Under the direction of Dr. Robert Blumenschine, Professor of Anthropology at Rutgers University, Ms. Marie Selvaggio will conduct actualistic studies in the Serengeti region of Northern Tanzania. The data thus collected will provide the basis for her doctoral dissertation. Following an already completed pilot study, she will collect information on carnivore modification of bone. The results will be of direct use in interpreting archaeological assemblages. Ms. Selvaggio will collect bones from observed carnivore kills after the predators have abandoned them. She will analyze these to take into account the species of both prey and carnivore, as well as the position and nature of bone modification. She will attempt to collect a large series which includes actions by all the major predators. On this basis, it will be possible to examine important archaeological assemblages from East Africa to determine the extent to which they have resulted from human, as opposed to carnivore, activity. In recent years, archaeologists have strongly disagreed about the role of hunting in the development of human society. It has been argued that faunal assemblages found with early stone tools represent not hunting - as formerly believed - but rather human scavenging from carnivore kills. It has proven extremely difficult to decide between these alternatives, and actualistic work, such as that which Ms. Selvaggio will undertake, should serve to provide a needed interpretive context. This research is important for several reasons. It will help to develop a methodological tool which will be applicable to many sites in different parts of the world. It will ultimately increase our understanding of how humans developed and, finally, will assist in the training of an extremely promising scientist.
