Jeopardy on Archaeology and Human Remains

Middle Range Theory

Refers to theories linking human behavior and natural processes to physical remains in the archaeological record.

Ethnographic analogy

Refers to the use of comparative data from anthropology to inform reconstructions of past human societies.

Chaine Operatoire

The analysis of the technical processes and social acts involved in the step-by-step production, use, and eventual disposal of artifacts.

Experimental archaeology

The field of study which attempts to generate and test archaeological hypotheses by replicating or approximating the feasibility of ancient cultures performing various tasks.

Scientific Method

The systematic observation, measurement, experiment, and the formulation, testing and modification of hypotheses.

Earliest stone tools

Lomekwi 3, a 3.3 million year old site in Kenya is known for this important discovery.

Oldowan Tools

These iconic artifacts mark the beginning of the Lower Paleolithic (Old Stone Age).

Homo erectus

Dating between 1.8 and 1.5 mya, Acheulean tools are most closely associated with this species of Homo.

Zhoukoudian

Cave site in China yielding some of the earliest evidence for the controlled use of fire.

Typological Analysis

In the study of archaeological ceramics, the study of vessel form and evolution of vessel style is known as what type of analysis.

Economic Anthropology

_______ _______ is the comparative study of production, distribution and consumption in all societies of the world.

Redistribution

When goods are given to a central authority and then given back to the people in a new pattern.

Exchange

How commodities are distributed among the people of a society.

Production

__________ is the transformation or conversion of resources into food, tools and other goods through labor.

Reciprocity

This economic system, often found in hunter-gather societies, involves the sharing of resources and is based on social relationships rather than market transactions?

206

The number of bones in an adult human.

Forensic Anthropology

A type of applied anthropology that specializes in the changes and variation in the human skeleton for the purpose of legal inquiry.

Bioarchaeology

Focuses on the interaction between biology and behavior and the influences of environment and culture on human biological variation.

Pelvis

A post-cranial element used in both sexing an individual and determining their age.

Mastoid process

A prominence of the temporal bone behind the ear, to which neck muscles are attached, and is useful for determining gender differences.

New York African Burial Ground

Discovered in the early 1990s prior to the construction of a federal office building in Lower Manhattan.

Residue analysis

Uses any burned or un-burned organic materials in a vessel for either dating or dietary evaluation.

Cognitive Archaeology

This is the study of beliefs of past societies based on their material remains.

China

The finest ceramics in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries were exported around the world from this country.

Cranial capacity (brain size)

As Homo erectus expanded from tropical and subtropical climates, and perfected his tool making skills, this capacity also increased.

Stable isotopes

Found in teeth and in bones, these are often used to study diet and migration patterns in ancient populations.