DIGITAL ARCHAEOLOGY CHAPTER 21
CERTIFICATION ASSESSMENT 2026 VERIFIED
ANSWERS GRADED A+
◉ Why did cultural evolution occur?
Answer: Population growth.
◉ Bands
Answer: Less complex society of hunters and gatherers. Around 20-
30 people.
◉ Tribes
Answer: Similar to bands, but get most of their food from farming.
Can live year round in a single settlement. Little complexity. Up to
100 people.
◉ Chiefdom
Answer: Tribes that have grown larger and more complicated.
Bigger than tribal villages. Include leaders. 5,000-20,000 people.
◉ State
,Answer: A lot larger than chiefdoms. Complex societies with
concentrated political power. Include kings and social classes.
20,000+ people.
◉ Research Goal (Site)
Answer: -Scientist has basic research questions
-Scientist may have hypothesis to test
◉ Conservation Goal (Site)
Answer: Area may be in danger from development or construction
-Discover sites to understand potential damage of proposed work
◉ Finding archaeological sites with a conservation goal in mind is
called:
Answer: Contract Archaeology
◉ Goals of Excavation
Answer: -Reveal 3 dimensional patterning or physical structure in
the deposition of artifacts, ecofacts, and features
-Assess the temporal and functional significance of this patterning
◉ Reconnaissance
Answer: -Systematic attempt to identify archaeological site
,-Performed when nothing is known about the region
-Rarely has a formal sampling design or statistical sampling design
-Often the 1st step in a field project
◉ Survey
Answer: -Initial data gathering stage
-Has a specific research question and statistical sampling design
◉ Provenience
Answer: Location of things on an archaeological site.
◉ Vertical Provenience
Answer: Record the vertical position in an attempt to relate the
archaeological data to the law of superposition.
◉ Measured Provenience (Vertical)
Answer: -Measured 1st with a local datum, then transformed to true
elevation.
-Referred to as "z"
◉ Stratigraphic Provenience
Answer: -What layer stratum the data is in.
, -Type of vertical provenience
◉ Measure Provenience (Horizontal)
Answer: -Measured 1st with a local grid, then transformed into a
more recognizable grid (UTM- 1 Precision/ National Grid-
Centimetric precision).
◉ Point Provenience
Answer: The location of a specific object at an exact point on a site
◉ Radiocarbon Dating
Answer: The radiometric dating method in which the amount of 14C
is measured to provide an absolute date for organic materials
younger than 50,000 years.
◉ Half-life (Carbon 14)
Answer: The amount of time it takes for 1/2 of Carbon 14 present in
an organism to decay into Nitrogen 14.
-The half-life of carbon 14 is 5,730 years
◉ Thermoluminescence (TL)
Answer: Technique for dating inorganic archaeological materials
that were heated in the past. Materials release stored energy of
CERTIFICATION ASSESSMENT 2026 VERIFIED
ANSWERS GRADED A+
◉ Why did cultural evolution occur?
Answer: Population growth.
◉ Bands
Answer: Less complex society of hunters and gatherers. Around 20-
30 people.
◉ Tribes
Answer: Similar to bands, but get most of their food from farming.
Can live year round in a single settlement. Little complexity. Up to
100 people.
◉ Chiefdom
Answer: Tribes that have grown larger and more complicated.
Bigger than tribal villages. Include leaders. 5,000-20,000 people.
◉ State
,Answer: A lot larger than chiefdoms. Complex societies with
concentrated political power. Include kings and social classes.
20,000+ people.
◉ Research Goal (Site)
Answer: -Scientist has basic research questions
-Scientist may have hypothesis to test
◉ Conservation Goal (Site)
Answer: Area may be in danger from development or construction
-Discover sites to understand potential damage of proposed work
◉ Finding archaeological sites with a conservation goal in mind is
called:
Answer: Contract Archaeology
◉ Goals of Excavation
Answer: -Reveal 3 dimensional patterning or physical structure in
the deposition of artifacts, ecofacts, and features
-Assess the temporal and functional significance of this patterning
◉ Reconnaissance
Answer: -Systematic attempt to identify archaeological site
,-Performed when nothing is known about the region
-Rarely has a formal sampling design or statistical sampling design
-Often the 1st step in a field project
◉ Survey
Answer: -Initial data gathering stage
-Has a specific research question and statistical sampling design
◉ Provenience
Answer: Location of things on an archaeological site.
◉ Vertical Provenience
Answer: Record the vertical position in an attempt to relate the
archaeological data to the law of superposition.
◉ Measured Provenience (Vertical)
Answer: -Measured 1st with a local datum, then transformed to true
elevation.
-Referred to as "z"
◉ Stratigraphic Provenience
Answer: -What layer stratum the data is in.
, -Type of vertical provenience
◉ Measure Provenience (Horizontal)
Answer: -Measured 1st with a local grid, then transformed into a
more recognizable grid (UTM- 1 Precision/ National Grid-
Centimetric precision).
◉ Point Provenience
Answer: The location of a specific object at an exact point on a site
◉ Radiocarbon Dating
Answer: The radiometric dating method in which the amount of 14C
is measured to provide an absolute date for organic materials
younger than 50,000 years.
◉ Half-life (Carbon 14)
Answer: The amount of time it takes for 1/2 of Carbon 14 present in
an organism to decay into Nitrogen 14.
-The half-life of carbon 14 is 5,730 years
◉ Thermoluminescence (TL)
Answer: Technique for dating inorganic archaeological materials
that were heated in the past. Materials release stored energy of
