ANT 2423
Section 3178
Introduction to Archaeology
Self-Paced
Instructor: Michael Pool
Office Hours:
Rio Grande Campus, Student Services Building/Annex
250.1 223-3403
Tuesday 9:00-1:00
Riverside Campus, Room A-1141 223-6039
Monday 11:00-12:00 223-6041
Messages: 223-3385 (Rio Grande Campus)
Home: 280-7654 (Do Not call after 10:00 pm)
E-mail: mpool@austin.cc.tx.us
Anthropology Program Web Page: http://www.austin.cc.tx.us/pool/
Syllabus
Classes start Feb. 10
Feb. 10-March 21
Out of the Past, Chapters 1-5 (I highly
recommend that you view Video 8: Collapse at any of the tape viewing
locations noted on page 6. Many of the examples mentioned in Chapters 3
and 4 are shown in this episode.)
Objectives: Learn the basic concepts and
methods of archaeology; how professional archaeology developed and its
relationship to the field of anthropology; the scientific process and how
to apply it; and how archaeologists design and carry out research, using
specific case examples.
March 2 Hand-in 1, Hand-in 1, Fugawiland:
printout of regional
map with sites, lakes and rivers, and hills, as well as xerox copy
of completed contour maps on page 86.
Spring Break March 16-22
Test 1 Due March 23 (Chapters
1-5)
March 23 Hand-in 2, Fugawiland:
one typed page (double-spaced) with your hypotheses of the settlement system
(see Unit 2 of Fugawiland Handout, p. 7), as well as a xerox copy of
a map indicating the ten sites you selected for excavation.
March 22-March 28
Out of the Past, Chapter 6
Video 1: New Worlds [Shows March 28, 11:00
am-12:00 pm]
Objective: Understand the theories of
cultural adaptation and culture change developed by anthropologists, using
information gathered by archaeologists and ethnographers
Out of the Past, Chapter 7
Video 2: The Hearth [Shows March 28, 12:00-1:00
pm]
Objective: Understand basic social organization
and its archaeological evidence in houses, communities, and settlement
systems.
March 29-April 4
Out of the Past, Chapter 8
Video 3: Artisans and Traders [April 4,
11:00 am-12:00 pm]
Objective: Understand economic organization
and how material needs are met and how goods are produced, distributed,
and consumed.
Out of the Past, Chapter 9
Video 4: Signs and Symbols [April 4, 12:00-1:00
pm]
Objective: Learn the principles and examples
of communication systems, including the development of the earliest writing.
April 5-11
Out of the Past, Chapter 10
Video 5: Power, Prestige, and Wealth [April
11, 11:00 am-12:00 pm]
Objective: Understand the way political
authority and power develop, how they are used, and how archaeologists
detect them.
Out of the Past, Chapter 11
Video 6: Realms [April 11, 12:00-1:00
pm]
Objective: Understand the extent of political
power and the archaeological manifestations of capitals, hinterlands, and
borders.
April 13 Hand-in 3, Fugawiland:
Hand in five printouts of your analyses, including one table, one bar graph,
one plot graph, and one map of spatial distributions.
Test 2 Due April 13 (Chapters
6-10)
April 12-18
Out of the Past, Chapter 12
Video 7: The Spirit World [April 18, 11:00
am-12:00 pm]
Objective: Learn how archaeologists recognize
and interpret evidence of religion and ideology.
April 24 Last Day to Withdraw
April 19-25
Out of the Past, Chapter 13-15
Video 8: Collapse [April 25, 11:00 am-12:00
pm]
Objectives: Understand the events and
processes of the rise of civilizations in the Old and New World regions
and why civilizations fall, using as a case study the collapse of Maya
civilization.
April 26-May 2
Out of the Past, Chapter 16
Objective: Explore the theories explaining
cultural processes, especially the development of sociopolitical complexity.
Fugawiland Due April 27
Extracredit Projects Due April
27
Test 3 Due May 4 (Chapters 11-16)
Study Guide due May 4
Texts
Webster, Daniel L., Susan T. Evans, and William T.
Sanders (1993) Out of the Past: An Introduction to Archaeology.
Mountain View, Ca.:Mayfield Publishing Co.
Gonlin, Nancy, Susan T. Evans, and David L. Webster
(1993) Study Guide to Accompany Out of the Past: An Introduction to
Archaeology. Mountain View, Ca.:Mayfield Publishing Co.
Price, Doug and Gitte Gebauer (1997) Adventures
in Fugawiland: A Computer Simulation in Archaeology, Second Edition.
Mountain View, Ca.:Mayfield Publishing Co.
