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Zooarchaeological Database Preservation, Multiscalar Data Integration, and the Collaboration of the Eastern Archaic Faunal Working Group

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  21 October 2019

Sarah W. Neusius Open the ORCID record for Sarah W. Neusius [Opens in a new window] ,
Bonnie W. Styles ,
Tanya M. Peres ,
Renee B. Walker ,
George M. Crothers ,
Beverley A. Smith  and
Mona L. Colburn
Sarah W. Neusius*
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, G-1 McElhaney Hall, 441 North Walk, Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Indiana, PA 15705, USA
Bonnie W. Styles
Affiliation:
Illinois State Museum Research and Collections Center, 1011 East Ash St., Springfield, IL 62703, USA
Tanya M. Peres
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Florida State University, Innovation Park/Johnson Building, 2035 East Paul Dirac Dr., Suite 206, Tallahassee, FL 32310, USA
Renee B. Walker
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, Physical Science 131, SUNY-Oneonta, Oneonta, NY 13820, USA
George M. Crothers
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, 211 Lafferty Hall, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY 40506, USA
Beverley A. Smith
Affiliation:
Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminal Justice, 526 French Hall, 303 East Kearsley St., University of Michigan, Flint, Michigan 48502, USA
Mona L. Colburn
Affiliation:
Illinois State Museum Research and Collections Center, 1011 East Ash St., Springfield, IL 62703, USA
*
([email protected], corresponding author)
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Abstract

Data preservation, reuse, and synthesis are important goals in contemporary archaeological research that have been addressed by the recent collaboration of the Eastern Archaic Faunal Working Group (EAFWG). We used the Digital Archaeological Record (tDAR) to preserve 60 significant legacy faunal databases from 23 Archaic period archaeological sites located in several contiguous subregions of the interior North American Eastern Woodlands. In order to resolve the problem of synthesizing non-standardized databases, we used the ontology and integration tools available in tDAR to explore comparability and combine datasets so that our research questions about aquatic resource use during the Archaic could be addressed at multiple scales. The challenges of making digital databases accessible for reuse, including the addition of metadata, and of linking disparate data in queryable datasets are significant but worth the effort. Our experience provides one example of how collaborative research may productively resolve problems in making legacy data accessible and usable for synthetic archaeological research.

La preservación, reutilización y síntesis de datos son objetivos importantes en la investigación arqueológica contemporánea que se han abordado con la colaboración reciente del Grupo de Trabajo de la Fauna Arcaica del Este (Eastern Archaic Faunal Working Group, EAFWG). Utilizamos el Registro Arqueológico Digital (tDAR) para preservar 60 conjuntos de datos de fauna antiguos significativos de 23 sitios arqueológicos del período Arcaico ubicados en varias subregiones contiguas del interior de los bosques de América del Norte. Para resolver el problema de sintetizar los conjuntos de datos no estandarizados, utilizamos las herramientas de ontología e integración disponibles en el tDAR para explorar la comparabilidad y combinarlos para que nuestras preguntas de investigación sobre el uso de los recursos acuáticos durante el Arcaico se puedan abordar a múltiples escalas. Los retos de hacer accesibles las bases de datos digitales para su reutilización, de incluir la adición de metadatos y de vincular los datos dispares en conjuntos de datos consultables son significativos, pero vale la pena el esfuerzo. Nuestra experiencia proporciona un ejemplo de cómo la investigación en colaboración puede resolver problemas de manera productiva al hacer que los datos antiguos sean accesibles y utilizables para la investigación arqueológica sintética.

Keywords

database preservationdatabase managementdata reusedatabase integrationsynthetic researchcollaborative researchzooarchaeologyconservación de base de datosgestión de base de datosreutilización de datosintegración de base de datosinvestigación sintéticainvestigación colaborativazooarquelogia
Type
Articles
Information
Advances in Archaeological Practice , Volume 7 , Issue 4 , November 2019 , pp. 409 - 422
Copyright
Copyright 2019 © Society for American Archaeology 

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References

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