Q&A Hero

Q: Forensic archaeologists __________. A) excavate underwater sites B) expose archaeological hoaxes C) analyze material from crime scenes or battlefields D) work exclusively in the Palaeolithic E) specialize in dating archaeological materials

Q: To achieve the basic and primary goal of archaeology, which is to understand humans, archaeology begins with __________. A) reconstructing the lifeways of past people B) addressing the why question C) a comprehensive understanding of human behavior D) description of material culture E) the discovery of new information

Q: The sub-fields of anthropology as practiced in America do not include __________. A) archaeology B) biological anthropology C) linguistics D) geology E) cultural anthropology

Q: An anthropologist collecting ethnographic data is studying __________. A) primates B) the study of hominid evolution C) a particular cultural group D) geological processes E) past material culture

Q: Cultural relativism holds that __________. A) no cultures are better or worse than others B) all cultures are related C) no behavior is better or worse than others D) some cultures are more primitive than others E) all cultures are symbolic systems

Q: Palaeontologists are most likely going to be found excavating __________. A) cultural debris B) localities where people lived, worked, or visited C) portable artifacts D) ecofacts E) dinosaur remains

Q: Some people have the incorrect idea that archaeology includes __________. A) documenting modern garbage patterns B) digging up dinosaurs C) studying shipwrecks D) understanding cultures E) reconstructing past environments

Q: The Moche were an early civilization of farmers and fishers who thrived along the north coast of __________. A) France B) Mexico C) Peru D) Chile E) Canada

Q: The archaeological record consists of human-made and natural remains found within a cultural context.

Q: Archaeology can contribute to contemporary debates on gender, religion, power, and politics.

Q: Archaeologists never encounter the descendants of people who produced archaeological sites.

Q: Human behavior is highly regularized and easy to predict.

Q: Because archaeology is a scientific discipline, archaeologists cannot ever be fooled by fakes.

Q: Piltdown Man was important because he was the ʺMissing Link.ʺ

Q: Von Daniken has scientific hypotheses about the origins of the Pyramids.

Q: Archaeological models are designed to be flexible in light of new data.

Q: Occamʹs Razor says that you must consider the simplest explanation first.

Q: To say that archaeology is empirical and objective means that it considers only those objects and patterns that physically exist and can be observed, measured, and tested.

Q: Scientific paradigms can shift.

Q: The physical sciences, such as physics and chemistry, are more experimental and quantitative than archaeology.

Q: Stratigraphy can assist archaeologists in establishing relative dating.

Q: Maritime archaeology includes both nautical and underwater archaeology.

Q: Biblical archaeology is a kind of prehistoric archaeology.

Q: Archaeology can add nothing to what we already know through documents about historical times.

Q: Historical archaeologists cannot rely exclusively on documents to find out about the past.

Q: Archaeologists always work with other specialists in their research.

Q: Archaeologists can learn nothing about the past from the classification and distribution of modern languages.

Q: Archaeology helped determine that Moche ceramic iconography does not portray ceremonies that actually took place.

Q: Middens are always located close to habitation sites.

Q: In the United States, the survey or assessment in reference to a phase of major development includes a) archaeological survey b) studying the impact to wildlife c) research into the recent history of the area d) all of the above e) a and c only

Q: The vast majority of archaeological sites that are found during survey in advance of construction in the United States a) do not meet the criteria to be considered significant and are recorded and destroyed b) are major archaeological sites that require full excavation c) are automatically destroyed and not recorded d) cause construction plans to be abandoned e) none of the above.

Q: So-called "Preservation Laws" in the United States a) force the complete preservation of all archaeological sites b) will always value archaeological sites, even minor ones, over development c) do not guarantee that archaeological remains will be preserved d) do not call for archaeological excavation in any case e) do not exist

Q: Experts investigating the looting of the Baghdad museum suspect that the looters a) were random people off the street engaged in opportunistic smashing and looting b) were well-informed individuals who knew the museum and knew what they were looking for c) were careful and respectful in the museum: they only took things but did not break anything d) all of the above e) a and b only

Q: The Warka Vase was one of many notable ancient objects that were stolen in 2003 during a) the robbery of the Isabella Stuart Gardner Museum b) the L.A. riots c) the Iran/Iraq war d) the looting of the Baghdad Museum e) the Cuban missile crisis

Q: Historic buildings in England were deliberately targeted in bombing raids during a) The Irish troubles b) The War of the Roses c) The British Civil War d) World War I e) World War II

Q: ____________ has replaced traditional farming methods in many parts of the world, leading to the destruction of deeply buried archaeological sites and remains a) The digging stick b) Mechanized agriculture c) The shallow plow d) Organic farming e) Small-scale hand farming

Q: The two main agencies of archaeological destruction are construction and a) natural disaster b) rising sea levels c) archaeological excavation d) nationalism e) intensification of agriculture

Q: There will always be more to learn in the field of archaeology.

Q: A sign of archaeology's popularity is the increase in archaeology students in university courses.

Q: Archaeological information is always published well and quite quickly.

Q: CRM work in the United States rarely results in the production of an excavation report.

Q: A large area of central Mexico City has been turned into a museum because the ruins of the Great Temple of Tenochtitln were found there: development was halted on that spot.

Q: A major drawback of the 1906 Antiquities Act was that illicit digging and vandalism to archaeological sites on federal land were not prohibited.

Q: Most counties ensure at least some degree of protection for their major archaeological sites.

Q: Archaeologists suspected that the Baghdad museum would be looted in 2003 and warned US and UK officials, but they did not listen.

