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The team will be composed of a group of different types of specialists in the archaeological sciences - and you, of course. You'll work with Ticca Ogilvie an archaeological conservator, Vanessa Straker an environmental archaeologist, Kate Robson-Brown an archaeological bones specialist, and Rob Berstan an organic geochemist. You'll also work alongside a whole team of field archaeologists ("diggers") from the regional archaeology unit and a pair of archaeology curators from the city museum. All of these people are used to working together on archaeological projects and the variety of specialisms ensures that the absolute maximum information is got out of an archaeological excavation.
During the week we will be investigating the contribution science makes to the understanding of our past. Archaeologists look at the material evidence of man's past turned up by excavation. Until relatively recently this evidence centred around prestige objects and structures. Now they recognise the importance of everyday household objects and evidence of past environments to give a truer and three-dimensional picture of how man lived in the past and how we got where we are today. In your week with us you will explore how old wooden bowls, dirt, and bone fragments can be studied to give a really clear picture of the past life of an area. Science is needed to get this information and during the project week, you yourselves will use a variety of scientific techniques in order to get this information out of the material turned up by a local excavation.
You will do a day of hard digging with our archaeology unit, learning how to decide what happened when by soil colours You will carry out the diagnostic tests on an assemblage of human bones, finding indicators for gender and disease. You will sort soil components under high-powered microscope, and decide what kind of countryside the people were living in and what they were growing to eat. You'll make detailed observations of objects found on excavation, finding the details that tell us how things were made and what they were used for. You'll also learn a bit about how to preserve them in order that the important information they hold is not lost. You'll also carry out instrumental analysis of material left on the inside surface of an object and use chemical detective work to decide what it is.
You'll see all the different types of places that the specialists work and there will be time for poking around and asking questions.
We're also going to ask you questions and test how flexible your thinking is. Archaeologists need to be inventive people!
By the end of the week we want you to have pulled together a series of notes and images which will allow you to explain to others just where archaeology is going in the 21st Century. You will need to explore how to present complicated, specialist information and ideas to an audience who doesn't share your enthusiasm - and manage to get them to share it. Out of this will come a 10-15 minute PowerPoint presentation, similar in scale to a scientific conference poster presentation, which you will give before an audience composed of other students, scientific specialists, and laymen. A real challenge!
We would very much like you to read an article on archaeological science from the New Scientist. This will give you an introduction to the subject and should also start you thinking!
You could also make a trial search on the Web with the keywords Archaeological Science and come ready to tell us about some of the interesting places you found.
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