Questions tagged [archaeology]
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Can paleomagnetic techniques determine the exact direction of Earth's magnetic poles in the past, not just their polarity?
Since our planet's magnetic poles are not usually, precisely, lined up with the geographic poles of Earth's axis, and since they move around a lot, can paleomagneticists (is that a word?) determine ...
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Is Radiocarbon dating flawed?
I posted this before on physics stack exchange, but it was deemed off topic, which is understandable, so I hope it won't be here.
Recently, I stumbled upon an article by an individual named A.M. ...
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Calibration of OSL dates to calender year dates
I am trying to utilize a function that uses calibrated $^{14}C$ dates. However, my data consists of OSL dates, not $^{14}C$. Searching google scholars did not provide any useful results. Since OSL ...
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Where did the heiltsuk's find obsidian?
The discovery of hearths and other carbon dated items on an island off the north east coast of Canada puts modern humans there 2,000 years before the Alaskan land bridge existed. The glaciers of ...
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Is this milky quartz a stone age tool? [closed]
I found this piece of quartz at Benbo Mt Co. Sligo Ireland.There are many Megaliths in this area in the Dartry Mt range.Its 3 inches in length and appears to have been fashioned as a tool.I found it ...
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How to be involved in paleontolgy as a non-earth scientist
I want to be involved in paleontology or archaeology but I don't intend to go back to school for either. I am aware of some opprotunities to volunteer on field studies but am hoping for more resources....
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How do we know how much Uranium was in any given sample when it was deposited?
Concerning "Uranium-series dating", also known as "Uranium-thorium dating".
Uranium is present in deposits, "typically at levels of between a few parts per billion and few parts per million by ...
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Odd Inuksuk-like objects
I found some huge objects that are way too big to be inuksuks, in my opinion.
The object on the right is very odd because the arms are not straight like they are in most images of inuksuks. and ...
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What factors make Lake Turkana a great location for preserving fossils?
I am trying to figure out why Lake Turkana has yielded so many hominin fossils compared to other locations in the East African Rift Valley. One of the reasons is possibly the laying of sedimentary ...
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Do archaeologists deliberately leave parts of sites untouched so that someone can come back later? [closed]
Thinking about all the new technologies and techniques that are available to archaeologists now compared to even 50 years ago, it occurred to me that there might be considerable benefit to leaving ...
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What makes pollen varieties useful index fossils?
What makes pollen varieties useful index fossils? Should pollen not be a poor index fossil?
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Are Pompeii and Herculaneum unique?
Has anyone ever found or gone looking for similar locations, i.e. volcanic eruption sites in which unfortunate victims – human and non-human – have been entombed in the volcanic ash, with the ...
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Do fluctuations in radioactive isotope decay rates affect carbon dating techniques?
In 2010, Purdue University published a research paper[1] stating that their researchers had detected slight fluctuations in radioactive isotope decay rates "in synch with the rotation of the sun's ...
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How far from basalt bedrock can magnetometic survey find archaeological features?
Magnetometry is used to find archaeological features such as stone walls or ancient hearth. But it usually cannot be used for archaeological prospection in areas where the bedrock is strongly magnetic....
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Which are the biggest methodological differences between the archaeological and geological approaches to stratigraphy?
Stratigraphy, or study of rock or soil layers (strata), was originally introduced as a branch of geology. However, it is often applied in other disciplines, especially in archaeology and paleonthology....