Palaeoanthropology MSc

ALGY663 introduces contemporary frameworks for the study of human evolution. We will survey elements of the palaeoanthropological record together with the relevant palaeolithic archaeology, focusing on key sites and debates, and will discuss current hypotheses regarding the major factors responsible for shaping the trajectory of our lineage.

This module will examine the conceptual frameworks and research methods used in investigating the development of the world’s first agricultural, pastoralist and sedentary communities, all changes fundamental to the development of complex and modern society. We will explore the behaviours of these ‘Neolithic’ communities across the Near East and Europe in a thematic fashion, possible themes selected by students might include ritual and symbolism, mortuary practice, the development of the household, the development of religion, human-animal relationships, landscapes and landscape management, identities, the first monuments and institutions.

This module provides students with a detailed overview of the theoretical principles and practical applications of archaeobotany and plant macrofossil analysis, focusing on the study of wood, seed and fruit plant remains retrieved from archaeological and palaeoecological sites. Students will have the opportunity to learn hands-on how plant remains are analysed (including botanical identification, recording and data analysis methods), what sort of information can be gained for reconstructing past economies, vegetation ecologies, landscapes and people-environment interactions, and how such analyses are integrated with archaeological and palaeoecological fieldwork projects, and other classes of archaeological and palaeoecological data. The module is delivered through a series of lectures, laboratory-based practical sessions, seminars and tutorials. Assessment is through one essay (students have a choice from a range of topics), one lab-based project report, and a portfolio of work undertaken during laboratory practical sessions.

An examination of the evidence for the role of fire in human history, from its acquisition as a source of heat and light to i ts exploitation in the transformation of the natural world. This module has opportunities for the development of both theoretical knowledge and practical experience of ancient pyrotechnology, through research in the library, analysis in the laboratory and experimental archaeology in the field.

This module introduces the main technologies of the Palaeolithic including the working of stone, wood, bone, clay and the making of fire. The approach is a blend of the theoretical (frameworks of analysis) and the chronological (looking at the archaeological record) with the practical (making and analysing stone tools). If you intend to include lithic artefact analysis in your research then this module provides a sound foundation. More generally, it offers insight into the approaches used to studying cognitive evolution through technology.

Successful research in the biological sciences inevitably depends on the power that statistical inference provides for hypothesis testing. Understanding which test to use and when is the key to success. This module aims to further this understanding of, and competence in, the use of statistical techniques in the design of experiments in biological research, and in the analysis and interpretation of data.

The module is available to students who are on-campus (LIFE707) or, alternatively, who are studying on a University of Liverpool programme while off-campus (LIFE607), for example in a yearly placement in industry or while studying at an overseas University.

The learning and teaching materials are delivered as an online set of resources (available through Canvas). The module aims to provide a guide to the statistics that students will need to complete an advanced research project (M-level or PhD), and the ability to develop a research-level statistical approach to the analysis of biological data. The module will also introduce students to the powerful open access statistical software package, R.

This module serves as a focal point for students on the M.Biol.Sci, M.Sc. & M.Res whose interests include evolution, ecology and behavioural biology

The module will make use of varied teaching methods including structured discussions on selected texts as student-led seminars.

The content will focus on areas of evolutionary and behavioural biology that are currently important in the senses (i) that they are progressing rapidly and (ii) that they address fundamental questions of general importance. In addition we will also highlight the key papers and ideas in recent evolutionary biology, showing how research fields develop after pivotal work is published.

The module will have two coursework assessments which are designed to show depth of understanding and an evaluative approach to theory and data in evolutionary biology. There will be some group work, related to one of the assessments.

Successful research in the biological sciences inevitably depends on the power that statistical inference provides for hypothesis testing. Knowing which test to use and when is the key to success.

This module aims to train biology students in statistical techniques for the analysis and interpretation of data. Students will gain research-level, critical understanding of the necessary theory, and will put this into practice by using statistical software and programming to analyse biological data. The module aims to provide a guide to the statistics that students will need to complete their MSc / MRes. research project. Specifically, it is designed for postgraduate students who have not completed an undergraduate statistics module, such as the University of Liverpool’s LIFE223 (QS section). The module is taught via directed reading, lectures, and tutorial workshops, and is assessed via SAQ examination, coursework and an individual poster.

In this module students are introduced, through practical classes, to the identification and study of human skeletal remains from archaeological / palaeontological contexts. The module covers the identification of adult and juvenile human bones, ageing and sexing, palaeopathological conditions and taphonomy. These aspects are taught through the assignment of one adult and one juvenile skeleton to each student, which they then study through the different classes. At the end of the module students provide a written report on their material. Students will also become familiar with how human / hominin remains have proven crucial to the understanding of one area of archaeology / palaeontology of their choice.

