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A Model for Exploring the Optimal Trade‐off between Field Processing and Transport
Author(s) -
Metcalfe Duncan,
Barlow K. Renee
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
american anthropologist
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.51
H-Index - 85
eISSN - 1548-1433
pISSN - 0002-7294
DOI - 10.1525/aa.1992.94.2.02a00040
Subject(s) - structuring , field (mathematics) , computer science , operations research , ecology , industrial engineering , economic geography , geography , business , biology , engineering , mathematics , finance , pure mathematics
Archeologists have long assumed that transport considerations have been important in structuring various aspects of the archeological record. An optimality model, derived from the principles of evolutionary ecology, is presented to investigate the trade‐off between field processing and transport for central place foragers. The model implicates (1) the time required to make a round‐trip and (2) the relationship between time spent field processing and increase in the utility of the transported load as the two critical factors determining what parts of resources are likely to be returned to a residential camp.