Exploring the ontological links between Human Ecodynamics and field archaeology through the integration of archaeological reports into DataARC’s landscape ontology

This research focuses on the processes of knowledge creation within a framework of Big Data. Concretely, my project focus on grey archaeological data and their underlying ontologies, and how to interlink such type of data with other data in a Computational Ontology. This research was carried out within the dataARC Project, which tries to represent Human Ecodynamics for the North Atlantic context using data generated over 25 years by NABO (North Atlantic Biocultural Organisation). The project has been developing a cyberinfrastructure whose main tool is a computational ontology. We try to include in this ontology diverse conceptual models (from archaeological and historical, to ecological or geological data) from different grey sources. In my case, the main issue is the creation of knowledge using multiple datasets that comes from grey literature sources. Said another way, my thesis explores how to create a dataset by extracting data and their underlying ontologies from grey-archaeological reports with the final aim of interlinking them with other datasets. For so doing, these reports are transformed into a dataset, which in turn is mapped to the interdisciplinary ontology. This thesis, therefore, presents a prototype dataset and the process of conceptual mappings. In so doing, I explore how to decompose archaeological reports that are in Open Access to make their data FAIRer and (inter)linked. Human Ecodynamics are of special importance for NABO and, consequently, for the DataARC project. Our computational ontology, therefore, had to be developed for representing Human Ecodynamics in a rigorous and efficient way, yet capable of engaging a broad audience. This, along the use multiple, interconnected, datasets in a concrete relational manner, forces us to develop an ontology capable of representing very abstract themes while representing small details that affect these ecodynamics. This led me to try to develop a theoretical framework which could allow me to contextualise DataARC's ontology and my own method. The theoretical framework blends Latourian Actor-Network-Theory and some basic ontological principles (in the theoretical-philosophical sense) drawn from Human Ecodynamics. This might arguably open new avenues for developing powerful ontologies capable of representing complex knowledge. Problems such as overlappings or identifying the right number of hierarchical levels will be discussed, as well as some procedures that might help in rethinking computational ontologies. Digital Archaeology's ethical challenges is a final interesting point touched by this thesis. Here it is argued that Digital Archaeology, specifically if we convey inter/transdisciplinary knowledge such as Human Ecodynamics or Local and Traditional Knowledge, carries quite an important ethical responsibility. This leads me to offer new possible pathways by openly engaging theoretical critical schools of thought such as Social Ecology -which, in turn, might shed light on problems related to Climate Change and similar current issues

Los Vikingos y el este europeo altomedieval. Aproximación a las fuentes de estudio para la Rus de Kiev y sus ciudades

La fundación y configuración de ciudades en el este europeo por parte de los vikingos es uno de los procesos más interesantes de la Edad Media. De una red de ciudades surgirá el primer Estado del este europeo, germen de la futura Rusia: la Rus de Kiev. Este trabajo supone la recopilación de distintas fuentes, tanto documentales como arqueológicas, que permiten estudiar las Rus de Kiev, en especial para el caso de la fundación de ciudades ocurrida en el solar ruso.The foundation and configuration of cities in Eastern Europe made by Vikings is one of the most interesting processes of the Middle Ages. From a net of cities will rise up the first state of Eastern Europe, germ of the Russian state: the Kievan Rus. This work means the recompilation of different sources, from written documents to archaeological studies, which allow to study Kievan Rus, in special for the case of foundation of cities that took place in the Russian area

Los Vikingos y el este europeo altomedieval. La colonización del este: la Rus de Kiev y sus ciudades

The foundation and configuration of cities in Eastern Europe made by Vikings is one of the most interesting processes of the Middle Ages. From a net of cities will rise up the first state of Eastern Europe, germ of the Russian state: the Kievan Rus. This work deals with multiple questions on that subject: the sources for its study, the reasons of the Viking expansion and the creation of cities in the east, the formation and consolidation of cities and their economic function and, finally, the struggle for the hegemony between the two most important cities: Novgorod and Kiev, which is reflected in their Kremlins.La fundación y configuración de ciudades en el este europeo por parte de los vikingos es uno de los procesos más interesantes de la Edad Media. De una red de ciudades surgirá el primer Estado del este europeo, germen de la futura Rusia: la Rus de Kiev. Este trabajo aborda multitud de cuestiones al respecto, a saber: las fuentes para su estudio, las razones para la expansión vikinga y creación de ciudades en el este, la formación y consolidación de ciudades y su función económica y, finalmente, la lucha por la hegemonía entre las dos ciudades más importantes: Nóvgorod y Kiev, algo que se refleja en sus kremlins

Las Ecodinámicas Humanas del paisaje arquitectónico islandés: el ejemplo histórico de las casas-tepe y las obras de tierra

En este capítulo utilizamos el concepto de Ecodinámicas Humanas como categoría de análisis para examinar el paisaje arquitectónico islandés. Para ello, nos centramos en dos elementos históricos, a saber: las casas-tepe y las obras de tierra. Ambos representan elementos arquitectónicos rurales que han sobrevivido durante más de mil años; aquel como el hogar islandés, este como elemento territorial divisorio para el manejo de recursos. En la última centuria, no obstante, ambos se han abandonado arquitectónica y ontológicamente; es decir, como proyectos vernáculos descen-antropizados. Estos elementos fueron construidos gracias a una interrelación constante entre entidades bióticas y abióticas —un constante intercambio de energía a lo largo del espacio-tiempo—. Consideramos que reconocer estos entrelazamientos arquitectónicos, así como las distintas escalas espaciales —micro y extensiva—, es fundamental para interpretar los paisajes rurales.This paper explores the architectural landscape of Iceland by using the concept of Human Ecodynamics as a category of analysis. I apply this vision by focusing on two historical features: turf houses and earthworks. They both represent rural architectural elements that have stood for more than a millennium; the former as the home of Icelanders, the latter as the element that divided territories for managing resources. In the last century, however, they have been abandoned architecturally and ontologically -i.e., as human-decentered, vernacular, projects. These elements were built thanks to the constant interrelationship of biotic and abiotic entities ― a constant flux of matter through time-space. I argue that recognising these architectural entanglements, as well as their different landscape-scales ― small and extensive ―, is fundamental for interpreting rural landscapes

Landscapes of Movement Along the (Pre)Historical Libyan Sea: Keys for a Socio-Ecological History

This study examines the influence of Human Ecodynamics and Historical Ecology to understand the complexities of historical mobility. Based on Landscape Archaeology, this study considers some of these theoretical principles for studying and reconstructing the movements of past human populations. This discussion is grounded on the example of a research project focused on modelling movement and interaction patterns between the Aegean area (Crete) and northeastern African region (Marmarica) from the Late Bronze to Roman times. The project works with multivariate data representative of the routes and non-human factors that may interplay in biocultural processes. Three key aspects structure this article: (1) the emergence of Human Ecodynamics and Historical Ecology in archaeology, (2) their impact on the theoretical evolution of Landscape Archaeology, and (3) the methodological implementation of these principles through a case study. We specifically discuss the strengths of Human Ecodynamics and Historical Ecology to enhance the conceptualisation of mobility by considering the heterarchical interrelationships between human and non-human agents. Our methodological implementations showcase this by using computational approaches to model human pathways influenced by and in constant relationship with their environment. This research thus highlights the importance of transdisciplinary approaches to studying historical mobility from an archaeological and complex systems perspective