ARME707 DIGITAL ARCHAEOLOGY OF THE NEOLITHIC TRANSITION
| Course Code: | 8630707 |
| METU Credit (Theoretical-Laboratory hours/week): | 3 (3.00 - 0.00) |
| ECTS Credit: | 8.0 |
| Department: | Archaeometry |
| Language of Instruction: | English |
| Level of Study: | Graduate |
| Course Coordinator: | |
| Offered Semester: | Fall Semesters. |
Course Objectives
- Learn the archaeological background of the Neolithic Transition process in Anatolia and West Eurasia in general,
- Understand major open questions in the field,
- Gain the skills to interpret material culture studies in Anatolian archaeology,
- Understand state-of-the-art ancient DNA methodology and its application in demographic inference,
- Learn recent insights provided by ancient DNA studies into the Neolithic Transition in West Eurasia,
- Understand recent methods in digital archaeology,
- Gain familiarity with quantitative models of material culture,
- Develop new insights into how genetic and material culture data can be studied and modeled collectively to resolve fundamental questions regarding Neolithization in West Eurasia.
Course Content
This course provides an introduction to the Neolithic Transition in West Eurasia, with special emphasis on ancient DNA and digital modeling studies. The course has three fundamental elements: 1)introduction to the existing interpretive frames of the Neolithisation process through an archaeological perspective by evaluating changes in technology, ritual, and demography, as assessed from material culture analyses, 2)introduction to the current state of the Ancient DNA studies and recent insights it provides into Neolithization in West Eurasia. 3) introduction to quantitative modeling of gene flow and material culture transmission through hands-on approaches to GIS and other applications of Digital Archaeology.
Course Learning Outcomes
- Learn the archaeological background of the Neolithic Transition process in Anatolia and West Eurasia in general,
- Understand major open questions in the field,
- Gain the skills to interpret material culture studies in Anatolian archaeology,
- Understand state-of-the-art ancient DNA methodology and its application in demographic inference,
- Learn recent insights provided by ancient DNA studies into the Neolithic Transition in West Eurasia,
- Understand recent methods in digital archaeology,
- Gain familiarity with quantitative models of material culture,
- Develop new insights into how genetic and material culture data can be studied and modeled collectively to resolve fundamental questions regarding Neolithization in West Eurasia.