Éric, guide for students and teachers - Questionnaire

Chronology

1. When was the prehistoric period?

A - In the dinosaur era.

B - Before the Stone Age, about 2.5 million years ago.

C - From the start of humanity to the year 0.

D - From the start of humanity to the emergence of the first written documents.

2. Which dating method takes into account the depth of the artifact in the soil to estimate its age?

A - Stratigraphy.

B - Carbon-14 dating.

C - Optically stimulated luminescence.

D - Typology.

3. What dating method makes it possible to date a projectile point with a characteristic shape?

A - Stratigraphy.

B - Carbon-14 dating.

C - Optically stimulated luminescence.

D - Typology.

4. Optically stimulated luminescence is specifically used as a dating method for what kind of object?

A - Projectile points.

B - Ceramics (pottery)

C - Bones.

D - Pollen.

5. Parallel flaked points are chronological markers from what period?

A - Early Woodland (3 000 to 2 400 years ago).

B - Laurentian Archaic (6 800 to 4 500 years BP).

C - Early Palaeoindian (11 350 to 8 800 years BP).

D - Late Palaeoindian (12 500 to 11 350 years BP).

Artifact

1. What is an artifact?

A - An object or a fragment of an object made by a human.

B - An object found in the soil dating back to prehistory.

C - A human fossil.

D - Remains from the animal, plant, or mineral kingdoms.

2. Complete the sentence. Artifacts that resemble one another...

A - were made by the same people.

B - are attributed to the same cultures.

C - are made of the same materials.

D - do not have the same origin.

3. What is the distinctive characteristic of Clovis culture points?

A - They have a groove or a peduncle at the base.

B - They are made of red or green chert.

C - They are very long and narrow with parallel flakes.

D - They have a flute from the base to the middle of the point.

4. Which tool used for butchering animals, as well as for working skins and wood has a single wide cutting edge?

A - Biface.

B - End scraper.

C - Side scraper.

D - Borer.

5. What tool was used to pierce wood and bones through rotation movements?

A - Biface.

B - End scraper.

C - Side scraper.

D - Borer.

Materials

1. What is a lithic object?

A - A very old object.

B - An object made of stone.

C - An object with inscriptions.

D - A metal object.

2. What makes one rock better than another to make a lithic tool?

A - Its consistency. Regardless of where the hits are made, the rock reacts in the same manner.

B - Its strength to resist the impacts of the tool’s use.

C - Its malleability for creation purposes.

D - All of the above.

3. What materials are the lithic tools found in the Eastern Townships made of?

A - Rhyolite, shale, and quartzite.

B - Flint, rhyolite, and quartzite.

C - Flint, hornfels, and chert.

D - Flint, sandstone, and granite.

4. What hypothesis can be put forward from geoarchaeological studies?

A - That Palaeoindians were sedentary.

B - That Palaeoindians were not skilled at stone working.

C - That Palaeoindians moved a lot and had a trading system.

D - That the Palaeoindians who settled in the region came from the American West.

5. Where are the lithic sources of the artifacts found in the Eastern Townships region?

A - They are all local sources.

B - In the American states of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire.

C - In Ontario and in the U.S. State of New York.

D - In the Maritime provinces.

Soils

1. How is the study of soils useful to archaeologists?

A - It is conducive to identifying the locations where artifacts can most likely be found.

B - It enables an estimation of the period from when the area was habitable.

C - It makes it possible to study the disturbance to the setting for dating purposes.

D - All of the above.

2. What element kept the land in North America from being inhabited before 15 000 years ago?

A - A continental glacier.

B - Volcanoes.

C - The Champlain Sea .

D - Predators.

3. Where would one have the greatest chance of finding prehistoric artifacts?

A - On the bedrock.

B - On terraces of valley slopes.

C - At the bottom of lakes.

D - In the fields.

4. The presence of what salt in the soil indicates a greater probability of human presence?

A - Carbonate.

B - Phosphate.

C - Sulfate.

D - Nitrate.

5. Which element inhibited the dispersion of humans in the Eastern Townships 11 000 years ago?

A - A glacier.

B - Tundra.

C - A proglacial lake.

D - High mountains.

Flora and fauna

1. What signs of vegetation are most often used to identify plant species from the past?

A - Seeds

B - Leaves.

C - Pollen grains.

D - All of the above.

2. From where are samples of signs of plant life from the past taken?

A - In lake sediments.

B - In buried layers of bogs.

C - In soil humus above or under ground.

D - All of the above.

3. As of when did the vegetation of the Eastern Townships become similar to that of today?

A - 7 000 years before present.

B - 5 000 years BP.

