Dart and Arrow Points on the Columbia Plateau of Western North America

2010 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 287-325 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kenneth M. Ames ◽  
Kristen A. Fuld ◽  
Sara Davis
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Control Sample ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Threshold Values ◽  
Projectile Point ◽  
Columbia Plateau ◽  
Bow And Arrow ◽  
North American Prehistory ◽  
Important Research Question

The timing of the bow and arrow's introduction, spread, and replacement of the atlatl is an important research question in North American prehistory. Although regional archaeologists have not focused on the issue, it is generally thought that the bow and arrow were introduced on the Columbia Plateau ca. 2,300 years ago and completely replaced the atlatl by 1000 B.P. We apply two sets of discriminate functions and four threshold values to three large projectile point samples from the Columbia Plateau and a control sample from the Western Great Basin. Our results indicate that the atlatl was used on the Plateau by ca. 10,800 B.P. While the bow and arrow may have been present by 8500 B.P., they were ubiquitous in the region by 4400 B.P. Atlatl use appears to have increased for a while after 3000 B.P. At the same time, metric differences between dart and arrow points strengthened. Darts became rare after 1500 B.P. but seem to have been in use in small numbers at least until contact.

Point Typologies, Cultural Transmission, and the Spread of Bow-and-Arrow Technology in the Prehistoric Great Basin

1999 ◽  
Vol 64 (2) ◽  
pp. 231-242 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert L. Bettinger ◽  
Jelmer Eerkens
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Cultural Transmission ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Projectile Point ◽  
Bow And Arrow ◽  
Cultural Processes ◽  
Basal Width

Decrease in projectile point size around 1350 B.P. is commonly regarded as marking the replacement of the atlatl by the bow and arrow across the Great Basin. The point typology most widely employed in the Great Basin before about 1980 (the Berkeley typology) uses weight to distinguish larger dart points from smaller, but similarly shaped, arrow points. The typology commonly used today (the Monitor typology) uses basal width to distinguish wide-based dart points from narrow-based arrow points. The two typologies are in general agreement except in central Nevada, where some dart points are light, hence incorrectly typed by the Berkeley typology, and in eastern California, where some arrow points are wide-based, hence incorrectly typed by the Monitor typology. Scarce raw materials and resharpening may explain why dart points are sometimes light in central Nevada. That arrow point basal width is more variable in eastern California than central Nevada likely reflects differences in the cultural processes attending the spread and subsequent maintenance of bow-and-arrow technology in these two localities.

scholarly journals The Radiocarbon Record of the Western Stemmed Tradition on the Southern Columbia Plateau of Western North America

2019 ◽  
Vol 84 (3) ◽  
pp. 471-494 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thomas J. Brown ◽  
Daniel M. Gilmour ◽  
Paul S. Solimano ◽  
Kenneth M. Ames
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Pacific Northwest ◽  
Great Basin ◽  
Late Pleistocene ◽  
Younger Dryas ◽  
Archaeological Record ◽  
Western North America ◽  
Columbia Plateau ◽  
Temporal Overlap ◽  
Western Stemmed Tradition

The late Pleistocene–early Holocene archaeological record of the interior Pacific Northwest is dominated by what has been regionally referred to as the Western Stemmed Tradition (WST). While various efforts have attempted to clarify the chronology of this tradition, these have largely focused on data from the Great Basin and have been disproportionately preoccupied with establishing the beginning of the tradition due to its temporal overlap with Clovis materials. Specifically focusing on the Columbia Plateau, we apply a series of Bayesian chronological models to create concise estimates of the most likely beginning, end, and span of the WST. We then further explore its chronology by modeling its temporal span under various parameters and criteria so as to better identify places in the chronology that need further work and those that are robust regardless of data iteration. Our analysis revealed four major findings: (1) WST conservatively dates between 13,000 and 11,000 cal BP, likely extending to ~13,500 cal BP; (2) the most problematic period for WST is its termination; (3) the WST is incredibly long-lived compared to roughly contemporary Paleoindian traditions; and (4) the WST was seemingly unaffected by the onset of the Younger Dryas.

