Abstract
Cutting actions were likely an important factor in the emergence and evolution of stone tools. In recent years, experiments have shown many factors can influence the efficiency of cutting behaviors, including tool form, tool material, and tool-user. Here, following other researchers, we test whether the material getting cut influences the efficiency effects of particular variables, namely flake size, cutting-edge length, and gross-edge curvature. Slicing six different materials, five participants used 300 stone flakes with quantitatively documented differences in flake size, cutting-edge length, and gross-edge curvature. The results of our Generalized Linear Mixed Models (GLMM) provide evidence that specimen size, edge length, and edge curvature have differential effects based on the material being cut. Our results support the hypothesis that the hominin need or desire to process particular materials potentially influenced the production and selection of stone tool forms over time and to different extents.
Original language | English (US) |
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Article number | 103700 |
Journal | Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports |
Volume | 47 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Feb 2023 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:This project was funded by the Leakey Foundation (Award Number: CON000000084574). We thank the people who participated in the experiment, as well as Chris Hunt and two anonymous reviewers for comments that substantially strengthened this manuscript.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Elsevier Ltd