| 1. Domain | 1.1 Scope of the Domain | Boundaries | The range of phenomena the science includes and excludes. | Studies how human populations obtain food, water, materials, and energy from their environments, and how ecological and cultural factors shape adaptive strategies. Includes foraging, horticulture, pastoralism, agriculture, fishing, mixed economies, mobility patterns, niche construction, ecological knowledge, and long-term human–environment interaction. Excludes purely economic markets unrelated to ecological subsistence; excludes biological evolution unless it directly intersects with adaptive behavior. |
| | Scale | The spatial, temporal, or organizational level at which the science operates (e.g., quantum, cellular, social, cosmic). | Operates at individual to societal scales, across local landscapes to continental ecologies, and over short-term seasonal cycles to multi-millennial adaptive trajectories. |
| 1.2 Ontological Commitments | Entities | The kinds of things assumed to exist within the domain (particles, organisms, agents, fields, etc.). | Human groups, resources, landscapes, ecosystems, species targeted for subsistence, technologies, tools, shelters, mobility routes, climate systems, soils, water sources, domesticated plants/animals, knowledge systems, energy flows, carrying capacity. |
| | Properties | The fundamental attributes these entities possess (mass, charge, genotype, preference, etc.). | Productivity, seasonality, risk, resilience, efficiency, sustainability, mobility, labor demands, caloric return, storage capacity, ecological variability, patchiness, biodiversity, demographic pressure, technological intensity. |
| | Categories | The basic ontological types used to classify domain elements (substances, processes, relations, structures). | Subsistence modes (foraging, pastoralism, horticulture, fishing, agriculture); mobility types (nomadic, semi-sedentary, sedentary); ecological zones (savanna, forest, tundra, coastal, desert); technology classes (lithic, ceramic, agricultural, metallurgical); adaptive strategies (risk reduction, intensification, diversification); niche-construction activities. |
| 1.3 State-Variables | Variables | The measurable or definable properties that describe system conditions. | Resource availability; caloric yield; labor-time allocation; mobility distance; seasonal variation; population density; biodiversity indices; crop yields; herd sizes; risk levels; storage capacity; climatic parameters; soil fertility; water access; subsistence diversification ratios. |
| | Parameterization | How variables encode and represent the system’s state. | Encoded via ecological surveys, yield measurements, caloric-return-rate calculations, zooarchaeological and archaeobotanical remains, landscape GIS models, climate and soil metrics, foraging-return data, ethnographic time-use logs, herd-composition records, agricultural-output logs. |
| 1.4 Admissible Idealizations | Simplifications | Conceptual reductions used to make the domain tractable (point masses, rational agents, perfect gases). | Treating environments as stable; assuming rational foraging; modeling subsistence as homogenous within a group; ignoring microclimate variation; simplifying seasonal productivity curves; assuming ideal free distribution; ignoring gendered or age-based subsistence roles; assuming linear intensification. |
| | Validity Conditions | The limits and contexts in which idealizations hold or break down. | Break down under rapid climate change, extreme ecological patchiness, cultural specialization, social constraints on mobility, technological disruption, multi-resource economies, labor bottlenecks, domestication transitions, market entanglement, or large-scale demographic pressure. |
| 1.5 Domain Assumptions | Structural Assumptions | Background ontological stances such as determinism, continuity, randomness, discreteness. | Humans adapt behaviorally to ecological constraints; cultural knowledge mediates environmental interaction; subsistence strategies balance risk, energy, and labor; environment influences social organization; technological innovation alters resource procurement; ecological feedback loops shape long-term adaptation. |
| | Implicit Commitments | Unstated but necessary assumptions that shape the field’s conceptual structure. | Assumes measurable links between environment and behavior; assumes subsistence decisions reflect both ecological and cultural logic; assumes landscapes and resources can be meaningfully modeled; assumes cultural transmission stabilizes adaptive strategies; assumes long-term human–environment coupling is interpretable from archaeological/ethnographic data. |
| 1.6 Internal Coherence Requirements | Consistency | The demand that domain concepts do not contradict one another. | Subsistence models must align with ecological constraints; archaeological remains must fit observed technological and environmental parameters; mobility must match resource distribution; demographic patterns must match productivity; adaptive strategies must not contradict energy budgets; niche-construction claims must reflect material evidence. |
| | Compatibility | The requirement that entities, variables, and assumptions fit together into a unified descriptive framework. | Requires harmony among ecological data, behavioral models, archaeological evidence, ethnographic accounts, climate records, technological systems, and demographic reconstructions. All components must support a unified model of human–environment adaptation. |
