If an archaeologist is excavating in arbitrary levels:
a. he or she is following the natural breaks in the sediments (following the stratigraphy).
b. natural strata are probably lacking or difficult to recognize.
c. the natural strata may be more than 10 centimeters thick.
d. the natural strata are probably lacking or difficult to recognize, and may be more than
10 centimeters thick.
If you live in an egalitarian foraging society with a low population density that occupies
temporary camps, where everyone has equal access to resources through sharing and
reciprocity, where there are no permanent positions of authority, and where membership
is flexible, you live in a:
a. Tribe.
b. Band.
c. State.
d. Chiefdom.
Which of the following techniques was used by NASA in the 1980s to help identify the
vast network of Chacoan roads in the southwestern United States?
a. Ground penetrating radar.
b. Soil resistivity.
c. Thermal infrared multispectral scanning (TIMS).
d. Aerial photography
Unilineal cultural evolution and the comparative method were rooted in:
a. Renaissance philosophy.
b. Enlightenment philosophy.
c. Social Darwinism.
d. Processualism.
A descriptive and abstract grouping of individual artifacts whose focus is on overall
similarity rather than function or chronological significance is a:
a. Temporal type.
b. Functional type.
c. Morphological type.
d. Stylistic type.
Eolian sediments refer to
a. materials transported and accumulated by water.
b. materials transported and accumulated by geological movements of the earth.
c. materials transported by wind.
d. materials transported by humans.
The president was given the authority to create national monuments under which of the
following?
a. The National Environmental Policy Act.
b. The Archaeological Resources Protection Act.
c. The National Historic Preservation Act.
d. The Antiquities Act.
Ancient cultural practices mix human skeletal remains together, making it difficult to
group skeletal remains by individual. Some examples of this mentioned in the text
include
a. Bundle burials where the bodies were placed in a communal grave.
b. Bodies laid out together in a charnal house to decompose.
c. Bodies laid to rest in a river where the current scattered the remains.
d. Both A and B
The upper part of a soil where active organic and mechanical decomposition of
geological and organic material occurs is the:
a. A horizon.
b. B horizon.
c. C horizon.
d. All of the above.
Wood rats nests are useful for reconstructing the environment around their nests
because:
a. They travel great distances (kilometers) from their nests to collect materials.
b. They travel no more than 100 meters from their nests to collect materials.
c. They build their nests in water saturated areas, thus ensuring the preservation of
organic materials.
d. They only utilize a very limited range of plant species when building their nests.
Few archaeologists can do every step in the process of archaeological inquiry. Which of
the following is not an acceptable result of specialization?
a. Some archaeologists emphasize middle-level theory, doing experimental or
ethnoarchaeological research.
b. Some concentrate on the pubic side, presenting research to a broader audience.
c. Some work with theory or critique of paradigms
d. Some ignore the role that he or she plays in the overall process of archaeology.
Bioarchaeologists study:
a. Macrobotanical remains from archaeological sites in order to interpret past
interactions between human populations and plants.
b. Faunal assemblages from archaeological sites in order to determine past interactions
between human populations and animals.
c. The human biological component of the archaeological record.
d. All of the above; bioarchaeologists study all aspects of ancient life (plant, animal, and
human) in archaeological contexts.
The principle asserting that the processes now operating to modify the earth’s surface
are the same processes that operated long ago in the geological past is known as
a. Analogy.
b. Principle of uniformitarianism.
c. Evolution.
d. Stratigraphy.
An archaeological context differs from a systemic context in that:
a. An artifact in archaeological context directly reflects the dynamic behavioral system
of which it was a part of, while an artifact in a systemic context is a distorted reflection
of the behavioral system.
b. An artifact in an archaeological context is no longer a part of the dynamic behavioral
system.
c. An artifact in an archaeological context has seldom been reused, while reuse is
common in a systemic context.
d. None of the above; archaeological contexts are systemic contexts.
Which of the following were the textbook authors, Thomas and Kelly, interested in
mapping at Gatecliff?
a. The location of any artifacts found in situ.
b. The location of any features, such as hearths
c. The location of any large ecofacts.
d. All of the above.
Taphonomy is useful to archaeology because it:
a. Shows that modern human behavior can be extended into the past, strengthening
interpretations of the archaeological record.
b. Helps archaeologists separate the effects of natural processes and human behavior on
site formation.
c. Can determine the most efficient method of tool manufacture, which was most likely
the method employed in the prehistoric past.
d. Reminds ethnoarchaeologists of their responsibility to the living people that they
study.
Classical archaeology is:
a. The branch of archaeology that studies the classical civilizations of the
Mediterranean, such as Greece and Rome, and the Near East.
b. Archaeology as it was practiced in classical times in places such as Greece and Rome
and the Near East.
c. That period in the history of American archaeology in which antiquarianism
dominated the goals of archaeology.
d. That period in the history of American archaeology in which Lewis Binford and his
students dominated archaeological method and theory.
The ethnohistoric record suggests that the Bighorn Medicine Wheel was:
a. A site for vision quests.
b. An astronomical observatory.
c. A two-dimensional imitation of the 28-raftered lodge built as part of the Sun Dance
ceremony.
d. A burial ground.
