The best place for a bioarchaeologist to look to determine the sex of human skeletal
remainsis:
a. The skull.
b. The pelvis.
c. The sacrum.
d. The dentition.
Studies of from various modern human populations have found:
a. Living Native Americans are not related to northern Asia
b. Living Native Americans are descendants of a separate migratory wave from Europe.
c. Living Native Americans are unlike Europeans, making an ancient migration from
Europe as well as from Asia unlikely.
d. modern human populations are close knit.
Which of the following is untrue about paradigms?
a. Paradigms provide specific guidelines for high- level theory.
b. Paradigms generate more specific claims about a regions’ prehistory.
c. Like culture, paradigms provide understandings of the world.
d. Paradigms do not reflect bias.
Experimental archaeology provides archaeologists with bridging arguments, ways to
make inferences about past behavior from material remains. Which of the following is
not an example of experimental archaeology?
a. Using British schoolboys to see if they could move stones similar to those used to
build Stonehenge.
b. Using a stone tool to scrape hide and then examining microwear present on the tool’s
edge to determine the type of wear caused by hide-scraping.
c. Using seriation to construct a way to date archaeological sites based on painted
pottery styles.
d. Throwing hafted spearpoints into elephant carcasses to determine their capacity for
penetration.
Schoeninger interpreted the greater range of nitrogen isotope ratios in the Stillwater
burial population compared to the Pecos or Ontario populations as reflecting:
a. Greater dietary variability in the Pecos and Ontario populations than in the Stillwater
population.
b. Greater dietary variability in the Stillwater population than in the Pecos and Ontario
populations
c. The fact that the Stillwater population had an increasing dependence on meat through
time
d. An individual’s age or sex; in the Stillwater population, children ate less meat than
adults and males ate more meat than females.
Genetic material found in a cell’s nucleus that is primarily responsible for an
individual’s inherited traits is called
a. Gene
b. Mitochondrial DNA
c. Nuclear DNA
d. Molecular DNA
A ritual in which an individual seeks visions through starvation, dehydration, and
exposure, used in some cultures to communicate with the supernatural world, is:
a. A vision quest.
b. Shamanism.
c. Totemism.
d. Sympathetic magic.
What can bioarchaeologists determine from enamel hypoplasias?
a. How old a child was when the growth arrest event took place.
b. The duration of the period of stress which resulted in the hypoplasia.
c. Whether they resulted from physical trauma to the face, parasitic infection, or
malnutrition.
d. Both A and B.
In discussing temporal types, the text mentioned Cottonwood Triangular projectile
points, which are essentially un-notched Desert Side-notched points. Why were
Cottonwood Triangular points left un-notched?
a. They were “war arrows”, left un-notched so that they would remain in a body even
after the shaft was pulled out.
b. They were unfinished, intended to be later notched.
c. They were made by novices or children who were not adept at notching points.
d. None or any of the above; we do not know for certain why they were left un-notched.
Which of the following would a zooarchaeological study not involve
a. Establishment that bones are left behind by people by looking for cut marks,
fragments, and burning.
b. Identify bones to element, taxon, sex and age using a comparative collection.
c. Count the bones using NISP and MNI.
d. Disregard symbolic importance in interpreting the past.
An example of a formation process in the archaeological context is:
a. Reclamation of an artifact.
b. Disturbance of material within a site by earthworm activity.
c. Reuse of an artifact.
d. Construction of a pithouse.
Lewis-Williams has argued that much of the world’s rock art is the result of shamanism.
What is the basis for his argument?
a. He is operating within the paradigm of structuralism, which frequently explains
human behavior as a response to culturally dictated supernatural needs.
b. He interprets the symbols depicted in rock art as representing shamans contacting the
spirit world; thus the explanation for rock art lies within the rock art itself.
c. Cross-cultural psychological and neurological research showing that individuals in a
trance go through three universal stages of hallucination; rock art records these stages.
d. There is no real basis for his argument; he arrived at his conclusions without the
necessary data to support them and therefore demonstrates the dangers inherent in
cognitive archaeological approaches.
The Daughters of the Republic of Texas (DRT), the state-appointed custodians of the
Alamo, for years discouraged mission-period research into the Alamo because:
a. They believed it would perpetuate animosity between the current Texan and Mexican
populations.
b. They believed it would detract from the “true” historical significance of the Alamo as
the cradle of Texas liberty.
c. They did not believe that the Alamo even existed during mission times, and so did not
want to devote time and money into its research.
d. All of the above.