| 2. Evidence Layer | 2.1 Observable Phenomena | Observables | The aspects of the domain that can produce detectable signals accessible to measurement. | Hunting returns; foraging yields; crop outputs; herd dynamics; seasonal mobility; tool-use patterns; burned or processed plant/animal remains; settlement and camp structures; water-source use; soil disturbance; storage features; midden composition; dietary isotopes; energetic expenditure; technological wear patterns; vegetation modification (niche construction). |
| | Detection Limits | The boundaries of what can be resolved or sensed by current instruments or methods. | Perishable food remains; ephemeral campsites; micro-seasonal mobility difficult to track; degraded botanical samples; limited paleoenvironmental resolution; equifinality in tool-use interpretation; undetected microclimates; incomplete recording of daily subsistence tasks; taphonomic biases; unobservable short-term behavioral decisions. |
| 2.2 Measurement Systems | Units | Standardized quantifications (meters, seconds, volts, decibels, dollars, etc.) necessary for consistent comparison. | Kilocalories; return rates (kcal/hour); biomass; herd size; yield per hectare; mobility distance (km); seasonality indices; biodiversity counts; soil-fertility values; water-volume estimates; isotopic ratios (δ¹³C, δ¹⁵N, δ¹⁸O); artifact frequencies; foraging-effort hours; energy expenditure measures. |
| | Instruments | Devices and tools (microscopes, spectrometers, sensors, surveys, detectors) used to produce measurements. | GPS trackers; foraging logs; botanical and faunal identification tools; flotation devices; mass spectrometers for isotopes; GIS systems; soil-testing kits; zooarchaeological and archaeobotanical analysis tools; time-use survey instruments; satellite imagery; climate sensors; pedology equipment. |
| 2.3 Operational Definitions | Definitions | Terms defined by specific measurement procedures, ensuring empirical clarity. | Subsistence defined as systematic procurement of food/resources; foraging return rate defined as energy gained per hour; mobility defined as spatial movement for resource access; ecological zone defined by habitat characteristics; domestication identified via morphological/biochemical markers; seasonal round defined as patterned annual movement; risk defined as variance in resource availability. |
| | Procedures | The explicit steps required to perform a measurement in a reproducible way. | Recording foraging/harvesting events; measuring crop yields; weighing and cataloging faunal/floral remains; conducting isotopic analysis; mapping resource patches; measuring soil characteristics; tracking herd composition; conducting time-use studies; sampling botanical assemblages; documenting technological wear/use; reconstructing paleoenvironmental layers. |
| 2.4 Data Acquisition | Protocols | Formal processes for gathering data under controlled or standardized conditions. | Structured field surveys; standardized excavation and sampling; repeated seasonal observations; consistent botanical/faunal identification protocols; calibrated isotope-sample preparation; remote-sensing data acquisition; systematic water-source sampling; long-term ethnographic subsistence logs; spatial transects of resource distribution. |
| | Sampling | Rules determining which subset of the domain is measured and how representative it is. | Sampling resource patches across environmental gradients; selecting households for subsistence logs; random sampling of foraging events; systematic sampling of faunal assemblages; stratified sampling of agricultural plots; sampling herd subgroups; temporal sampling across seasons; sampling archaeological contexts across stratigraphic layers. |
| 2.5 Data Character & Format | Data Types | The form raw evidence takes (time series, spectra, images, counts, qualitative records). | Caloric-return datasets; zooarchaeological tables; archaeobotanical seed/charcoal counts; isotopic time series; mobility routes in GIS; soil-fertility measurements; herd demographic profiles; crop-yield datasets; climate and ecological logs; artifact-usage wear patterns; midden composition tables; mixed-method ethnographic–archaeological datasets. |
| | Resolution | The granularity or precision with which data is captured. | Determined by preservation, sampling density, isotopic precision, GPS resolution, excavation detail, seasonal observation frequency, image resolution of satellite data, accuracy of botanical/faunal identification, and climate-record granularity. |
| 2.6 Reliability & Calibration | Calibration | Adjustment procedures ensuring instruments produce accurate results. | Cross-validating yield estimates with independent measurements; replicating isotope readings; comparing foraging logs across researchers; calibrating GPS and GIS mapping; verifying species identification; cross-checking soil tests with laboratory standards; triangulating climate data from multiple proxies; recalibrating herd counts across seasons. |
| | Error Characterization | Identification and quantification of noise, uncertainty, bias, and measurement error. | Preservation bias; sampling error; measurement noise in yields; taphonomic alteration; isotopic-diagenesis issues; GPS drift; misidentification of species; incomplete seasonal data; misclassification of tools or features; conflation of short-term and long-term adaptive behaviors. |