Course Description
This course is based on an eight-part PBS video series
and integrated textbook and study guide and uses on-site filming and
text to explore how archaeologists reconstruct ancient societies, explain
how and why these societies evolved, and understand how archaeology and
anthropology interact. Mayan research provides the core of the presentation,
but a broadly comparative perspective, including many other societies from
both the Old and New Worlds, is presented. In addition, an extracredit
computer simulation workbook, Adventures in Fugawiland, is used
to operationalize archaeological thinking and analysis.
Course Objectives
1. To introduce students to the practice of archaeology
(techniques, methods, and theories) and to the archaeological record;
2. To show what kinds of research questions archaeologists
ask and why these questions are important;
3. To inform students how archaeologists structure
their research to answer these questions and how the questions are used
and answered in actual field situations;
4. To provide a broadly comparative approach using
images and information about many cultures and to teach critical thinking
skills necessary to understand how cultures function and change; and
5. To introduce the archaeological perspective
on how and why cultures function and change, what similarities are broadly
shared among cultures, and why cultures differ.
Grading
Adventures in Fugawiland
(20%): You will be graded on completing all of Part IV of the work book;
attach a printout of the multiple choice test given in the computer program.
Instead of writing the essay in the work book, type it using double spacing
and one inch margins; minimum length is three pages. None of this material
will be on the tests. Used work books will not be accepted without instructor
approval.
Copies of any work book pages handed in for
the participation part of the grade do not count as completing those exercises
in the work book; those exercises must be completed and handed in with
the work book.
Tests (20% each):
There will be three objective tests available at any of the testing centers.
Each test will consist of 50 multiple choice and, possibly, matching questions.
The answer sheets must be dated by the testing center by the due date to
receive full credit. Permission slips are required for each test. There
are no re-tests.
Questions on the videos will be based on the video
discussion questions found in the study guide; keep these questions in
mind while viewing the videos. Some of the other questions are based on
the overview, discussion questions, testing comprehension questions found
in the study guide.
Participation (10%):
This part of your grade will be based on the three hand-ins for Adventures
in Fugawiland. Do not hand-in originals of the exercises from the
work book; make copies of your work.
Study Guide
(10%): Complete sections II.B.1. and III.A. (except for essay questions)
for each chapter. Hand the Study Guide in at the end of the semester. Used
study guides will not be accepted without instructor approval.
Policies
1. One point will be deducted from
your grade for each calendar day the assignment is late after its due date.
Points will be deducted until a maximum grade of 70 can be
earned; points will not be deducted below a grade of 70. After May 4 a
score of zero will be recorded. Test 3 and the Study Guide must
be handed in by May 4 or a score of 0 will be recorded, unless permission
is received from the instructor to hand it in late.
2. The Study Guide and
Adventures in Fugawiland may be handed in either by giving it to
me during my office hours, placing it in my mail box in the VP's of Students
office at the Rio Grande Campus after getting a date stamp from the receptionist,
or by routing it to me from any campus through the ACC mail system after
getting a date stamp from the receptionist (route to Michael Pool at Rio
Grande Campus). If a date stamp is not on the item, I will assume it was
handed in one day before I got it and deduct any points accordingly.
3. It is not my policy to drop
students; it is the students responsibility to drop the class.
4. You need to notify me and
Distance Learning of any changes in your address, phone number, or e-mail
address.
5. Incompletes are discouraged
and will only be given for extenuating circumstances. Time conflicts and
poor time management are not acceptable reasons; ACC has a very liberal
drop policy you can use in these circumstances.
6. In cases of scholastic dishonesty
(cheating) and after meeting with the student or notifying the student
of the reasons for believing scholastic dishonesty occurred, a grade of
0 will be recorded for any work determined by the instructor to result
from an act of scholastic dishonesty. The Dean of Student Services will
be notified of the incident and the academic penalty and will determine
if any further disciplinary penalty will be assessed. The student can accept
the penalty or dispute in writing to the Dean, within five (5) College
class days (excluding weekends) of the student's receipt of written notice
of the academic penalty assessed, either the facts of the offense or the
academic penalty assessed. The student is referred to the ACC Student
Handbook for further details.
Extracredit
Book Review: You
will receive up to 15 points added to your final grade for writing a 10
page review of two professional publications that you select and I approves.
An A on the review will get 15 points, a B 10 points, and a C 5 points.
You will be quaranteed at least a C if you meet the following guidelines:
-
typed, double-spaced with one inch margins, no more
than 12 point type (10 CPI or more)
-
a minimum of 10 pages (9 1/2 pages not accepted).
-
received by the due date and not later
-
instructor approval of the book
-
readable
Annotated Bibliography:
Complete an annotated bibliography of 10 professional articles concentrating
on a topic selected by the student and approved by me. Each annotation
will consist of the article citation (single spaced) and a minimum one
page summary (double spaced). The annotated bibliography will be typed
with a maximum of one inch margins on the sides, top, and bottom. In addition
to the annotations there will be a one page summary introduction of the
ten articles.
