9311734 Drennan Under the direction of Dr. Robert Drennan, Ms. Cristiana Barreto will collect data for her doctoral dissertation. As part of a larger archaeological project she will conduct excavation in the plateau region of Central Brazil. From an ethnographic perspective this region is well known and characterized by large groups of hundreds of individuals who practice a mixed foraging and simple agricultural way of life. They live in large villages, and have complex forms of social organization. On the other hand they are egalitarian and lack leaders with inherited offices. They also live in a relatively unproductive environment and this combination of traits is both unusual and unexpected. Many anthropologists have speculated on the origin of this social system yet no concrete data is available. Ms. Barreto will attempt to trace its development archaeologically and determine its cause. Work to date suggests that prior to 500 BC small groups followed a strictly hunting and gathering way of life and lived primarily in caves and rock shelters. The period between 500 BC and 800 AD marks a transition to village life and by 800 AD large villages appear in the archaeological record. Ms. Barreto will excavate one of each type of site. In particular she will attempt to recover data which relates to subsistence activities and to look for objects which indicate contact with other regions. Some archaeologists believe that the ethnographically observed pattern developed through outside stimuli. Others believe that agricultural practices changed, that crops such as maize were introduced and that these allowed for higher population densities. A final hypothesis suggests that neither of the above occurred but rather that large villages provide a means both to deal with environmental unpredictability and to ensure adequate defence against other human groups. Ms. Barreto's work should provide data to distinguish among these hypotheses. This research is important for several reasons. It will increase our understanding of how human societies, at a simple technological level, adapt to a harsh tropical environment. It will provide data of interest to many anthropologists and contribute to the training of a promising young scientist. ***