| 3. Structural Layer | 3.1 Patterns & Regularities | Laws / Relations | Stable, repeatable patterns governing how observables behave across conditions. | Subsistence mode correlates with mobility (foraging → high mobility; agriculture → sedentism); diet breadth tracks ecological richness; environmental unpredictability increases diversification and risk-reduction behaviors; intensification increases labor cost but yields surplus; niche construction modifies local ecology over time; domestication follows predictable morphological/behavioral signatures; demographic expansion follows subsistence productivity; storage correlates with seasonal stress. |
| | Invariants | Quantities or properties that remain constant under transformations (symmetries, conservation laws). | Energy constraints on human foraging efficiency; thermodynamic limits on subsistence productivity; caloric requirements; minimum resource thresholds for group survival; consistent patterns of resource patch exploitation; universal tradeoffs between labor, return, and risk; cross-cultural convergence in adaptive strategies under similar ecological pressures. |
| 3.2 Causal Architecture | Mechanisms | Underlying processes or structures that produce the observed regularities. | Resource distribution → mobility strategy → caloric return; Climate variability → subsistence diversification; Population pressure → intensification or expansion; Technological innovation → increased efficiency or environmental impact; Niche construction → altered ecological landscape → feedback into new adaptations; Social cooperation → increased resource stability; Domestication → genetic and ecological restructuring. |
| | Pathways | Organized sequences of interactions forming a causal chain or network. | Ecological shift → resource scarcity → adaptive strategy change (diversify/intensify/migrate); Technological adoption → higher yields → sedentarization → demographic growth; Seasonal cycles → storage need → labor reallocation; Landscape modification → increased productivity → long-term environmental feedback; Increased herd size → mobility change → pastoral specialization. |
| 3.3 Theoretical Vocabulary | Concepts | Core terms that encode the domain’s structure (force, gene, equilibrium, field). | Carrying capacity, optimal foraging, niche construction, intensification, risk management, diversification, mobility strategy, domestication, energetics, ecological gradient, patchiness, resilience, seasonality, subsistence economy, biocultural adaptation. |
| | Classifications | Taxonomies, categories, or typologies that organize entities and relations. | Subsistence modes (foraging, horticulture, pastoralism, agriculture, fishing); adaptive strategies (risk reduction, storage, intensification, mobility); ecological zones (coastal, savanna, forest, tundra); technological regimes (lithic, ceramic, metallurgical); mobility patterns (nomadic, semi-sedentary, sedentary). |
| 3.4 Formal Representations | Equations | Mathematical constructs expressing laws, relations, or mechanisms. | Optimal Foraging Theory equations (E = energy return; C = cost; R = E/C); Patch choice models; caloric-return functions; logistic growth functions for herds; population–resource dynamic equations; niche-construction feedback equations; stability/variability indices; Bayesian habitat-choice models; carrying-capacity functions. |
| | Models | Structured representations—mathematical, computational, or conceptual—used to predict and explain phenomena. | Foraging-return curves; GIS-based landscape models; agent-based mobility simulations; population-resource feedback models; domestication pathways; risk-distribution maps; intensification-labor tradeoff models; paleoenvironmental reconstructions; seasonal-round diagrams. |
| 3.5 Idealized Structures | Simplified Models | Purposeful abstractions that capture essential dynamics while omitting irrelevant detail. | Perfectly rational foragers; stable environments; linear yields; homogeneous landscapes; constant population size; equal access to resources; no social constraints; no external markets; direct mapping of ecological pressure to behavior; deterministic domestication pathways. |
| | Limit Conditions | Regimes where specific models or approximations hold (classical vs. quantum, linear vs. nonlinear). | Fail under rapid climate change, patchy environments, strong cultural norms overriding ecological logic, market entanglement, social inequality, territoriality, technological disruption, demographic shocks, variable mobility constraints, multi-resource economies, cultural specialization. |
| 3.6 Integrative Frameworks | Unifying Theories | Higher-order structures that connect disparate laws or mechanisms under a coherent whole. | Human behavioral ecology unifying foraging and risk strategies; niche-construction theory linking culture and ecology; cultural ecology integrating environment, technology, and social organization; resilience theory linking adaptive cycles to ecological variability; biocultural adaptation synthesizing physiology, culture, and environment. |
| | Interdisciplinary Links | Points where the theory connects to adjacent sciences or larger explanatory systems. | Ecology (resource dynamics), archaeology (subsistence residues), climatology (environmental regimes), geography (landscape modeling), nutrition science (diet energetics), evolutionary biology (adaptation), economics (labor allocation), sociology (cooperation and division of labor). |
| 4. Method Layer | 4.1 Inquiry Design | Experimental Design | Structured plans for manipulating variables to test causal claims. | Experimental foraging trials; controlled crop-growth tests; replicating ancient tool use to test energetic return; herd-behavior experiments under manipulated grazing conditions; simulated risk environments to test diversification strategies; controlled burning experiments to study niche construction; calorimetry-based measurements of food-processing efficiency. |
