[Sasnet] FW: ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY BIOARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD SCHOOL 2008 Kampsville

Sun Mar 2 08:41:08 MST 2008

From: Trish Yasolsky [mailto:trish.yasolsky at asu.edu] 
Sent: Thursday, February 28, 2008 12:48 PM
Subject: ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY BIOARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD SCHOOL 2008
Kampsville 

ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY BIOARCHAEOLOGICAL FIELD SCHOOL

Expanded For-Credit Summer Field Schools in Archaeology

Further your archaeology education in an exciting new way: ASU's
expanded program allows you to earn credit through field-based courses
in archaeological excavation, human osteology, archaeological GIS,
geophysical survey, paleoethnobotany and zooarchaeology. Based at the
Center for American Archeology's famous research and education
facilities in Kampsville, Illinois, these courses offer field- and
laboratory-based hands-on experience within a collegial network of
scholars and students. 

This program offers something for everyone - including coursework in
beginning and advanced field archaeology, human osteology, GIS and
geophysical survey methods. Staffed by nationally and internationally
recognized scholars from Arizona State University, the Center for
American Archeology, the University of Arkansas, the Illinois State
Museum and Washington University in St. Louis, these programs create an
intensive, immersion-style learning environment in which you will work
with leading professionals and tap into the unparalleled natural and
cultural resources of the Lower Illinois Valley region.

            Participants will stay at one of the CAA's bunkhouse-style
dormitories,

within easy walking distance of lecture halls, laboratories and local
businesses.

Dormitories are equipped with refrigerators. Rooms are at minimum

double-occupancy; single rooms are not available. Separate shower &

restroom facilities are provided for men and women. Meals are prepared
by an experienced food-service provider who can accommodate most dietary
needs. 

Multiple enrollment options allow you to select the course best suited
to your interests and education/career goals. Options include six-week
and two-week programs. 

Six-week courses for six credit hours, held from June 22 to August 1,
include:

- Human Osteology

- Field Archaeology and Geophysical Survey

- GIS and Geophysical Survey

Two-week courses for three credit hours include:

- Paleoethnobotany (July 21 to August 1)

- Zooarchaeology (August 4 to 15)

For more information, please visit our web site:

http://www.asu.edu/clas/shesc/projects
<http://www.asu.edu/clas/shesc/projects> /cbr/bfs/ 

1. Human Osteology (June 22 to August 1, six credits)

Whether your interests are in bioarchaeology, forensic anthropology,
skeletal biology, paleoanthropology or dental anthropology, this course
will provide you with the anatomical and analytical expertise to study
archaeologically and forensically recovered skeletal materials. Students
with no prior background, as well as those with intermediate and
advanced expertise, are welcome. Through hands-on laboratory learning,
students will gain advanced anatomical knowledge of adult and juvenile
skeletal materials. Lectures on dimensions of the biological profile
(osteobiography) anchor laboratory exercises and specialized,
independent research projects. Topics include bioarchaeology,
paleodemography, biodistance and ancestry, paleopathology, nutrition and
bioarchaeological case studies drawn from throughout the Americas.
(Instructor: Dr. Jane E. Buikstra, professor of bioarchaeology, Arizona
State University and President, Center for American Archeology.)

2. Field Archeology and Geophysical Survey (June 22 to August 1, six
credits)

The Field Archaeology track provides students of all skill levels with
opportunities to engage in original, problem-based archaeological
research in the Lower Illinois Valley while learning archaeological
skills readily transferable to other environments. Field excavations are
supplemented by evening lectures and discussions of archaeological
theory, research design, field and laboratory methods and the natural
sciences. During the first two weeks of the course, field archaeology
students will participate in the geophysical and remote sensing training
described in more detail below.

            During the 2008 field season we will be working at Mound
House, an important floodplain site best known for its Middle Woodland
(ca. 50 B.C. - A.D. 400) mounds. Our current research has focused on the
post-Middle Woodland use and reuse of the site. Integrating with the GIS
and Geophysical Survey track, we supplement traditional field methods
with increased emphasis on ground-based remote sensing,
geo-archaeological and GIS approaches to explore long-term site use,
social memory and natural and social landscape evolution. 

Our previous excavation at Mound House Mound 1(1990-2000) and Mound 2
(2001-2006) has provided a detailed view of Middle Woodland
mound-building and multi-community ceremonial site use. In 2007, we
documented post-Middle Woodland/early Late Woodland occupation at one of
the site's habitation areas. In addition, we initiated a ceramics-based
study that suggested possible early Late Woodland contributions to Mound
1, a structure conventionally considered solely of Middle Woodland
origin. 

