In search of the first Asian hominins: excavations at Mata Menge, Flores, Indonesia. Australian researchers will undertake a large, interdisciplinary project concerned with the most fundamental issues in hominin evolution and dispersal in collaboration with high profile Indonesian and American institutions. This project will strengthen international ties; will create other research, educational and exchange opportunities; and will provide a venue for training of local people, postgraduate studen ....In search of the first Asian hominins: excavations at Mata Menge, Flores, Indonesia. Australian researchers will undertake a large, interdisciplinary project concerned with the most fundamental issues in hominin evolution and dispersal in collaboration with high profile Indonesian and American institutions. This project will strengthen international ties; will create other research, educational and exchange opportunities; and will provide a venue for training of local people, postgraduate students, technical staff and other participants in a range of skills (e.g. survey, mapping, excavation, data management).Read moreRead less
Leading-edge digital reconstruction and biomechanical modelling meet the Neanderthal skull: So why the long face? Perhaps no other extinct species has excited scientific or popular imagination as has our closest cousin, the Neanderthal. Who were these people? Once presented as the archetypal brute, it is now increasingly clear that these powerful, large brained humans were capable of sophisticated behaviours and that most of us carry Neanderthal DNA. Yet many questions remain. One of the most pe ....Leading-edge digital reconstruction and biomechanical modelling meet the Neanderthal skull: So why the long face? Perhaps no other extinct species has excited scientific or popular imagination as has our closest cousin, the Neanderthal. Who were these people? Once presented as the archetypal brute, it is now increasingly clear that these powerful, large brained humans were capable of sophisticated behaviours and that most of us carry Neanderthal DNA. Yet many questions remain. One of the most persistent is why the distinctive drawn out, prognathous face? The project will address this question, applying and developing recent advances the applicants have made in digital reconstruction and modelling, maintaining Australian research at the leading edge in the fast growing fields of virtual reconstruction and comparative biomechanics.Read moreRead less
A reassessment of early human stone technology from a Southeast Asian perspective. The study of early stone technology is crucial to our understanding of human evolution worldwide, providing insight into the capabilities of our earliest ancestors. Current models focus on the evidence from Africa and Europe, potentially marginalising the importance of eastern Asia in the global development of early human stone technology. This impacts how nations and communities in our region interpret themselv ....A reassessment of early human stone technology from a Southeast Asian perspective. The study of early stone technology is crucial to our understanding of human evolution worldwide, providing insight into the capabilities of our earliest ancestors. Current models focus on the evidence from Africa and Europe, potentially marginalising the importance of eastern Asia in the global development of early human stone technology. This impacts how nations and communities in our region interpret themselves to the world and reduces the impetus of innovative research on this subject. The proposal aims to establish detailed comparisons between Southeast Asian and 'Western' technologies, providing a suitable framework through which current preconceptions can be more rigorously assessed.Read moreRead less
Discovery Early Career Researcher Award - Grant ID: DE210101384
Funder
Australian Research Council
Funding Amount
$440,244.00
Summary
Investigating complex mortuary practices in the Neolithic Near East. The main aim of this project is to investigate complex multi-stage mortuary practices through the integration of archaeo-anthropology, forensic science and ethnology. The methodological principles of funerary archaeology will be expanded by experiments at the only Australian and Canadian body farms, and integrated into the study of Neolithic Near Eastern burials. Combined with ethno-archaeological research in Indonesia, anticip ....Investigating complex mortuary practices in the Neolithic Near East. The main aim of this project is to investigate complex multi-stage mortuary practices through the integration of archaeo-anthropology, forensic science and ethnology. The methodological principles of funerary archaeology will be expanded by experiments at the only Australian and Canadian body farms, and integrated into the study of Neolithic Near Eastern burials. Combined with ethno-archaeological research in Indonesia, anticipated outcomes include new methods for the study of multi-stage mortuary processes, together with refined knowledge about social differentiation and ideology in the world’s first proto-urban settlements. This study will emphasise Australia’s pioneering role in combining archaeo-anthropology with forensic science.
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Producers and Collectors: Uncovering the Role of Indigenous Agency in the Formation of Museum Collections. The research will make a significant contribution to Australian and world scholarship, show the innovation and leadership of Australian scholars in the study of museum collections, and promote goodwill and better diplomacy with Australia's nearest neighbours in PNG. Through examining the history of social relations between Papua New Guineans and 'outsiders' in a region that has long been t ....Producers and Collectors: Uncovering the Role of Indigenous Agency in the Formation of Museum Collections. The research will make a significant contribution to Australian and world scholarship, show the innovation and leadership of Australian scholars in the study of museum collections, and promote goodwill and better diplomacy with Australia's nearest neighbours in PNG. Through examining the history of social relations between Papua New Guineans and 'outsiders' in a region that has long been the focus of Australian interests, the project will contribute to the National Priority' Understanding our region and the world'. By unlocking information about the origin and history of ethnographic collections from Australia's oldest museum, their cultural significance will be shared more widely.
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Archaeology and natural history. This project aims to provide critical new information on the archaeology and natural history of one of the world’s largest unregulated desert river systems. Mithaka country incorporates the highly significant Channel Country on the eastern edge of Australia's arid centre. Preliminary research has identified more than 70 large site complexes that provide critical insights on how the Mithaka people adapted to this unique environment and took part in Australia's mos ....Archaeology and natural history. This project aims to provide critical new information on the archaeology and natural history of one of the world’s largest unregulated desert river systems. Mithaka country incorporates the highly significant Channel Country on the eastern edge of Australia's arid centre. Preliminary research has identified more than 70 large site complexes that provide critical insights on how the Mithaka people adapted to this unique environment and took part in Australia's most extensive long distance trade systems. The project will study the archaeological landscape, artefacts and an extensive in-situ skeletal record in the context of a detailed palaeoenvironmental study. It will provide a new cultural-environmental history of this landscape and provide the Mithaka with multiple strands of connection to their ancestral land and culture and support their aspirations to create employment through rangers programs, education and cultural tourism.Read moreRead less
Seascapes, Sea People, and Indigenous Knowledge: Maritime heritage at the land/sea interface. This project will educate the broader Australian community of the complexities of Indigenous maritime heritage, by producing a clear understanding of the ways Indigenous people define and maintain seascapes. This research involves working with the Yanyuwa Aboriginal community to record knowledge of the sea, examining 'new', 'old', gendered, and generational knowledge associated with sea territories. By ....Seascapes, Sea People, and Indigenous Knowledge: Maritime heritage at the land/sea interface. This project will educate the broader Australian community of the complexities of Indigenous maritime heritage, by producing a clear understanding of the ways Indigenous people define and maintain seascapes. This research involves working with the Yanyuwa Aboriginal community to record knowledge of the sea, examining 'new', 'old', gendered, and generational knowledge associated with sea territories. By widely disseminating the results, we will reveal important details of the complexities of sustaining the biodiversity and cultural makeup of Australian seascapes. Furthermore, this Project will provide vital knowledge for the management of coastal regions in an era of predicated sea level rise.Read moreRead less
Human dispersals and the early peopling of East Asia and Australasia. This project will address the most important question of contemporary human evolution research - the origin of modern humans - targeting evidence from ancient fossil humans through virtual anthropology techniques, human ancient DNA sequencing, and cultural evidence in the vital but poorly known East Asia region, focusing on China.