Maureece Levin | University of Arkansas at Little Rock (original) (raw)

Papers by Maureece Levin

New Phytologist, 2023

The 'One Hundred Important Questions Facing Plant Science Research' project aimed to capture a gl... more The 'One Hundred Important Questions Facing Plant Science Research' project aimed to capture a global snapshot of the current issues and future questions facing plant science. This revisiting builds on the original 2011 paper. Over 600 questions were collected from anyone interested in plants, which were reduced to a final list of 100 by four teams of global panellists. There was remarkable consensus on the most important topics between the global subpanels. We present the top 100 most important questions facing plant science in 2022, ranging from how plants can contribute to tackling climate change, to plant-defence priming and epigenome plasticity. We also provide explanations of why each question is important. We demonstrate how focussing on climate change, community and protecting plant life has become increasingly important for plant science over the past 11 years. This revisiting illustrates the collaborative and international need for long-term funding of plant science research, alongside the broad community-driven efforts to actively ameliorate and halt climate change, while adapting to its consequences.

Frontiers in Plant Science

Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thous... more Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thousands of years, and its production, application and exchange have deep roots in prehistory. However, fiber remains have only rarely been observed in prehistoric sites because they tend to decay quickly in normal environmental conditions. To overcome preservation problems of macroscopic remains, we employed microbotanical analysis on soils from anthropogenic sediments in activity areas at Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel (ca. 5,200–4,700 cal BC), and recovered fiber microremains. This includes at least two types of bast fibers and the earliest evidence of cotton in the Near East, some of which were dyed in various colors. Some of these fibers likely represent the remnants of ancient clothing, fabric containers, cordage, or other belongings. The cotton remains, probably derived from wild species originating in South Asia, predate the oldest known cotton domestication in the Indus Valle...

Food production, or the cultivation and processing of edible materials, is closely linked to both... more Food production, or the cultivation and processing of edible materials, is closely linked to both the physical environment and human social systems. This is especially true on the islands of Remote Oceania, where cultivation of plants introduced with colonization has always been a key component of survival. This project centers on the production systems of an island in the west central Pacific: Pohnpei, Micronesia. It addresses the fundamental question of how food production is related to changes in social and physical environments and also addresses the optimum ways to archaeologically study plant remains in tropical oceanic environments with poor preservation. In order to examine these questions, this project looks at human-environment interrelationships using historical ecology. A multi-pronged approach was used in this research. Archaeological survey was used to identify prehistoric and historic features on the landscape and to map the distribution of food production activities. Excavation of selected archaeological features, including breadfruit fermentation pits, yam enclosures, and cooking features, was conducted to examine formation patterns. Paleoethnobotanical analysis included collection and analysis of flotation samples for carbonized plant macroremain analysis v and sediment samples for phytolith analysis. Finally, because a reference collection is key to all paleoethnobotanical research, plant specimens from multiple Pacific locations were collected and processed for phytolith reference. Botanical data show that phytolith analysis is very useful in the Pacific region, as many economically important taxa produce phytoliths. However, because of differential silica uptake, it should be used in conjunction with other methods. Archaeological phytolith analysis of the garden landscape shows disturbance caused by pigs, which were introduced historically, a change from the prehistoric phytolith record, which shows no major shifts. Combined analysis of plant macroremains and phytoliths from secure archaeological contexts shows the use of banana leaves in breadfruit cooking in the historic period, highlighting the importance of multi-method paleoethnobotanical study. These data point towards an anthropogenic environment and stable agricultural system that was present in late prehistoric Pohnpei. Major changes occurred in the historic period, although production of plant foods that were important for centuries continues to flourish today.

Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology... more Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology gains insights through looking at the material remains that people have left behind on the landscape. One key topic in archaeological study is the ways in which people have produced and consumed food in the past. This short project on Temwen Island and Pingelap Atoll, undertaken during July and August 2016, examines food production within larger archaeological contexts. Work on Temwen Island focused on a feature originally recorded during the 2011 field season and since identified as a cookhouse. Excavation of a unit at this feature confirmed this identification, and adds to our understanding of cooking practices in the Pohnpeian past. Pilot fieldwork on Pingelap, in the form of reconnaissance survey, confirmed the atoll as a place with a tremendous potential for archaeology to understand both the recent and prehistoric past. The evidence presented here is intended to help the people of Pohnpei and the Pohnpei State Historic Preservation office make decisions regarding conservation and preservation. Additional analyses of botanical materials from Temwen Island are underway.

