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Thesis
GAME THEORY METHODS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH
University of West Florida
Master of Arts (MA), University of West Florida
2013
Appears in Arcadia Mill Archaeological Site
Abstract
The Simpson Lot of Arcadia Mill is an antebellum industrial site in Northwest Florida that was inhabited by five population groups -none of whom left a particularly discernible material trace. In this study, game theory, the study of strategic and dynamic interactions, is tested as means to interpret a site where historic and material evidence is lacking. Game theory methods can help to enhance our understanding of ephemeral sites like the Simpson Lot by deconstructing and reorganizing data to incorporate broader, and perhaps better understood, historical or contextual patterns, and then predict possible site-specific activities that produced the material outcome recovered through excavations. A series of State Against Nature (SONAT) vector diagrams use regional and local patterns to augment archaeological, geophysical, and Geographic Information System (GIS) evidence. Results facilitate the creation of a multi-scalar data network and the subsequent identification of the living quarters of two female overseers at an antebellum textile mill. Although specific information about their lifestyle remains unseen, this previously untested approach successfully analyzes enigmatic and faint patterns in the material record.
Details
- Title
- GAME THEORY METHODS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL RESEARCH
- Resource Type
- Thesis
- Publisher
- University of West Florida
- Format
- text
- Copyright
- http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC-EDU/1.0/
- Identifiers
- 99380090845006600
- Academic Unit
- Anthropology
- Language
- English
- Awarding Institution
- University of West Florida; Master of Arts (MA)
- Theses and Dissertations
- Master of Arts (MA), University of West Florida