35th Great Basin Anthropological Conference, Reno, Nevada, Oct. 6 - Oct. 8
TRACY, MEG (GREAT BASIN INSTITUTE) Modeling Human Locational Behavior in Montane Settings
Models were developed to predict spatial distribution of prehistoric archaeological site potential in the Sawtooth National Forest. Archaeological data and environmental parameters were collected and processed in a GIS. Predictor variables were evaluated to discover correlates with human locational behavior & compared against a control dataset. Three modeling methods were used: Logistic Regression, Regression Tree, and Random Forest. These models were assessed for efficacy using k-fold cross-validation and gain statistics. Although observed relationships could result from biases in archaeological data and predictors, results suggest a strong correlation between environment and prehistoric site location.