Introduction to Prehistoric Cultures (Diversity)

Understand what anthropology is, and where archaeology fits into the larger field of anthropology.

Understand the anthropological concept of culture, including how cultural patterns vary over time and across the world.

Understand the importance of knowledge of, and respect for, human cultural diversity worldwide and through time.

Understand how human cultural activities leave archaeological traces and how archaeologists study the human past.

Understand the basics of archaeological field methods and interpretation of archaeological data.

Understand the big questions archaeologists ask about the human past and how we can learn about major transitions in the past such as the origins of agriculture and the development of cities.

Understand the difference between scientific and “pseudoscientific” approaches to the past, and how this relates to some specific ideas of archaeological discoveries.