Upcoming Meetings

The Geoarchaeology Interest Group is sponsoring a symposium entitled, "Geoarchaeology of Big River Valleys." This symposium is organized by Sarah Sherwood, Ed Hajic, and Julie Stein. The participants of the symposium will discuss geoarchaeological research along major river systems of the world. They will address research approaches to the study of large river systems and the results of geoarchaeological studies and how they have helped in the interpretation and management of archaeological resources.

Another symposium, "Beyond Basic Formation Processes: Constructing Inferences from Archaeological Deposits and Depositional Contexts," has been organized by Vincent M. LaMotta and E. Charles Adams. This symposium will focus on human depositional behaviors (i.e., anthropogenic) processes of deposit formation and then demonstrate how deposits and depositional behaviors can be used to construct inferences about past cultural phenomena such as community organization, subsistence, and ritual.

Several funds are available to students pursuing geoarchaeological research.

1. Archaeological Geology Student Award: The Archaeological Geology Division of the Geological Society of America announces a $500 travel grant to be awarded to a student to attend the annual meeting of GSA in Denver, October 25-28, 1999. The grant is competitive and will be awarded based on the evaluation of an abstract and a 2000 word summary paper prepared by the student for presentation in the Division’s technical session at the GSA meeting. The summary paper may include a figure and must be single authored. The deadline for receipt of the paper is May 1, 1999. Applications should be sent to John Albanese, Chair, GSA Archaeological Geology Division Awards Committee, P.O. Box 1397, Casper, Wyoming 82602. (E-mail: albanes@trib.com).

2. Claude Albritton Fund for Archaeological Geology: The Archaeological Geology Division of the Geological Society of America offers this memorial fund in honor of Dr. Albritton. The Albritton fund is to provide scholarships for graduate students in the earth sciences and archaeology. Awards in the amount of $500 will be given in support of thesis or dissertation research, with emphasis on the field and /or laboratory parts of this research. Recipients of these awards will be students who: (1) are working on a Masters or Doctoral degree in the earth sciences or archaeology; (2) want to apply earth science methods to archaeological research; and (3) want a career in teaching and academic research. Information about these scholarships can be obtained from Reid Ferring, Institute for Applied Sciences, P.O. Box 13078, University of North Texas, Denton, TX 76203. Proposals should be sent to John Albanese, Chair, GSA Archaeological Geology Division Awards Committee, P.O. Box 1397, Casper, Wyoming 82602. (E-mail: albanes@trib.com). The deadline for receipt of proposals is May 1, 1999.

3. Jonathan O. Davis Scholarship Fund: This is a memorial fund for J. O. Davis, a well known Quaternary geologists and geoarchaeologist, who was tragically killed in an automobile accident in 1990. This scholarship is given annually to support the field research of a graduate student working on the Quaternary geology of the Great Basin or surrounding areas. The grant is $2000. For information contact: Executive Director, Quaternary Sciences Center, Desert Research Institute, P.O. Box 60220, Reno, NV 89506.

4. Geochron Laboratories Awards: Geochron, a division of Krueger Enterprises, Inc., annually awards a series of research grants to graduate students. The awards consist of analytical services that are provided free of charge. Awards are offered in several categories: K-Ar dating, C-14 dating, and stable isotope ratio analyses (SIRA), SIRA in dietary studies, and SIRA of fluid inclusions in minerals. The awards are offered by Geochron Laboratories to encourage the application of isotopic analytical techniques to solve original and significant research problems. The deadline for submission is May 1, 1999. For Research Award Program Guidelines and official rules write Geochron Laboratories, 711 Concord Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138.

Two new, general books dealing with geoarchaeology have recently been published. These are: (1) Geoarchaeology: The Earth-Science Approach to Archaeological Interpretation, 1998, by George (Rip) Rapp, Jr., and Christopher L. Hill, Yale University Press; and (2) Geological Methods for Archaeology, 1998, by Norman Herz and Ervan G. Garrison, Oxford University Press.

The Archaeological Geology Division of the Geological Society of America now has a homepage thanks to the efforts of Bill Johnson. It has information about Division officers, Division bylaws, newsletters, award information, guide to graduate programs, annual meeting information, publications of interest, and a lot more. It can be accessed either through the GSA’s web site at www.geosociety.org or at www.geog.ukans.edu/gsa/gsa.htm. This is a great site and Bill is to be congratulated. Be sure to bookmark this one.

A formal Geoarchaeology Interest Group has been established by the Society for American archaeology. Group memberships is already over 500 and has plans to hold a symposium and field trip at each annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology. The first will be held next year in Chicago. For additional information contact Julie Stein (Jkstein@u.washington.edu) or Rolfe Mandel (mandel@falcon.cc.ukans.edu).