Long Term Population Response to Environmental Fluctuation

正如当今世界许多地区所证明的那样，环境变化可能对人口分布产生重大影响，因为人口群体可能大量迁徙、更广泛地分散在地貌上或聚集在一起做出适应性反应。考古学与古气候科学携手并进，为评估这一过程提供了一个极好的背景，因为它允许重建长期环境波动和人类反应。这样的变化可能会在几个世纪内缓慢展开，并在多个州有所不同。在这个研究项目中，宾夕法尼亚州立大学的道格拉斯·肯尼特博士和托马斯·哈珀博士将重点研究东欧青铜时代早期的一个这样的案例。在气候不稳定的这一时期，聚落模式表明，种群动态的变化很大。在一个时间间隔内，分散的人口合并成“巨型住区”，面积达到100-320公顷，不仅在规模上是独一无二的，而且在事实上也没有显示出内部社会分层的迹象。虽然这些聚落一直是先前研究的重点，但它们的年代很差，因此很难将它们紧密地置于一个按时间控制的环境背景中。研究人员将为放射性碳测年收集相关的文化材料，以构建一个紧密固定在时间上的文化序列。为了牢固地确立栖息地序列，研究人员将从22个未确定日期或年代较差的遗址中获取可测定日期的材料(动物骨样本；尽管在某些情况下可能会使用木炭)，这些遗址的文物组合表明大约在公元前4200-330年。这些遗址代表了巨人聚落现象的两个时期，这些遗址的材料保存在乌克兰国家科学院(基辅)考古研究所、特里波利文化博物馆和其他地区博物馆和考古当局的藏品中。联合皮哈珀将于本月前往乌克兰，以进行相关收藏品研究。样品将被打包并运往宾夕法尼亚州立大学，在那里它们将被清洁、准备和放射性碳标明日期。

As evidenced in many regions of the world today environmental change can have major impact on population distribution as groups of people may migrate in mass, disperse more broadly over the landscape or congregate in adaptive response. Archaeology, hand in hand with paleoclimate sciences, provides an excellent context within which to evaluate this process because it permits the reconstruction of both long term environmental fluctuation and human response. Such changes can play out slowly over multiple centuries and vary across multiple states. In this research project Drs. Douglas Kennett and Thomas Harper of Pennsylvania State University will focus on one such case dating to the Early Bronze Age period in Eastern Europe. During this period of climatic unstability settlement patterns indicate a highly volatile variation in population dynamics. During one time interval dispersed populations merged into "giant-settlements" which attained sizes of 100-320 hectares unique not only in size but also in the fact that they show no sign of internal social stratification. While these settlements, have been the focus of prior study, they are poorly dated and thus it is difficult to situate them tightly in an environmental context which is chronologically controlled. Researchers will collect relevant cultural material for radiocarbon dating to construct a cultural sequence which is tightly anchored in time.In order to firmly establish the habitational sequence, the researchers will obtain datable materials (faunal bone samples; though a contingency using charcoal may be implemented in some cases) from a selection of twenty-two undated or poorly dated sites with artifact assemblages suggesting occupation ca. 4200-3300 BC. These sites represent the periods on either side of the giant-settlement phenomenon, Materials from these sites are kept in the collections of the Institute of Archaeology of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine (Kiev), the Museum of Tripolye Culture and other regional museums and archaeological authorities. Co-PI Harper will travel to Ukraine for the month in order to perform relevant collections research. Samples will be packed and shipped to Penn State where they will be cleaned, prepared and radiocarbon dated.