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2021

The production of alcoholic beverages is connected to a wide range of activities associated with ... more The production of alcoholic beverages is connected to a wide range of activities associated with growing social complexity. Beer production has a long history in the southern Levant, where the first evidence appeared during the later Epipalaeolithic period. However, there is meager evidence between then and the Early Bronze Age period, when advanced regional trade systems developed. To fill this gap, the current paper presents evidence for beer production and consumption based on microfossil analysis of two ceramic strainers unearthed at two Chalcolithic sites: Tel Tsaf (ca. 5200-4700 cal. BC), a settlement site in the Jordan Valley with evidence for large scale storage and long-distance ties, and Peqi'in Cave (ca. 4500-3900 cal. BC), a burial site in the Upper Galilee. The microfossils (phytoliths, starch granules, yeast cells, and fibers) indicate that both strainers once contained fermented beverages made from Triticeae (wheat/barley), Panicoideae, and Cyperus tubers. These results suggest that beer production and consumption using strainers may have been regularly practiced during different phases of the Chalcolithic, and beer appears to have played an important role in various social settings for communication among social groups as well as between the living and the deceased.

Science Advances, 2019

Bayesian-modeled colonization estimates demonstrate episodic dispersals into the Caribbean that s... more Bayesian-modeled colonization estimates demonstrate episodic dispersals into the Caribbean that support the southward route hypothesis.

Science, 2019

A synthetic history of human land use Humans began to leave lasting impacts on Earth's surfac... more A synthetic history of human land use Humans began to leave lasting impacts on Earth's surface starting 10,000 to 8000 years ago. Through a synthetic collaboration with archaeologists around the globe, Stephens et al. compiled a comprehensive picture of the trajectory of human land use worldwide during the Holocene (see the Perspective by Roberts). Hunter-gatherers, farmers, and pastoralists transformed the face of Earth earlier and to a greater extent than has been widely appreciated, a transformation that was essentially global by 3000 years before the present. Science , this issue p. 897 ; see also p. 865

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2019

In China, pottery containers first appeared about 20000 cal. BP, and became diverse in form durin... more In China, pottery containers first appeared about 20000 cal. BP, and became diverse in form during the Early Neolithic (9000–7000 cal. BP), signaling the emergence of functionally specialized vessels. China is also well-known for its early development of alcohol production. However, few studies have focused on the connections between the two technologies. Based on the analysis of residues (starch, phytolith, and fungus) adhering to pottery from two Early Neolithic sites in north China, here we demonstrate that three material changes occurring in the Early Neolithic signal innovation of specialized alcoholic making known in north China: ( i ) the spread of cereal domestication (millet and rice), ( ii ) the emergence of dedicated pottery types, particularly globular jars as liquid storage vessels, and ( iii ) the development of cereal-based alcohol production with at least two fermentation methods: the use of cereal malts and the use of moldy grain and herbs ( qu and caoqu ) as starte...

The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2017

Fermentation is a common method of processing and preserving breadfruit throughout the Pacific Is... more Fermentation is a common method of processing and preserving breadfruit throughout the Pacific Islands. While these pits are often reported in the archaeological record, they can pose some interpretive challenges. This paper presents an analysis of probable archaeological breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis (Parkinson) Fosberg) fermentation pits on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia. Using the existing ethnographic record as a guide, I present archaeological and paleoethnobotanical criteria for identifying fermentation features. Architectural and stratigraphic analyses from four excavated pits match ethnographic expectations. Phytolith analysis shows some concurrence in terms of taxonomic data, but is more useful for indicating disturbance specific to building activities. Based on the distribution and size of pits present in the survey area, I suggest that breadfruit fermentation took place as primarily a household level (rather than community level) activity during the late prehistoric and early historic period in Pohnpei.

Antiquity, 2018

Beijing 0 km 2000 N Northern China has been identified as an independent centre of domestication ... more Beijing 0 km 2000 N Northern China has been identified as an independent centre of domestication for various types of millet and other plant species, but tracing the earliest evidence for the exploitation of wild cereals and thus the actual domestication process has proven challenging. Evidence from microscopic analyses of stone tools, including use-wear, starch and phytolith analyses, however, show that in the Shizitan region of north China, various plants have been exploited as far back as 28 000 years ago, and wild millets have been harvested and processed by the time of the Last Glacial Maximum, 24 000 years ago. This is some 18 000-14 000 years before the earliest evidence for domesticated millet in this region.

