By bringing together three different academic disciplines -- anthropology, political science and history -- and covering a variety of different parliamentary assemblies, both in Europe and in the United States, this book aims to offer a fresh approach to parliamentary studies. The authors assess the importance of ritual and symbolic communication in different parliamentary settings. The underlying question that each practitioner and scholar addresses is: Do parliamentary rituals really matter? Some of the contributors argue that legislative procedure is more telling of the role and reputation that a parliament has in a given society than its rituals and ceremonies. Others stress the relevance of these ritual expressions for conveying political sense and meaning to the public.

At Middle Woodland sites in the eastern United States, excavations have uncovered naturalistic art worked on exotic materials from points as distant Wyoming, Ontario, and the Gulf Coast, revealing a network of ritual exchange referred to as the Hopewell phenomenon. Simultaneously, Middle Woodland societies developed the earliest agricultural system in eastern North American using now-extinct native cultivars. "Mound Centers and Seed Security: A Comparative Analysis of Botanical Assemblages from Middle Woodland Sites in the Lower Illinois Valley" integrates an interpretation of these two historical trends.

Unlike most journal articles on related subjects, the volume includes a lengthy review of literature on both Hopewell studies and Middle Woodland agriculture, making it a useful resource for researchers starting out in either field. Synthesizing both original research and research reported in archaeological grey literature, "Mound Centers and Seed Security: A Comparative Analysis of Botanical Assemblages from Middle Woodland Sites in the Lower Illinois Valley" is a valuable tool for researchers and teachers alike."

We all need life lessons, but we hate preaching. You will not find Little Lockerbie on any map. Searching for Leviathan Lutheran Church on Google turns up only a few hits. These 16 stories about true-to-life characters will provide life lessons while tugging at your heartstrings.

"Right about midnight, Shaina heard a small, tiny noise from the corner of her room, behind the dresser. She held oh so still and only looked with one eye...." Shaina is a girl who loves bedtime snacks, and she's not the only one. Will she learn to share? Read about Shaina and her adventures meeting the Snackits: snack hungry critters hiding under the bed

Focusing attention on Ukrainians' quest for credibility in the post-Soviet era, In the Name of God takes readers on a journey through everyday life in Ukraine throughout its first decade of independence. and historical accounts of Ukraine have not, into the thoughts, habits, and lives of Uniate Catholics. Using interviews, on-the-ground observations, and current events, Dr. Alfred Mueller establishes a solid grasp of the issues facing Uniate Catholics as they struggled against the Orthodox Church to establish themselves as a credible community of believers. popular lore from both faiths to uncover the source of the rhetorical strategies each faith is using to construct a particular ethos in Ukrainian society. Uniate Catholics seem to be in a better position than the Orthodox to vie for the limited resources of the Ukrainian state. existed in Ukraine for over 1,000 years.