Uppsala University

Department Member, Department of Archaeology and Ancient History

Postdoc Reseacher

Thesis Title: Längs med Hjälmarens stränder och förbi - relationen mellan den gropkeramiska kulturen och båtyxekulturen (Along the shores of Lake Hjälmaren and beyond - the relationship between the Pitted Ware Culture and the Boat Axe Culture)

About

PhD in archeology. I defended my thesis in December 2009. The issues discussed include middle Neolithic (2800-2300 BC) land use in Sweden and the relationship between the two material cultures the Pitted Ware Culture and the Boat Axe Culture. In my studies I use theories based on site performance characteristics and GIS based methods such as water catchment analysis. The thesis can be found here on Academia or at DIVA: http://su.diva-portal.org/smash/record.jsf?pid=diva2:275860 It includes an English summary of 10 pages.

I currently hold a position as a Postdoc Researcher at the department of Archaeology and Ancient history at Uppsala university. The project is financed by the Swedish Research Council.

Description:
Rethinking Coastal Landscapes - A Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) analysis of Neolithic sites in eastern Sweden

This project will undertake a large-scale regional GIS analysis of Neolithic sites in Uppland in order to identify general patterns in the properties of the sites.

In current archaeology, the landscape is one of the most promising areas of research. Many landscape studies use methodology based on Geographic Information Systems (GIS). The GIS methodology has been refined considerably in recent years. Today, it is possible to compile and analyse large amounts of data and test patterns by tools, such as the Geographically Weighted Regression (GWR) analysis. In addition, new forms of data are available today, such as Lantmäteriets (Land Survey) laser scanned elevation data (LIDAR), wind data compiled through wind energy projects, mapped areas with storm-felled trees from the forest inventory and the digital archaeological record (FMIS). This, together with the development of the research field of historical ecology(Balée 2006), aiming at understanding long-term transformations of landscapes, encourage this project's ambition to bridge different disciplines for posing new questions to the Neolithic.

The project is part of the work group Rethinking Human Nature linked to the GIS laboratory at the Department of Archaeology and Ancient History, Uppsala University. The work group aims to develop humanistic cross-disciplinary research with a focus on GIS and landscape perspectives.

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