(1/5) Our new paper in PNAS, with @MDpetraglia, Maria Guagnin, @DesertPrehistor , and @NicoleLBoivin is out. Arabia is a fascinating place to study human-environment interactions, with its history of dramatic climate change. https://www.pnas.org/content/early/2020/04/07/1920211117
(2/5) Most models of human-environment interaction in Arabia focus on the relatively intensively studied east of the peninsula. But Arabia is a big and diverse place. Synthesizing recent work by ourselves and others in northern Arabia, we show patterns vary across the region.
(3/5) Human survival strategies varied, from being highly mobile and using shifting and unpredictable water sources, through to the development of complex water management systems and oasis agriculture.
(4/5) Climate also varied considerably both spatially and temporally, and there is a lot to figure out about the dynamics of this (e.g. relative importance of different weather systems), and how climate change played out in environment and ecology. Need lot more fieldwork.
(5/5) Here is the press release on our paper. https://www.shh.mpg.de/1665909/societal-transformations-and-resilience-in-arabia-across-12-000-years-of-climate-change