Unbiased Learning to Rank

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-29
Author(s):  
Qingyao Ai ◽  
Tao Yang ◽  
Huazheng Wang ◽  
Jiaxin Mao
Keyword(s):  
Online Learning ◽  
Theoretical Foundation ◽  
Learning To Rank ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Parameters Estimation ◽  
User Interactions ◽  
Empirical Performance ◽  
Search Data ◽  
Two Sides ◽  
Important Research Question

How to obtain an unbiased ranking model by learning to rank with biased user feedback is an important research question for IR. Existing work on unbiased learning to rank (ULTR) can be broadly categorized into two groups—the studies on unbiased learning algorithms with logged data, namely, the offline unbiased learning, and the studies on unbiased parameters estimation with real-time user interactions, namely, the online learning to rank. While their definitions of unbiasness are different, these two types of ULTR algorithms share the same goal—to find the best models that rank documents based on their intrinsic relevance or utility. However, most studies on offline and online unbiased learning to rank are carried in parallel without detailed comparisons on their background theories and empirical performance. In this article, we formalize the task of unbiased learning to rank and show that existing algorithms for offline unbiased learning and online learning to rank are just the two sides of the same coin. We evaluate eight state-of-the-art ULTR algorithms and find that many of them can be used in both offline settings and online environments with or without minor modifications. Further, we analyze how different offline and online learning paradigms would affect the theoretical foundation and empirical effectiveness of each algorithm on both synthetic and real search data. Our findings provide important insights and guidelines for choosing and deploying ULTR algorithms in practice.

scholarly journals Rights of Nature Versus Nature Conservation Rights of Nature Versus Conventional Nature Conservation: International Lessons from Australia’s Tarkine Wilderness

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-15
Author(s):  
Benjamin Richardson ◽  
Nina Hamaski
Keyword(s):  
Nature Conservation ◽  
New Zealand ◽  
Protected Areas ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Natural World ◽  
Important Research ◽  
Rights Of Nature ◽  
Conceptual Shift ◽  
Important Research Question

The rights-of-nature model is gaining traction as an innovative legal approach for nature conservation. Although adopted in several countries, it remains in its infancy, including in Australia. An important research question is whether rights of nature will offer superior environmental outcomes compared to traditional nature conservation techniques including creation of protected areas. This article investigates that question through a case study of the Tarkine wilderness, in the Australia state of Tasmania. It first identifies key lessons from existing international experience with affirmation of rights of nature, such as in New Zealand and Ecuador. The article then explores how rights of nature could apply in Australia’s Tarkine region and their value compared to existing or potential protected areas and other nature conservation measures under Australian or Tasmanian law. Affirming rights of nature represents a major conceptual shift in how people via the law relate to the natural world, but whether the model offers practical benefits for nature conservation depends on a variety of conditions, in addition to the need to address broader societal drivers of environmentaldegradation.

scholarly journals Phylogeography of the pallid kangaroo mouse,Microdipodops pallidus: a sand-obligate endemic of the Great Basin, western North America

2008 ◽  
Vol 35 (11) ◽  
pp. 2102-2118 ◽  
Author(s):  
John C. Hafner ◽  
Nathan S. Upham ◽  
Emily Reddington ◽  
Candice W. Torres
Keyword(s):  
North America ◽  
Great Basin ◽  
Western North America

Recent Data Bearing on the Question of the Origins of the Bow and Arrow in the Great Basin

1980 ◽  
Vol 45 (1) ◽  
pp. 63-66 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gary S. Webster
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Previous Evidence ◽  
Bow And Arrow ◽  
Recent Debate

The origin and dating of the bow and arrow in the Great Basin has been a key issue in a recent debate concerning a cultural hiatus between Archaic and Fremont. New stratigraphic and chronometric data from Dry Creek Rockshelter are presented to support previous evidence for an Archaic rather than a Fremont origin for this new weapon.

