Assignment:
Answer each one in a few sentences and make sure that EACH is numbered!
1. What characteristics do bioarchaeologists examine when reconstructing the profile of an individual human skeleton?
2. What factors impact the preservation of ancient DNA for the archaeologist?
3. How can bioarchaeologists reconstruct the diet of ancient populations using isotopic evidence?
4. What new insights have paleogenomics provided regarding the peopling of the Ancient Andes?
5. Why are archaeologists interested in reconstructing prehistoric trade/exchange networks? How do archaeologists determine the extent of prehistoric trade/exchange?
6. Discuss some general differences between small-scale and large-scale societies in terms of how people organize themselves to get and make the things they need and value.
7. Choose ONE of the chemical characterization techniques LISTED BELOW (1-5). Search the Web for information on that technique and how it used in archaeology to study production and exchange and report back.
Ceramic Petrography (a.k.a. optical mineralogy)
X-Ray Florescence Analysis (XRF)
X-Ray or Electron Microprobe Analysis
Inductively-Coupled Mass Spectroscopy
Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis (INAA)
8. How as the analysis of glazed wares in the American Southwest contributed to our understanding of social relationships in the prehistoric era?