ANTH 024 1st Edition Lecture 8Outline of Last Lecture I. Survey and Sampling Methods II. ArcheozoologyOutline of Current Lecture II. Paleoethnobotany/ArcheobotanyIII. Paleoclimatology Current LectureI. Paleoethnobotany/Archeobotanya. Study of plant remains i. Don’t preserve well—often biodegrade b. Macrobotanical remainsi. Sometimes large in size, but often seeds ii. When burned, these plant materials carbonize1. The materials that would have been consumed are removed through burning 2. Thus, they are able to be preserved iii. They’re preserved best in very wet or very dry conditions c. Flotation i. Removes seeds/plant remains from site ii. Doesn’t use very advanced technology 1. Separates light plant remains from other heavier materials through floating them in water and using screens and sieves 2. After materials have been extracted, they can be studied in labd. Phytolithsi. Silica bodies in plant tissue that help support itii. Can identify the type of plant its from, as well as what part of the plante. Starch grainsi. Can be extracted from the surface of mortars, stone ii. Can last a long timeiii. Can be used to make arguments about the use of maize/grains in a society II. Paleoclimatology a. Study of evidence of past climates and changes b. FossilsThese notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor’s lecture. GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes, not as a substitute.i. Up to billions of years oldii. See what kind of animals lived where and when1. What kind of climate/environment did those animals needc. Deep Sea Cores i. Layers of tiny microfossils from the bottom of the oceanii. From up to 200 million years ago iii. Sediment builds up over timeiv. Foraminifera – tiny organisms that contain CaCO3 d. Ice Coresi. Prove snow on top of glaciers, arctic areasii. Samples from up to 1.5 million years ago (most are up to 800,000 years ago)iii. Can develop annual rings if the weight of the snow isn’t too greativ. Can analyze composition of bubbles in the ice e. Lake Cores i. More local, study smaller areas ii. Usually younger samples iii. Sludge builds up over timeiv. Isn’t much striation f. Tree Ringsi. Respond to changes in climate ii. Variations in rings iii. Up to 10,000 years ago g. Oxygen Isotope Analysis i. O16 and O18 are found in water in regular proportion 1. Don’t decay overtime2. Natural abundance doesn’t as vary as much as carbon isotopesii. In colder periods, there is more ice, so the ocean level is lower 1. O16 is lighter than O18, so its more likely to evaporate 2. During cold periods, less ice melts, so O16 doesn’t go back to the ocean, but remains trapped in the ice a. And so there should be more O18 in the ocean iii. Can look at the ratio of oxygen isotopes to map climate change h. Pollen i. Can get from cores ii. Male reproductive bodies of flowering plants iii. Can tell what the specific species of plant was iv. The outer shells are hard and preserve well i. Micromammals and Insectsi. Extract small bits of animals/insects from cores ii. Small organisms are sensitive to small climactic variations 1. Can’t move very far, trapped in one environmenta. Have to adapt quickly to survivej. Dendroclimatology i. Look at rings and hardness of trees to map local climate change k. Bioarcheologyi. Study of human remains ii. Can tell sex, age, relatedness, pathology, other health indicators, habitual activities from bones iii. Can see how muscle differences developed—sometimes can tell you occupation/habits iv. Body shape & ethnicity – skull binding example v. Sacrifices – have cut marks1. So do executed prisoners vi. Molecular techniques: 1. Strontium a. Can tell residence, migration pathsb. Get strontium from the plants we eatc. Can tell where you lived at different times based on strontium levels 2. Nitrogen a. Can tell trophic level 3.