Physical Anthropology

Paper Summary:

This paper examines the similarities between Neolithic farming in the Old World and in the New World. Specifically, the paper looks at the common establishment of animal husbandry and of agriculture, together with the commonplace establishment of megalithic and or architectural structures, presumably designed to serve in part as markers of community territory. More than that the paper looks at how Turnbaugh's cautious treatment of certain topics compares at times unfavourably with a more confident discussion of the origins of European farming in an article penned 10 years ago by Peter Bogucki.

From the Paper:

"In both societies, Neolithic Man went from foraging for what he could find to producing his own goods (Turnbaugh et al, 2002, p.411). Yet, this process occurred independently in the various parts of the world and was not brought about by diffusion (Turnbaugh et al, 2002, p.411). Now, in the areas where agriculture emerged, the earliest farmers relied upon local plant species whose wild "relatives" grew close by. Old World cereal grasses, we are told, were native throughout the Near East and throughout Southeastern Europe; therefore, barely and/or wheat domestication could have occurred in any part of this region (Turnbaugh et al, 2002, p.418)."

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