Ethnobiology Letters, 2017

This short topical review discusses recent archaeobotanical approaches to understanding food prod... more This short topical review discusses recent archaeobotanical approaches to understanding food production in Remote Oceania (eastern Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia). The region presents some preservation and interpretative challenges, both due to the lack of cereal crops and the hot and humid climate that prevails through much of the area. Nevertheless, archaeobotanical analyses provide insight into topics such the transport of crops between islands and anthropogenic environmental change.

Quaternary International, 2017

Phytolith analysis is increasingly contributing to archaeological studies, especially in the cont... more Phytolith analysis is increasingly contributing to archaeological studies, especially in the context of agriculture in tropical regions. Plant remains from archaeological sites provide key information on such topics as site function, settlement, past dietary patterns, migrations, and landscape formation. However, in the humid tropics, where good preservation of organic materials is uncommon, identifiable plant macroremains are relatively rare. The inorganic nature of phytoliths makes them a useful tool in Pacific environments. In this study, we analyze phytolith remains from garden features in archaeological context from a western Pacific volcanic island, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. To understand the manipulation of floral environments, especially agricultural practices, we examine hypotheses regarding how agricultural landscapes were impacted by changes in social and economic systems during the island's late prehistoric and early historic periods; these changes include elaboration of chiefly feasting and the introduction of pigs in the 19th century. Previous research on Pohnpei (e.g. Haun, 1984; Ayres and Haun, 1985, 1990; Ayres et al., 2009; Athens and Stevenson, 2012) has examined Pohnpeian agriculture and sociopolitical change through the study of archaeological features and pollen cores. This project is one of the first, to our knowledge, to examine phytolith data from archaeological contexts on the island. Samples from archaeological gardening contexts document how agricultural landscape shows a response to swiddening, landscape succession patterns, and introduced animals within the managed agroforest. However, phytolith analysis alone is not sufficient and must be used in conjunction with other archaeological data in hypothesis testing.

Archaeology in Oceania, 2015

In eastern Micronesia, breadfruit is an important staple crop and has probably been part of the d... more In eastern Micronesia, breadfruit is an important staple crop and has probably been part of the diet since initial settlement. This paper uses combined macroremains and phytolith analysis to identify breadfruit production from a historical feature on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia. Charred breadfruit exocarp material was recovered, indicating breadfruit roasting. Phytolith analysis from this feature does not provide direct evidence of breadfruit, but does reveal other taxa that are not present in flotation samples, demonstrating the utility of analysing multiple lines of botanical data. Thus, this project presents new botanical evidence for breadfruit and a method for approaching a more comprehensive study of cooking practices.

The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2017

Abstract A recent publication (Levin and Ayres 2015) presented evidence for cyclical swiddening o... more Abstract A recent publication (Levin and Ayres 2015) presented evidence for cyclical swiddening over a 700-year sequence at an old gardening site on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia, using phytolith and microcharcoal evidence. Here, we corroborate this evidence by quantifying macroscopic charcoal from flotation occurring at the same site. Notably, the macrocharcoal provides evidence for burning in the immediate local area rather than the regional evidence that microcharcoal can provide. This method allows for a more robust interpretation of gardening microenvironments.

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2022

Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thous... more Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thousands of years, and its production, application and exchange have deep roots in prehistory. However, fiber remains have only rarely been observed in prehistoric sites because they tend to decay quickly in normal environmental conditions. To overcome preservation problems of macroscopic remains, we employed microbotanical analysis on soils from anthropogenic sediments in activity areas at Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel (ca. 5,200-4,700 cal BC), and recovered fiber microremains. This includes at least two types of bast fibers and the earliest evidence of cotton in the Near East, some of which were dyed in various colors. Some of these fibers likely represent the remnants of ancient clothing, fabric containers, cordage, or other belongings. The cotton remains, probably derived from wild species originating in South Asia, predate the oldest known cotton domestication in the Indus Valley by about two millennia. Tel Tsaf played a pivotal role in trans-regional trade and exchange networks in the southern Levant, and the presence of cotton at the site points to possible connections with the Indus Valley as early as 7,200 years ago.

