Project Question:

Some researchers have argued that the early hominids that made Oldowan stone tools were effective hunters. At the other end of the spectrum, others have argued that early hominids were merely marginal scavengers. Your assignment is to evaluate the range of possible interpretations based on your own analysis of the specific evidence recovered from the FLK-Zinj archaeological site at Olduvai Gorge. Build an argument for your own interpretation of whether the tool-makers at the FLK site hunted game, or scavenged carcasses, or both, and support your ideas using specific examples of data from the site. Aim for an essay of 5-6 pages, and attach additional graphs or tables to help summarize points you want to make about patterns in the data.

HINTS: Here are some examples of the types of specific questions and evidence you could consider. See if you can think of more!:

• Almost 60,000 bone fragments were found at the site. Do you think these all accumulated at the site in the same way? (e.g. were they all the remains of hominid meals?) Explain your reasoning using specific examples of particular types of animals.
• Do you think the abundance of different species of animals at the site reflects the feeding preferences of hominids?
• What do toothmark patterns indicate about carnivore involvement in either the accumulation of or the destruction of bones at the site? How does this influence your interpretation of hominid behavior at the site?
• Many bones at the site show evidence of having been cut or smashed with stone tools. If early hominids were only getting access to the remains of carnivore kills, which parts of the skeleton were probably left for them, and how might this be reflected in patterns of bone debris at the site? What alternative patterns might you expect to find if hominids were hunting?
• How do bone damage patterns vary according to the body size of the animals or the species of the animals, and what might this imply about hominid hunting or scavenging abilities?

This project asks you to look at data excavated from the FLK-Zinj archaeological site at Olduvai Gorge, and develop your own interpretation of the data. BE SPECIFIC in your arguments to be persuasive! Don't say "Lots of cutmarks were found at the site and this means hominids hunted alot." Say "The most convincing case for hominid hunting can be made from the bones of species XXX, because these show the highest frequencies of cutmarks (XX%) of any species, particularly on bones that...." The more different kinds of evidence you can find that point in the same direction, the stronger your argument. But be honest... if you think the evidence is ambiguous or inconclusive in some respects, say so and explain why. You'll be evaluated on the quality of your argument, and how well you support your ideas with archaeological data from the site and supporting inferences -- there is no particular "right answer" we are looking for.

WARNING; there is alot of data to work through for this project, so make sure to give yourself lots of TIME to work on it before its due! (e.g., Most students say they need at least 8-10 hours of working with the CD-ROM to answer this question well.)

The data will be available to you in two alternative formats. I recommend using the CD-ROM, because it includes alot of background material about the site, interpretive guidance, and useful visuals, but if you prefer paper, you have that choice: