Browsing by Author "Dodson, JR"
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- ItemAgriculture and environmental change at Qingpu, Yangtze delta region, China: a biomarker, stable isotope and palynological approach(SAGE Publications, 2007-05) Atahan, P; Grice, K; Dodson, JRRice (Oryza sp.) agriculture sustains vast numbers of people and, despite great advancements made in recent years, questions about its origins and spread throughout Asia remain unanswered. This study uses sedimentary biomarker, stable carbon isotope and palynological analyses to investigate early rice agriculture in the Yangtze delta, a region where rice agriculture emerged at least 7000 years ago. Accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) C-14 dating reveals the age of sedimentary section to be between c. 6000 and 1800 cal. BP. Widespread clearing of forest vegetation c. 2400 cal. BP, is the earliest major human influence detected in the Qingpu record. Following this, rice agriculture probably dominated the Qingpu area. Evidence supporting rice agriculture after c. 2400cal. BP is provided by increased Poaceae and Cereal-type taxa, which occur with high concentrations of plant wax n-alkanes with a dominant C-3 plant origin (C-27-C-31 with odd/even preference, delta C-13 -29.8 parts per thousand to -36.3 parts per thousand). Also, high concentrations of a C-20 highly branched isoprenoid (HBI) thought to be from epiphytic algae associated with rice agriculture occur after c. 2400cal. BP. C-13-depleted diploptene (in high concentrations) and C-13-depleted C-31 3b-methylhopanes of methanotrophic bacterial origin also occur after c. 2400cal. BP. The strong methane cycle detected in the trench sediment may have provided an alternative CO2 source for plants and algae associated with rice agriculture. © 2007, SAGE Publications
- ItemAustralian physical environment(Oxford University Press (OUP), 2008-07-11) Bridgman, H; Dragovich, D; Dodson, JRThe Australian Physical Environment uses a systems approach to introduce students to the three critical aspects of the physical environment: the atmosphere, the biosphere, and the lithosphere. International and national comparative examples are used to place Australia's unique environment within a global context. © 2008, Oxford University Press (OUP)
- ItemBiogeography of kwongan: origins, diversity, endemism and vegetation patterns(The University of Western Australia Publishing, 2014-01-01) Mucina, L; Laliberté, E; Thiele, K; Dodson, JR; Harvey, JPlant Life on the Sandplains in Southwest Australia is an entirely new venture and is not an update of the earlier book on a similar topic edited and produced some thirty years ago by John Beard and myself. Firstly, it embraces a far broader range of topics, themes and conceptual issues, and features chapters on plant–animal interactions, conservation, phylogenetics and Aboriginal use of plants. Secondly, it employs almost three times the number of authors, including several new postgraduate and early-career scientists and, serendipitously, only a few of the old brigade commissioned for the earlier book! Thirdly, it covers a wide variety of approaches, methodologies and techniques, proving how well the contributors are using those state-of-the art tools which are so integral to current biological research. Finally, the standard of presentation of visual material and the ‘reader-friendly’ approach is exemplary. Without doubt, the authors and publishers have taken full advantage of the extraordinary escalation in publishing techniques over the past few decades.
- ItemA bright future for accelerator science at ANSTO(Australian Institute of Nuclear Science and Engineering (AINSE), 2009-11-25) Hotchkis, MAC; Child, DP; Cohen, DD; Dodson, JR; Fink, D; Garton, DB; Hua, Q; Ionescu, M; Jacobsen, GE; Levchenko, VA; Mifsud, C; Siegele, R; Smith, AM; Williams, AG; Winkler, SIn the May 2009 budget, the Federal Government announced funding of $25m to ANSTO through the Education Investment Fund, to build state-of-the-art applied accelerator science facilities, by upgrading and replacing existing facilities and laboratories at ANSTO. Currently, ANSTO's researchers, jointly with researchers from all 37 Australian universities, plus other agencies such as CSIRO, government departments and local government bodies, and overseas collaborators and customers, use ANSTO's accelerator facilities for analysis of a wide range of materials, predominantly by Accelerator Mass Spectrometry (AMS) and Ion Beam Analysis (IBA). There are >100 external users of those facilities every year. © 2009 AINSE
- ItemA carved ivory cylinder from Akchakhan-kala, Uzbekistan: problems of dating and provenance(Elsevier B.V., 2016-02-01) Betts, AVG; Dodson, JR; Garbe, U; Bertuch, F; Thorogood, GJExcavations at Akchakhan-kala in Uzbekistan, a region known in antiquity as Chorasmia, recovered a large, elaborately carved and heavily burned cylinder of some very solid material. Its poor condition made identification of the raw material difficult. Here we used neutron tomography to examine the internal structure in a non-destructive way, and X-ray Diffraction to determine the main chemical composition of the material which confirmed it as ivory. This was followed by preparation for stable isotope and radiocarbon analysis. The stable isotope analysis suggests a tropical or subtropical grassland source for the ivory, which is unlikely to be from Uzbekistan. The dating shows the ivory to be much earlier than the context in which it was found. Whatever its origin, the ivory travelled far to reach Chorasmia, perhaps in its raw state, and perhaps also for some time in its carved form. © 2015 Elsevier Ltd.
