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Established chronologies indicate a long-term 'Hoabinhian' hunter-gatherer occupation of Mainland Southeast Asia during the Terminal Pleistocene to Mid-Holocene (45 000-3000 years ago). Here, the authors re-examine the 'Hoabinhian' sequence from north-west Thailand using new radiocarbon and luminescence data from Spirit Cave, Steep Cliff Cave and Banyan Valley Cave. The results indicate that hunter-gatherers exploited this ecologically diverse region throughout the Terminal Pleistocene and the Pleistocene-Holocene transition, and into the period during which agricultural lifeways emerged in the Holocene. Hunter-gatherers did not abandon this highland region of Thailand during periods of environmental and socioeconomic change. Keywords: Mainland Southeast Asia, Thailand, Pleistocene-Holocene transition, hunter-gatherer, radiocarbon offset, Introduction The highland regions of Mainland Southeast Asia are home to some of the earliest and longest records of hunter-gatherer activity. Recent studies from southern China indicate that hunter-gatherers had [...]

Uplift of the overriding plate at a subduction zone denotes interseismic strain accumulation, which is subsequently released during a megathrust earthquake. Although most interseismic strain is thought to be released elastically, observations of uplifted coastal regions at subduction zones worldwide indicate that some strain may result in permanent uplift. The Grays Harbor and Willapa Bay (Washington, USA) coastal region of the Cascadia subduction zone hosts flights of marine terraces testifying to late Pleistocene rock uplift. Our new detailed mapping of the marine terraces recognizes nine new units, including estuarine and fluvial sediments. Luminescence dating, relative age based on soil maturity and terrace elevation, and an evaluation of previous ages from fossil shells collectively constrain the probable ages of three estuarine units to sea-level high stands during Marine Isotope Stages 5a, 5c, and 5e. We estimate an average uplift rate of 0.4 ± 0.1 mm/yr for the terraced estuarine units, consistent with other Pleistocene uplift and incision rates in Cascadia. When compared with observed interseismic vertical deformation, these rates suggest that about one-tenth of interseismic strain may become permanent. The values are permissible within the uncertainties of uplift based on regional estimates of interseismic vertical strain rates and of coseismic subsidence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Shott (2022, American Antiquity 87:794–815) argues that making inferences from ceramic data requires first inferring use lives of vessels—something that is difficult to do. This comment argues that the problem of differential use life becomes more tractable if the assemblage, rather than the vessel, is the unit of analysis. Aside from empirical reasons, theoretical considerations also favor the assemblage as the appropriate unit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Alice Boer site, located in Southeastern Brazil, was considered to be one of the oldest sites in the Americas, and a strong candidate for being a pre‐Clovis site. Ages obtained by researchers during the 1970s and 1980s put the site inside a chronological range between 2 and 14 ka, eventually reaching as old as 30 ka or even 130 ka. Between 2010 and 2012, our research team revisited the site to improve the knowledge of Paleoindian occupation in Southeastern Brazil. Here, we present new data of stratigraphy and chronology (luminescence and radiocarbon dating), pedological and magnetic analysis performed at some of the sites. Results show that the site's oldest occupation took place ca. 8 ka, which provides new insight into human occupation in South America. In addition, we show some issues with radiocarbon contamination due to soil humin fraction mobility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]