Q&A Hero

Q: __________ states that as conditions change, the way a particular cultural subsystem operates may change also, disrupting the equilibrium and necessitating changes in the other subsystems, to reach a new equilibrium. A) Diffusionism B) Evolutionary archaeology C) Innovation theory D) Synchronic theory E) Systems theory

Q: The creation of a new type of technology, often in response to a need to accomplish some task, is called __________. A) reaction B) invention C) diffusion D) migration E) innovation

Q: Thinking up new ways of doing things using already established methods, systems of organization, or technologies is called __________. A) creativity B) invention C) diffusion D) innovation E) migration

Q: The globalization of technologies like vaccines is an example of __________. A) capitalism B) diachronic change C) synchronic change D) change that happened in the distant past E) none of the above

Q: Change that can be observed through time is called __________. A) diachronic B) synchronic C) temporal D) long range E) none of the above

Q: All of the following were buried by a volcanic eruption except __________. A) Puerto Escondito B) Pompeii C) Herculaneum D) Ceren

Q: The dispersal of the Bantu language family is associated with __________. A) iron metallurgy and sorghum farming B) just iron metallurgy C) only sorghum farming D) the development of writing E) the extinction of megafauna

Q: Research on __________ has led to new theories about migrations into the New World. A) skeletons B) linguistics C) ceramics D) lithics E) blood groupings

Q: The presence of pyramids in both the Old and New Worlds is an example of __________. A) hyper-diffusion B) diffusion C) independent invention D) innovation E) none of the above

Q: Linguistic data can be most productively integrated into archaeological analysis in __________. A) dating B) vocabulary comparison C) A and B D) none of the above

Q: The exchange of cultural features between two groups or societies in which parts of both cultures change, but each group remains distinct, is called __________. A) adaptation B) acculturation C) diffusion D) assimilation E) syncretism

Q: The archaeological record at Puerto Escondito suggests __________. A) that agriculture was never invented there B) that the Olmec people colonized the Puerto Escondito area C) that the people were likely involved in a long distance trading network with the Olmec D) that obsidian was prized for ritual purposes E) that feathers were being traded for fish from the Olmec coast

Q: __________ involves the actual movement of a population of people from one locality to another. A) Exchange B) Diffusion C) Diaspora D) Innovation E) Migration

Q: The Maya town of Ceren was buried by __________. A) a tsunami B) a flood C) an avalanche D) a volcanic eruption E) an earthquake

Q: __________ is the breaking up of a population into smaller segments that then disperse into different areas without replacing the existing population. A) Decentralization B) Migration C) Diaspora D) Innovation E) Invention

Q: Contact between cultures can lead to __________. A) acculturation B) diffusion C) syncretism D) all of the above

Q: Change that occurs at the same general time across geographic space, and can be seen in the various environments, languages, economies, and cultures that exist in different places at that time is called __________. A) synchronic B) diachronic C) atemporal D) universal E) none of the above

Q: Determining when the first colonists of a region arrived, where they came from, and why they moved into the region is rarely difficult.

Q: Archaeologists universally accept the application of strict biological models of selection to the study of past cultures.

Q: The dispersal of the Bantu language family is associated with the spread of iron metallurgy.

Q: To detect change over time, it is necessary to have information on the pattern being studied from at least three time periods.

Q: Cultural conflict most often has occurred between groups that compete for territory or access to other resources.

Q: In some cases, lithic materials from completely different sites can be refitted and used to reconstruct the specific movements of people.

Q: Diffusion is but one of the possible explanations for the movement of materials and ideas.

Q: Recent comparative studies of blood groupings now suggest that there may have been four separate migrations into the New World.

Q: When trying to reconstruct the movement of past populations, archaeologists look to the number of trait changes to determine the likelihood of population movement.

Q: Contemporary languages can tell us nothing about the past.

Q: Short-term change is the easiest to recognize in the archaeological record.

Q: Internal stimuli are rarely a source of culture change.

Q: Pyramids were invented in one place, and that architectural form diffused to different parts of the globe.

Q: Evolutionary archaeologists believe that cultural traits are subjected to selective pressures.

Q: Ceramics technology was developed independently in different regions of the world.

Q: System theorists equate culture change with disequilibrium.

Q: It can be much more difficult to detect migrations of new people into areas already occupied by other people.

Q: Proto-Polynesian is a constructed language that no one actually spoke.

Q: The association of proto-Indo-European with farming is disputed.

Q: Bows and arrows are easy to make, but are less productive in terms of killing game.

Q: When a new ethnic group that moves into an area brings their culture with them, the archaeological record should reflect new organizations and technologies "suddenly" replacing earlier ones.

Q: When cultural differences disappear, syncretism has occurred.

Q: Most archaeological models of change deal with relatively long-term processes of transformation.

