High Risk Exploratory Research: The Archaeology, Paleontology, and Geology of the Bala Paleoanthropological Research Area in Southern Ethiopia

高风险探索性研究：埃塞俄比亚南部巴拉古人类研究区的考古学、古生物学和地质学

• 批准号: 0721083
• 负责人: Elizabeth Harmon
• 金额: $ 2.2万
• 依托单位: CUNY Hunter College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2007
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2007-07-01 至 2009-06-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0721083&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Risk; Exploratory; Research; Archaeology; Paleontology

With the support of a National Science Foundation High Risk Exploratory Award, Dr. Elizabeth Harmon and an international team will investigate the little known, but potentially important, Bala Paleoanthropological Research Area (BPRA) of southern Ethiopia. Brief fieldwork in 2006 identified deposits containing Acheulean, Middle, and Later Stone Age artifacts, which indicates that the BPRA contains a record of human and occupation that overlaps that of the nearby Turkana Basin, Lower Omo River Valley, and Konso. These areas have provided the fossils and artifacts that underpin much of our understanding of human evolution during the Pliocene and Pleistocene. Similarly, the BPRA is likely to contain significant deposits that can contribute to knowledge about technology and adaptations of the genus Homo. The goal during 2007 fieldwork is to document the paleoanthropological, geological, archaeological resources in the BPRA, and to use this information to target scientifically important deposits for long-term study, such as archaeological excavations and raw material sourcing. This work is high-risk because most of the project area is unexplored, and the long-term potential is unknown. However, regardless of the long-term potential, the BPRA is geographically intermediate to several valuable Plio-Pleistocene hominin localities, and it is important to clearly establish its paleoanthropological potential. Research in the BPRA will consist of ground survey to record data relevant to the occupation of the area by hominins and the geological and paleoenvironmental setting in which the occupation occurred. The geochronological and sedimentary data, which could include samples of volcanic tuffs for chronometric dating, are the key to understanding the regional geology of southern Ethiopia. The fossil faunal evidence may contribute to evaluating past environments, and help to determine the role of the environment in hominin evolution. The archaeological evidence, such as stone tools from various cultural traditions, will be important for gauging the time period and the taxonomic affiliation of the occupying hominins, and also may help to understand lithic technological change. Changes in lithic technology can be linked to cognitive advances and shifts in resource procurement strategies, issues that are poorly understood in Eastern Africa. There are three primary broader impacts associated with the BPRA project. The first is as a training venue. The BPRA will ultimately provide opportunities for undergraduate and graduate students from at least four universities in the USA, Canada, Israel, and Addis Ababa University in Ethiopia. The second broader impact derives from the collaborative nature of the project. Because the participants are from numerous cultural traditions and from many academic disciplines, the project represents a broad academic perspective. The association of scientists working in a new project area will necessarily spur novel research. The work will be disseminated in peer-reviewed publications in multiple domains of research, including paleoecology, Paleolithic archaeology, and Rift Valley geology. Most important, the collaboration includes Ethiopian expertise, which is often underrepresented in Ethiopian paleoanthropology. The final broader impact relates to support for Ethiopian cultural heritage. By conducting fieldwork in Ethiopia, money is channeled toward maintenance and improvement of the infrastructure devoted to Ethiopia's cultural and scientific resources.

在国家科学基金会高风险探索奖的支持下，伊丽莎白·哈蒙博士和一个国际团队将调查埃塞俄比亚南部鲜为人知但可能很重要的巴拉古人类学研究区 (BPRA)。 2006 年的简短实地考察发现了含有阿舍利、中石器时代和晚期文物的沉积物，这表明 BPRA 包含的人类和居住记录与附近的图尔卡纳盆地、下奥莫河谷和孔索的记录重叠。 这些地区提供的化石和文物支撑着我们对上新世和更新世人类进化的理解。 同样，BPRA 可能含有大量沉积物，有助于增进有关人属技术和适应的知识。 2007 年实地工作的目标是记录 BPRA 中的古人类学、地质学和考古资源，并利用这些信息来确定具有科学意义的矿床进行长期研究，例如考古发掘和原材料采购。 这项工作具有高风险，因为大部分项目区域尚未勘探，长期潜力未知。 然而，无论长期潜力如何，BPRA 在地理上都处于几个有价值的上里奥-更新世古人类栖息地的中间，因此明确确定其古人类学潜力非常重要。 BPRA 的研究将包括地面调查，以记录与古人类占领该地区以及占领发生时的地质和古环境背景相关的数据。 地质年代学和沉积数据，其中可能包括用于年代测定的火山凝灰岩样本，是了解埃塞俄比亚南部区域地质的关键。 动物群化石证据可能有助于评估过去的环境，并有助于确定环境在古人类进化中的作用。 考古证据，例如来自不同文化传统的石器，对于衡量占领时期的古人类的时间段和分类学归属非常重要，也可能有助于了解石器技术的变革。 石器技术的变化可能与认知进步和资源采购策略的转变有关，而这些问题在东非人们知之甚少。 BPRA 项目具有三个主要的更广泛的影响。 首先是作为训练场地。 BPRA 最终将为来自美国、加拿大、以色列的至少四所大学和埃塞俄比亚亚的斯亚贝巴大学的本科生和研究生提供机会。 第二个更广泛的影响来自于该项目的协作性质。 由于参与者来自多种文化传统和多种学科，该项目代表了广泛的学术视角。 在新项目领域工作的科学家协会必然会刺激新颖的研究。 这项工作将在多个研究领域的同行评审出版物中传播，包括古生态学、旧石器时代考古学和裂谷地质学。 最重要的是，合作包括埃塞俄比亚的专业知识，而埃塞俄比亚的专业知识在埃塞俄比亚古人类学中往往代表性不足。 最后更广泛的影响涉及对埃塞俄比亚文化遗产的支持。通过在埃塞俄比亚进行实地考察，资金被用于维护和改善专门用于埃塞俄比亚文化和科学资源的基础设施。