- ItemThe Centre for Accelerator Science at ANSTO(International Atomic Energy Agency, 2014-01-14) Hotchkis, MAC; Child, DP; Cohen, DD; Dodson, JR; Fink, D; Fujioka, T; Garton, DB; Hua, Q; Ionescu, M; Jacobsen, GE; Levchenko, VA; Mifsud, C; Pastuovic, Z; Siegele, R; Smith, AM; Wilcken, KM; Williams, AGIn 2009, the Federal government provided funding of $25m to ANSTO through the Education Investment Fund, to build state-of-the-art applied accelerator science facilities, with the primary aim of providing world-leading accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) and ion beam analysis (IBA) facilities. New buildings are now under construction and Building plans are now well advanced, and two new accelerators are on order with National Electrostatics Corporation, USA. The 1MV AMS accelerator system is designed with the capability to perform high efficiency, high precision AMS analysis across the full mass range. Large beam-optical acceptance will ensure high quality and high throughput radiocarbon measurements. High mass resolution analyzers, at low and high energy, coupled to a novel fast isotope switching system, will enable high quality analysis of actinide radioisotopes. The 6MV tandem accelerator will be instrumented with a wide range of AMS, IBA and ion irradiation facilities. The three ion sources include hydrogen and helium sources, and a MCSNICS sputter source for solid materials. The AMS facility has end stations for (i) a gasabsorber detector for 10Be analysis, (ii) a time-of-flight detector, (iii) a gas-filled magnet and(iv) a general use ionization detector suited to 36Cl and other analyses. Initially, there will be four IBA beamlines, including a new ion beam microprobe currently on order with Oxford Microbeams. The other beamlines will include an on-line ion implanter, nuclear reaction analysis and elastic recoil detection analysis facilities. The beam hall layout allows for future expansion, including the possibility of porting the beam to the existing ANTARES beam hall for simultaneous irradiation experiments.Two buildings are currently under construction, one for the new accelerators and the other for new chemistry laboratories for AMS and mass spectrometry facilities. The AMS chemistry labs are planned in two stages, with the new radiocarbon labs to come in the second phase of work.