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

New Phytologist, 2023

The 'One Hundred Important Questions Facing Plant Science Research' project aimed to capture a gl... more The 'One Hundred Important Questions Facing Plant Science Research' project aimed to capture a global snapshot of the current issues and future questions facing plant science. This revisiting builds on the original 2011 paper. Over 600 questions were collected from anyone interested in plants, which were reduced to a final list of 100 by four teams of global panellists. There was remarkable consensus on the most important topics between the global subpanels. We present the top 100 most important questions facing plant science in 2022, ranging from how plants can contribute to tackling climate change, to plant-defence priming and epigenome plasticity. We also provide explanations of why each question is important. We demonstrate how focussing on climate change, community and protecting plant life has become increasingly important for plant science over the past 11 years. This revisiting illustrates the collaborative and international need for long-term funding of plant science research, alongside the broad community-driven efforts to actively ameliorate and halt climate change, while adapting to its consequences.

Frontiers in Plant Science

Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thous... more Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thousands of years, and its production, application and exchange have deep roots in prehistory. However, fiber remains have only rarely been observed in prehistoric sites because they tend to decay quickly in normal environmental conditions. To overcome preservation problems of macroscopic remains, we employed microbotanical analysis on soils from anthropogenic sediments in activity areas at Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel (ca. 5,200–4,700 cal BC), and recovered fiber microremains. This includes at least two types of bast fibers and the earliest evidence of cotton in the Near East, some of which were dyed in various colors. Some of these fibers likely represent the remnants of ancient clothing, fabric containers, cordage, or other belongings. The cotton remains, probably derived from wild species originating in South Asia, predate the oldest known cotton domestication in the Indus Valle...

Food production, or the cultivation and processing of edible materials, is closely linked to both... more Food production, or the cultivation and processing of edible materials, is closely linked to both the physical environment and human social systems. This is especially true on the islands of Remote Oceania, where cultivation of plants introduced with colonization has always been a key component of survival. This project centers on the production systems of an island in the west central Pacific: Pohnpei, Micronesia. It addresses the fundamental question of how food production is related to changes in social and physical environments and also addresses the optimum ways to archaeologically study plant remains in tropical oceanic environments with poor preservation. In order to examine these questions, this project looks at human-environment interrelationships using historical ecology. A multi-pronged approach was used in this research. Archaeological survey was used to identify prehistoric and historic features on the landscape and to map the distribution of food production activities. Excavation of selected archaeological features, including breadfruit fermentation pits, yam enclosures, and cooking features, was conducted to examine formation patterns. Paleoethnobotanical analysis included collection and analysis of flotation samples for carbonized plant macroremain analysis v and sediment samples for phytolith analysis. Finally, because a reference collection is key to all paleoethnobotanical research, plant specimens from multiple Pacific locations were collected and processed for phytolith reference. Botanical data show that phytolith analysis is very useful in the Pacific region, as many economically important taxa produce phytoliths. However, because of differential silica uptake, it should be used in conjunction with other methods. Archaeological phytolith analysis of the garden landscape shows disturbance caused by pigs, which were introduced historically, a change from the prehistoric phytolith record, which shows no major shifts. Combined analysis of plant macroremains and phytoliths from secure archaeological contexts shows the use of banana leaves in breadfruit cooking in the historic period, highlighting the importance of multi-method paleoethnobotanical study. These data point towards an anthropogenic environment and stable agricultural system that was present in late prehistoric Pohnpei. Major changes occurred in the historic period, although production of plant foods that were important for centuries continues to flourish today.

Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology... more Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology gains insights through looking at the material remains that people have left behind on the landscape. One key topic in archaeological study is the ways in which people have produced and consumed food in the past. This short project on Temwen Island and Pingelap Atoll, undertaken during July and August 2016, examines food production within larger archaeological contexts. Work on Temwen Island focused on a feature originally recorded during the 2011 field season and since identified as a cookhouse. Excavation of a unit at this feature confirmed this identification, and adds to our understanding of cooking practices in the Pohnpeian past. Pilot fieldwork on Pingelap, in the form of reconnaissance survey, confirmed the atoll as a place with a tremendous potential for archaeology to understand both the recent and prehistoric past. The evidence presented here is intended to help the people of Pohnpei and the Pohnpei State Historic Preservation office make decisions regarding conservation and preservation. Additional analyses of botanical materials from Temwen Island are underway.

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 2021

The production of alcoholic beverages is connected to a wide range of activities associated with ... more The production of alcoholic beverages is connected to a wide range of activities associated with growing social complexity. Beer production has a long history in the southern Levant, where the first evidence appeared during the later Epipalaeolithic period. However, there is meager evidence between then and the Early Bronze Age period, when advanced regional trade systems developed. To fill this gap, the current paper presents evidence for beer production and consumption based on microfossil analysis of two ceramic strainers unearthed at two Chalcolithic sites: Tel Tsaf (ca. 5200-4700 cal. BC), a settlement site in the Jordan Valley with evidence for large scale storage and long-distance ties, and Peqi'in Cave (ca. 4500-3900 cal. BC), a burial site in the Upper Galilee. The microfossils (phytoliths, starch granules, yeast cells, and fibers) indicate that both strainers once contained fermented beverages made from Triticeae (wheat/barley), Panicoideae, and Cyperus tubers. These results suggest that beer production and consumption using strainers may have been regularly practiced during different phases of the Chalcolithic, and beer appears to have played an important role in various social settings for communication among social groups as well as between the living and the deceased.

Science Advances, 2019

Bayesian-modeled colonization estimates demonstrate episodic dispersals into the Caribbean that s... more Bayesian-modeled colonization estimates demonstrate episodic dispersals into the Caribbean that support the southward route hypothesis.

Science, 2019

A synthetic history of human land use Humans began to leave lasting impacts on Earth's surfac... more A synthetic history of human land use Humans began to leave lasting impacts on Earth's surface starting 10,000 to 8000 years ago. Through a synthetic collaboration with archaeologists around the globe, Stephens et al. compiled a comprehensive picture of the trajectory of human land use worldwide during the Holocene (see the Perspective by Roberts). Hunter-gatherers, farmers, and pastoralists transformed the face of Earth earlier and to a greater extent than has been widely appreciated, a transformation that was essentially global by 3000 years before the present. Science , this issue p. 897 ; see also p. 865

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 2019

In China, pottery containers first appeared about 20000 cal. BP, and became diverse in form durin... more In China, pottery containers first appeared about 20000 cal. BP, and became diverse in form during the Early Neolithic (9000–7000 cal. BP), signaling the emergence of functionally specialized vessels. China is also well-known for its early development of alcohol production. However, few studies have focused on the connections between the two technologies. Based on the analysis of residues (starch, phytolith, and fungus) adhering to pottery from two Early Neolithic sites in north China, here we demonstrate that three material changes occurring in the Early Neolithic signal innovation of specialized alcoholic making known in north China: ( i ) the spread of cereal domestication (millet and rice), ( ii ) the emergence of dedicated pottery types, particularly globular jars as liquid storage vessels, and ( iii ) the development of cereal-based alcohol production with at least two fermentation methods: the use of cereal malts and the use of moldy grain and herbs ( qu and caoqu ) as starte...

The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2017

Fermentation is a common method of processing and preserving breadfruit throughout the Pacific Is... more Fermentation is a common method of processing and preserving breadfruit throughout the Pacific Islands. While these pits are often reported in the archaeological record, they can pose some interpretive challenges. This paper presents an analysis of probable archaeological breadfruit (Artocarpus altilis (Parkinson) Fosberg) fermentation pits on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia. Using the existing ethnographic record as a guide, I present archaeological and paleoethnobotanical criteria for identifying fermentation features. Architectural and stratigraphic analyses from four excavated pits match ethnographic expectations. Phytolith analysis shows some concurrence in terms of taxonomic data, but is more useful for indicating disturbance specific to building activities. Based on the distribution and size of pits present in the survey area, I suggest that breadfruit fermentation took place as primarily a household level (rather than community level) activity during the late prehistoric and early historic period in Pohnpei.

Antiquity, 2018

Beijing 0 km 2000 N Northern China has been identified as an independent centre of domestication ... more Beijing 0 km 2000 N Northern China has been identified as an independent centre of domestication for various types of millet and other plant species, but tracing the earliest evidence for the exploitation of wild cereals and thus the actual domestication process has proven challenging. Evidence from microscopic analyses of stone tools, including use-wear, starch and phytolith analyses, however, show that in the Shizitan region of north China, various plants have been exploited as far back as 28 000 years ago, and wild millets have been harvested and processed by the time of the Last Glacial Maximum, 24 000 years ago. This is some 18 000-14 000 years before the earliest evidence for domesticated millet in this region.

