice concentration, indicating greater diversity of carbon sources assimilated by consumers. In zones with greater sea-ice concentration, the higher availability of SC increased the ecological role that primary consumers play in driving a stronger transfer of nutrients to higher trophic levels. Based on our results, SC is an important energy source for Arctic deep-sea benthos in Baffin Bay, such that changes in spring sea-ice phenology could alter benthic food-web structure.