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Composite index is a powerful and popularly used tool in providing an overall measure of a subject by summarizing a group of measurements (component indices) of different aspects of the subject. It is widely used in economics, finance, policy evaluation, performance ranking, and many other fields. Effective construction of a composite index has been studied extensively. The most widely used approach is to use a linear combination of the component indices, where the combination weights are determined by optimizing an objective function. To maximize the overall variation of the resulting composite index, the combination weights can be obtained through principal component analysis. In this article, we propose to incorporate expert opinions into the construction of the composite index. It is noted that expert opinion often provides useful information in assessing which of the component indices are more important for the overall measure of the subject. We consider the case that a group of experts have been consulted, each providing a set of importance scores for the component indices, along with a set of confidence scores which reflects the expert’s own confidence in his/her assessment. In addition, the constructor of the composite index can also provide an assessment of the expertise level of each expert. We use linear combinations to construct the composite index, where the combination weights are determined by maximizing the sum of resulting composite index variation and the negative weighted sum of squares of deviation between the combination weights used and the experts’ scores. A data-driven approach is used to find the optimal balance between the two sources of information. Theoretical properties of the procedure are investigated. Simulation examples and an economic application on constructing science and technology development index is carried out to illustrate the proposed method.

AbstractThe evolution and development of human mortuary behaviors is of enormous cultural significance. Here we report a richly-decorated young infant burial (AVH-1) from Arma Veirana (Liguria, northwestern Italy) that is directly dated to 10,211–9910 cal BP (95.4% probability), placing it within the early Holocene and therefore attributable to the early Mesolithic, a cultural period from which well-documented burials are exceedingly rare. Virtual dental histology, proteomics, and aDNA indicate that the infant was a 40–50 days old female. Associated artifacts indicate significant material and emotional investment in the child’s interment. The detailed biological profile of AVH-1 establishes the child as the earliest European near-neonate documented to be female. The Arma Veirana burial thus provides insight into sex/gender-based social status, funerary treatment, and the attribution of personhood to the youngest individuals among prehistoric hunter-gatherer groups and adds substantially to the scant data on mortuary practices from an important period in prehistory shortly following the end of the last Ice Age.

This study seeks to research the portrayal of the historical characters in historical drama, to understand how the Arab and Islamic historical drama deals with these characters through its artistic and dramatic treatments. It aims to explore how historical characters are portrayed as well as to discover the formation of mental images about them in the historical drama that deals with sensitive characters on the religious and social levels. The study used the descriptive analytical method to understand and criticism the reality of historical drama. The study concluded that the historical drama should choose suitable actors whose dramatic background suits historical characters with social and religious sensitivity, such as the characters of the Sahaba and scholars. The dramatic aspect and the performance should not be the only consideration as this is reflected on the mental images that the viewers have about the historical character, so the viewer will see the historical character in the image of the actor whenever they see him/her in another series or movie, hence we must stress the importance of paying attention to the simulation of historical legal characters, and not leaving it up to the discretion of drama producers. Also, portraying the characters requires a link between the historical legacy of the character represented and simulating them and relying on correct information in the dialogue, on the other hand, However, in the absence of it, it is possible to rely on some correct information and maintain a positive image of the character in what depends on the imagination of drama in which sensitive characters are not represented. تسعى هذه الدراسة إلى البحث في تصوير الشخصيات التاريخية في الدراما التاريخية، لفهم كيفية تعامل الدراما التاريخية العربية والإسلامية مع هذه الشخصيات في معالجاتها الفنية والدرامية. وتهدف إلى دراسة كيفية تصوير الشخصيات التاريخية وتشكيل الصور الذهنية عنها لاسيما عند تناول شخصيات ذات حساسية على الصعيد الديني والاجتماعي. استخدمت الدراسة المنهج الوصفي التحليلي لفهم ونقد واقع الدراما التاريخية. خلصت الدراسة إلى أن تمثيل شخصيات ذات حساسية اجتماعية ودينية كشخصيات الصحابة والعلماء ينبغي أن يراعي مناسبة الممثلين وخلفيتهم الدرامية، وعدم اقتصار الاهتمام بالجانب الدرامي الأدائي فحسب، نظراً لانعكاس ذلك على الصور الذهنية التي تشكل لدى المشاهدين عن الشخصية التاريخية، فيصبح المشاهد يرى الشخصية التاريخية في صورة الممثل كلما شاهده في مسلسل أو فيلم آخر، وهنا تكمن أهمية الاهتمام في كيفية محاكاة الشخصيات الاعتبارية التاريخية، وعدم تركها لأهواء منتجي الدراما. كما أن تصوير الشخصيات يتطلب الربط بين الموروث التاريخي عن الشخصية الممثّلة وبين محاكاتها والاعتماد على المعلومات الصحيحة في الحوار، فيما يمكن في حال شُحِّها الانطلاق من معلومات صحيحة مع المحافظة على صورة إيجابية للشخصية فيما يعتمد منها على الخيال والتي لا تمثَّل فيها الشخصيات ذات حساسية دينية واجتماعية. كلمات مفتاحية: الدراما التاريخية، الشخصيات التاريخية، تصوير الشخصيات، التاريخ.

Abstract Neanderthals collected unusual, sometimes colorful mineral materials from different sources. Several green serpentinite smooth pebbles with a flat shape and use modifications were unearthed at Fumane Cave in northern Italy. This study explores cognitive and functional criteria that influenced the selection and use of unique pebbles based on their regional geology, morphology, petrology, use wear, and residues. Besides the attraction for green materials, there is no evidence for the use of soft green and flat pebbles, like those from Fumane Cave, during the Middle Palaeolithic. Moreover, these materials were collected by Neanderthals only from ca. 44 ka cal BP, despite the large availability of green serpentine pebbles in the alluvial beds near the cave. Ultimately, we provide new data to understand the role of aesthetic and technological factors in shaping the human behavioral range in the Middle Paleolithic.