Ethnobiology Letters, 2017

This short topical review discusses recent archaeobotanical approaches to understanding food prod... more This short topical review discusses recent archaeobotanical approaches to understanding food production in Remote Oceania (eastern Melanesia, Micronesia, and Polynesia). The region presents some preservation and interpretative challenges, both due to the lack of cereal crops and the hot and humid climate that prevails through much of the area. Nevertheless, archaeobotanical analyses provide insight into topics such the transport of crops between islands and anthropogenic environmental change.

Quaternary International, 2017

Phytolith analysis is increasingly contributing to archaeological studies, especially in the cont... more Phytolith analysis is increasingly contributing to archaeological studies, especially in the context of agriculture in tropical regions. Plant remains from archaeological sites provide key information on such topics as site function, settlement, past dietary patterns, migrations, and landscape formation. However, in the humid tropics, where good preservation of organic materials is uncommon, identifiable plant macroremains are relatively rare. The inorganic nature of phytoliths makes them a useful tool in Pacific environments. In this study, we analyze phytolith remains from garden features in archaeological context from a western Pacific volcanic island, Pohnpei, Federated States of Micronesia. To understand the manipulation of floral environments, especially agricultural practices, we examine hypotheses regarding how agricultural landscapes were impacted by changes in social and economic systems during the island's late prehistoric and early historic periods; these changes include elaboration of chiefly feasting and the introduction of pigs in the 19th century. Previous research on Pohnpei (e.g. Haun, 1984; Ayres and Haun, 1985, 1990; Ayres et al., 2009; Athens and Stevenson, 2012) has examined Pohnpeian agriculture and sociopolitical change through the study of archaeological features and pollen cores. This project is one of the first, to our knowledge, to examine phytolith data from archaeological contexts on the island. Samples from archaeological gardening contexts document how agricultural landscape shows a response to swiddening, landscape succession patterns, and introduced animals within the managed agroforest. However, phytolith analysis alone is not sufficient and must be used in conjunction with other archaeological data in hypothesis testing.

Archaeology in Oceania, 2015

In eastern Micronesia, breadfruit is an important staple crop and has probably been part of the d... more In eastern Micronesia, breadfruit is an important staple crop and has probably been part of the diet since initial settlement. This paper uses combined macroremains and phytolith analysis to identify breadfruit production from a historical feature on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia. Charred breadfruit exocarp material was recovered, indicating breadfruit roasting. Phytolith analysis from this feature does not provide direct evidence of breadfruit, but does reveal other taxa that are not present in flotation samples, demonstrating the utility of analysing multiple lines of botanical data. Thus, this project presents new botanical evidence for breadfruit and a method for approaching a more comprehensive study of cooking practices.

The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, 2017

Abstract A recent publication (Levin and Ayres 2015) presented evidence for cyclical swiddening o... more Abstract A recent publication (Levin and Ayres 2015) presented evidence for cyclical swiddening over a 700-year sequence at an old gardening site on Temwen Island, Pohnpei, Micronesia, using phytolith and microcharcoal evidence. Here, we corroborate this evidence by quantifying macroscopic charcoal from flotation occurring at the same site. Notably, the macrocharcoal provides evidence for burning in the immediate local area rather than the regional evidence that microcharcoal can provide. This method allows for a more robust interpretation of gardening microenvironments.

Frontiers in Plant Science, 2022

Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thous... more Fiber technology (cordage and textile) has played a central role in all human societies for thousands of years, and its production, application and exchange have deep roots in prehistory. However, fiber remains have only rarely been observed in prehistoric sites because they tend to decay quickly in normal environmental conditions. To overcome preservation problems of macroscopic remains, we employed microbotanical analysis on soils from anthropogenic sediments in activity areas at Tel Tsaf in the Jordan Valley, Israel (ca. 5,200-4,700 cal BC), and recovered fiber microremains. This includes at least two types of bast fibers and the earliest evidence of cotton in the Near East, some of which were dyed in various colors. Some of these fibers likely represent the remnants of ancient clothing, fabric containers, cordage, or other belongings. The cotton remains, probably derived from wild species originating in South Asia, predate the oldest known cotton domestication in the Indus Valley by about two millennia. Tel Tsaf played a pivotal role in trans-regional trade and exchange networks in the southern Levant, and the presence of cotton at the site points to possible connections with the Indus Valley as early as 7,200 years ago.

