Archaeology and ancient environmental studies

Paleontological and archaeometric research reconstructs how ancient humans interacted with their environments by reading chemical signatures preserved in bones, teeth, seeds, and residues left on tools and vessels. Radiocarbon dating and stable isotope analysis—measuring ratios of carbon, nitrogen, and strontium in organic and mineral remains—allow researchers to place past populations in time, trace where individuals lived and moved, and infer what they ate and cultivated across millennia. These methods have sharpened understanding of when and where plant and animal domestication first emerged, and how shifts in climate shaped the spread of early agriculture across different regions. Active questions include refining global radiocarbon calibration curves to reduce dating uncertainty, and disentangling whether agricultural transitions were driven primarily by environmental pressure, social change, or gradual accumulated knowledge passed across generations.

Works

174,758

Total citations

1,074,067

Keywords

Radiocarbon DatingAgricultural OriginsIsotopic AnalysisDomestication StudiesArchaeological Residue AnalysisStable Isotope Analysis