Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 407-427).

Thesis (doctoral) - Vrije Universiteit, Amsterdam, 2001. / This book is a slightly revised version of the doctoral dissertation the author completed in June 2001 and defended at the Faculty of Arts of the Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam in October 2001. Includes bibliographical references (p. 255-285) and index.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Montana, 2007. / Title from title screen. Description based on contents viewed July 12, 2007. Includes bibliographical references (p. 100-108).

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A dissertation submitted to the School of Geography, Archaeology and Environmental Studies, Faculty of Science University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg for the degree of Master of Science. Johannesburg 2013. / Tool manufacturing played a major role in the development and evolution of our species, and by studying the tools left behind by our ancestors we gain valuable insight into their development and behaviours through time. This study was conducted on the Swartkrans Oldowan (2.2 - 1.7 Ma), early Acheulean (1.5 - 1 Ma), and Middle Stone Age (<110 ka) assemblages to determine the degree of lithic raw material selectivity for making stone tools, and if they practiced ever increasing selection towards better quality stone over time. The presence of quality selection was determined by comparing the various Swartkrans assemblages with experimentally created lithic tools from rock types found in the study area. Three main characteristics that determine selection of rock types were isolated: flaking predictability, durability and sharpness. Analysis of the data provided further evidence that our early stone tool making ancestors had the ability to understand how different rock types behave when knapped and tended to select rocks that had a high flaking predictability, high durability and could produce fairly sharp edges. It was also apparent that they could identify features that diminish the above mentioned characteristics. Variables such as the impurity encounter rate, fracture encounter rate, weathering, grain size and homogeneity were semiquantitatively recorded for the three techno-complexes at Swartkrans and compared to each other to help identify the degree of selectivity that was practiced over time. The data revealed that selection for quality of lithic raw materials was practiced to some extent during the Oldowan and improved slightly in the early Acheulean. The most marked selection for quality was seen for the Middle Stone Age when modern humans used the site. These results indicate that as time progressed in the Sterkfontein valley, and the stone tool technologies became more complex, so too did the selective pressures and thus an increase in selection for quality lithic raw materials over the course of time.

The life of the pre-European Maori consisted of subsistence strategies ranging from hunter-gatherer to horticultural activities. The femur of both sexes is generally characterised by a flattened proximal shaft rotated inward, and by a short, markedly bowed, robust diaphysis. Femoral rugosity denotes the attachment of relatively great thigh musculature which, in turn, is an indicator of the levels of physical activity associated with the subsistence strategies undertaken. The femoral neck and head is distinguished from contemporary populations and those of comparative subsistence strategies by a larger anterior offset (anteversion) and greater horizontal inclination (Coxa valga). In addition to consistently large femoral anteversion, the femoral head is denoted by a broad, horizontally oval insertion for the ligament of the head (fovea). These external morphological traits are such consistent features within the femur they represent racial attributes of the pre-European Maori population. The femoral morphology of the pre-European Maori has been described by earlier researchers dating back 109 years to 1886. However, there have been limited functional evaluations of the external traits, in particular, how traits are associated with respect to each other. To resolve these limitations and determine a biological basis to femoral morphology a comprehensive analysis of external traits from the femur and pelvis is combined with the biomechanical properties of geometric profiles at six cross-sectional levels of the diaphysis. From six major regions within New Zealand a total of 107 pooled femora in three catalogued �series� were measured, of these 52 are male and 55 female, and there are 22 pairs (11 male pairs, 11 female pairs). The external traits measured comprise articular areas, femoral angles, diaphyseal dimensions, and anterior shaft curvature. In addition, pelvic dimensions for matching femora are recorded. Cross-sectional parameters derived from profile areas and second moments of area provide information on compressive strength, and bending rigidities and orientation at each cross-sectional level. Statistical methods employed are univariate F-ratios and Student�s t-test, bivariate correlation coefficients, and multivariate principal components, discriminant function, and linear regression. In this study of the pre-European Maori it is suggested that the normal developmental changes in femoral angles are prevented by extrinsic mechanical influences, such as habitual posture, high levels of physical activity, and greater musculature that alter growth plate morphogenesis. Femoral angles are �set� on epiphyseal fusion and have limited ability to remodel. The femoral diaphysis in the adult undergoes continual remodelling at the periosteal and endosteal surfaces and provides adaptive plasticity to mechanical loading at the hip and knee. Results indicate differences in absolute and relative values of external and cross-sectional traits that indicate mechanical loading patterns specific to each sex. Functional interpretation of inter-trait associations suggests that; 1) associations between external traits indicate the functional effect of growth and development on femoral size and shape characteristics. 2) Associations within cross-sectional parameters show relationships between appositional remodelling activity and structural strength. 3) Associations between external and internal traits indicate the importance of mechanical loading patterns established during growth and adulthood to final femoral morphology and subsequently to adaptive remodelling of the adult shaft.

Summary: It is widely accepted that it is impossible to write prehistory on the basis of the results of archaeological excavation alone. Whether the aims of prehistoric re-construction are to write the �anthropology of dead peoples� (Heizer and Graham, 1967), or to explore the dynamics of culture history (Chang, 1967), such re-construction necessitates the use of additional non-archaeological data. Although some disagreement exists over the most salutory means of applying the results of research in the social and natural sciences, there is little doubt that prehistory benefits from the association. This dissertation, which was undertaken to assess the role of supplementary data in New Zealand prehistoric research, employs two types of non-archaeological evidence: ethnographical-historical data, and methods for assessing subsistence activities from scientific data. These involve not only a study of relevant written records, but also of regional and seasonal distribution of food resources.