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

Report submitted to the Pohnpei State Historic Preservation Office, April 2018.

Archaeological study in the field and the laboratory represents a fundamental way that we gain ne... more Archaeological study in the field and the laboratory represents a fundamental way that we gain new information about the human past. This project at Nan Madol and adjacent areas of Madolenihmw undertaken during 2011 provides much additional evidence about site characteristics, ages, and conservation issues for the internationally-known Nan Madol complex as well as for many lesser-known sites on Temwen. The field program included survey examination of islets at Nan Madol and other land areas to locate places of archaeological and cultural importance. The results of the recording and laboratory studies-including details concerning stone architecture and artifacts, as well as paleoethnobotanical remains related to early cultivation--are significant in that they improve our knowledge of early human colonization of Micronesia, of the changing material culture on Pohnpei over a period of 2,000 years, and of natural environmental changes as well as the human induced ones. We note that Pohnpei's archaeological record is complex because of more than 2000 years of human occupation and the thousands of archaeological sites. In addition, the poor preservation of artifacts resulting from environmental conditions is a factor. This work reported here has helped clarify Nan Madol's position in the Pohnpeian context and in the prehistory of central Micronesia. We can now recognize the great differences in preservation needs for sites within Pohnpei and can pose specific conservation plans for individual islets at Nan

Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology... more Archaeology is an important way that we can learn about the human past. Specifically, archaeology gains insights through looking at the material remains that people have left behind on the landscape. One key topic in archaeological study is the ways in which people have produced and consumed food in the past. This short project on Temwen Island and Pingelap Atoll, undertaken during July and August 2016, examines food production within larger archaeological contexts. Work on Temwen Island focused on a feature originally recorded during the 2011 field season and since identified as a cookhouse. Excavation of a unit at this feature confirmed this identification, and adds to our understanding of cooking practices in the Pohnpeian past. Pilot fieldwork on Pingelap, in the form of reconnaissance survey, confirmed the atoll as a place with a tremendous potential for archaeology to understand both the recent and prehistoric past. The evidence presented here is intended to help the
people of Pohnpei and the Pohnpei State Historic Preservation office make decisions regarding conservation and preservation. Additional analyses of botanical materials from Temwen Island are underway.

by Dorian Q Fuller, Lisa Janz, Maria Marta Sampietro, Philip I. Buckland, Agustín A Diez Castillo, Ciler Cilingiroglu, Gary Feinman, Peter Hiscock, Peter Hommel, Maureece Levin, Henrik B Lindskoug, Scott Macrae, John M. Marston, Alicia R Ventresca-Miller, Ayushi Nayak, Tanya M Peres, Lucas Proctor, Steve Renette, Gwen Robbins Schug, Peter Schmidt, Oula Seitsonen, Arkadiusz Sołtysiak, Robert Spengler, Sean Ulm, David Wright, and Muhammad Zahir

Science, 2019

Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture,... more Environmentally transformative human use of land accelerated with the emergence of 5 agriculture, but the extent, trajectory, and implications of these early changes are not well understood. An empirical global assessment of land use from 10,000 BP to 1850 CE reveals a planet largely transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago, significantly earlier than land-use reconstructions commonly used by Earth scientists. Synthesis of knowledge contributed by over 250 archaeologists highlighted gaps in archaeological 10 expertise and data quality, which peaked at 2000 BP and in traditionally studied and wealthier regions. Archaeological reconstruction of global land-use history illuminates the deep roots of Earth's transformation through millennia of increasingly intensive land use, challenging the emerging Anthropocene paradigm that anthropogenic global environmental change is mostly recent. 15 One Sentence Summary: A map of synthesized archaeological knowledge on land use reveals a planet transformed by hunter-gatherers, farmers and pastoralists by 3,000 years ago.

Authors not found on Academia:
Torben Rick, Tim Denham, Jonathan Driver, Heather Thakar, Amber L. Johnson, R. Alan Covey, Jason Herrmann, Carrie Hritz, Catherine Kearns, Dan Lawrence, Michael Morrison, Robert J. Speakman, Martina L. Steffen, Keir M. Strickland, M. Cemre Ustunkaya, Jeremy Powell, Alexa Thornton.