Under the direction of Dr. Frank Hole, Ms Lucinda McWeeney will collect data for her doctoral dissertation thesis. She will extract cores from archaeological and geological sites to obtain macroflora - small preserved plant remains, and analyze these as well as materials already in hand. All sites are located in Southern New England and together span the time period from late in the last glacial period, ca 14,000 years ago, to recent times. On this basis, it should be possible to reconstruct vegetation response to the northward retreat of the last glaciers as well as more recent climatic fluctuations. The results of this reconstruction will be integrated with archaeological data to examine how Native American populations at different periods of time responded to, and were affected by climatic change. In particular, Ms McWeeney will examine three specific issues. The first involves the earliest paleoindian hunters and gatherers in North America. What were the environmental challenges which they faced and what resources were available to these first human colonists in the New World? Secondly, a major change in lifestyle took place in the late Archaic period when settlement in New England shifted to riverine locations and a number of new stone tool forms appeared in the archeological record. Archaeologists don't know whether these changes are due to an influx of new peoples or represent an in situ adaptation to a changing environment. Finally, in comparison to other parts of North America, maize agriculture was adopted relatively late in New England and it is unclear what role climatic limitations may have played in this delayed spread. Ms McWeeney's research will help to answer this question. This research is important for several reasons. While it is clear that human populations are influenced by and may actively respond to environmental change, the details of this interaction are not well understood. Because of its long archaeological record and the presence, at different times, of groups with varying levels of technical expertise, New England provides an excellent context to examine this question. Much archaeological data exists but the environmental context is not well established. Ms McWeeney's research will help to remedy this. This work will also assist in the training of a very promising young scientist.
