ANTH005 Midterm 2

feature

a non-portable facility that was created by humans

stereoscopy

overlapping pairs of aerial vertical photographs used to find sites

Earth conductivity survey

a form of subsurface remote sensing that functions by measuring the conductivity of an electrical current through the ground

LiDAR

stands for Light Detection and Ranging. it uses an aircraft equipped with Global Positioning System and a laser scanner that pulses a series of beams to the Earth to map the topography

plow zone

upper levels of sites disturbed by agricultural activities

reconnaissance

the documentation of surface characteristics and geographic coordinates of sites and other archaeological features

georeferencing

associating spatial data such as maps and photographs to coordinate systems

magnetometer

a form of subsurface remote sensing that measures variation in the magnetic intensity of the field

aerial survey

photography taken from the air to find and map archaeological sites. oblique angle imagery is better for finding sites due to the relief. vertical imagery is better to record measurements as there are fewer spatial distortions

raster data

data on a grid, a grid of equally sized cells or pixels used to analyze and represent spatial data in GIS

ground-truthing

checking anomalies on the ground seen on aerial photography and other remote sensing data

landsat imagery

satellite imagery that records multispectral waves

archaeological survey

the field methods archaeologists employ to collect data without excavation

resistivity survey

a form of subsurface remote sensing that functions by measuring the resistance of an electrical current through the ground

ground reconnaissance

recording past cultural resources by walking in the study area, studying the ground surface for any trace of cultural remains

artifact

a portable object that was modified or made by humans

bathymetric survey

the underwater equivalent of a topographic land survey

Geographic Information System (GIS)

a computer system designed to gather, manage, store, analyze, and present all types of geographic and spatial data

ground penetrating radar

a form of subsurface remote sensing that uses emitters to send radio pulses into the ground; pulses that bounce back to reveal subsurface changes in sediment and voids or solid materials

remote sensing

the collection of data without physically touching them

crop marks

evidence of buried archaeological features that is visible from the air due to differential growth of plants over such features in fields

ecofact

an unmodified biological material in archaeological context

magnetic susceptibility

a form of subsurface remote sensing that provides a measure of the ability of a material to be magnetized when a magnetic field is applied

primary contexts

conditions where the provenience, matrix, and association are relatively undisturbed

matrix

the material that surrounds and supports archaeological data

provenance

the original location where artifacts were made

stratigraphy

the study and interpretation of strata or depositional layers of natural or cultural materials

provenience

the horizontal and vertical position of archaeological data within the matrix; the 3d coordinates that locate the data in space

wheeler box-grid

excavations which leaves balks showing the stratigraphy between excavation units

principle of stratigraphic succession

any unit of archaeological stratification is located in the stratigraphic sequence from its position between the undermost of all the units above it and the uppermost of unit below it

Nicolas Steno

a Catholic priest who created the first scientific work regarding stratigraphy in the 17th century

transposed primary contexts

situations where materials were deposited in a place different from activity areas where people acquired, produced, or used them

c-transforms

cultural processes, provoked by human agents who disturb archaeological deposits intentionally or unintentionally through activities that include plowing, building, and looting

flotation

separating macrobotanical or other organic remains such as insect or snail remains from mineral grains in the soil by agitating them in water, or in some cases, other liquids such as carbon tetrachloride solution

context

the final evaluation of the significance of the provenience, association, and matrix

principle of original horizontality

strata without a consolidated form will tend to be deposited horizontally under natural circumstances; strata which were originally deposited in a slope would gradually form a horizontal position

association

the relation of two or more artifacts, ecofacts, and/or features, occurring in the same matrix

law of superposition

a rule that holds that deposits that have not been deformed by folding or overturning the strata at the bottom will be the oldest and those at the top will be the youngest

midden

trash deposit

use-related primary contexts

situations where material culture was deposited in a place where people acquired, produced, or used it

formation processes

the natural and cultural processes that result in the formation and development of the archaeological record

n-transforms

natural or noncultural processes such as organic decay, wind, water, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, earthquakes, and bioturbation such as animal and plant activities that form archaeological deposits

principle of lateral continuity

if a feature divides a layer into two parts, the two parts may have been connected originally

secondary contexts

situations where the provenience, matrix, and/or association of archaeological data are disturbed

soil horizons

layers of the soil that differ from each other due to weathering patterns

harris matrix

a way to visualize the logical analysis and interpretation of sequentially layered archaeological deposits with a diagram

luminescence

a series of dating techniques based on a measurement the light emitted from samples heated over 250° C; tend to have fairly large error ranges and are not utilized with frequency

uranium series dating

a radiometric dating technique that measure the decay of a uranium isotope into a thorium isotope; good for dating calcium carbonates

