Bioarchaeology of Adaptation to Climate Change in Ancient Northwest China
Elizabeth Berger, Postdoctoral Fellow in the Lieberthal-Rogel Center for Chinese Studies, University of Michigan
Large-scale climate change in the second millennium BCE caused drought and social upheaval
around the world. In Northern Eurasia, it corresponded with the start of the Bronze Age and the
rise of pastoral nomadic societies. Elizabeth Berger has examined hundreds of skeletons from
Northwest China for evidence of dietary change, epidemiological transition, physiological stress,
migration, and other evidence of change in the human-environment system. In this talk, she will
outline her ecological approach and the results of the bioarchaeological investigation. Her
ongoing research has revealed broad continuity in way of life and even improvements in health
during the Chinese Bronze Age, evidence of resilience in ancient times.
around the world. In Northern Eurasia, it corresponded with the start of the Bronze Age and the
rise of pastoral nomadic societies. Elizabeth Berger has examined hundreds of skeletons from
Northwest China for evidence of dietary change, epidemiological transition, physiological stress,
migration, and other evidence of change in the human-environment system. In this talk, she will
outline her ecological approach and the results of the bioarchaeological investigation. Her
ongoing research has revealed broad continuity in way of life and even improvements in health
during the Chinese Bronze Age, evidence of resilience in ancient times.
| Building: | Ruthven Museums Building |
|---|---|
| Event Type: | Lecture / Discussion |
| Tags: | Anthropology, Archaeology, Chinese Studies |
| Source: | Happening @ Michigan from Museum of Anthropological Archaeology |