- ItemChanging climates, earth systems and society(Springer, 2010-09-29) Dodson, JRThe book covers state-of-the-art considerations on how climate change has and will deliver impacts on major globalised biophysical and societal themes that will affect the way the world functions. Human activity has resulted in changes to atmospheric chemistry and land cover, and caused serious decline in biodiversity. Modifying biogeochemical cycles leads to complex feedbacks. The future climate will have impact on food security and agriculture, water supply and quality, storm and cyclone frequency, shoreline stability, biodiversity and the future of biological resources. Earth scientists might be asked to forecast any potential abrupt or environmental surprises. A sound knowledge of the Earth System will improve the chances of achieving this, by developing climate models that will reduce the degree of uncertainty in regional climate prediction. © 2010, Springer. The original publication is available at www.springerlink.com
- ItemClimate change, societal transitions and changing infectious disease burdens(Springer, 2010-09-29) Fearnely, E; Weinstein, P; Dodson, JR
- ItemClimate instability during the last deglaciation in central Asia, reconstructed by pollen data from Yili Valley, NW China(Elsevier Science BV, 2013-02-15) Zhao, KL; Li, XQ; Dodson, JR; Zhou, XY; Atahan, PAn extended pollen record with grain size analysis and AMS C-14 dating is provided for a palaeolake section which is located in an intermountain basin in Yili Valley, Xinjiang, NW China. Covering the late MIS 3, early MIS 2 and the last deglaciation, vegetation variations and climate events are discussed in relation to changes in pollen assemblages and Artemisia/Chenopodiaceae (A/C) ratios. The presence of montane forest-steppe dominated by Picea and Taraxacum indicates a relative humid climate in the study area during late MIS 3 (before 31.5 cal kyr BP). Picea forest disappeared and the vegetation dominated by Chenopodiaceae shows the climate became dry from 31.5 to 14.7 cal kyr BP. The sediments of Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) period are absent in the section probably. Betula-Picea mixed forest occurred at 14.7 cal kyr BP and corresponds to the onset of the warm Bolling period in the North Atlantic. A long dry period was detected from 14.5 to 13.6 cal kyr BP on the basis of the occurrence of Chenopodiaceae desert. A subalpine meadow community dominated by Geranium covered the area during 13.6-13.4 cal kyr BP, suggesting lower temperatures at this time. This may coincide with the Older Dryas (OD). The most humid period in the record occurred between 13.4 and 12.9 cal kyr BP, which coincides with the warm Allerod period. Dry conditions prevailed from similar to 12.9 to 11.7 cal kyr BP in the area, coinciding with the Younger Dryas (YD) in the North Atlantic. Within this period a three-phase climate fluctuation was detected, which can be summarized as follows: a dry early YD (12.9-12.6 cal kyr BP), a slightly moister mid-YD (12.6-12.0 cal kyr BP) and a very dry late YD (12.0-11.7 cal kyr BP). These millennial to century-scale climatic events in Yili Valley correlate well with other palaeoclimate records in North Hemisphere, suggesting that these events probably originate from same mechanisms. © 2013, Elsevier Ltd.
- ItemClimatic variations over the last 4000 cal yr BP in the western margin of the Tarim Basin, Xinjiang, reconstructed from pollen data(Elsevier, 2012-03-01) Zhao, K; Li, XQ; Dodson, JR; Atahan, P; Zhou, XY; Bertuch, FThe nature of Holocene climate patterns and mechanisms in central Asia are open areas of inquiry. In this study, regional vegetation and climate dynamics over the last ca. 4000 years are reconstructed using a high resolution pollen record from the Kashgar oasis, on the western margin of the Tarim Basin, central Asia. Ephedra, Chenopodiaceae and Cannabaceae dominate the pollen assemblages, and Chenopodiaceae/Ephedra ratios and percentages of long-distance transported pollen taxa are used to infer regional variations in moisture and vegetation density. Three periods of increased humidity are identified, from ca. 4000–2620 cal yr BP, ca. 1750–1260 cal yr BP and ca. 550–390 cal yr BP and these periods coincide with the respective Holocene Bond Events 2, 1 and 0, which are reported in the North Atlantic. Any increase in strength, or southward migration, of the mid-latitude westerlies would result in more precipitation and meltwater on mountains surrounding the study site. Warm and dry conditions are detected between ca.1260 and 840 cal yr BP (AD 690–1110), and cool and wet conditions are detected between ca. 840 and 680 cal yr BP (AD 1110–1270), during the Medieval Warm Period (ca. AD 800–1200). The climate variations in the Kashgar region over the last 4000 years appear to have been dominated by changes to the westerly circulation system and glacier dynamics on surrounding mountains. However, the question of whether the Asian monsoon delivers precipitation to the western Tarim Basin, a region that is influenced by several climate systems, is still open to debate. © 2012 Elsevier B.V.
