QRC members lead and participate in a wide range of disciplinary and interdisciplinary research projects from the study of past earth climates and glaciations to shifts in the geographic distributions and evolution of vegetation and faunal communities, to the evolution and dispersals of the genus Homo and the increasing scales of human modification of earth environments through the Holocene. QRC provides a venue for meeting and collaborating with scholars across Quaternary disciplines. We are also fortunate to be able to provide seed funding and small grants for member research projects. We are especially happy to support grad student and junior scholar research activities, much of which leads to larger, external funding from agencies like the National Science Foundation.
Investigating ecological change and archaeology in the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea
Abstract: The Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea have been occupied by humans for at least 20kya, although the relationship between this area and the rest of the highlands and late Pleistocene through Holocene near Oceania in general is less clear. This region is equatorial and high-altitude, creating a rare combination of climate effects that inform on past climate change through direct proxies and through the impacts on human-landscape interactions driving subsistence and technology changes for humans. Often considered to be a hinterland of the central highlands, known archaeological materials hint at broader connections and possible early technological innovations. However, the archaeological and paleoecological records are still under-determined. This project seeks to geolocate raw material sources relevant to the interpretation of the archaeological record and ecological features such as now-drained Pleistocene-era lakes. Additionally, this project will engage with local leaders and knowledge-holders about deforestation over the last several decades related to expansion of human populations to better understand the paleoecological and archaeological records, as well as the future trajectories of these forests in an era of population expansion and rapid climate change. These knowledge exchanges and relationships will also provide a foundation for future research further exploring the climate and archaeological records of this region.
Termite geoarchaelogy at Madjedbebe, Northern Australia
Abstract: Madjedbebe (Northern Territory, Australia) is an important location for understanding human evolution. We recently presented new ages of 65 ka for human occupation at Madjedbebe (Clarkson, et al. 2017). These new ages have significance for the arrival humans in Australia, the dispersal of modern humans out of Africa, and the subsequent interactions of modern humans with Neanderthals and Denisovans. However, many factors can influence the relationship between the archaeological material and the dated samples. This project is a geoarchaeological study to improve our understanding of archaeological site formation processes at this important site. We will use three-dimensional shape and size statistics to study the larger size fraction of the sedimentary deposit – cobbles – to test previously posited hypotheses about the role of termites in formation of the deposit at Madjedbebe.