How is mechanical stress, or workload, detectable in the human skeleton?
a. Through signs of osteoarthritis in which the cartilage between joints wears away,
often because of overuse of the joint.
b. Through growth arrest features, such as Harris lines and enamel hypoplasias.
c. Through mortality profiles that depict the various ages at death of a burial population.
d. All of the above.
Anthropologists distinguish between gender and sex. Sex refers to
a. Culturally constructed ideas about sex differences.
b. The human capability to reproduce.
c. Inherited biological differences between males and females.
d. Biological differences that are not inherited.
Applied archaeology:
a. Brings the techniques of archaeology to non-traditional venues.
b. Applies our knowledge of the human past to concrete economic or social problems.
c. Can make archaeology relevant to the modern world.
d. All of the above.
It is essential that archaeologists take abundant, accurate, and detailed field notes during
excavations because:
a. archaeology destroys data as it is gathered; once a site is excavated it cannot be
re-excavated.
b. federal legislation mandates abundant, accurate, and detailed field notes.
c. archaeology students generally learn field techniques from these notes.
d. none of the above; it is not essential because archaeologists can always go back and
reconstruct the excavation later.
A faunal assemblage consists of:
a. Animal bones from kill or butchering sites.
b. Bones from hunted animals that were brought back to camps or villages.
c. Animal bones that accumulated at a site due to natural processes (e.g., brought into
the site by carnivores or raptors).
d. Any or all of the above.
Binford’s ethnoarchaeological work with the Nunamiut Eskimo of Alaska demonstrated:
a. That it was safe for archaeologists to assume that a difference in artifacts reflects a
difference in culture.
b. That different artifact assemblages could result from different activities conducted by
the same culture.
c. The likelihood that different Mousterian tool assemblages were a result of different
Neandertal tribes.
d. That the same people leave the same kinds of tools at different locations across the
landscape.
Nazi archaeology provides an example of:
a. The insight into prehistory that can be gained when a single group appropriates
complete control over the past.
b. The misinterpretation and outright fabrication of prehistory that can occur when a
single group appropriates complete control over the past.
c. How a love of prehistory and sound scientific reasoning can overcome social and
political domination.
d. How archaeology can help people reestablish pride in their culture, history, and
heritage.
Explaining the Kwakwak”awakw potlatch ceremony by the fact that it served useful
economic purposes is an example of:
a. An ideational perspective of human behavior.
b. An adaptive perspective of human behavior.
c. Poorly conducted scientific research; the purpose of the ceremony was really
obtaining prestige.
d. How the objectivity of scientists can be undermined by the culture in which they live.
Which of the following formation processes could result in reverse stratigraphy?
a. Faunalturbation.
b. Floralturbation.
c. Cryoturbation.
d. All of the above.
What do fluctuations in pollen percentages in a pollen diagram indicate?
a. Changes in frequencies of animal remains present at a site.
b. Changes in the types of domesticated plants that prehistoric populations relied upon.
c. Changes in local and regional plant densities.
d. Climatic change in the form of decreasing temperatures and increasing moisture
content.
In 1572 Matthew Parker, Queen Elizabeth’s archbishop of Canterbury, formed the
Society of Antiquaries, devoted to the study of Anglo-Saxon law and writings. The
Society of Antiquaries used ancient documents to demonstrate that William the
Conqueror did not actually create English Common Law. King James ordered the
dissolution of the Society in 1614. These events best exemplify
a. “Restoring the dead to life” remains a fair definition of the everyday business of
archaeology.
b. The overall goal of British antiquarianism was to map, record, and preserve national
treasures
c. The study of the past is often controversial.
d. The history of archaeology reflects a changing relationship to ancient objects.
The Maya developed three calendrical accounts of time using complex astronomical
observations and mathematics. Which two calendar types overlap so that a renewal
point is reached every 52 years?
a. The Long Count and the Vague Year.
b. The Vague Year and the Sacred Almanac.
c. The Sacred Almanac and the Long Count.
d. None; the Mayans only used a single calendar.