- ItemComparing interglacials in eastern Australia: a multi-proxy investigation of a new sedimentary record(Elsevier, 2021-01-01) Forbes, MS; Cohen, TJ; Jacobs, Z; Marx, SK; Barber, E; Dodson, JR; Zamora, A; Cadd, HR; Franke, A; Constantine, M; Mooney, SD; Short, J; Tibby, J; Parker, A; Cendón, DI; Peterson, MA; Tyler, JJ; Swallow, E; Haines, HA; Gadd, PS; Woodward, CAThe widespread formation of organic rich sediments in south-east Australia during the Holocene (Marine Isotope Stage [MIS] 1) reflects the return of wetter and warmer climates following the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM). Yet, little is known about whether a similar event occurred in the region during the previous interglacial (MIS 5e). A 6.8 m sediment core (#LC2) from the now ephemeral Lake Couridjah, Greater Blue Mountains World Heritage Area, Australia, provides insight into this question. Organic rich sediments associated with both MIS 1 and 5e are identified using 14C and optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating techniques. Also apparent are less organic sedimentary units representing MIS 6, 5d and 2 and a large depositional hiatus. Sediment δ13C values (−34 to −26‰) suggests that C3 vegetation dominates the organic matter source through the entire sequence. The pollen record highlights the prevalence of sclerophyll trees and shrubs, with local hydrological changes driving variations in the abundance of aquatic and lake-margin species. The upper Holocene sediment (0–1.7 m) is rich in organic matter, including high concentrations of total organic carbon (TOC; 20–40%), fine charcoal and macrophyte remains. These sediments are also characterised by a large proportion of epiphytic diatoms and a substantial biogenic component (chironomids and midges). These attributes, combined with low δ13C and δ15N values, and C:N ratios of approximately 20, indicate a stable peat system in a swamp like setting, under the modern/Holocene climate. In comparison, the lower organic rich unit (MIS 5e-d) has less TOC (5–10%), is relatively higher in δ13C and δ15N, and is devoid of macrophyte remains and biogenic material. Characterisation of the organic matter pool using 13C-NMR spectroscopy identified a strong decomposition signal in the MIS 5e organic sediments relative to MIS 1. Thus the observed shifts in δ13C, δ15N and C:N data between the two periods reflects changes in the organic matter pool, driven by decompositional processes, rather than environmental conditions. Despite this, high proportions of aquatic pollen taxa and planktonic diatoms in the MIS 5e–d deposits, and their absence in the Holocene indicates that last interglacial Lake Couridjah was deeper and, or, had more permanent water, than the current one. ©2020 Elsevier Ltd.
- ItemDrought(Springer, 2013-01-01) Hollins, SE; Dodson, JRDrought is a severe natural hazard that affects more people than any other natural disaster. It is usually only recognized as a natural hazard when social, economic, or environmental impacts become apparent. Drought is different from many other natural hazards in that it lacks easily identified onsets and terminations (Maybank et al., 1995). It is also unusual in that it is a hazard of scarcity rather than one of excess. Drought is a natural, recurring pattern of climate that occurs within nearly all climatic regions. However, it is not just a physical phenomenon or natural event caused by changes in climatic conditions. Rather, drought results from a connection between the natural event of lower than expected precipitation, and the demand of human usage on water supplies (Wilhite, 2000). Anthropogenic activities can exacerbate the severity and impacts of drought, but within a natural variability range. © 2013, Springer.
- ItemEarliest archaeobiological evidence of the broadening agriculture in China recorded at Xishanping site in Gansu Province(Science in China Press (SCP), 2007-11) Li, XQ; Zhou, XY; Zhou, J; Dodson, JR; Zhang, HB; Shang, XThe crop types and agricultural characteristic are reconstructed using the archaeobiological proxies of pollen, seed and phytolith at Xishanping site in Gansu Province between 5250 and 4300 cal a BP. The agricultural activity strengthened in Xishanping from 5100 cal a BP. It appeared the earliest cultivation of prehistoric rice in the most northwest China at 5070 cal a BP. The sudden disappearance of conifers and expansion of chestnut trees is likely to be the result of selective hewing of conifers and cultivation of chestnuts at about 4600 cal a BP. There existed 8 crop types of foxtail millet, broomcorn millet, rice, wheat, barley, oats, soybean and buckwheat at Xishanping between 4650 and 4300 cal a BP, which cover the main crop types of the two origin centers of East and West Asia. Not only has the wheat and barley been approved to spread to northwestern China, but the earliest complexity agriculture in Neolithic China appeared in Tianshui, Gansu Province. © 2007, Science in China Press (SCP)
- ItemEarliest bronze in Gansu, north-west China(Australasian Environmental Isotope Conference, 2009-12-02) Dodson, JRUnderstanding of the origin and development of bronze technology in eastern Asia is at an early stage. It is not known if there was a spread of the technology from Mesopotamia, around 3,300 BC, or whether it developed independently in eastern Asia. Here we examine some early settlement sites in Gansu which include evidence of complex agriculture and abundant bronze slag and ore. Here we examine the lead and strontium isotopic composition of bronze slag and copper ores from archaeological sites and a mine in western Gansu. In addition we have carried out geochemical analyses of two ancient lake sediment sequences, and in particular looked for enhanced signatures of copper and other cations. It is probable that multiple sources of ore were used in bronze manufacture and that this has taken place in Gansu since at least 3,700 BP. The archaeological sites contain abundant millet seeds and occasional wheat, barley and oat seeds, and fragments of pottery, animal bone and occasional human grave sites. Clearly these were well-developed and sophisticated societies for the time and there were transfers of technology and people about 2000 years earlier than is recognised by what became known as the Silk Road.
