Archaeology

Present-day societies can learn much from their predecessors. Applied archaeology refers to archaeological research that is designed to have practical and educational significance for modern societies. In the highlands of Bolivia and Peru, for instance, archaeologists have reconstructed systems of elevated fields and canals that once allowed ancient farmers to grow potatoes without losing them to frost. Farmers in these regions today have learned to use this same technique with great success.

Since the 1960s, urban archaeologists have dug deep under modern cities such as London, Paris, and New York City, uncovering earlier cities that lie beneath streets and skyscrapers. These excavations help explain much about urban life today and also provide important information for city planning. For instance, they have provided information about the origins of social classes and the foundations of modern infrastructure, such as sewage systems.

American archaeologist William Rathje has taken urban archaeology a step further and excavated modern municipal garbage dumps in Tucson, Arizona, and many other U.S. cities. Rathje analyzes people’s trash to determine things about their income, class, race, age, and health status. His work has led to a better understanding of the consumption and waste patterns of our own society. It has also provided comparisons for gaining new insights on the historical archaeological record.

Through the study of human evolution, archaeology fosters an appreciation of our common ancestry. The discovery of thousands of unique cultures in the archaeological record also highlights the amazing scope of human diversity. Recent genetic research, in tandem with an accumulation of archaeological research, indicates that all people descended from a single human stock that originated in tropical Africa between 100,000 and 200,000 years ago. Archaeology also documents the origins and development of diverse cultural patterns, the continuity of traditions, and the exchange of ideas and beliefs across cultures.

Archaeology was once a predominantly academic science that was conducted in universities and colleges; today, archaeology is increasingly becoming a profession. Until recently, becoming an archaeologist meant obtaining a doctoral degree and a university professorship or a position as a museum curator. Many archaeologists now earn master’s degrees and work for government agencies or for private environmental monitoring companies and organizations. In the future, archaeology will be more concerned with monitoring the archaeological record than with making sensational discoveries. The archaeologist’s main concern will be to preserve the world’s human cultural and biological heritage for future generations.