News from the isoTROPIC Research Group

News from the isoTROPIC Research Group

Etruscan Infants’ Diets and Skeletal Health: New Findings from Pre-Roman Italy
In a new study published in PLOS ONE, a team of researchers from the Department of Archaeology at MPI GEA, the University of Pisa and Le Mans Université reveal early Etruscan urban life histories. more
Ancient cities provide key datasets for urban planning, policy and predictions in the Anthropocene
A new study led by authors from the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, published in the first edition of the new journal Nature Cities, shows how state-of-the-art methods and perspectives from archaeology, history, and palaeoecology are shedding new light on 5,500 years of urban life. more
RESILIENT Project Launches at Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology
The project will bring an interdisciplinary approach to understanding how natural environments impact urban development in the Amazon more
New Insights Into 2.5-million-year-old Environments On The Casablanca Coast Of Morocco In North Africa
A novel study combines analysis of wear marks and biochemistry of fossil animal teeth at the site of Ahl al Oughlam (dating to 2.5 million years ago) to study past Moroccan ecosystems in deep time. more
Biochemical Evidence Reveals Subtle Environmental Changes on the Islands of Near Oceania During the Last Glacial Maximum
A new study, led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, the University of Otago, and the Australian National University uses chemical information from excavated animal teeth to study the impact of climate change on human-occupied island environments in the Bismarck Archipelago. more
Patrick Roberts and Oshan Wedage Awarded ‘Humanitarian’ Title by Sri Lanka’s Indigenous Vedda Community
Dr. Patrick Roberts of the Department of Archaeology and isoTROPIC Research Group at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, and Dr. Oshan Wedage of the University of Sri Jayawardenepura, were presented with this prestigious honour during a recent trip to Sri Lanka for their work on the repatriation of human remains and cultural artefacts. more
Tropical Forests Reveal the Roots of the Anthropocene
A new paper in Nature Ecology & Evolution shows how interdisciplinary research into human-environment interactions can be used to understand the origins of the Anthropocene and address its contemporary challenges more
New Special Issue Discusses Isolated Indigenous Groups in the Amazon
A new thematic special issue of the Brazilian Journal for Anthropological Linguistics focuses on isolated and recently contacted Tupi-speaking Indigenous groups from the Amazon forest, highlighting the potential of archaeology to provide new insights into the history and adaptation of these populations more
Of Lizards and Love Potions

Of Lizards and Love Potions

January 20, 2023
Documents from the Spanish Inquisition reveal a cultural melting pot in 17th Century Manila more
Research into Impacts of Human Occupation on the Brazilian Atlantic Rainforest Receives Funding
Research teams from the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology (Germany), Bournemouth University (UK), and the University of Göttingen, have been jointly funded by the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) of the United Kingdom more
Isotope Data from Medieval Belarus Shows Similar Diets in Rural, Urban Populations
A new study published in PLoS ONE is the first to use stable isotope analysis to study the diets of the inhabitants of modern Belarus during the turbulent socio-political transitions of the 11th to 18th centuries CE more
Exploring the State and Potential of Isotope Analysis in Archaeology
A new editorial in the open access journal Frontiers in Environmental Archaeology explores the ongoing relevance of isotope analyses for exploring human-environment interactions in the past and the novel perspectives these can provide for the present. more
Diversity Characterised Diets in the Late Holocene Amazon Basin
A new multidisciplinary study published in PLOS ONE, led by a collaboration between the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology, Scientia Consultoria Científica, and Universidade Federal do Pará in Brazil highlights the importance of the use of diverse wild plants and animals, indigenous domesticates, and river resources in different parts of the Amazon Basin. more
Rice Terracing Facilitated Village Growth in Pericolonial Highland Ifugao, Philippines
A new multidisciplinary paper led by scientists at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History combines historical, archaeological, and palaeoecological data into land use models to study the impact of rice agriculture on land-use and demography in the famous Ifugao region of Philippines. more
Deep Roots of the ‘Anthropocene’ Can Be Found in Tropical Forests
New special edition of the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences showcases multidisciplinary approaches to exploring human impacts on tropical forests and their associated earth systems.
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Indigenous Mortality Following Spanish Colonization Did Not Always Lead to Forest Regrowth
New research led by scientists from the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History, shows that disruptions to Indigenous land management following Iberian colonization did not always result in widespread forest regrowth in the Americas and Asia-Pacific, as has been recently argued. more
Dr. Patrick Roberts Receives Prestigious Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prize
Dr. Patrick Roberts of the Department of Archaeology at the Max Planck Institute for Human History is one of 10 researchers to receive Germany's most important prize for young researchers in 2021. The DFG and BMBF will award Heinz Maier-Leibnitz Prizes of 2021 at a virtual award ceremony on May 4th. more
Patrick Roberts Made National Geographic 'Explorer'
Dr. Patrick Roberts of the Department of Archaeology, Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History has received a National Geographic Explorer grant to further his work investigating the formation and collapse of urban societies in tropical Sri Lanka more
Repatriation of Wanniyalaeto (‘Veddah’) Remains Following Ceremony in Edinburgh
"The dead are very important in Wanniyalaeto society," said Chief Uruwarige Wanniyalaeto. "This reuniting of spirits and physical remains... is a very special moment for my people." more
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