In 2008 staff and students will continue to focus on post-Middle
Woodland presence and contributions to the Mound House as we further
explore the built environment of the Lower Illinois Valley. Students are
invited to participate in this unique opportunity to investigate the
built landscape of prehistoric life in the Lower Illinois Valley and to
gain archaeological skills necessary to investigate the past in almost
any environment. Instructors: Dr. Jane E. Buikstra (ASU), Jason L. King
(UNM) and Dr. Gregory Vogel (ASU).

3. GIS and Geophysical Survey (June 22 to August 1, six credits)

            GIS and geophysical survey methods are revolutionizing
archaeology by allowing researchers to "see" beneath the ground and
process and analyze spatial data in powerful and creative ways. This
intensive, 6-week field school will give you hands-on practice in these
methods within the context of an on-going landscape-scale research
project in the Lower Illinois Valley.

            Students will receive training in geophysical survey
instruments, and in processing, analysis, interpretation and
ground-truthing of the data. Students will be exposed to magnetic
gradiometry, electrical resistance, electromagnetic induction and
ground-penetrating radar survey techniques. GIS methods will be taught
through both site-specific and landscape-scale research questions, with
emphasis placed on the study of archaeology and human-environment
interactions. Specific GIS topics include importing and exporting
diverse datasets, geo-referencing, map and database integration, map
algebra, surface analysis and DEM-derived layers and predictive
modeling.

            Instruction will include daily lectures, readings and field-
and laboratory-based data acquisition, processing and interpretation.
Lectures, readings and field trips will also introduce students to
regional archaeology and environmental history. Each student will
complete a research project using archeological and environmental data
from the Lower Illinois Valley. Instructors: Dr. Gregory Vogel (ASU) and
Dr. Ken Kvamme (University of Arkansas).

Paleoethnobotany (July 21 to August 1, three credits)

            Are you interested in both archaeology and plants?  This
two-week field school is an introductory course that offers hands-on
training in field and laboratory methods in paleoethnobotany. 

Students will learn how to: 

- Conduct flotation of sediments from an archaeological site.

- Collect and process modern plants, seeds and fruits for comparative
collections. 

- Weigh and sieve light and heavy fractions prior to analysis through
the 

microscope.

- Identify common types of charred macrobotanical remains from a site in
the  Illinois River valley and conduct basic quantitative analysis of
these remains.

- Make inferences about prehistoric foodways and paleoenvironments. 

Instructor: Dr. Gayle J. Fritz, Professor of anthropology, Washington
University in St. Louis.

Zooarchaeology (August 4 to 15, three credits)

            This two-week laboratory course, held at the Illinois State
Museum Research and Collections Center in Springfield, will give you
hands-on experience in identifying and analyzing animal remains from
archaeological sites using an extensive skeletal reference collection.

Students will: 

- Become familiar with the skeletal anatomy of mammals, birds, fish,
reptiles and            amphibians commonly encountered at Midwestern
archaeological sites.

- Learn to identify teeth and fragmentary animal skeletal remains from
archaeological faunal assemblages under the guidance of experienced
specialists.

- Observe cultural modifications due to food preparation, including cut
marks,    burning, and boiling.

- See how various post-depositional agents affect animal remains,
including        gnawing by scavenging animals, can be recognized and
interpreted. 

- Conduct basic quantitative analysis; make inferences about past
environmental             settings, subsistence strategies and site
formation processes.

Students will also learn about innovations that are permitting
researchers to ask new questions and acquire unique kinds of information
from archaeological animal remains. Special presentations will include
the following: 

- Freshwater mussels as environmental indicators (Dr. Robert Warren).

- DNA and archaeological animal remains (Dr. Meredith Mahoney). 

- Stable isotopes and paleoecology (Dr. Chris Widga).

- New insights on Pleistocene megafauna (Dr. Jeffrey Saunders). 

- Evolution of prehistoric human subsistence strategies in the Lower
Illinois 

Valley (Dr. Bonnie Styles). 

- Examples of Historic period faunal utilization (Dr. Terrance Martin).

Instructors: Dr. Terrance Martin, curator of anthropology and Dr. Bonnie
Styles, museum director, Illinois State Museum. 

http://www.asu.edu/clas/shesc/projects/cbr/bfs/

http://www.asu.edu/clas/shesc/projects/cbr/bfs/program.html

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