Q: The introduction of the bow and arrow probably increased hunting efficiency.

Q: Diachronic change occurs at the same general time across geographic space, and can be seen in the various environments, languages, economies, and cultures that exist in different places at that time.

Q: The use of artistic images to represent information and aspects of belief systems is generally referred to as __________. A) iconography B) pictographs C) ideograms D) art E) ritual

Q: When archaeologists assume that the earliest ethnographic or historically known group in an area is the direct descendant of the latest archaeological group in the same area, this is called __________. A) synchratic culture B) ethnographic analogy C) historical archaeology D) the direct historical approach E) none of the above

Q: A state that dominates other polities is __________. A) a chiefdom B) a super-state C) an empire D) a complex chiefdom E) a kingdom

Q: Small-scale, non-stratified societies with foraging as their primary subsistence, and informal leadership are called __________. A) bands B) tribes C) chiefdoms D) states E) polities

Q: Which of the following is an example of an ancient site built with significant astronomical alignments? A) Egyptian pyramids B) Maya palaces C) Stonehenge D) all of the above

Q: The study of past ways of thought as inferred from material remains is called __________. A) ecological archaeology B) social archaeology C) cognitive archaeology D) processual archaeology E) post-processual archaeology

Q: Egalitarian societies __________. A) are also referred to as non-stratified B) are highly stratified C) usually have a chief D) usually have elaborate mortuary goods E) never have leaders

Q: In stratified societies __________. A) there are no differences in access to resources B) social roles are often inherited C) labor is rarely divided by age or sex D) there is little differentiation among individuals in terms of social status E) populations are highly mobile

Q: Polities with cities, some form of formal record-keeping, a full-time military, and a system of taxation are called __________. A) states B) bands C) tribes D) chiefdoms E) empires

Q: A group with an independent political organization is known as __________. A) stratified B) non-stratified C) polity D) egalitarian E) state

Q: Chiefdoms are characterized by all of the following except __________. A) leaders authorized to use force B) formal ranking C) centralized political structure D) a foraging subsistence system

Q: Social groups with mixed economies, social segmentation based on criteria other than kinship, and a few thousand members are called __________. A) tribes B) chiefdoms C) bands D) states E) cities

Q: Band societies are characterized by all of the following except __________. A) seasonal mobility B) informal leadership C) small scale population D) formal ranking E) egalitarian social system

Q: An example of an ancient state-level society is __________. A) the Aka B) Moundville C) the Han Dynasty D) the San people of Africa E) the Chumash

Q: Tribes are characterized by all of the following except __________. A) leaders commonly called chiefs B) social segmentation based on criteria other than kinship C) ascribed status D) a highly mobile lifestyle

Q: Polities with populations with up to tens of thousands of people, with large permanent settlements and a centralized political structure are called __________. A) chiefdoms B) bands C) tribes D) states E) lineages

Q: States are characterized by all of the following except __________. A) large populations B) formal record-keeping C) controlled storage facilities D) high mobility E) social stratification

Q: The theory of state formation that suggests control of irrigation led to increased complexity is called __________. A) the water hypothesis B) the hydraulic theory C) the flotation manifesto D) the irrigation hypothesis E) none of the above

Q: The performance of formalized, repetitive acts that others identify as meaningful is called __________. A) symbolic B) religion C) ritual D) faith E) none of the above

Q: Most material culture recovered from the archaeological record __________. A) contains some symbolic expression of cultural meaning B) is purely utilitarian C) consists of faunal remains D) cannot be interpreted E) none of the above

Q: All societies have some kind of social structure.

Q: Exogamy, marrying outside one's group, is a rare feature of hunter-gatherers.

Q: Most archaeologists agree that early states were formed as a result of warfare.

Q: Cosmology and philosophy are based on religious beliefs, and rarely take into account empirical knowledge.

Q: There is evidence that some Palaeolithic rock art may be calendrical in nature.

Q: The famous geometric lines in the Nasca Valley of Peru are an example of petroglyphs.

Q: Images which have become simplified and generalized to stand for ideas rather than things are called pictographs.

Q: The mortuary data at Moundville support the interpretation of its having been a ranked society.

Q: In some respects, the Mexican calendar was more accurate than our own.

Q: It is always easy to determine the gender of individuals in the archaeological record.

Q: Traditional African art is easier to interpret than that of other cultures.

Q: The earliest known intentional burials are Neanderthal, dating from the middle Palaeolithic.

Q: The organization of art in Benin society reflects a state-based social and political organization.

Q: It is possible to radiocarbon date organic materials used to make paint for certain rock art sites.

Q: One measure of social and political organization within a chiefdom is the degree of craft specialization.

Q: Representational art is most visible in the archaeological record.

Q: It is easy to know the meaning of prehistoric art.

Q: Cognitive archaeology is practiced only by postprocessual archaeologists.