Course Goals

Archaeologists produce an array of data. Processing this information in meaningful ways is central to research. The goal of this course is to introduce basic principles of statistics and their application to archaeology and related disciplines. The kinds of analytical techniques learned in class will help students identify meaningful patterns when studying and comparing cultural assemblages and related cultural materials. The statistical analyses learned will also help students understand how reliable the samples are relative to broader populations under study. In the first part, we will focus on descriptive and exploratory statistics. We will compare different kinds of things (measurements, quantities, ratios, etc.) in terms of centrality and distribution. In the second part, students will have the opportunity to discuss the complex relationship between samples and their respective populations, and explore issues of sample representativeness and significance. In the third part, the course will focus on standard multivariate statistical analyses to evaluate relationships among two or more categorical and numerical variables (e.g., chi-square tests, t-tests, regression, ANOVA, multidimensional scaling, and factorial analysis). The course will also include a computer lab component and the use of SPSS.

What are the learning goals?

• It will provide students with the opportunity to understand the basic principles of statistics and their applications in archaeology.
• It will expose students to standard statistical techniques applied to the analysis of cultural materials.
• It will provide the opportunity to become familiar with SPSS, a standard statistical package used in data analysis.

How will you learn those things?

• Doing weekly exercises.
• Reading scholarly work on the subject, including discussion with your classmates.
• Teaching and learning from your peers through in-class presentations.
• Analyzing your own archaeological data.
• Participating in class discussions and debates.

Course structure

This course has two main components: (1) a seminar-style discussion section, and (2) a lab component. In the seminar component, students will lead weekly discussions based on assigned readings (45 minutes). Whenever needed, the instructor will clarify the main concepts and provide additional examples. The second lab component will be led by the instructor each class.

Course Texts

Required. 2010, Statistics for Archaeologists: A Commonsense Approach. Second Edition, by Robert D. Drennan. Ed. Springer, New York (ISBN-10: 1441960716).

Supplementary text. 2024, Discovering Statistics Using IBM SPSS Statistics. 6th Edition, by Andy Field. Sage Publications (ISBN-1529630002).

The DH Practicum provides students with a methodological and epistemological framework for the research processes undertaken by digital humanists. Over the course of the semester, students develop a series of proposals: for the identification of research materials and the digital transformation and management of those materials; for undertaking independent technical learning and then teaching it in a DH workshop; for building a portfolio website; and for developing a shared workflow for collaborative projects. Practicum coursework focuses on enabling students to apply generalized digital and computational approaches within specific departmental and disciplinary contexts.

Alongside our pragmatic work of proposal development and technical learning, we consider the structure and history of epistemological cultures of interpretation, analysis, computation, and empiricism, with texts drawn from hermeneutics, post-structuralism, STS, information theory, and critical infrastructure studies. We also look at examples of scholarship produced using DH approaches. The readings for the course are important but not heavy, at no more than 70 pages per week. 

Grading: Although there will be one test on DH terminology at the end of the semester, grades are based mainly on class discussions, proposals, and the required workshop presentation. 
Note:  If you enrolled in the DH Certificate Program in 2023 or later, this is the required Practicum course for you.

The discipline of anthropology has made significant contributions to the study of Islam. Yet far too rarely has it been asked, how might we take Islamic traditions' own ways of knowing not merely as objects of inquiry, but as intellectual partners? This course will engage readings in ethnography & critical theory that examine diverse expressions of Islam as it intervenes into debates over what it means to be human in the world.