Introduction to Archaeological Science
ANTHRO 1060
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
Archaeological science is the application of scientific techniques to study the human past. Methods in archaeological science build upon core concepts and methods in the biological, chemical, and physical sciences and use them in surprising and exciting ways to answer a wide range of questions, including: - How do we measure time? How do you date a stone tool? a bone? a pot? - Who were the Neanderthals? When were they last alive, and what happened to them? - What did the earliest farmers eat? How do we know? - Where was maize domesticated and how did it spread throughout the Americas? - Where did dairying begin and how did it transform Bronze Age Eurasia? - What caused the Black Death? Where did it come from? Did it exist in prehistory? - How do pathogens emerge and evolve? - How does our knowledge of the past inform our future? This course offers an introduction to eight major areas of archaeological science: (1) relative and absolute dating, (2) human osteology, (3) paleoethnobotany and micro remains, (4) stable isotopes, (5) organic residue analysis, (6) zooarchaeology and ZooMS, (7) proteomics, and (8) paleogenomics. Students will gain an understanding of the history of the field and its future directions, the method and theory behind how different tools and techniques work, and how archaeological science is transforming archaeology today. During the laboratory sections students will have practical session on each topic and engage in a semester long experiment determining taxonomic identifications and stable isotope values from archaeological animal bones.
Recommended Prep
One year of college-level chemistry or physics.
Available for Harvard Cross Registration
NOTE: This course requires additional sections; you will be prompted to choose secondary components during the Add to Cart process
