Start › Forums › Current Debates and Themes in Global Environmental History 2015 › 11. Oct 26: From natural to cultural landscapes
- This topic has 4 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 6 years, 8 months ago by
Flavia Manieri.
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October 26, 2015 at 17:01 #17588 | |
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From natural to cultural landscapes: agriculture, co-evolution and change perspectives from the middle east. Valentina Caracuta, Max Planck- Weizmann Center. Post your reflections before Wednesday 28th and give comments to the person above before Friday 30th. |
October 26, 2015 at 20:08 #17590 | |
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The archaeological methodologies explained in the conference gives me more scientific elements to comprehend the importance of the excavations of land, picking up fossils, analysis of charcoal and polen, and about the designs of diagrams which help to represent in long term dure, issues such as the crops. Its relationship with nomadic and sedentary practices have been underlined in many environmental histories but without the specific detail of the methodologies drawn today by Valentina Caracuta. Another one interest point touched in the discussion was about the interdisciplinarity of the archaeological scientific practice, in his partner relation with the social sciences, for example. The mention about the written documents which could be base of explication for certain events partially understood by the natural sciences and his technologies of investigation, was a kind of inspiration for carrying on my thesis work. It because telling social stories could be a lamp for answering questions about the human motivations in the impact of his environment. About the domestication of crops in the long term duree and the spread of anatomical modern humans out of Africa, it is wonderfull know that the nathufian known about the value of crops in the process of human surviving. As we experimented in the debate, the archeological efforts to give data which sustains theories about the processes of development of the homo sapiens have his scopes and limits. There the social sciences research contributes by telling the social dynamics between human groups. Questions such as Why in the past the human impact on his environment by burning and cleareance lands had importance?, is one that only can be answered by telling social stories. Then there, the natural sciences came to sustain those social theories. I think that it point of convergence between sciences shows a future for the humanities, perhaps in the recovering of those ancient ideas which understand the science as a universe able to give enough explainations to all the questions. |
October 27, 2015 at 16:06 #17591 | |
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Reflection on From natural to cultural landscapes with Valentina Caracuta How can we learn from and interact with other disciplines? In some cases it is not a difficult task, as long as we use more or less the same methods we understand how to approach the issue and what questions to ask in order to start getting to know. Other disciplines are harder, for me who have studied social sciences and humanities it is hard to understand what my friend the astrophycisist is doing. Understanding archeologists is something in between. I understand more or less and recognize the field, but I do not have enough knowledge to really validate the research or have opinions about the methods. I just have to trust that the methods, analysis and results are valid. At the same time I feel that this is something that I lack if I want to be an environmental historian. Valentina addresses the need of social science in her work , to analyse the meaning of the findings. At the same time I do not really see clearly how I can participate in that. Somehow I feel a need for more knowledge about how I as a social science/humanities researcher can approach and study the findings of natural sciences and make meaning of that. |
October 28, 2015 at 14:30 #17592 | |
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Reply to the Valenta Caracuta’s lecture : From natural to cultural landscapes: agriculture, co-evolution and change perspectives from the middle-east Although I was not able to attend the lecture, I took a great interest in reading the text about archaeological findings in the Northern Israel region. |
October 29, 2015 at 11:37 #17593 | |
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Reflections on “From natural to cultural landscapes” with V. Caracuta What I found particularly interesting, when talking to Valentina, was the importance of multidisciplinary teamwork that she talked about as being very relevant to her work.
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