Integrating archaeological and genetic data

Summary

Over the span of his career, Jim O’Connell has shown us by example how advances in genetics can help us better model prehistory when considered alongside archaeological evidence. In this paper I reflect on his career to highlight the way in which science currently considers genetic and archaeological evidence together to (1) create or refine culture historical models of population movement and demography, and (2) to develop insight in to the relationship between hunter-gatherers and their food producing neighbors. To do this I draw on research by O’Connell and others in Africa and in the former continents of Sunda and Sahul that became the islands of modern Melanesia and Australia. Finally I discuss how this work has set the stage for new research agendas that would not have been possible without O'Connell's influence on how we look at prehistory.

SAA 2015 abstracts made available in tDAR courtesy of the Society for American Archaeology and Center for Digital Antiquity Collaborative Program to improve digital data in archaeology. If you are the author of this presentation you may upload your paper, poster, presentation, or associated data (up to 3 files/30MB) for free. Please visit http://www.tdar.org/SAA2015 for instructions and more information.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 80th Annual Meeting, San Francisco, CA (2015)   •
• A Sense of Question: Papers in Honor of James F. O'Connell

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