Evidence map›Paper›PMID 32284414›Full record

ReviewProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2020

Leveraging legacy archaeological collections as proxies for climate and environmental research.

Frankie St Amand, S Terry Childs, Elizabeth J Reitz, Sky Heller, Bonnie Newsom, Torben C Rick, Daniel H Sandweiss, Ryan Wheeler

Abstract readHistorical ArticleReview
In one paragraph

Review in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 8 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
8citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

8 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. The archaeology of climate change: The case for cultural diversity.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2021
    Article
  6. Article
  7. Article
  8. Archaeology, climate, and global change in the Age of Humans.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2020
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

8 authors.

Frankie St AmandClimate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469; anne.st@maine.edu.ORCID 0000-0002-6264-8203
S Terry ChildsDepartment of the Interior Museum Program, Washington, DC 20240.ORCID 0000-0002-3322-1155
Elizabeth J ReitzGeorgia Museum of Natural History, University of Georgia, Athens, GA 30602.ORCID 0000-0002-5119-2976
Sky HellerClimate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469.ORCID 0000-0001-7150-014X
Bonnie NewsomClimate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469.ORCID 0000-0001-7240-9778
Torben C RickDepartment of Anthropology, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Washington, DC 20013-7012.ORCID 0000-0002-8254-5885
Daniel H SandweissClimate Change Institute, University of Maine, Orono, ME 04469.ORCID 0000-0002-9984-8831
Ryan WheelerRobert S. Peabody Institute of Archaeology, Andover, MA 01810.ORCID 0000-0001-5479-1301

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Understanding the causes and consequences of previous climate changes is essential for testing present-day climate models and projections. Archaeological sites are paleoenvironmental archives containing unique ecological baselines with data on paleoclimate transformations at a human timescale. Anthropogenic and nonanthropogenic forces have destroyed many sites, and others are under immediate threat. In the face of this loss, previously excavated collections from these sites-referred to as legacy collections-offer a source of climate and other paleoenvironmental information that may no longer exist elsewhere. Here, we 1) review obstacles to systematically using data from legacy archaeological collections, such as inconsistent or unreported field methods, inadequate records, unsatisfactory curation, and insufficient public knowledge of relevant collections; 2) suggest best practices for integrating archaeological data into climate and environmental research; and 3) summarize several studies to demonstrate the benefits and challenges of using legacy collections as archives of local and regional environmental proxies. Data from archaeological legacy collections contribute regional ecological baselines as well as serve to correct shifting baselines. They also enable regional climate reconstructions at various timescales and corroborate or refine radiocarbon dates. Such uses of legacy collections raise ethical concerns regarding ownership of and responsibility for cultural resources and highlight the importance of Indigenous involvement in planning and executing fieldwork and stewardship of cultural heritage. Finally, we discuss methodologies, practices, and policies pertaining to archaeological legacy collections and support calls for discipline-wide shifts in collections management to ensure their long-term utility in multidisciplinary research and public engagement.

Indexed as

ArchaeologyClimate ChangeEnvironmentEnvironmental ScienceHistory, AncientHumansResearcharchaeologyclimate proxiesclimate researchlegacy archaeological collections

Identifiers

PMID32284414
PMCPMC7165441

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.