In this paper, we introduce Linked Open Data (LOD) in the archaeological domain as a means to connect dispersed data sources and enable cross-querying. The technology behind the design principles and how LOD can be created and published is described to enable less-familiar researchers to understand the presented benefits and drawbacks of LOD. Wikidata is introduced as an open knowledge hub for the creation and dissemination of LOD. Different actors within archaeology have implemented LOD, and we present which challenges have been and are being addressed. A selection of projects showcases how Wikidata is being used by archaeologists to enrich and open their databases to the general public. With this paper, we aim to encourage the creation and re-use of LOD in archaeology, as we believe it offers an improvement on current data publishing practices.

There is an argument in philosophy of science that revolutions in science are either idea-driven or tool-driven. We explore this debate in light of recent efforts by many scientific disciplines to embrace methods to improve the reproducibility of their research. One of the most profound changes driven by this concern for reproducibility and transparency is from analysing data using tools dependent on point-and-clicking with a mouse in closed source software, to tools based on writing scripts in open source programming languages and making them openly available. We present bibliometric evidence for this change in ecology and in archaeology to test if the adoption of these new tools is revolutionary or transformational. We identify a positive citation effect for papers that use the open source programming language R. We discuss how computational approaches to improving reproducibility and transparency in archaeology are mediated and transformed by the use of R code.

Zusammenfassung: In mehreren siedlungsarchäologischen Arbeiten wird die Frage aufgeworfen, welchen Abstand zwei Funde mindestens zueinander haben müssen, um zwei unterschiedliche Fundstellen zu denotieren. Seit den 1960er Jahren wird eine empirische Untersuchung zu diesem Thema gefordert. Dieser Beitrag greift die Debatte auf und entwickelt unter Bezugnahme der deutschsprachigen und englischsprachigen Theoriedebatte um die Begriffe „Fundplatz“, „Fundstelle“, „site“ und „Siedlung“ eine Methode, die diese Frage zu beantworten sucht. Genutzt wird dafür eine Transektgrabung in Sachsen-Anhalt und die einzelnen dort aufgedeckten Befunde der Schnurkeramik, Frühbronzezeit, Spätbronzezeit und frühen Eisenzeit, um kulturspezifische Aussagen treffen zu können. Die Befunde werden im Sinne der off-site Archäologie als sich in der Landschaft kontinuierlich verbreitende Decke angesehen. Die Abgrenzung von Clustern, die Schätzung von Siedlungsgrößen und ihre Abstände zueinander werden mit Hilfe von Kerndichteschätzungen und kumulativen Entfernungen berechnet. Damit wird eine Methode der intra-site-Analyse auf die inter-site Ebene gehoben. Es zeigt sich, dass dies ein gewinnbringender Ansatz ist, der insbesondere bei Straßen- und Pipeline-Grabungen zum Einsatz kommen kann.

Ubiquity Press is an open access publisher of peer-reviewed academic journals, books and data. We operate a highly cost-efficient model that makes quality open access publishing affordable for everyone. We also make our platform available to the Ubiquity Partner Network, providing the infrastructure and services to enable university and society presses to run sustainably and successfully. Recent developments in the field of archaeology are not only progressing archaeological fieldwork but also changing the way we practise and present archaeology today. As these digital technologies are being used more and more every day on excavations or in museums, this also means that we must change the way we approach teaching and communicating archaeology as a discipline. The communication of archaeology is an often neglected but ever more important part of the profession. Instead of traditional lectures and museum displays, we can interact with the past in various ways. Students of archaeology today need to learn and understand these technologies, but can on the other hand also profit from them in creative ways of teaching and learning. The same holds true for visitors to a museum. This volume presents the outcome of a two-day international symposium on digital methods in teaching and learning in archaeology held at the University of Cologne in October 2018 addressing exactly this topic. Specialists from around the world share their views on the newest developments in the field of archaeology and the way we teach these with the help of archaeogaming, augmented and virtual reality, 3D reconstruction and many more. Thirteen chapters cover different approaches to teaching and learning archaeology in universities and museums and offer insights into modern-day ways to communicate the past in a digital age.