ANT 2100 Mehta Final UPDATED
Questions and CORRECT Answers
faunal assemblage - CORRECT ANSWER - the animal remains recovered from an
archaeological site
kill sites - CORRECT ANSWER - places where animals were killed in the past
Zooarchaeologist - CORRECT ANSWER - An archaeologist who specializes in the study
of the animal remains recovered from archaeological sites.
faunal analysis - CORRECT ANSWER - identification and interpretation of animal
remains from an archaeological site
Number of Identified Specimens (NISP) - CORRECT ANSWER - the raw number of
identified bones (specimens) per species; a largely outmoded way of comparing archaeological
bone frequencies
Minimum Number of Individuals (MNI) - CORRECT ANSWER - the smallest number of
individuals necessary to account for all identified bones
axial skeleton - CORRECT ANSWER - the head, mandibles, vertebrae, ribs, sacrum and
tail of an animal skeleton
appendicular skeleton - CORRECT ANSWER - all parts of an animal excluding the axial
skeleton
Seasonality - CORRECT ANSWER - an estimate of the part of the year a particular
archaeological site was occupied
,Puna - CORRECT ANSWER - Native American (Quechua) term for the treeless,
windswept tablelands and basins of the higher Andes
ch'arki - CORRECT ANSWER - Native South American (Quechua) term for freeze-dried
llama and alpaca meat
macrobotanical remains - CORRECT ANSWER - Nonmicroscopic plant remains
recovered from an archaeological site.
Paleoethnobotanist - CORRECT ANSWER - an archaeologist who analyzes and interprets
plant remains from archaeological sites in order to understand past interactions between human
populations and plants
Coprolite - CORRECT ANSWER - Desiccated feces, often containing macrobotanical
remains, pollen, and the remains of small animals.
Palynology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of pollen and spores
pollen diagram - CORRECT ANSWER - a chart showing the changing frequencies of
different identified pollens through time from samples taken from archaeological or other sites
Clovis - CORRECT ANSWER - The earliest well-established Native American culture,
distributed throughout much of North America and dating 10,900 to 11,200 BC.
Phytoliths - CORRECT ANSWER - tiny silica particles contained in plants
Bioarchaeology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of human remains in an archaeological
context
Osteology - CORRECT ANSWER - Study of bones
, burial population - CORRECT ANSWER - A set of human burials that come from a
limited region and a limited time period. The more limited the region and the time period, the
more accurate will be inferences drawn from analysis of the burials.
charnel house - CORRECT ANSWER - A structure that eastern Native Americans used to
lay out the dead where the body would decompose. The bones would later be gathered and
buried or cremated.
bundle burial - CORRECT ANSWER - Burial of a person's bones, bundled together, after
the flesh has been removed or allowed to decay off the bones.
sciatic notch - CORRECT ANSWER - the angled edge of both halves of the posterior
(rear) side of the pelvis; measurement of this angle is used to determine sex in human skeletons.
Although its width varies among populations, narrow notches indicate a male and wider notches
indicate a female.
Epiphyses - CORRECT ANSWER - ends of long bones that consist of compact bone
externally and spongy bone internally (most bones are fused by age 25)
pubic symphysis - CORRECT ANSWER - Where the two halves of the pelvis meet in the
groin area; the appearance of its articulating surface can be used to age skeletons.
Paleopathology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of ancient patterns of disease,
disorders, and trauma
porotic hyperostosis - CORRECT ANSWER - A symptom of iron deficiency anemia in
which the skull takes on a porous appearance.
cribra orbitalia - CORRECT ANSWER - A symptom of iron deficiency anemia in which
the bone of the upper eye sockets takes on a spongy appearance.
Questions and CORRECT Answers
faunal assemblage - CORRECT ANSWER - the animal remains recovered from an
archaeological site
kill sites - CORRECT ANSWER - places where animals were killed in the past
Zooarchaeologist - CORRECT ANSWER - An archaeologist who specializes in the study
of the animal remains recovered from archaeological sites.
faunal analysis - CORRECT ANSWER - identification and interpretation of animal
remains from an archaeological site
Number of Identified Specimens (NISP) - CORRECT ANSWER - the raw number of
identified bones (specimens) per species; a largely outmoded way of comparing archaeological
bone frequencies
Minimum Number of Individuals (MNI) - CORRECT ANSWER - the smallest number of
individuals necessary to account for all identified bones
axial skeleton - CORRECT ANSWER - the head, mandibles, vertebrae, ribs, sacrum and
tail of an animal skeleton
appendicular skeleton - CORRECT ANSWER - all parts of an animal excluding the axial
skeleton
Seasonality - CORRECT ANSWER - an estimate of the part of the year a particular
archaeological site was occupied
,Puna - CORRECT ANSWER - Native American (Quechua) term for the treeless,
windswept tablelands and basins of the higher Andes
ch'arki - CORRECT ANSWER - Native South American (Quechua) term for freeze-dried
llama and alpaca meat
macrobotanical remains - CORRECT ANSWER - Nonmicroscopic plant remains
recovered from an archaeological site.
Paleoethnobotanist - CORRECT ANSWER - an archaeologist who analyzes and interprets
plant remains from archaeological sites in order to understand past interactions between human
populations and plants
Coprolite - CORRECT ANSWER - Desiccated feces, often containing macrobotanical
remains, pollen, and the remains of small animals.
Palynology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of pollen and spores
pollen diagram - CORRECT ANSWER - a chart showing the changing frequencies of
different identified pollens through time from samples taken from archaeological or other sites
Clovis - CORRECT ANSWER - The earliest well-established Native American culture,
distributed throughout much of North America and dating 10,900 to 11,200 BC.
Phytoliths - CORRECT ANSWER - tiny silica particles contained in plants
Bioarchaeology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of human remains in an archaeological
context
Osteology - CORRECT ANSWER - Study of bones
, burial population - CORRECT ANSWER - A set of human burials that come from a
limited region and a limited time period. The more limited the region and the time period, the
more accurate will be inferences drawn from analysis of the burials.
charnel house - CORRECT ANSWER - A structure that eastern Native Americans used to
lay out the dead where the body would decompose. The bones would later be gathered and
buried or cremated.
bundle burial - CORRECT ANSWER - Burial of a person's bones, bundled together, after
the flesh has been removed or allowed to decay off the bones.
sciatic notch - CORRECT ANSWER - the angled edge of both halves of the posterior
(rear) side of the pelvis; measurement of this angle is used to determine sex in human skeletons.
Although its width varies among populations, narrow notches indicate a male and wider notches
indicate a female.
Epiphyses - CORRECT ANSWER - ends of long bones that consist of compact bone
externally and spongy bone internally (most bones are fused by age 25)
pubic symphysis - CORRECT ANSWER - Where the two halves of the pelvis meet in the
groin area; the appearance of its articulating surface can be used to age skeletons.
Paleopathology - CORRECT ANSWER - the study of ancient patterns of disease,
disorders, and trauma
porotic hyperostosis - CORRECT ANSWER - A symptom of iron deficiency anemia in
which the skull takes on a porous appearance.
cribra orbitalia - CORRECT ANSWER - A symptom of iron deficiency anemia in which
the bone of the upper eye sockets takes on a spongy appearance.