Major articles from Current Anthropology
with comments will count as two references as long as the summary and length
of the summary (2 pages) reflect the comments and reply. No more than 3
articles can come from one source (journal or book).
A maximum of 15 points will be added to your final
grade for an A, 10 points for a B, and 5 points for a C.
Internet Review:
Review 10 internet archaeological resources and write a minimum one page
review of each source. Include a 1 page overview introduction. Please consult
with the instructor if you wish to choose this option. The same grade range
applies as the other extracredit options.
Tape Viewing Locations
ACC Libraries/LRC (Cypress Creek, Fredericksberg,
Eastridge, Northridge, Rio Grande, Riverside, and Pinnacle); and ACC access
cable channels. There will be no programs on access cable until March 28.
Schedule for Cable Access
Short Semester
| Video 1: New Worlds |
March 28, 11:00 am-12:00 pm
|
| Video 2: The Hearth |
March 28, 12:00-1:00 pm
|
| Video 3: Artisans and Traders |
April 4, 11:00 am-12:00 pm
|
| Video 4: Signs and Symbols |
April 4, 12:00-1:00 pm
|
| Video 5: Power, Prestige, and
Wealth |
April 11, 11:00 am-12:00 pm
|
| Video 6: Realms |
April 11, 12:00-1:00 pm
|
| Video 7: The Spirit World |
April 18, 11:00 am-12:00 pm
|
| Video 8: Collapse |
April 25, 11:00 am-12:00 pm
|
Schedule for Cable Access
Long Semester
| |
Sunday
7:00-8:00 am 1
|
Thursday 9:00-10:00 pm
|
| Video 1: New Worlds |
Feb. 22
|
Feb. 26
|
| Video 2: The Hearth |
March 1
|
March 5
|
| Video 3: Artisans and Traders |
March 8
|
March 12
|
| Video 4: Signs and Symbols |
March 22
|
March 26
|
| Video 5: Power, Prestige, and
Wealth |
March 29
|
April 2
|
| Video 6: Realms |
April 5
|
April 9
|
| Video 7: The Spirit World |
April 12
|
April 16
|
| Video 8: Collapse |
April 19
|
April 23
|
1 Shows only
on Austin Cablevision.
Adventures in Fugawiland
Adventures in Fugawiland is a computer simulation
of archaeological excavation and analysis. I included the workbook in the
course to give you a better idea of what archaeologists do. Both Windows
and Macintosh versions of the program are available from the publisher;
availability depends on the bookstore. You are expected to read the manual
and complete the exercises in the manual. Computers are available for use
in the LRS computer labs; a computer can be reserved for use for a period
of time. Expect to spend at least 10 hours doing the simulation and exercises
plus at least several more writing it
You will be graded on completing all the exercises
in Part IV.
Requirements:
Windows 3.1 or 95: 2 megabytes ram, VGA monitor
and card with 256 colors. If you use the LRS computers, install the program
to a floppy disk and run it from the floppy. The LRS does not allow the
installation of student programs on their computers due to copyright laws.
Macintosh: 2.5 megabytes of hard drive space,
4 megabytes ram, system 7.x; color monitor preferred. You will not be able
to use the LRS Macintosh computers as you can not run the program off a
floppy disk.
ASSIGNMENTS
Unit 1 (Hand-in 1 due March 2)
-
Read Chapter 1, pp. 70-86 in Chapter 3, and pp. 116-120
in Chapter 4 of Out of the Past
-
Read Parts I and II and Part III, Chapters 4 and
5 in Adventures in Fugawiland.
-
Familiarize yourself with how the program and computer
work.
-
Use the map and information in Chapter 5 of the workbook
to familiarize yourself with the region.
-
Complete the exercises in the first part of Part
IV that do not use the computer program (pp. 84-91) (Discovering Sites,
Dating and Chronology, and Radiocarbon Dating).
Unit 2 (Hand-in 2 due March 23)
-
Read the rest of chapters 3 and 4 in Out of
the Past; Chapters 1, 3, and 4 will help you to derive hypotheses
concerning the settlement system and devise a sampling strategy prior to
excavation.
-
Review Chapters 4 and 5 in the Fugawiland
workbook and read Chapters 6 and 7 and the Help section in the program.
-
Develop some hypotheses concerning the nature of
the settlement of the region based on the topography and distribution of
resources (Chapter 5) and background knowledge (Chapters 3, 6, and 7) presented
in the workbook and in the Help section of the program. Basically answer
the following questions based on this information and the distribution
of known sites (Regional Map of Fugawiland):
1. What foods do you expect to be utilized? What
season are they available? Where are they available? What is the subsistence
cycle?