Q: As yet, there are no known cases of archaeological monuments being destroyed during armed conflict.

Q: The main causes of archaeological site destruction have nothing to do with humans.

Q: In the UK, where metal detecting for artifacts is not illegal, a national scheme has been set up to encourage metal detectorists to a) give up this destructive hobby b) to sell their finds on the open market c) to confine their detecting to areas that have already been excavated d) report their finds e) be more discrete and not talk about their finds

Q: An emerging solution to the problems associated with the publication of archaeological research is a) imposing large fines on archaeologists who do not publish b) not allowing academics to excavate anymore c) online publication d) not allowing private firms to excavate anymore e) accept that most archaeological information will not be published

Q: The 1954 Hague Convention is meant to protect sites of historic significance during a) natural disasters b) peacetime c) major political transitions d) major festivals and holidays e) times of war

Q: The international body behind the World Heritage List and the principal international convention against the illicit trafficking of antiquities is a) ICOMOS b) ICROM c) UNESCO d) CRM e) GIS

Q: Most archaeological survey and data recovery related to CRM work in the US is done by a) private archaeology firms b) archaeologists who are federal employees c) undergraduate students d) university professors e) members of the public with no archaeology training

Q: The official list of significant historic and cultural sites, structures and areas in the US is called the a) World Heritage List b) Protected Monuments Schedule c) Historic Places Trust d) The Federal Compliance Site List e) National Register of Historic Places

Q: Generally speaking, this is who pays for the archaeological work needed in advance of development a) the archaeologist b) the institution that the archaeologist works for c) the body that is proposing the construction or development d) US taxpayers e) private individuals who love the past

Q: The part of the National Historic Preservation Act that requires federal agencies to identify historic places is a) Section 106 b) The Preamble c) Section 1 d) Clause 243 e) none of the above

Q: In the United States, CRM programs are run in a) state governments b) federal agencies c) academic institutions d) private consulting firms e) all of the above

Q: Major figures in CRM in the United States are SHPOs. SHPO stands for a) Sites of Historic Protection Officer b) State Historic Preservation Officer c) Site Health and Policing Officer d) State Historic Police Official e) Site Historic Protection Official

Q: The practice of CRM is often known as a) environmental archaeology b) geoarchaeology c) applied archaeology d) colonial archaeology e) pseudoarchaeology

Q: CRM stands for a) Critical Research Mandate b) Cultural Research Material c) Critical Resource Mitigation d) Cultural Resource Management e) Cultural Resource Mitigation

Q: The Great Temple of Tenochtitln was destroyed by a) an earthquake b) a flood c) architectural instability d) the conquistadores e) the invading Inca

Q: Tenochtitln is located beneath modern a) Beijing, China b) Tokyo, Japan c) Mexico City, Mexico d) Lima, Peru e) Cairo, Egypt

Q: A major portion of the remains of the Great Temple of Tenochtitln was found by electrical workers. Tenochtitln was the capital of a) the Inca b) the Mongols c) the Maya d) the Ancient Egyptians e) the Aztec

Q: A fundamental principle of heritage management is a) the conservation of the archaeological record b) the prevention of commercial and industrial development c) the repatriation of archaeological objects d) the publication of archaeological findings e) all of the above

Q: The most effective way that commercial development in sensitive archaeological areas can be avoided is through a) effective planning legislation b) protest and resistance c) clandestine digging d) a long series of suits and other litigation e) all of the above

Q: It is impossible for archaeological sites to be protected if a) they are located in an area that people want to develop b) their locations are not known or recognized c) in times of war d) they are located in developing countries e) they are located on federal land

Q: The American Antiquities Act of 1906 was entirely focused on the preservation and conservation of sites located on a) private land b) Native American reservations c) federal land d) public, federal or private land that was being developed e) the act applied to all land in the USA

Q: The American Antiquities Act was signed into law in 1906 by a) Theodore Roosevelt b) Abraham Lincoln c) Franklin Roosevelt d) Herbert Hoover e) The Antiquities Act was never passed

Q: England's first inspector of Ancient Monuments, who was selected in 1882, was a) Sir Mortimer Wheeler b) Augustus Lane Fox Pitt-Rivers c) Graham Hancock d) Ignatius Donnelly e) Kathleen Kenyon

Q: Assessments in advance of development require mapping with the aid of a) GPR b) NAGPRA c) GIS d) LANSAT e) all of the above

Q: Looters have destroyed a full 90% of sites from the Classic period of the Mimbres culture in the American Southwest.

Q: Public museums, as bastions of culture and guardians of the past, have never tolerated archaeological destruction or the looting of archaeological sites.

Q: Thanks to the efforts of dedicated aboriginal groups in Australia, some human remains that were exhumed in the past by archaeologists without permission have been returned.

Q: Respect for the dead in Ancient Egypt was so great that the rich tombs of the Pharaohs were not looted until modern times.

Q: Archaeology and the study of the past is a serious business and should never be considered a form of popular entertainment.

Q: The fundamental purpose of archaeology is to provide people with a better understanding of the human past.

Q: The beliefs of the modern Druids and their use of Stonehenge for rituals are not supported by archaeological evidence.

Q: Archaeology still faces a variety of ethical dilemmas and thus the study of archaeological ethics is on the rise.

Q: The destruction of archaeological remains during war is always purely religious, not ethnic or nationalistic.

Q: The process of excavation inherently entails destruction.

Q: The return of human remains or other artifacts to their country of culture of origin is called a) colonialism b) repatriation c) preservation d) restoration e) reconstruction