Points in Time: Direct Radiocarbon Dates on Great Basin Projectile Points

2013 ◽  
Vol 78 (3) ◽  
pp. 580-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Geoffrey M. Smith ◽  
Pat Barker ◽  
Eugene M. Hattori ◽  
Anan Raymond ◽  
Ted Goebel
Keyword(s):  
Great Basin ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Projectile Point ◽  
Radiocarbon Dates ◽  
Projectile Points ◽  
Primary Means ◽  
Point Types ◽  
Cross Dating ◽  
Age Estimates

AbstractTypological cross-dating is the primary means by which archaeological sites are placed into chronological frameworks. This approach relies on the assumption that artifacts at undated sites—usually projectile points—are coeval with similar artifacts found at Other, dated sites. While typological cross-dating is necessary in regions dominated by open-air lithic scatters, the approach can be problematic when undated and dated sites are separated by significant distances. Here, we present radiocarbon dates on projectile points with organic hafting material still attached or found within organic storage bags. Our results provide unequivocal ages for various morphological projectile point types at several Great Basin locales and should be useful to researchers seeking local age estimates for those point types, which often involves relying on chronological data from more distant sites. The results also highlight potential issues with uncritically applying typological cross-dating using typologies based on metric attributes, and in two cases, suggest the need to revise the age ranges for certain point styles in the western Great Basin.

scholarly journals Social origin and the ability to self-evaluate school performance accurately

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Benjamin Rosche
Keyword(s):  
Theoretical Model ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
School Performance ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Academic Ability ◽  
Important Research ◽  
Social Origin ◽  
Highly Educated ◽  
School Grades ◽  
Important Research Question

As for students many consequential life decisions still lie ahead it is vitally important that their choices suit their abilities. Concerning education a misperception of academic ability can lead to educational misinvestment with potentially severe consequences. That is why this paper investigates if there are disparities in the ability to accurately self-evaluate school performance by social origin. To the best of the author’s knowledge, this is the first paper considering this important research question. In doing so, the paper has two emphases: firstly, a theoretical model, arguing why disparities in the ability to accurately self-evaluate school performance by social origin are likely, is proposed and secondly an empirical study is conducted in order to examine if disparities by social origin are findable. The key results indicate that both students with less and students with highly educated parents underestimate their school performance if they have school grades higher than the average, and overestimate their school performance if they have school grades lower than the average. However, this relationship is intensified for students with less educated parents and therefore they self-evaluate their school performancecompared to students with highly educated parents less accurately.

scholarly journals A Sensitivity Analysis of ELECTRE Based Stepwise Benchmarking for Policy: the Case of EU Digital Agenda

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 57 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marijana Petrović ◽  
Nataša Bojković ◽  
Mladen Stamenković ◽  
Ivan Anić
Keyword(s):  
Research Question ◽  
Sensitivity Coefficient ◽  
Path Selection ◽  
Model Parameters ◽  
Threshold Values ◽  
Final Choice ◽  
Development Path ◽  
Policy Goals ◽  
Gradual Development ◽  
Development Paths

Research question: This paper introduces a new parameter for evaluating the sensitivity of development paths in ELECTRE (ELimination Et Choix Traduisant la Realité) based stepwise benchmarking model. Motivation: The aim of the research was to devise a 'path sensitivity coefficient' which measures the sensitivity of a development path depending on parameters set by decision-maker (DM). The need for such measure comes from the fact that the hierarchical pre-order of benchmarking units are affected by the DM's subjective decisions on the threshold for declaring outranking relations among them. This consequently may disrupt the sequence of intermediate benchmarks - transitional targets to be followed on the route to the ultimate policy goals. The proposed approach is an extension of a stepwise benchmarking procedure devised by Petrovic et al. (2014) which evaluates development paths based on their gradualism. Idea: In this paper, we propose to characterize development paths by considering both gradualism and sensitivity to outranking thresholds. The standpoint of our research is that in order to make a reliable final choice the DM should be aware that the most gradual path is not necessary the most stable one. Tools: The proposed 'path sensitivity coefficient' combines four level of uncertainty coming from two threshold values set by DM. The coefficient has a relative nature, it points to the “distance” from the theoretically ideal solution - a path fully indifferent to threshold values. An approach to merge coefficients associated with gradualism and stability is also introduced. Data: To illustrate the proposed approach we applied it in the field of digital transformation of EU countries. We exploited indicators and data from Digital Agenda Scoreboard regarding specific policy goals to be achieved until 2020. Findings: The findings imply that the decision on the most gradual development path should be reconsidered in regards to the influence of model parameters. The final choice depends whether DM’s prefers the smoothness of the path or the overall stability in terms of underlying partial preorder.  Contribution: This work contributes to the existing ELECTRE-based stepwise benchmarking by reducing the uncertainty coming from subjective parameterization and allows the DM to be more confident in the final path selection.

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