2. Where would settlements be located to exploit
what resources? What time of year would the settlements be occupied? What
is the annual cycle?
3. How many groups of people are there and what
distinguishes them?
4. Are there any special or ceremonial sites?
-
It is not important that your hypotheses are correct
but that they are sensible and testable and will guide you in the selection
of sites for excavation and in your data analysis.
-
Select 10 sites for excavation in order to test your
hypotheses. Then excavate them in the Fugawiland program (Chapter 6). As
you excavate each site examine the site plan and information (Chapter 7)
and modify your hypotheses and site selections accordingly.
Unit 3 (Hand-in 3 due April 3)
-
Review Chapter 3 in Out of the Past
and read Chapters 6-7.
-
Review pp. Chapter 7 and read Chapter 8 in the Fugawiland
workbook.
-
Print out site maps and artifact tables for each
excavated site. Begin to analyze your data by completing the analysis exercises
Part IV of the Fugawiland workbook. Subsequent analyses should be based
on testing your hypotheses rather than simply searching for possible patterns.
Unit 4 (Fugawiland due April 27)
-
Review Chapter 3-8 in Out of the Past;
this is especially relevant to the final interpretation of the project
as it discusses basic theoretical concepts in anthropology that guide interpretation
-
Compile your maps, data, and analyses of data. Assess
whether your analyses have falsified or verified your hypotheses (address
the questions in Unit 2). Write a 3-5 page double-spaced type written
report (rather than writing the essay in the workbook), discussing your
interpretations and conclusions with respect to your hypotheses using relevant
maps and data analyses to support your position.
In addition to the questions in the workbook, answer
the following questions to determine what is /are the settlement system(s)
used by the inhabitants of Fugawiland (how they organized themselves in
space and time to exploit their environment). Information found in Chapters
3-8 of Fugawiland will be useful in writing the report and
in the Help section of the program. Remember not to focus on just particular
sites; instead, look at the regional pattern and the part the individual
sites played in this pattern. You do not have to specifically answer
these questions in your report, but make sure the information is included
in the report.
1. What is the distribution of plant and animal
remains and of tool types?
2. What foods were utilized at each excavated
site and where and when were they obtained?
3. Were fish eaten in the inland sites?
4. Do you find mussels and deer at the same site?
5. Were sites with lots of points used in the
spring?
6. How many different kinds of sites are there?
What information is useful in distinguishing them? What activities occurred
at each type of site?
7. Were these sites occupied for the entire year
or for part of the year? If for part of the year, what part of the year?
[remember that hunters and gatherers rarely stayed at one site for the
entire year.]
8. What is/are the annual subsistence cycle(s)?
9. How many groups of people are there, and how
are they different (what distinguishes any groups)?
10. How many people were there at each site,
and given their annual cycle, how many people were there in each group?
How many people were there in the entire region?
11. Did everyone have chert knives and is the
distribution of chert knives related to the nearness to the source?
12. Where are people usually buried and what
are the forms of burials?
13. Are there any special/ceremonial sites? Which
sites are they, if any? What characteristics make them special/ceremonial
sites?
14. What evidence is there for trade or exchange?
Is any trade/exchange regional? If not, what is the extent of the trade/exchange?
15. What other kinds of information would you
need to better understand the archaeology of Fugawiland in terms of the
questions asked above and in terms of other questions? What other questions
could be asked?
HELPFUL HINTS:
1. For help on the contour maps in the workbook
consult me.
2. When picking sites to excavate , make sure
to select sites from all four topographic areas: lakeshore, river, plain,
and hills. If you do not, you will miss information important for interpretation.
3. Make sure you use the regional plot analysis.
4. Be sure to complete all parts of the exercises
and answer all the questions in Part 4, even if the questions are not
printed in bold print (pages 86, 89, 91, 95, 97, and 98).
5. For the graphs on page 100 use the following
information:
For points use the following ranges in the left
hand column and then record the number of sites with the number of projectile
points in that range in the right-hand column:
|
# points
|
# sites
|
|
0-14.9
|
|
|
15-29.9
|
|
|
30-44.9
|
|
|
>44.9
|
|
For copper knives use the following ranges:
|
# copper knives
|
# sites
|
|
0-24.9
|
|
|
25-49.9
|
|
|
50-74.9
|
|
|
>74.9
|
|
Then plot the number of sites in each range on the
graph to the right of each table.
6. For the seasonality chart on page 101, determine
the season of availability rather than use.
If you have any comments or questions about this Web page, please contact
Michael Pool at
512-223-3385
snail mail: 1212 Rio Grande, Austin, TX 78748
Anthropology Program
Last Updated 2-8-98
Return
to Main Anthropology Page
Return
to ACC Home Page