| | Observational Design | Systematic approaches for gathering non-manipulated data (surveys, field studies, natural experiments). | Long-term ethnographic subsistence logs; seasonal tracking of foraging rounds; archaeological excavation of subsistence residues; monitoring herd movement via GPS; landscape surveys of resource patchiness; natural experiments from droughts, floods, or climate anomalies; remote sensing of vegetation and land modification; zooarchaeological and archaeobotanical analysis of site assemblages. |
| 4.2 Testing & Validation | Hypothesis Testing | Procedures for evaluating whether evidence supports or contradicts specific claims. | Testing optimal-foraging predictions against observed return rates; validating mobility models with GPS tracks; testing risk-reduction behavior against resource variance; examining domestication hypotheses with morphological/genetic signatures; validating niche-construction effects with soil/vegetation outcomes; testing intensification models against archaeological evidence; evaluating dietary reconstructions with isotopic cross-validation. |
| | Replication | The requirement that results be independently reproducible under similar conditions. | Repeating caloric-return-rate measurements; replicating isotopic analyses; re-excavating or resampling sites; reanalyzing zooarchaeological/archaeobotanical remains; repeating herd demographic surveys; replicating environmental transects; repeating agent-based simulations with alternative parameters; conducting longitudinal repeats of time-use studies. |
| 4.3 Inference & Evaluation | Statistical Inference | Rules for drawing conclusions from noisy or incomplete data. | Bayesian modeling of subsistence choice; regression models for return rates; time-series analysis of resource abundance; multilevel models linking household behavior to ecology; spatial autocorrelation of resource patches; phyto- and zooarchaeological abundance modeling; demographic inference from subsistence productivity; resilience and stability metrics. |
| | Model Comparison | Criteria (fit, simplicity, predictive accuracy, robustness) used to evaluate competing models. | Comparing optimal-foraging vs risk-reduction models; evaluating sedentism vs mobility tradeoff models; contrasting intensification pathways; comparing domestication models (management vs symbiosis vs opportunistic pathways); testing alternative paleoenvironmental reconstructions; comparing isotopic vs archaeobotanical dietary models; evaluating competing explanations for subsistence transitions. |
| 4.4 Error Management | Error Analysis | Identification and quantification of random and systematic errors. | Identifying preservation bias in archaeological samples; distinguishing natural vs anthropogenic fire; correcting isotopic diagenesis; adjusting for GPS drift; accounting for sampling bias in foraging data; separating taphonomic processes from cultural discard patterns; identifying misclassified botanical or faunal remains; quantifying uncertainty in climate reconstructions. |
| | Bias Control | Methods for minimizing subjective, instrumental, or procedural biases. | Stratified ecological sampling; multiple independent analysts for species identification; blinding analysts to site context where possible; cross-validating ethnographic data with observed behavior; calibrating field instruments; using multiple proxies (isotopes, pollen, charcoal, phytoliths); triangulating subsistence logs with observational data. |
| 4.5 Adjudication & Revision | Peer Scrutiny | Collective evaluation of claims through critique, review, and debate. | Reevaluating site interpretations; auditing botanical/faunal classifications; reviewing environmental reconstructions; cross-checking foraging-return datasets; validating simulation assumptions; reassessing domestication claims with new evidence; revisiting predictions about intensification or diversification; debating alternative niche-construction interpretations. |
| | Theory Revision | Procedures for modifying, replacing, or discarding models based on new evidence. | Updating foraging theory with new ecological constraints; revising domestication pathways based on genomic data; reformulating niche-construction models with archaeological evidence; incorporating climate-variability findings into adaptive models; adjusting sedentism/mobility theories with new stratigraphic data; refining resilience theories based on long-term ecological outcomes. |
| 4.6 Integrity Conditions | Transparency | Requirements to disclose methods, data, assumptions, and limitations. | Full disclosure of sampling protocols, excavation contexts, laboratory procedures, isotope-processing steps, environmental data sources, model assumptions, simulation parameters, and uncertainty ranges; publishing open datasets and GIS layers; documenting limitations and ambiguities. |
| | Ethical Standards | Norms ensuring responsible conduct in experimentation, data handling, and publication. | Respecting descendant-community rights over land and subsistence knowledge; ethical treatment of field sites; avoiding extraction of sensitive ecological data without consent; ensuring benefit-sharing with local partners; protecting sensitive locations from exploitation; presenting subsistence systems without stigmatization or romanticization. |