Why are there so few African Americans doing archaeology?
a. Although there is plenty of information on the subject, no one has cared to know why.
b. People from marginalized groups do not pursue advanced degrees.
c. People from marginalized groups do not desire to engage in work that is meaningful.
d. The lack of opportunities to study archaeology at historically black colleges and
universities.
The study of the origin, large-scale structure, and future of the universe is termed
a. Ritual
b. Religion
c. Iconography
d. Cosmology
A basic knowledge of plant reproduction is ________________ for an agriculturalist.
a. Sufficient
b. Necessary
c. Critical
d. Nonessential
How does the sciatic notch of females differ from that of males?
a. It is narrower in females and wider in males.
b. It is wider in females and narrower in males.
c. It is more sensitive to periods of physiological stress in females than in males.
d. It is more sensitive to mechanical stresses in females than in males.
The Stillwater Marsh burial population had a remarkably low percentage of dental
caries because:
a. Grit from plant food ground on metates was incorporated into their diet; this grit
acted as a natural abrasive and helped to clean their teeth.
b. They ate very little meat, largely subsisting on maize agriculture.
c. They were strictly hunter-gatherers, and so their diet was very low in simple
carbohydrates and starches.
d. None of the above; the Stillwater Marsh burial population had an extremely high
percentage of dental caries because their diet was high in carbohydrates.
If an archaeological site is considered significant under the National Historic
Preservation Act, then it is:
a. Eligible for the National Register of Historic Places.
b. Automatically placed on the National Register of Historic Places.
c. Protected from all future activities that might be considered destructive, including
excavation.
d. Still likely to be destroyed prior to investigation, as a determination of significance
has no power to actually protect an archaeological site.
The federal government estimates that of the 2 million archaeological sites presently
recorded in the American Southwest, _________ percent have been looted to some
degree.
a. 5 – 10.
b. 25 – 40.
c. 50 – 90.
d. 100.
Which of the following is true of historical archaeology today?
a. The research interests of historical archaeology are fairly limited, focusing on
plantations.
b. Historical archaeology is highly specialized, with its own journals and professional
organizations, and a broad range of research interests.
c. Due to recent changes in cultural resource management legislation, historical
archaeology is no longer required by the federal government.
d. Historical archaeology is rapidly growing in popularity.
Why are archaeologists concerned about the future of artifact curation?
a. Some curation facilities cannot afford to meet federal guidelines, and so
archaeological collections are being kept in substandard conditions.
b. Some curation facilities have shut their doors because they no longer have room for
any more archaeological collections
c. Some curation facilities are so strained to catch up on inventories that they cannot
afford the time to loan materials to researchers, contradicting the very purpose of the
repository.
d. All of the above
DiBlasi’s archaeological research in Louisville’s Eastern Cemetery:
a. Documented abundant grave reuse in the cemetery and was important in the effort to
prosecute the cemetery’s operators.
b. Pointed out the problems that can arise in Kentucky cemeteries where reuse of graves
is not illegal.
c. Showed that grave reuse began only in the late 1980s.
d. Documented that grave reuse had not occurred, contrary to accusations by the
backhoe operator.
The Folsom site is important in the history of American archaeology because:
a. it was the first site that was excavated using the stratigraphic method, a breakthrough
in archaeological technique that allowed for chronological control.
b. it finally disproved the Myth of the Moundbuilders, establishing that Native
Americans had indeed built the earthworks of the eastern United States.
c. it proved the extent of human antiquity in the Americas.
d. at a time when most American archaeologists were concentrating on American
prehistory, it demonstrated the importance of historic archaeology.
Iron deficiency leaves a distinctive spongy appearance on
a. Eye orbits.
b. Bone fusion.
c. The skull.
d. Tooth enamel.
Why do archaeologists use a datum point rather than simply measuring from the ground
surface?
a. The datum point provides a universal reference point that can be used across any
archaeological site, allowing archaeologists to easily compare data between
excavations.
b. While vertical provenience could easily be measured from the ground surface,
obtaining accurate horizontal provenience would be much more difficult without a
datum point.
c. The ground surface does not have the same elevation consistently across a site while
a datum point provides a fixed reference.
d. Use of a datum point is an archaeological tradition established in the early 20th
century; while it serves no useful purpose, it is an example of how outdated excavation
methodology is still embedded in archaeology today.
What exactly does dendrochronology attempt to date?
a. The year wood was last burned.
b. The year that the tree was the healthiest, thus providing a signal of climatic
amicability.
c. The year a tree was used in to build a structure.
d. The year a tree was cut or died.
The courts ruled in the “Kennewick Man” case that the 9400-year-old human skeleton:
a. Was most likely a lineal descendant of the Umatilla, and should therefore be
repatriated to the tribe for reburial.
b. Was not Native American as defined under NAGPRA, and that even if he were, he
could not be culturally affiliated with any of the tribes who claimed him.
c. Was culturally affiliated with the Nez Perce, as evidenced by the abundant grave
goods buried with the skeleton that are very similar to items made by the Nez Perce
today.
d. Could be culturally affiliated with multiple tribes on the basis of archaeology and
oral traditions, and that therefore the tribes would have to decide amongst themselves
who would receive the skeleton.
A UTM grid is not:
a. A grid that divides the world into 1×1 meter squares.
b. The same things as a Universal Tranverse Mercator grid.
c. Very useful for archaeological survey.
d. Without a means to designate north and east coordinates.