This short article argues that formulae utilized by archeologists for deriving populations from the floor areas of dwellings are flawed. The formulae in question are that of Naroll (1962), Clarke (1971), and Cook (1972) and he argues that each of these is either incorrect or simply too narrow or too broad. The author then puts forth his own formula for multifamily dwellings which he tests against a dataset of nine New World ethnographic examples. Finally, the author concludes that this type of formula needs to change depending on the type of dwelling in question.

The present research investigates the theory of universality in form and function in human song in a sample of people from 60 countries listening to music from 86 mainly small-scale societies. The aims are to document whether people 1) identify the social function of a song solely on form, 2) demonstrate form-function inferences, 3) use contextual aspects to distinguish song functions, and 4) use musical features to differentiate song functions. The authors claim support for the universal perception of song form-function in music listeners.

Pregnancy sickness is characterized by nausea, vomiting, and food aversions during pregnancy, particularly during the first trimester. Previous work has asserted an adaptationist explanation for this phenomenon: pregnancy sickness protects the embryo from the toxic compounds found in many foods via expulsion (i.e., vomiting) of potentially dangerous foods and by encouraging aversions to foods likely to harbor toxins or pathogens. The authors reexamine 27 small-scale societies previously investigated by Minturn and Weiher (1984) for evidence of pregnancy sickness and food aversions in light of the fetal protection hypotheses.

In asking whether or not there are meaningful universals in music, researchers compiled two catalogs – the Natural History of Song (NHS) Ethnography which contains ethnographic descriptions of song performances collected from eHRAF World Cultures, and the NHS Discography, which contains field recordings of performances of dance, healing, love, and lullaby. Using these two corpora, the study tests a variety of hypotheses about the universality and variability of both music behavior and music form. Specifically, whether there are meaningful universals in meaning and sound. The catalog of published sound recordings was analyzed by machine summaries, listener ratings, and manual transcriptions, which revealed that there were identifiable features of songs which could then predict their primary function cross-culturally. The results as a whole revealed that the existence of music is a cultural universal, and that the variation within music can be characterized by three factors assessing the formality, arousal, and religiosity of the song events. They also found that musical behavior varies more within societies than between them.

This study examines a hypothesis that ceremonial drinking is negatively associated with heavy secular drinking. Empirical analysis does not support this association, and the author proposes an alternative theory of alcohol consumption and the problem of evil. Hypotheses relating alcohol consumption to menstrual taboos and the uses of blood in society are supported.

The complex set of beliefs and practices in which the cult of the guardian spirit consisted is examined.

This article explores determinants of non-classical polyandry, which the authors assert is more common than is usually conveyed. Results indicate that societies with non-classical polyandry tend to be small scale and egalitarian, practice hunting and gathering or horticulture, and have a male-skewed sex ratio. Overall polyandry is thought to add to the reproductive fitness of both men and women.

This paper investigates correlations between social structure and the pattern of kindship nomenclature. Results suggest that lineage nomenclatures are associated with several aspects of social structure, including unilineal descent, the domestication of plants and animals and inheritance.

This study challenges an earlier paper's claim that matrilocal residence predicts the development of girls' puberty rites. The author suggests that girls' puberty rites may in fact predate matrilocality in some locations.

This article explores biological, psychological, and social explanations for menstrual taboos. Attention is paid to the role of men in rituals associated with reproduction--i.e. before, during and after childbirth, as well as during girls' puberty rites.