In the 19th century’s most influential archaeology textbook, Pre-historic Times, as
Illustrated by Ancient Remains, and the Manners and Customs of Modern Savages
(1865), John Lubbock argued that:
a. Because the world’s food supply is inherently inadequate, infants in primitive
societies must struggle to survive; those who do survive possess favorable
characteristics, and thus pass these characteristics on to future generations.
b. Conflict between societies and between classes within the same society benefits
humanity in the long run because it removes unfit individuals and social forms.
c. Contemporary “primitives” were living approximations of what Europeans used to be
(in other words, these primitives had not evolved to the same degree that Europeans
had).
d. Human cultural evolution could be divided into three phases: savagery, barbarism,
and civilization.
Using some historical or ethnographic information, as burger and Miller did with
Chavin art, is the most secure way to go from ______________ to ________________.
a. Meanings/ symbols
b. Symbols/ meanings
c. Totem/religion
d. Religion/ totem
If you are observing microwear, or minute, often microscopic evidence of use damage
on the surface and working edge of an artifact, you are probably observing:
a. Striations.
b. Microflaking.
c. Polish.
d. All of the Above.
Which of the following is known to be true of Shoshone pottery?
a. It appears suddenly in many parts of the Desert West at about AD 1300 and similar
pottery is manufactured until about AD 1860.
b. The pottery was introduced by a migrating Shoshone population that replaced
existing desert populations.
c. The shift to pottery manufacture by Shoshone people was a direct result of changing
environmental conditions that made ceramic vessels more efficient.
d. All of the above.
Finely carved Hopewell effigy pipes have been interpreted as ritual artifacts. Robert L.
Hall argued from ethnographic analogy in the late 1970s that these pipes:
a. Represented ritual weapons (atlatls).
b. Functioned as peace pipes functioned historically.
c. Helped maintain relationships between communities, reducing regional differences
and promoting contact and communication.
d. All of the above.
Trying to move stones weighing several tons using only the tools and materials that the
ancient Egyptians had available to them, with the goal of determining whether or not
Egyptian technology was sufficiently sophisticated to produce monuments like the
pyramids, is an example of:
a. Experimental archaeology.
b. Ethnoarchaeology.
c. Analogy.
d. Uniformitarianism.
Artifacts leave the systemic context and enter the archaeological context through
a. loss.
b. discard
c. animals.
d. loss and discard.
The distribution of sites across a region is called
a. Settlement system
b. Settle1ment pattern
c. Settlement movement
d. Seasonal round
A critique of the modern social order that emphasizes exploitative class interests and
that aims to change and not simply to understand society is called:
a. Georgian order
b. Medieval mind-set
c. Critical theory
d. None of the above.
Because piece-plotting artifacts is a very time-consuming process, the number of
artifacts piece plotted during an excavation often depends on how much time you have
to excavate, as well as the questions you need to answer.
The density equilibrium model argues that people will adopt domesticated plants and
agriculture whenever they are exposed to them because of the superior productivity of
agriculture.
An artifact is any movable object that has been used, modified, or manufactured by
humans.
Prior to about 12,000 years ago, all humans lived in chiefdoms.
Studying ancient modes of thought requires the interpretation of symbols, objects, or
acts that by cultural convention stand for something else with which they have no
necessary connection.
The purpose of adding temper to clay is to prevent cracking and improve the strength of
the ceramic item.
Many important archaeological sites have been found by ranchers, cowboys, farmers,
sheepherders, and amateur archaeologists.
Archaeological sites result from both human behavior and natural processes.
Most archaeologists would agree that recent advances in archaeological methods and
analytic techniques have made the study of prehistoric symbolic behavior as
straightforward as the study of prehistoric subsistence strategies and technology.
The use of dry screening devices with 1/4″ mesh is employed to find items such as
charred seeds, fishbones, and beads in archaeological sites.
If you were developing a lithic typology based on attributes such as shape (e.g.,
corner-notched versus side-notched projectile points), you would be using
morphological types.
At the Folsom site in New Mexico, artifacts were discovered between the ribs of
modern cow bones, thus establishing the antiquity of human in the Americas.
If an archaeologist uses thermoluminescence to date stone tools that appear to have
been burned, the date will indicate when the tools were last burned, but not necessarily
how long ago the tools were made.
Pollen analysis is used primarily for reconstructing past regional environments.
The study of human biological evolution would most likely be the specialty of a
cultural anthropologist.
In order for a hypothesis to be scientific, it has to be testable and falsifiable.
Today’s archaeology student should have at least some knowledge of GIS (geographic
information systems).
Deductive reasoning involves working from specific observations to more general
hypotheses.