Session: #148

Content:

The transformative effect of the spread and adoption of agriculture cannot be overstated. For this reason, archaeologists have often focused their research upon this period hoping to understand both the ecological causes and impacts of this transition as well as the social motivations and constraints. Clearly an understanding of both the social and ecological factors at play during this period as well as the linkages between them will be crucial in order for research into the Neolithic Transition to progress. As we continue to aggregate more data, data that continues to increase in sophistication, about the Neolithic transition we are often left with few ways to relate these datasets to one another.
Recently in archaeology, the application of computational modeling tools has been increasing as an advantageous technique for understanding and analyzing archaeological datasets, especially those that pertain to complex prehistoric events. In this respect, computational modeling techniques such as network analysis, agent-based modeling, bayesian modeling, climate modeling and the simulation of summed probability distribution of radiocarbon dates have the potential to assist in our understanding of the Neolithic transition. This session showcases multiple applications of computational and statistical modeling to the spread and adoption of
agriculture and papers focusing on this topic are welcome in order to emphasize the benefits such techniques have for archaeological analysis.

Session: #148

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