On the importance of blind testing in archaeological science
The example from lithic functional studies
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 11902004 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Adrian Evans (0000-0001-6891-8465, University of Bradford, corresponding author), Adrian Anthony Evans |
| Year | 2013 |
| Volume | 48 |
| Pages | 5-14 |
| Publication date | 2013-12-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Journal of Archaeological Science (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0305-4403 • E-ISSN: 1095-9238 |
| Publisher | Elsevier BV (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.jas.2013.10.026 |
| OpenAlex | W1963896175 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 41 |
| References cited | 51 |
Blind-testing is an important tool that should be used by all analytical fields as an approach for validating method.Several fields do this well outside of archaeological science.It is unfortunate that many applied methods do not have a strong underpinning built on, what should be considered necessary, blind-testing.Historically lithic microwear analysis has been subjected to such testing, the results of which stirred considerable debate.However, putting this aside, it is argued here that the tests have not been adequately exploited.Too much attention has been focused on basic results and the implications of those rather than using the tests as a powerful tool to improve the method.Here the tests are revisited and reviewed in a new light.This approach is used to highlight specific areas of methodological weakness that can be targeted by developmental research.It illustrates the value in having a large dataset of consistently designed blind-tests in method evaluation and suggests that fields such as lithic microwear analysis would greatly benefit from such testing.Opportunity is also taken to discuss recent developments in quantitative methods within lithic functional studies and how such techniques might integrate with current practices
Archaeology · Geography · Machine learning · Value (mathematics · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Computer Science · Forensic Anthropology and Bioarchaeology Studies · Pleistocene-Era Hominins and Archaeology
Stone Artifacts
Surface analysis of stone and bone tools
Lawrence H. Keeley's contributions to the use of microwear analysis in reconstructions of past human behavior (1972–2017)
Early pastoral communities in the mountains of Sicily. Prehistoric evidence from Vallone Inferno (Scillato) in the palaeoenvironmental framework of the Madonie mountain range
To What Extent Are Similarities in Lithic Artifacts Due to Convergence
Experimental use-wear on non-flint tools
From excavation to analysis
Archaeological and Experimental Lithic Microwear Classification Through 2D Textural Analysis and Machine Learning
Traces we leave behind
Metalwork wear analysis
Why should traceology learn from dental microwear, and vice-versa
Rethinking Use-Wear Analysis and Experimentation as Applied to the Study of Past Hominin Tool Use
Quantifying lithic surface alterations using confocal microscopy and its relevance for exploring the Châtelperronian at La Roche-à-Pierrot (Saint-Césaire, France)
Kathu Pan 1 points and the assemblage-scale, probabilistic approach
Here's the dirt
Landscape variability in tool-use and edge damage formation in South African Middle Stone Age lithic assemblages
Standardization, calibration and innovation
Lithic microwear analysis as a means to infer production of perishable technology
Use-wear analysis of Early Mesolithic flake axes from South-eastern Norway
A multi-technique approach to contextualising painted rock art in the Central Pilbara of Western Australia
Late Holocene triangular lithic projectile points, their morphometric variability and hafting systems in the Southern Pampean Hills (Córdoba, Argentina)
A citation network analysis of lithic microwear research
A review of quantification of lithic use-wear using laser profilometry
Replicating surface texture
On wedges and bones
Distinguishing stone age drilling techniques on ostrich eggshell beads
Multiscale characterizations of topographic measurements on lithic materials and microwear using a GelSight Max
An experimental investigation of the effects of post-depositional damage on current quantitative use-wear methods
Grey level co-occurrence matrix and learning algorithms to quantify and classify use-wear on experimental flint tools
A ‘Family of Wear’
Is Loading a Significantly Influential Factor in the Development of Lithic Microwear? An Experimental Test Using LSCM on Basalt from Olduvai Gorge
Identifying Experimental Tool Use Through Confocal Microscopy
An Experimental Program for Obsidian Use-Wear Analysis in Central Mexican Archaeology
Blind test evaluation of consistency in macroscopic lithic raw material sorting
A nardoo processing grinding stone from a rockshelter in the Pilbara, Western Australia
Experimental use-wear patterns on silcrete, bottle glass and porcelain plate tools
Smudge Pits and Stone “Drills”
Use-Trace Epistemology and the Logic of Inference
Toward Recognizing the Prehistoric Butchery of Frozen Meat
Ghosts in the Room and Elephants in the Machine
A Critique of the Institute of Cultural Heritage of Spain's Indicators of Falsehood in Incisions on Ostraca From the Iruña‐Veleia Archaeological Site, Spain
Using metrology in early prehistoric stone tool research
Experimental determination of stone tool uses
Use-Wear Analysis of Flaked Stone Tools
Some criticisms and suggestions in response to Newcomer et al. (1986)
A review of “Investigating microwear polishes with blind tests”
A Critique of Faunal Analysis; Inconsistency among Experts in Blind Tests
A Cautionary Note on the use of Hemastix and Dot-blot Assays for the Detection and Confirmation of Archaeological Blood Residues
Documenting Stages of Polish Development on Experimental Stone Tools
Identifying maize in neotropical sediments and soilsusing cob phytoliths
An Experimental Investigation of the Effects of Trampling on the Results of Lithic Microwear Analysis
Investigating microwear polishes with blind tests
A study of the feasibility of detecting blood residue on artifacts
The elemental chemistry of lithic microwear
Blind Tests of Inter-analyst Correspondence and Accuracy in the Identification of Cut Marks, Percussion Marks, and Carnivore Tooth Marks on Bone Surfaces
Insights from a tribological analysis of the tribulum
Investigating microwear polishes with blind tests
Characterisation and blind testing of radiocarbon dating of cremated bone
Presumptive blood test using Hemastix® with Edta in archaeology
Ambiguous use traces and blind test results
Blind tests in microscopic residue analysis
Identification of Woodworking on Stone Tools through Residue and Use-Wear Analyses
The Quantification of Use-Wear Polish Using Image Analysis. First Results
Blind tests shed light on possibilities and limitations for identifying stone tool prehension and hafting
Sickle blade life-history and the transition to agriculture
The first residue analysis blind tests
Verifying the Reliability of Lithic Use-Wear Assessments by ‘Blind Tests’
Swept under the rug
Edge damage distribution at the assemblage level on Middle Stone Age lithics
Practical quantitative lithic use-wear analysis using multiple classifiers
Laser scanning confocal microscopy
Experimentation in the Formation of Edge Damage
A Report on Phase 2 of the Fifth International Radiocarbon Intercomparison (Viri)
Radiocarbon Intercomparison Program for Chauvet Cave
The Application of Acetate Peels in Lithic Usewear Analysis
Traceology’ then and now
On Accuracy and Revelance in Lithic Use-wear Analysis
Technical note
Technical note
The quantification of microwear traces
The quantification of microwear polishes
On the Macroscopic Identification of Used Flakes
| Unique citing works | 41 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 3,42 |
| Citation span | 2014 - 2026 (13) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |
| Citation types | Neutral: 41 |