Paleontology Commons^™

Assessing College Students' Understanding Of Geologic Timescales, Ethan Couture

Honors College

Geologic timescales are central to many concepts in the natural sciences, including evolution, climate change and plate tectonics. However, geologic time scales can be challenging to appreciate, especially for those who have not had exposure to such topics previously. During primary and secondary education (K-12) students are provided with foundational information about geology that is then further developed in specialized classes in college. Yet most students are not getting this foundation, which could arguably lead to deficits in their post-secondary education. Despite the importance of these concepts, especially for those interested in careers associated with geologic timescales, there have been …

The Geoarchaeological Setting Of The Sebasticook Lake Fish Weir Newport, Maine, Christopher Evan Miller

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A geophysical and coring survey of Sebasticook Lake, Newport, Maine, provides evidence of past human-landscape interactions associated with construction and use of a Middle Archaic to Middle Woodland period fish weir, located at the lake inlet. Geophysical methods employed included Seismic Reflection Profiling (SRP) and Sidescan Sonar (SSS) survey of the Sebasticook Lake basin, and Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) survey of the fish weir site and lake inlet. Three cores were collected using a modified, square-rod Wright piston corer in the lake basin. The Sebasticook fish weir complex consists of >630 stone-tool-modified wooden stakes, driven into stiff underlying glacial mud …

12,000-Year Record Of Lake-Level And Vegetative Change At Mathews Pond, Piscataquis County, Maine, Usa, Andrea Masterman Nurse

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study of late-glacial and Holocene changes in lake-level and vegetation at Mathews Pond contributes new information about Holocene environments in northeastern North America. The research establishes a 12,000-year record of paleohydrology for the watershed adjacent to Big Reed Forest Reserve, the largest stand of old-growth forest in the northeastern United States. Mathews Pond is a 7.4 ha, closed-basin, groundwaterseepage lake located in an upland, forested region of the Aroostook River drainage system. Glacial meltwater briefly filled the basin - 13.0 ka (1 ka = 1000 I4C yr BP)). The lake existed as a shallow pool in the deep area …

Variability And Continuity Between Paleoindian Assemblages In The Northeast: A Technological Approach, Edward Cyrus Moore

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Paleoindian record in Maine consists almost exclusively of stone artifacts. Of these artifacts, the fluted projectile point is the most widely recognized and researched, particularly its morphology. Very little is known of the technological strategies involved in the production of Paleoindian stone tools or whether these strategies were consistent between Paleoindian sites. This research examines stone tool production methods and technological organization between two Paleoindian sites in Maine (Janet Cormier and Nicholas) using remnant technological attributes observed on discarded artifacts. Both sites are located in southwestern Maine within the Little Androscoggin River. The sites are situated on elevated, well-drained …

Late Maritime Woodland (Ceramic) And Paleoindian End Scrapers: Stone Tool Technology, Pamela J. Dickinson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Archaeologists tend to view lithic assemblages from a predominately morphological perspective, stressing the importance of the fluted point as the defining characteristic of the Paleoindian culture period (ca. 10,000 years B.P.). In applying such a characteristic, Paleoindian sites have been identified throughout the Northeast. However, there are no identified Paleoindian sites in New Brunswick. It is possible that some sites are largely ignored or thought to lack a Paleoindian component if a fluted point is absent. If such sites are being overlooked, then the database may under represent the Paleoindian culture period. Spurred end scrapers commonly occur in known Paleoindian …

Lithic Analysis Of Chipped Stone Artifacts Recovered From Quebrada Jaguay, Peru, Benjamin R. Tanner

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Quebrada Jaguay, a Terminal Pleistocene to Early Holocene archaeological site in Southern Peru, is recognized as one of the few sites in the Americas that features evidence of a Paleoindian maritime adaptation. Faunal remains from this multicomponent shell midden include shellfish, fish, crustaceans, and shorebirds. Lithic remains recovered from the site over the course of two field seasons (1996 and 1999) provide information about the technology of the site's inhabitants and afford comparisons with other contemporary sites. These lithic materials provide answers to questions dealing with lithic procurement and production strategies and questions about relationships with other groups along the …

Explorations, Vol. 1, No. 2, Jim I. Mead, Emilee M. Mead, Carol J. Bombard, Ronald B. Davis, Marcella H. Sorg

Explorations — A Journal of Research

The cover print is a multi-plate colored etching entitled Skull and Sun Dial, by Susan Groce, Associate Professor of Art at the University of Maine at Orono, where she teaches Printmaking and Drawing.

Articles include:

"The Quaternary"

"Ice Age Plants and Animals: Secrets of the Colorado Plateau," by Jim I. Mead and Emilee M. Mead

"Finding the Facts: Pieces of the Puzzle"

"On Location: In Search of the First Americans"

"A Temporal Vegetational Continuum: From Tundra to Forest," by Carole J. Bombard for Ronald B. Davis

"Anatomy of an Excavation," by Robson Bonnichsen

"What the Bones Tell Us," by …