ALGY731 is a tutorial-based module that provides you with the opportunity to work with member of archaeology staff from the department examining key issues on a topic of personal interest. You will work with your chosen supervisor to identify a research topic, engage with and critically evaluate key literature and primary data, and evaluate the feasibility of potential dissertation topics. You will also have the opportunity to develop real public engagement activities on the basis of your research.

An introduction to the scientific examination of archaeological artefacts, this course provides students with a critical understanding of scientific research in the field of archaeological materials. It provides opportunities for the discussion of relevant theoretical and ethical issues in the study of artefacts and enables you to develop practical skill and experience in artefact analysis and reporting.

This module examines urbanism in the ancient Near East from the perspective of urban form and structure; focusing in particular on street networks, neighbourhoods and public spaces. Emphasis is placed on the development of the critical and analytical skills necessary to conduct original research on these topics using primary archaeological reports.

This module introduces the students to key issues, methods and evidence essential to the conducting archaeological and historical research on production and trade in the Ancient Near East, from the Fifth to the First Millennium BC, with a focus on the earliest history of Mesopotamia.

In the last 15 years, specialists have largely agreed that the defining characteristic of the behavioural abilities of modern humans is the ability to use symbolism defined as the use of one thing – such as a word, an object, a colour, or an image – to make reference to another. The recognition and identification of symbols and the interpretation of symbolic behaviour through the archaeological record, however, is considerably harder to prove than say, especially in the context of the first possible evidence. There are significant problems in knowing what early symbols and symbolic behaviour might look like, the contexts in which it might operate and the advantages, if any, of its use as individuals living within cultures that are full of symbols and symbolic activity, and have been this way for tens of thousands of years. This module addresses three key aspects of symbolic activity in the context of human evolution. The first aspect relates to the identification of a symbolic and materially embodied behaviour as a distinctive and new element of anatomically modern humans and the inferred advantages that this capacity conveyed over hominins that did not possess it. The second looks at the evidence for the first material culture that is unambiguously identified as symbolic and the context of its interpretation. The third looks at evidence for more complex information recorded or presented symbolically, and the manner in which we can ‘read’ and unambiguously interpret these artefacts. As part of this process we shall also explore the various different ways in which symbolism, art, design, and communication have been given shape through academic language through the
anthropological, art historical and psychological literature.

This module covers the Bronze Age and Iron Age in Britain from 2300 BC until AD 43. We will focus on the development of later prehistoric studies in Britain, and the themes of settlement, traditions of artefact deposition, land use, burial traditions, and the understanding of later prehistoric social organisation. The aims of the module are to provide an advanced understanding of later prehistoric studies and an opportunity to practice critical method in approaching this material.

This module intends to give a holistic insight of a number of marine and terrestrial microfossils that are conventionally used for reconstructing past environmental conditions for the Quaternary period, including recent past. Microfossils are biological indicators that can help to either qualitatively and/or quantitatively estimate environmental conditions such as atmospheric temperature and precipitation (pollen), sea-surface conditions (foraminifera, diatoms, radiolaria, dinoflagellate cysts), salinity (ostracods, diatom), pH (diatoms), sea-ice cover (diatoms, dinoflagellate cysts), etc. These conditions are of paramount importance for modelling past climate conditions and the data derived from microfossil assemblages enable to better calibrate models, which in turn, are essential to forecast future climate. In addition, microfossil assemblages help to understand the natural evolution of our environment as well as measuring the amplitude of human activities over time.​​

This module takes an interdisciplinary approach to examine human evolution. Beginning with the human genome and how it has evolved, the module moves through the biological scales to examine how the genome has shaped developmental evolution in the human lineage, and finally the adaptations that this developmental evolution produced in the Homo lineage since it split with chimpanzees.

The module will utilise a variety of learning strategies to facilitate student-led and active learning. The teaching sessions will include significant workshop components and problem solving elements. In some cases these will stand independently as traditional lectures/seminars, and in some cases flipped classroom workshop approaches will be used, with material delivered in advance online. In the workshop sessions, students will then engage in activities including debates, small group discussions, and presentations. Supporting materials such as recorded lectures, links to online resources and literature will be provided on VITAL. Students will be guided to key articles (reviews, primary literature) and textbooks which will support learning. Opportunities for individual feedback on learning will be provided.

The module will be assessed through a combination of coursework and a final examination.

This module addresses contemporary topics in animal behaviour within an evolutionary framework. It combines current experimental and field research and links behaviour to other areas including ecology, neurobiology, comparative cognition and human evolution.

There will be an emphaiss on using the primary and secondary literature (including refereed reviews) to underpin the conceptual basis of the material, and we will take an evaluative approach to the material.

The module is delivered through traditional lectures, tutorials and a combination of guided and self-directed reading. The module is assessed by formal examination and continuous assessment.

ALGY600 provides the framework for MA students, in the Department of Archaeology, Classics and Egyptology, to undertake independent guided research on a scholarly topic of relevance in the discipline of their choice. This substantial piece of work is developed and written up over the course of the M-level study in conjunction with the ‘taught’ component of the programme.