#178 Stephen Shennan: Darwinian Archaeology, Culture, and The Origins of Agriculture
Dr. Stephen Shennan is Professor of Theoretical Archaeology in the Institute of Archaeology at University College London. Dr. Shennan focuses on cultural evolution and Darwinian archaeology, applying theories from evolutionary ecology and cladistics to archaeology. In July 2006, he was elected Fellow of the British Academy. He’s the author of several books, including Genes, Memes and Human History: Darwinian Archaeology and Cultural Evolution, Mapping Our Ancestors: Phylogenetic Approaches in Anthropology and Prehistory, and The First Farmers of Europe: An Evolutionary Perspective.
In this episode, we talk about Darwinian Archaeology. We start off by addressing the differences in terms of theoretical foundations and methodology between traditional Archaeology and Darwinian Archaeology. Then, we talk about we talk about some basilar aspects of the study of cultures, like the importance of innovation, how to delimitate cultures from one another, and “folk science”. In the second part of the interview, we discuss the origins and spread of agriculture, as informed by archaeological findings. We talk about how agriculture spread through Europe, and aspects related to demography, diet, famine and disease. At the end, Dr. Shennan also explains what the Neolithic was about.
Time Links:
What is Darwinian Archaeology, and how it differs from traditional Archaeology?
The importance of innovation in human culture
How do we delimitate cultures from one another?
Sources for archaeological studies
Folk science
Does the methodology vary according to the society and historical period under study?
Archaeology and human psychology
The origins and spread of agriculture
Agriculture in Europe
Group selection in the spread of agriculture
Agriculture, demography and innovation
Agriculture, diet, famine and disease
What is the Neolithic, and what is it characterized for?
Follow Dr. Shennan’s work!
Follow Dr. Shennan’s work:
Faculty page: https://bit.ly/2JJ7nvM
Articles on Researchgate: https://bit.ly/2Xw556c
Academia.edu profile: https://bit.ly/2FGbEwd
Amazon page: https://amzn.to/2Ot9hiV
Referrenced books/articles:
Genes, Memes and Human History: https://amzn.to/2uwm7UE
Mapping Our Ancestors: https://amzn.to/2TXYrYl
The First Farmers of Europe: https://amzn.to/2TYGYPy