Papers by Cheng-hwa Tsang
Nature, Jun 12, 2024
Malaria-causing protozoa of the genus Plasmodium have exerted one of the strongest selective pres... more Malaria-causing protozoa of the genus Plasmodium have exerted one of the strongest selective pressures on the human genome, and resistance alleles provide biomolecular footprints that outline the historical reach of these species. Nevertheless, debate persists over when and how malaria parasites emerged as human pathogens and spread around the globe. To address these questions, we generated high-coverage ancient mitochondrial and nuclear genome-wide data from P. falciparum, P. vivax and P. malariae from 16 countries spanning around 5,500 years of human history. We identified P. vivax and P. falciparum across geographically disparate regions of Eurasia from as early as the fourth and first millennia bce, respectively; for P. vivax, this evidence pre-dates textual references by several millennia. Genomic analysis supports distinct disease histories for P. falciparum and P. vivax in the Americas: similarities between now-eliminated European and peri-contact South American strains indicate that European colonizers were the source of American P. vivax, whereas the transAtlantic slave trade probably introduced P. falciparum into the Americas. Our data underscore the role of cross-cultural contacts in the dissemination of malaria, laying the biomolecular foundation for future palaeo-epidemiological research into the impact of Plasmodium parasites on human history. Finally, our unexpected discovery of P. falciparum in the high-altitude Himalayas provides a rare case study in which individual mobility can be inferred from infection status, adding to our knowledge of cross-cultural connectivity in the region nearly three millennia ago.
中央研究院歷史語言研究所集刊, Dec 1, 1986
在臺灣考古學以往的研究中，主要都偏重於史前時代而忽略了歷史時代，以致使臺灣歷史考古學的發展受到了嚴重的阻滯。 其實，從臺灣史的特質來看，臺灣不只是史前考古學，而且也是歷史考古學的良好的實驗室。因... more 在臺灣考古學以往的研究中，主要都偏重於史前時代而忽略了歷史時代，以致使臺灣歷史考古學的發展受到了嚴重的阻滯。 其實，從臺灣史的特質來看，臺灣不只是史前考古學，而且也是歷史考古學的良好的實驗室。因爲，臺灣的歷史，基本上是包括了不同文化族羣的拓殖史，以及伴隨這些拓殖過程所產生的社會文化的變遷史。這些拓殖的過程和社會文化的變遷，除了可能在歷史文獻中找到一些記載，也可能由當時的物質遺存中反映出來。對於這兩種性質截然不同的史料，自然須要以不同的方法來加以研究。 基於此一觀點，臺灣的歷史時代，決不因爲其時間的晚近而不需要考古學的研究。相反的，臺灣的歷史考古學－以物質遺存爲主要證據，並結合文獻的資料，去研究臺灣歷史時代，特別是早期漢人的聚落－不僅可以補充文獻記載的不足，而且也可以提供獨立而客觀的史料基礎去驗證一些得自文字史料的假說或推論。
Botanical Studies, Mar 2, 2020
Background: Grass phytoliths are the most common phytoliths in sediments; recognizing grass phyto... more Background: Grass phytoliths are the most common phytoliths in sediments; recognizing grass phytolith types is important when using phytoliths as a tool to reconstruct paleoenvironments. Grass bulliform cells may be silicified to large size parallelepipedal or cuneiform shaped phytoliths, which were often regarded as of no taxonomic value. However, studies in eastern Asia had identified several forms of grass bulliform phytoliths, including rice bulliform phytolith, a phytolith type frequently used to track the history of rice domestication. Identification with a higher level of taxonomic resolution is possible, yet a systematic investigation on morphology of Poaceae bulliform phytoliths is lacking. We aimed at providing a morphological description of bulliform phytoliths of Poaceae from Taiwan based on morphometric measurements in anatomical aspect. The results are important references for paleo-ecological studies. Result: The morphology of grass bulliform phytoliths is usually consistent within a subfamily; the end profile is relatively rectangular in Panicoideae and Micrairoideae, whereas cuneiform to nearly circular in Oryzoideae, Bambusoideae, Arundinoideae, and Chloridoideae. Bulliform phytoliths were seldom observed in Pooideae. Certain morphotypes are limited to plants growing in specific environments. For example, large, thin, and pointed bulliform phytoliths are associated with wet habitat; Chloridoideae types are mostly from C4 plants occupying open arid places. Conclusion: Grass bulliform phytoliths can be identified at least to the subfamily level, and several forms were distinguished within large subfamilies. Previously un-reported silicified cell types, i.e., arm cells and fusoids, and two special trichome phytolith types associated with bulliform phytoliths, were described. Morphometric methods were great tools for delimiting morphotypes; with refined morphological classification the association between forms and habit/ habitats was revealed. The knowledge provides new ways to interpret phytolith assemblage data, and it is especially useful when the sediments are enriched in large blocky phytoliths.
Bulletin of the Indo-Pacific Prehistory Association, Jan 24, 2008
ABSTRACT During the last decade, quite a number of Iron Age sites have been discovered and excava... more ABSTRACT During the last decade, quite a number of Iron Age sites have been discovered and excavated due to the rapid growth of rescue archaeology in Taiwan, and a lot of important archaeological materials have been brought to light. Seven regional Iron Age ...
Institute of History and Philology, Academia Sinica eBooks, 1992
... Archaeology of the P°eng-hu Islands. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: Author: Tsang,Cheng-hwa. P... more ... Archaeology of the P°eng-hu Islands. Post a Comment. CONTRIBUTORS: Author: Tsang,Cheng-hwa. PUBLISHER: Institute of History and Philology Academia Sinica (Taipei, Taiwan). SERIES TITLE: YEAR: 1992. PUB TYPE: Book (ISBN 9576710472 ). ...
Asian Perspectives, 2018
Reviewed by Richard PEARSON, University of British Columbia Volume 3 in the Tainan Science Park (... more Reviewed by Richard PEARSON, University of British Columbia Volume 3 in the Tainan Science Park (TSP) Archaeological Discoveries book series, this visually attractive book summarizes the results of more than ten years of rescue archaeology, beginning in 1996 and directed by Professor Tsang Cheng-hwa at the Tainan Science Park in Southern Taiwan, a complex of over 150 high tech factories employing approximately 60,000 workers. A local branch of the National Museum of Prehistory was included in the plan. At least one excavation team had over 100 workers and over 50 sites covering an area of 1043 ha have been excavated. The park lies on Holocene sediments deposited in the Tsengwen (Zengwen) River. Many of the sites are covered by around 2 m of alluvium, making their discovery by traditional style surface survey methods very difficult. Entire villages consisting of residential areas, refuse areas, and cemeteries have been uncovered. Whole or reconstructable pottery vessels from graves show vessel shapes and uneroded surfaces rarely found in hillside deposits, such as the Dabenkeng Site. Village areas and house arrangements can be compared, and substantial samples for all kinds of scientific analyses are being processed and published. Color photos, drawings, and maps are featured on almost every page of the readable text, and drawings of ethnographic reconstructions are abundant. The book is aimed at a general audience: although a nine-page bibliography is provided, there are no citations in the text and no measurements of artifacts are included in the text.
Movement, Contact, Health, 2013
Journal of East Asian Archaeology, 2001
The movement of the Austronesian peoples from their homelands in the coastal areas of the East As... more The movement of the Austronesian peoples from their homelands in the coastal areas of the East Asian mainland is an extremely complicated problem, and it is still in need of further discussion. In order to address this issue, we must endeavor to understand more clearly the prehistoric cultures of the southeastern coast of the Chinese mainland, and especially changes in settlement and subsistence patterns. In recent years, the great increase of available archaeological materials concerning the prehistoric cultures in the southeastern coastal regions of China, including Taiwan, has begun to present a favorable opportunity to reexamine the problem here raised. This article therefore aims to present a new synthesis of the archaeological materials in that area, in the hope to better comprehend the motivation and reason for the spread of the Austronesian ancestors.
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International Journal of Historical Archaeology
The 81st Annual Meeting of the Society for American Archaeology, 2017
HAL (Le Centre pour la Communication Scientifique Directe), Nov 1, 2022
The matter of prehistory: papers in honor of Antonio Gilman Guillén, 2020, ISBN 978-84-00-10721-5, págs. 345-365, 2020
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Papers by Cheng-hwa Tsang