C - 3 000 years ago.

D - 1 000 years BP.

4. Animal bones that have been preserved for thousands of years have what in common?

A - They are from large mammals.

B - They are once-heated table scraps.

C - They were buried in mud.

D - All of the above.

5. How are bones found on Palaeoindian sites identified?

A - Chemical analysis.

B - Spectometric analysis.

C - Comparison with bones from a reference collection.

D - Through DNA.

Settlement hypothesis

1. Through what means can the retreat of the continental glacier be reconstituted?

A - Cartography and the dating of glacial deposits.

B - Cartography and the dating of artifacts.

C - Analysis of pollen grains.

D - Analysis of marine fossils.

2. From where did the first humans in North America arrive?

A - Greenland.

B - The northwest, the Beringia Land Bridge.

C - Mexico.

D - The Caribbean.

3. Where is the first known site in the Eastern Townships to have been regularly visited after deglaciation?

A - The Cliche-Rancourt site in the Megantic region.

B - The Kruger 2 site in Sherbrooke.

C - The Gaudreau site in Weedon.

D - The East Angus site in East Angus.

4. What has led to the belief that the first Palaeoindians in the Eastern Townships came from New England?

A - Footprints.

B - Similarities between the artifacts from the two locations (shapes and raw material).

C - Pollen.

D - Carbon-14 dating.

5. What is the basis for the belief that two distinct waves of migration occurred in the Palaeoindian period?

A - The difference in the depth of the artifacts found.

B - The difference in the shapes of projectile points.

C - The difference in the materials the artifacts are made of.

D - All of the above.

Answer key

Chronology

1-Answer: D - From the start of humanity to the emergence of the first written documents.
Prehistory did not end everywhere at the same time. In Quebec, prehistory ended when Jacques Cartier met Indigenous Peoples in 1534.

2-Answer: A - Stratigraphy.
Usually, the deeper one digs in the soil, the older the artifact, on the condition, of course, that the soil has not been disturbed.

3-Answer: D - Typology.
With this dating method, designs and shapes are associated with cultures and traditions. It focuses on stone-chipping techniques and the materials used.

4-Answer: B - Ceramics (pottery).
Optically stimulated luminescence can be used only with materials that have already been exposed to very high temperatures, such as firestone, pottery for cooking, or chipped-stone objects thrown into a fire.

5-Answer: C - Early Palaeoindian (11 350 to 8 800 years ago).
These points are typical of the Plano culture. Their presence in the Sherbrooke region is evidence of a second migration wave of hunters arriving from the southwest about 10 000 years ago.

Artifact

1-Answer: An object or a fragment of an object made by a human.
The object must have marks indicating that it was worked by a human.

2-Answer: B - are attributed to the same cultures.
Raw material, like stone, is not an artifact if it does not have marks showing that it was worked by humans.

3-Answer: D - They have a flute from the base to the middle of the point.
Clovis points have a flute to facilitate hafting.

4-Answer: C - Side scraper.
A side scraper was useful to perfect the finishing of surfaces.

5-Answer: D - Borer.
Borers were bits made of stone.

Materials

1-Answer: B - An object made from stone.
Lithic artifacts are almost the only remains of the prehistoric period.

2-Answer: D - All of the above.
The best quality rocks have a large proportion of silica, a natural form of silicon dioxide. SiO₂.

3-Answer: A - Rhyolite, shale, and quartzite.
All rocks rich in silica. There is no flint in North America.

4-Answer: C - That Palaeoindians moved a lot and had a trading system.
Archaeologists suspect that this also enabled them to find a partner and thus ensure descendants.

5-Answer: B - In the American states of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire.
The Palaeoindians in the Eastern Townships therefore arrived from American New England states.

Soils

1-Answer: D - All of the above.
The study of soils is very useful to archaeologists.

2-Answer: A - A continental glacier.
Usually, the deeper one digs in the soil, the older the artifact, on the condition, of course, that the soil has not been disturbed.

3-Answer: B - On terraces of valley slopes.
There is a greater chance that they have been preserved there.

4-Answer: B - Phosphate.
Phosphates naturally exist in low concentrations in soils, but their concentration is greater in human bones and excrement.

5-Answer: C - A proglacial lake.
Proglacial Lake Memphremagog occupied a large section of the area after the retreat of the continental glacier. It later emptied following the rise of the Canadian Shield.

Flora and fauna

1-Answer: C - Pollen grains.
Palynologists are able to identify tree and plant species by observing their pollen under a microscope.

2-Answer: D - All of the above.
Such settings are genuine archives that preserve plant pollen, spores, and seeds. The latter are obtained by core sampling.

