Today’s featured symposium is “Beyond Stones and Bones: Current Research on Fiber Artifacts in the Great Basin.” While much of the global archaeological record is dominated by stone and bone, the Great Basin boasts perhaps the most extensive, diverse, and ancient records of fiber artifacts in the world. Studies of plant and animal fiber artifacts in the region have traditionally focused on normative analysis, using structural traits to explore geographic and chronological patterning. More recent work has pioneered fiber identification techniques to better understand environmental context and land use strategies, explored the use of radiocarbon dating of fiber artifacts to achieve chronological control of disturbed contexts, and extracted microfossils from basketry to interpret dietary uses. This symposium examines the status of current research in Great Basin fiber artifacts and explores future directions for fiber investigations. We would also like to recognize sponsorship at the Lahontan Level by two companies, Archaeological Services LLC and WestLand Resources. Archaeological Services LLC (ASCC) is based out of Vancouver, WA. They have grown from a one-person operation working solely in Clark County to a firm that employs six full-time archaeologists who carry out projects throughout the Pacific Northwest. To learn more about ASCC, please visit https://archaeologicalservices.com/about-ascc/…

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The submission portal for presentations and posters is now closed. The 38th GBAC will feature 159 presentations and posters organized into one plenary session, nine symposia, 2-3 general sessions, and two poster sessions. Watch for the Preliminary Program on the GBAA website and Facebook page in the next 7-10 days. It’s going to be a great conference, with everything you have come to expect from the GBAC as well as a Keynote Lecture by Dr. David Hurst Thomas at Friday evening’s banquet. So, what now? Here is how you can help make this year’s GBAC a success: 1. Register in advance and book your hotel room. The Riverhouse is sold out of rooms for Wednesday, October 18th but there are still rooms available at the conference rate of $120-135/night for Thursday, October 19th and Friday, October 20th. Riverhouse rooms are still available at the non-conference rate for Saturday, October 21st. To register for the conference, please visit: https://greatbasinanthropologicalassociation.org/gbac/gbac-registration/ To book your Riverhouse room, please visit: https://greatbasinanthropologicalassociation.org/gbac/venue-hotel/ In the event that Riverhouse rooms are unavailable for the dates you need, the Red Lion Inn & Suites (541-388-4114) is offering rooms at a comparable price and is located just across the street from the Riverhouse. 2. Reserve a spot…

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Today’s featured symposium is “From Channel Flakes to Bison Jumps: Current Archaeological Investigations”, organized by Suzann Henrikson. The 11 papers in this symposium promise to enrich our understanding of a range of topics. Analysis of the Pewaishe Suakiga debitage assemblage sheds light on Folsom technology in the Pioneer Basin, while new AMS assays and protein residue analyses address the Folsom mammoth hunting proposition in Owl Cave. The source attributions of volcanic glass Haskett points from the eastern Snake River Plain (including the Haskett type site specimens) suggest land use patterns in contrast with regional fluted assemblages. Recent analyses indicate that the Owl Cave bison bone bed represents a single early Holocene mass kill likely executed as an organized communal event with strong evidence for gourmet processing behaviors. Stable isotope values provide much needed insights regarding the seasonality of the mass kill. Potential changes in land use and mobility at the Early Holocene/Middle Holocene transition are examined via geospatial and XRF analyses of volcanic glass projectile points. Recent excavations in the Birch Creek Valley provide evidence of increased hunting success during the late Holocene, due in part to the use of bow and arrow technology. The natural landscape at Buffalo’s Little…

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Today’s features GBAC symposium is “Recent Research in Fremont Studies,” organized by David Yoder, Scott Ure, and Michael Searcy. Fremont cultures of the eastern Great Basin and northern Colorado Plateau continue to simultaneously fascinate and puzzle archaeologists working in the region. Recent excavations, analysis of museum collections, application of technology, and reanalysis of previous held ideas and data are helping to us to better understand Fremont peoples and systems. The papers in this symposium highlight some of the current Fremont studies being performed by archaeologists in academia, government, museums, and the private sector. We also wish to recognize two additional sponsors at the Bonneville Level, Broadbent and ASM Affiliates. Broadbent offers Cultural Resource Management (CRM) services in support of projects in development, infrastructure, mining, and renewable energy. Their CRM team has project experience throughout the Intermountain West. Broadbent’s archaeologists and architectural historians understand how to guide projects through federal, state, and local laws to ensure cultural resources projects are completed on time and on budget. For more information, please visit broadbentinc.com/services/cultural-resource-management/ ASM Affiliates is a professional cultural and heritage resources management consulting firm with over 40 years of experience providing archaeology, historic preservation, GIS, drone, and other specialized services throughout the…

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Today’s featured GBAC symposium is “A 6,500-year Record of Indigenous Occupation and Environmental Change at Payahuunada (Owens Lake),” brought to us by our good friends at Far Western Anthropological Research Group. The symposium will present the results of recent archaeological investigations at 59 component areas located within a highway construction corridor along the west shore of Owens Lake, California. Dating from the Middle Holocene through the mid-20th Century ethno-historic period, the archaeological record provides a window into Native responses to changing climates and lake levels, as well as to later-dating colonial intrusion. The project area is the ancestral home of the Paiute/Shoshone and is of high significance to contemporary Native people throughout eastern California. The symposium reviews Native perspectives of the archaeological record and other important tribal resources through the ongoing development of a Traditional Cultural Landscape. We also wish to recognize sponsorship at the Bonneville Level by two organizations, Far Western Anthropological Research Group and Archaeological Investigations Northwest. Since 1979, Far Western has worked in partnership with private industry, government agencies, tribal organizations, and non-profit groups to achieve the broader goals of the environmental review and compliance process. Today, they are recognized as one of the leading cultural resources…

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