varve dating

varves are sediments that are deposited annually where glaciers are in contact with water, creating laminated stratigraphy that can be counted back in time

isotope

the same forms of an element; having the same number of protons, but different number of neutrons

seriation

the arrangement of archaeological data in a temporal sequence based on attributes such as material, technology, or aesthetic style

obsidian hydration

a dating technique that measures the cumulative absorption of water by volcanic glass such as obsidian; not used with frequency today given problems with the differential rate at which the absorption occurs

fission track dating

a radiometric dating technique that measures the microscopic scars that a radioactive 238U isotope marked on rocks, minerals, and glasses as it decayed over time

bonded walls

that were built at the same time

terminus post quem

limit after which

absolute dating

assigns an age in calendrical time, usually expressed as a range in years

rehydroxylation

a relatively new dating technique under the process of being systematically tested that dates ceramics by measuring the amount of water accumulated since they were last fired

relative dating

temporally distinguishes data by ordering them in relative older or younger categories from each other

potassium-argon dating

a radiometric dating technique that dates the decay of potassium into argon; used to date volcanic ash

amino-acid racemization

dating method that measures the change in configuration of amino acids under a polarized light in egg shells, bone, teeth, and mollusk shells; difficult to control for the influence of temperature and is not utilized with frequency

radiometric dating

dating methods that rely on calculations of a temporal length in which one half of an unstable isotope becomes a stable isotope

cation ratio

an outdated dating technique that measures the positive charged atoms or molecules called cations that changed their ratio over time in rock varnish

genetic dating

a relatively new dating technique under the process of being systematically tested that calculated the time frame of the separation of populations through genetic divergence

archaeomagnetic dating

an infrequently utilized dating technique that measures the alignment of magnetic particles in undisturbed clay in contexts where it has remained undisturbed since the time of its firing; the alignments of the particles can be measured, still pointing in the direction where the magnetic north pole was at the time. by matching these alignments with maps of the movement of the poles researchers can estimate a date of firing

climatostratigraphy

a series of methods to determine the age of climatological conditions at micro, regional, and global scales; pollen and oxygen isotope records

terminus ante quem

limit before which

abutted walls

walls that are built up against existing construction and are temporally later

archaeoastronomy

the study of how past peoples interacted with celestial bodies, primarily material alignments

battleship curve

the ideal shape of a seriation diagram

fluorine absorption

an outdated dating technique that measures the fluorine that accumulated in buried bones through absorption from the groundwater; not utilized anymore given problems with the differential rate at which absorption occurs

dendrochronology

a dating method that links the growth rings in trees to calendrical time

glottochronology

the study of related languages to calculate the length of time since they diverged

radiocarbon dating

a radiometric dating technique that dates carbon

patina dating

a rough measure of dating that measure the patina on the exteriors of materials such as chert and glass, resulting from different types of chemical reactions

electron spin resonance

an infrequently utilized dating technique that measures the exposure of certain materials, like tooth enamel and carbonates, to natural radiation

multiplicity

the issue of certain plants producing phytoliths of different shapes

subsistence strategy

how people found or produced food

tectonic subsidence

downward movement of land masses through geological processes

coprolite

archaeological feces

macrobotanical remains

larger parts of a plant such as seeds and leaves

faunal analysis

the study of animal remains in archaeological contexts

anaerobic contexts

archaeological contexts that lack oxygen and tend to preserve some materials, like organics, well

redundancy

an issue of phytoliths of different species looking too similar to distinguish

palynology

the study of particles or dust including pollen

paleoclimate

past environmental conditions

phytoliths

durable parts of plants made of silica

bioturbation

the disturbance of the matrix by living organisms

diatom analysis

the study of unicellular algae in freshwater and marine sediments

speleothems

stalactites and stalagmites

transhumance

the movement of herds to high-elevation pasture areas from lower valley floors during the summer

ice core analysis

analysis of stratigraphic information concerning environmentally sensitive data such as oxygen that was trapped in the ice when each growth layer was originally formed

dendroclimatology

the use of tree rings to determine the amount of soil moisture, cloud cover, wind, disease, and temperature in an area

exospore

the hard outer wall of pollen

seasonality

the idea that the some living organisms have specific morphological characteristics at certain times of the year

zooarchaeology

the study of animal bones and teeth in archaeological contexts

flowstone

horizontal formations of mineral deposits in caves

tectonic uplift

upward movement of land masses through geological processes

sea core analysis

analysis of materials such as planktonic foraminifera in ocean floor sediments that can indicate changes in sea temperatures

artifact biography

the idea that artifacts can change functions and meanings over time

bipolar technique

a lithic production technique whereby an anvil, such as a large stone is used