Andros-Spica/Newcastle-Angourakis-2024: From pattern, through process, to mechanism. An introduction to simulation in archaeology

Presentation and exercise materials for a workshop held at the School of History, Classics and Archaeology at the Newcastle University (6 March 2024).

Slides: https://andros-spica.github.io/Newcastle-Angourakis-2024/

Prepared with reveal.js (see https://revealjs.com/)

Author

Andreas Angourakis

Abstract

In this workshop, I will introduce simulation as a scientific methodology and overview its potential application in archaeology, specifically in the context of socioecological systems. We will focus on the crucial initial steps of simulation modeling: defining a system of interest relative to our question/hypotheses, and formalizing the entities, factors, and causal relationships involved. Please note that this workshop will not cover the technical aspects of computational modeling or programming. Instead, we will engage in a guided "pen-and-paper" exercise using diagramming techniques.