PROCEDURES FOR COMPARING AND COMBINING RADIOCARBON AGE DETERMINATIONS: A CRITIQUE

Archaeologists, along with other Quaternary researchers, seldom rely upon a single radiocarbon determination to provide an estimate of the age of the phenomenon which is the object of their study. There is an evident need for an explicitly formulated procedure for comparing sets of radiocarbon determinations from the same and from adjacent strata or sites, and for combining these where statistical and archaeological criteria indicate that this combination is warranted. The present contribution provides explicit modelling for a series of recommended procedures, a critique of previous methods, and paradigms for application of the recommended procedures.     

Weathering evidence for an additional glacial stage in Tasmania

Quantitative studies of relative dating parameters, including subsurface dolerite weathering rind thickness and weathering front penetration, permit the differentiation of three broad groupings of till deposits in several valleys in north-central, western, western-central and south-western Tasmania. An early cold climatic phase–the Linda Glacial Stage–is recognised on the basis of this weathering evidence which also indicates that there have been at least two more recent Glacial Stages of decreasing severity, termed here the Henty and Margaret Glacial Stages respectively. This three-fold model bears a striking similarity to that of Lewis (1945) which was rejected nearly three decades ago. However, whereas Lewis' model was founded upon erosional evidence, the present study is based entirely upon depositional and weathering evidence.     

The “Good Old #3 Club” Gets a New Member

It has been said that serving on the U.S. Supreme Court is like being a member of an exclusive club. Yet within this club, there are even more exclusive clubs that only a small number of Justices are permitted to join. These shadowy associations are unseen by the public, receive no publicity, and are not even known to the Justices who are excluded. The existence of these secretive organizations has recently been revealed through the release of Justice Harry Blackmun's papers at the Library of Congress. This article is the first serious attempt to research the existence, membership, and practices of these clandestine alliances. Ultimately, as with many High Court practices, these newly uncovered connections may be in need of reform, and I offer a number of solutions to define membership criteria and improve their functioning.     

A SYSTEMATIC APPROACH TO THE DEFINITION OF SOURCES OF RAW MATERIAL

This paper argues the importance of the contribution that multivariate statistical techniques can make to the analysis of data from trace element characterization of sources of raw material and of artefacts. A threephase analysis is outlined: for the delimitation of sources of the raw material; the representation of the interrelationships of these sources; and the systematic and explicit allocation of artefactual material within the available universe of source groups. A model is developed using obsidian from New Zealand sources and presented as an example of the method.     

Place Making: the Social Construction of Newcastle

The city of Newcastle has experienced significant transformations of identity. The city's contemporary reconstruction is a deliberate shift from industrial to post-industrial identity. An industrial identity is now held to be debilitating for places, while a post-industrial vision proffers an impression of improvement. The notion that places are constructed, symbolically as well as materially, allows us to problematise the identity of place, and to expose the ideologies and the actors behind such (re)constructions. Creative literature, media comment and autobiographical material provide insight into the landscapes and discourses of the city's changing identity, and into persisting patriarchal ideology, Anglo-centrism and elitism.