Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Award: Livestock Management Practices

该奖项的全部或部分资金来自《2021年美国救援计划法案》(公法117-2)。世界上最早的农业社会对驯化的动植物进行传播和繁殖，将景观重组为适合农业的生态位。当今全球农业的规模引发了人们对食品生产碳足迹的合理担忧，研究人员试图解释这些过程规模变化的原因和方式。许多辩论都集中在增加人口规模作为集约化生产的一个关键因素上；但人口规模和集约化之间的关系可能更为复杂。考古证据表明，几千年来，非工业化农业经济体在小规模和大规模上都采取了一系列生存战略，有时是并行进行的。此外，自给自足的农民根据个人农田和种植制度的规模，决定每一块土地的投资水平。因此，集约化生产与其说是人口规模增加等外部压力的反映，不如说是农民如何应对作物或畜产品无法满足生存需要的风险的直接影响。在这一更广泛的背景下，这项研究将研究如何通过采用创新技术来改变生产和土地利用的规模，从而提高每一块耕种或饲养牲畜的产量。乳制品发酵是数千年前出现的一项关键创新。奶酪、酸奶和黄油等加工乳制品可以比原料奶储存更长时间，更容易运输，这使它们成为在粮食短缺时期最大限度地减少饥饿风险的重要资源。发酵技术的最早证据出现在大约7000年前，并逐渐被小规模农民采用。这些农民居住在永久的露天农场，在那里他们种植小麦和大麦，并放牧少量的山羊、绵羊、牛和猪。然而，目前尚不清楚牲畜是如何管理的，也不清楚在采用乳制品发酵技术后会发生什么变化(如果有的话)，这将激励更多的牛奶使用。该项目将使用来自六个考古遗址的牲畜骨骼和牙齿的稳定同位素分析来评估动物饮食、繁殖和流动性的变化或停滞。研究人员将为西班牙裔服务机构的本科生提供考古挖掘、动物考古分析以及实验室中骨骼和牙齿样本制备方面的动手培训。学生助理还将有机会共同撰写同行评议的期刊文章，并就会议报告进行合作。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award is funded in whole or in part under the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (Public Law 117-2).The spread and propagation of domesticated plants and animals by the world’s earliest farming societies restructured landscapes into ecological niches suitable for agriculture. The scale of today’s global agricultural industry has raised legitimate concerns about the carbon footprint of food production, and researchers have sought to explain why and how changes in the scale of these processes occur. Many debates have focused on increasing population size as a key factor in the intensification of production; but the relationship between population size and intensification is likely more complicated. Archaeological evidence indicates that non-industrial farming economies through the millennia engaged in a range of subsistence strategies at both small and large scales, sometimes pursued in parallel. Moreover, subsistence farmers make decisions about the level of investment per unit land on the scale of individual field and cropping systems. Therefore, intensification of production may be less a reflection of external pressures such as increasing population size and more directly shaped by how farmers cope with the risk of crop or livestock products falling short of subsistence needs. Within this broader context, this research will examine how changes in the scale of production and land use can occur through the adoption of innovative technologies that enable increased yields per unit land farmed or livestock raised.Dairy fermentation was a key innovation that emerged millenia ago. Processed dairy foods such as cheese, yogurt, and butter can be stored for longer than raw milk and more easily transported making them vital resources for minimizing the risk of starvation during times of food scarcity. The earliest evidence for fermentation technology appeared approximately 7,000 years ago and was gradually adopted by small-scale farmers. These farmers resided in permanent open-air farms where they grew wheat and barley, and herded small numbers of goats, sheep, cattle, and pigs. However, it is unclear how livestock were managed and what, if any, changes followed the adoption of dairy fermentation technology that would have incentivized increased use of milk. This project will use stable isotope analysis of livestock bones and teeth from six archaeological sites to assess change or stasis in animal diet, breeding, and mobility. The investigators will provide hands-on training in archaeological excavation, zooarchaeological analysis, and preparation of bone and tooth samples in a laboratory setting to undergraduate students at a Hispanic Serving Institution. Student assistants will also have opportunities to coauthor peer-reviewed journal articles and collaborate on conference presentations.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.