The aim of this review is to highlight emerging trends about Chinese people and gambling addiction over the last 15 years, and to provide a discourse on the potential link between gambling and Chinese culture and history The authors reported on the phenomenon of gambling among Chinese people using relevant research studies and reports and traditional Chinese literature Chinese people have elevated levels of gambling addiction compared to their Western counterparts These elevated rates are coupled with the rapid expansion of gambling venues within the Pan-Pacific region While there is an accumulated body of research on Chinese and gambling, a systematic cultural analysis of Chinese gambling is still under development We undertook a brief comparison between two ancient civilizations, China and Rome, in order to gain better understanding about gambling among Chinese people To effectively deal with gambling addictions among Chinese people, it is imperative to develop culturally responsive interventions

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Examination of Chinese gambling problems through a socio-historical- cultural perspective

The prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii was investigated on a poorly managed pig farm in Maryland. Serum and tissue samples from 48 of the 100 pigs on the farm were available for T. gondii evaluation. Serological testing was performed using both ELISA and the modified agglutination test (MAT). Antibodies to T. gondii were detected by ELISA in 12 of 48 animals, while antibodies were detected in 34 of 48 pigs by MAT with titers of 1:10 in 1, 1:20 in 4, 1:40 in 7, 1:80 in 3, 1:160 in 8, 1:320 in 3, 1:640 in 4, and 1:1,280 in 4. Hearts of 16 pigs with MAT titers of 1:10 or higher were bioassayed for T. gondii in cats; 11 cats shed T. gondii oocysts. Hearts of 22 pigs were autolyzed and bioassayed only in mice; T. gondii was isolated from 3 of these 22 pigs. Genetic typing of the 14 T. gondii isolates using the SAG1, SAG2, SAG3, BTUB, GRA6, c22-8, c29-2, L358, PK1, and Apico loci revealed 4 genotypes; 10 isolates belonged to type II lineage (genotypes 1 and 2), 3 belonged to genotype 3, and 1 belonged to genotype 4. Genotype 1 and 2 have type II alleles at all genetic loci, except the former has type II allele and the latter has a type I allele at locus Apico. Both genotypes 1 and 2 are considered to belong to the clonal type II lineages. Genotype 3 and 4 are nonclonal isolates. Results document high prevalence of T. gondii in pigs on a farm in Maryland.

https://bioone.org/journals/journal-of-parasitology/volume-94/issue-1/GE-1312.1/Endemic-Toxoplasmosis-in-Pigs-on-a-Farm-in-Maryland/10.1645/GE-1312.1.pdf

Endemic Toxoplasmosis in Pigs on a Farm in Maryland: Isolation and Genetic Characterization of Toxoplasma gondii

Historical archaeology in western North America includes a vast collection of research that underscores the region’s dynamic cultural heritage. Here, I review a sample of the literature related to this research and organize them into four conceptual themes: colonialism and postcolonialism, landscape transformation, migration and diaspora, and industrial capitalism. I conclude that the future of historical archaeology in the West will be grounded in research that integrates these themes. As the region continues to experience human dilemmas related to issues such as balancing resource extraction with sustainable conservation and lingering issues of colonialism, these archaeologies have value for transcending the nature–culture divide and for understanding the ways in which humanity can navigate pressing issues relevant to our modern world, including vulnerability, risks, adaptation, resilience, and sustainability.

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Historical Archaeologies of the American West

Parasitological analysis of 5 sediment samples from San Bernardino, California latrine deposits spanning the time period from about 1880 to the 1930s are presented. Two sediment samples are from a latrine used by European-Americans. Three sediment samples are from latrines used by Chinese-Americans on the property of Wong Nim, an important member of the Chinese community. Two of the Chinese latrines were positive for human parasites. The human parasites encountered include the human whipworm (Trichuris trichiura), the giant intestinal roundworm (Ascaris lubricoides, c.f.), and the Chinese liver fluke (Clonorchis sinensis). Evidence of the liver fluke is especially important. This parasite cannot complete its life cycle outside of its endemic range in Asia because suitable intermediate hosts are not present in the American continents. Its presence signals that at least some of the Chinese-Americans who used the latrines were immigrants who were infected in Asia and then sustained infections while in the Americas.

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Chinese Liver Flukes in Latrine Sediments From Wong Nim's Property, San Bernardino, California: Archaeoparasitology of the Caltrans District Headquarters

Archaeological investigation of Mono Mills (1880–1917), a pluralistic community in California’s mining frontier, is beginning to reveal how immigrants mobilized or mitigated power inequalities through identity expression, community cohesion, and labor relations. Archival records, coupled with the archaeology of household foodways in the Chinatown neighborhood, reveal how social inequalities, labor organization, and identities reflect the impacts of racialization and strategies of resistance. Multicultural objects and aspects of cuisine were intimately entangled in the practices of laborers’ daily lives. The research highlights impacts of late nineteenth-century legislation to discriminate against Chinese immigrants, the agency of marginalized groups, and the long-term effects of discrimination.

Food Politics of Alliance in a California Frontier Chinatown

In 2001, field excavations were completed at the site of the San Bernardino, California, Chinatown, yielding about 10,000 items. Twenty-one discrete features were excavated, dating from about 1880 to the 1930s. Seventeen of these features reflected the history of Chinatown. Privy 1035, associated with a gambling hall at 19 Third Street, contained more than 6,800 individual items, representing diverse aspects of Chinatown life. Gambling activities in the early-20th century were represented by an abundance of artifacts, including a cache of more than 1,300 Asian coins, the largest ever found on an excavation in North America. Discussions of gambling artifacts and culture document the practice of this traditional, but often sensationalized, pastime of the Overseas Chinese.

Margie Akin

Papers

The Luck of Third Street: Archaeology of Chinatown, San Bernardino, California