Doctoral Dissertation Research: Determining Early Settlement Patterns

This doctoral dissertation award investigates human settlement and agricultural practices at a site that has largely characterized the region as dominated by hunter-gatherers with low population density, who moved seasonally to different environmental settings, and practiced limited, if any, domestic agriculture. New evidence suggests the possible presence of widespread maize cultivation and nucleated permanent villages. Resolution of questions surrounding past settlement and subsistence practices has broad implications for understanding of the relationships among sedentism, emergent social complexity, and agricultural intensification, as well as the anthropogenic impact on the natural environment prior to population expansion. The study’s use of phytolith analysis advances administrative priorities for investments in understanding the adoption of biotechnological innovations in scientific research. The researcher also makes use of remote sensing methods (LiDAR) and ground-penetrating radar systems (GSST), which enhance the integration of artificial intelligence in scientific research. The project also provides training for graduate students in these analytical and other archaeological methods. This project locates, documents, and analyzes archaeological remains through a multi-scalar research strategy. The region where the research is focused is ideal because of the minimal development that has occurred compared to other parts of New England, coupled with an environment well-suited for agriculture and a rich ethnohistoric tradition. The project integrates regional remote sensing, landscape-scale geophysical prospection using ground penetrating radar and other methods, as well as targeted excavations to secure dating, artifactual, and paleoethnobotanical samples. Soil samples are processed for phytoliths to understand the ecological composition of the region and recover evidence of domesticated crops. Collectively, the results reshape understanding of agriculture, the social organization of the communities who resided in these regions, and their potential impacts on the region’s ecology. Likewise, innovative methods developed by the project form a blueprint for archaeological investigations broadly. 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.