3-Answer: A - 7 000 years before present.
Since then, forest communities have been impacted primarily by disturbances like fires, infestations, and wind storms.

4-Answer: B - They are once-heated table scraps.
Other bones have disintegrated.

5-Answer: C - Comparison with bones from a reference collection.
Identification is made by comparing the bones with bones in the reference collection at the Ostéothèque de Montréal.

Settlement hypothesis

1-Answer: A - Cartography and the dating of glacial deposits.
Cartography and the dating of glacial deposits in Canada have made it possible to reconstitute the retreat of the continental glacier.

2-Answer: B - The northwest, the Beringia Land Bridge.
When the water level lowered, a strip of land between the American and Asian continents became accessible.

3-Answer: A - The Cliche-Rancourt site in the Megantic region.
The Palaeoindians followed the caribou and crossed the border mountains, most likely following the river valleys.

4-Answer: B - Ceramics (pottery).
Optically stimulated luminescence can be used only with materials that have already been exposed to very high temperatures, such as firestone, pottery for cooking, or chipped-stone objects thrown into a fire.

5-Answer: C - Late Palaeoindian (11 350 to 8 800 years BP).
These points are typical of the Plano culture. Their presence in the Sherbrooke region is evidence of a second migration wave of hunters arriving from the southwest about 10 000 years ago.

Artifact

1-Answer: A - An object or a fragment of an object made by a human.
The object must have marks indicating that it was worked by a human.

2-Answer: B - are attributed to the same cultures.
Raw material, like stone, is not an artifact if it does not have marks showing that it was worked by humans.

3-Answer: D - They have a flute from the base to the middle of the point.
Clovis points have a flute to facilitate hafting.

4-Answer: C - Side scraper.
A side scraper was useful to perfect the finishing of surfaces.

5-Answer: D - Borer.
Borers were bits made of stone.

Materials

1-Answer: B - An object made from stone.
Lithic artifacts are almost the only remains of the prehistoric period.

2-Answer: D - All of the above.
The best quality rocks have a large proportion of silica, a natural form of silicon dioxide. SiO₂.

3-Answer: A - Rhyolite, shale, and quartzite.
All rocks rich in silica. There is no flint in North America.

4-Answer: C - That Palaeoindians moved a lot and had a trading system.
Archaeologists suspect that this also enabled them to find a partner and thus ensure descendants.

5-Answer: B - In the American states of Vermont, Maine, and New Hampshire.
The Palaeoindians in the Eastern Townships therefore arrived from American New England states.

Soils

1-Answer: D - All of the above.
The study of soils is very useful to archaeologists.

2-Answer: A - A continental glacier.
Usually, the deeper one digs in the soil, the older the artifact, on the condition, of course, that the soil has not been disturbed.

3-Answer: B - On terraces of valley slopes.
There is a greater chance that they have been preserved there.

4-Answer: B - Phosphate.
Phosphates naturally exist in low concentrations in soils, but their concentration is greater in human bones and excrement.

5-Answer: C - A proglacial lake.
Proglacial Lake Memphremagog occupied a large section of the area after the retreat of the continental glacier. It later emptied following the rise of the Canadian Shield.

Flora and fauna

1-Answer: C - Pollen grains.
Palynologists are able to identify tree and plant species by observing their pollen under a microscope.

2-Answer: D - All of the above.
Such settings are genuine archives that preserve plant pollen, spores, and seeds. The latter are obtained by core sampling.

3-Answer: A - 7 000 years BP.
Since then, forest communities have been impacted primarily by disruptions like fires, epidemics, and windfalls.

4-Answer: B - They are once-heated table scraps.
Other bones have disintegrated.

5-Answer: C - Comparison with bones from a reference collection.
Identification is made by comparing the bones with those from the reference collection at the Ostéothèque de Montréal.

Settlement hypothesis

1-Answer: A - Cartography and the dating of glacial deposits.
Cartography and the dating of glacial deposits in Canada have made it possible to reconstitute the retreat of the continental glacier.

2-Answer: B - The northwest, the Beringia Land Bridge.
When the water level lowered, a strip of land between the American and Asian continents became accessible.

3-Answer: A - The Cliche-Rancourt site in the Megantic region.
The Palaeoindians followed the caribou and crossed the border mountains, most likely following the river valleys.

4-Answer: B - Similarities between the artifacts from the two locations (shapes and raw material).
The Palaeoindians followed the caribou and crossed the border mountains, most likely following the river valleys.

5-Answer: D - All of the above.
The first wave, associated with the Clovis culture, dates back 12 500 years before present, and the second wave, associated with the eastern Plano culture, dates back 10 000 years before present.