AY2008: TEST TUBES AND TROWELS: AN INTRODUCTION TO ARCHAEOLOGICAL SCIENCE (DISTANCE) (2015-2016)

Test Tubes & Trowels presents an overview of the key scientific approaches used in archaeological science today that allow field archaeologists to maximize the quantity and quality of the material they can recover from sites, and which enhance the understanding, dating and interpretation of archaeological sites and materials. Using a combination of pre-recorded podcast-style lectures and practical workshops/data analysis exercises*, the course will cover scientific methods of dating, artefact provenancing and ancient technologies, methods used for the study of diet, health, and movements of humans and animals in the past, and the identification of the environmental impacts of past human activities.

This course provides a key knowledge base needed by all archaeologists, and provides a springboard for honours-level archaeological research projects on archaeological science topics, and for level 3 and 4 science courses such as Geoarchaeology and Bioarchaeology.

The course will give students with an understanding of the principal scientific approaches and techniques employed within Archaeology and will:

• introduce participants to the field of modern archaeological science and the history, development and scope of the discipline
• provide students with knowledge of principle scientific approaches and techniques used to explore the past
• offer students an overview of the contribution made by the archaeological sciences to archaeological research, and an understanding of 
• the practical relationship between the field and laboratory
• present novel case studies and introduce new within-discipline debates
• create awareness of the role of scientific techniques in addressing and highlighting key archaeological questions
• develop skills required to better access scientific publications and critically review the work of others
• provide the ability to process, interpret and critically evaluate basic data