Welcome to 3.986! Please see below for general information about the class. Please feel free to reach out to me (Max Price) with any questions: maxprice@mit.edu

Lecture: Tues/Thurs 3-4PM in 4-231 

Recitation: Tues/Thursday 4-5PM in 4-261

Here is a copy of the syllabus: Syllabus_3986_2021_final-2.pdf 

Summary: Archaeology is the study of the human experience through its material traces, from the origins of the genus Homo 2.6 million to years ago to the thousands of cultures that exist up to the present. This course will provide an introduction to archaeology, focusing on major questions in the human past: How did we evolve as a species? How and why did people start farming and come to live in cities? How has social inequality and environmental (mis)management shaped the trajectories of various societies around the globe? To tackle these questions, we will compare two major world regions: Southwest Asia (or the Near East) and North and Mesoamerica. We will examine the approaches, sources of evidence, and analytical techniques used to investigate these issues.

Class Requirements and Mechanics:

To fulfill the requirements (including HASS-D and CI-H guidelines) this course includes two one-hour lectures and one hour of recitation per week. The required written work  includes:

• Two response papers (c. 800 words and 1200 words)
• A research paper (which will be revised and resubmitted) (c. 2500 words)
• At least five posts on Piazza in which students evaluate and discuss topics that come up in the readings and lectures.

The last piece of your grade is participation. This includes active contributions to discussions in recitation, class, and Piazza.

Writing Center:

The WCC at MIT (Writing and Communication Center) offers free one-on-one professional advice from lecturers (who all have advanced degrees and who are all are published writers) about all types of academic, creative, and professional writing and about all aspects of oral presentations. The WCC is located in Building E18, Room 233. To register with our online scheduler and to make appointments, go to https://mit.mywconline.com/index.php. To access the WCC’s many pages of advice about writing and oral presentations, go to http://cmsw.mit.edu/writing-and-communications-center/. The Center’s core hours are Monday-Friday, 9:00 a.m.-6:00 p.m.; evening hours vary by semester–check the online scheduler for up-to-date hours.

Academic Integrity:

See: https://integrity.mit.edu/

Any instance of academic dishonesty will result in a failing grade for the assignment and may result in a failing grade for the course overall. Instances of academic dishonesty will also be reported to the Office of Student Citizenship as outlined in the Academic Integrity Handbook