- ItemEarly agricultural development and environmental effects in the Neolithic Longdong basin (East Gansu)(Springer Nature, 2011-03-01) Zhou, XY; Li, XQ; Zhao, KL; Dodson, JR; Sun, N; Yang, QNeolithic agricultural development and environmental effects in the Longdong area were reconstructed using a synthetic approach, investigating pollen, charcoal, and seed remains for two cultural layer sections and five flotation sites. Results show that Neolithic agriculture in the Longdong area had a simple organization and was dominated by the production of common millet, especially in the early and middle Yangshao age. After the late Yangshao age, Neolithic agriculture developed into a more complex structure, dominated by both common and foxtail millet and the cultivation of rice and soybeans. The production of foxtail millet gradually increased through the Neolithic period, reaching its highest point during the Qijia culture. Soybeans were first cultivated during the late Yangshao culture, approximately 5000 cal a BP. Rice production began no later than 4800 cal a BP, and continued to exist in the Qijia culture, approximately 4000 cal a BP. Agricultural production in Neolithic Longdong, specifically in the "Yuan" area of the loess plateau, developed as a shrub and grass dominated landscape. Vegetation in the river valleys was partly covered with Picea, Tusga, and Quercus coniferous and broadleaf mixed forests. Agricultural activity during the Neolithic period caused an increase in farmland on the loess tableland and a decrease in the abundance of shrub and grassland in the Longdong area. When farmlands were abandoned, vegetation recovered with Hippophae-, Rosaceae-, Ephedra-, and Leguminosae-dominated shrublands and Artemisia-dominated grasslands. © The Author(s) 2011.
- ItemThe early agriculture and its impact on landscape in NW China(Australian Geosciences Council, 2012-08-05) Li, XQ; Dodson, JR; Zhou, XY; Zhou, KL; Sun, NThe agriculture, as one of the most important events, appeared in the early Holocene and developed rapidly, which is the most important economic activity and the base of the forming and development of civilization. Millet and rice based agriculture originated in the Yellow and Yangtze valleys in the early Holocene respectively. Wild wheat strains were first used in the Fertile Crescent of Southwest Asia in the late-glacial and domesticated wheat was widespread in that region by 10500 BP. The early agriculture development included population growth, the expansions of material cultures, and its impacts on the landscape. The Northwestern China lies between the heartlands of wheat, rice and rain-fed agriculture and is also crossed by the famous ‘Silk Road’. The early agriculture and its impact were reconstructed based on the records of pollen, charcoal, seeds, phytolith, together with the high resolution AMS 14C dating. Neolithic agriculture in NW China had a simple organization and was dominated by the production of common millet in the early-middle Yangshao Culture (7000–5000 BP). After the late Yangshao age, the agriculture were dominated by both common and foxtail millet. Approximately 5000 cal BP ago, the rice and soybeans have been cultivated and continued to exist in the Qijia culture (4000–3800 BP). The agriculture developed into a more complex structure. The earliest wheat ages cluster around 4100 to 3800 cal BP in northern China’s Hexi corridor of Gansu Province and the likely route of wheat into China was via Russia and Mongolia. Wheat was added as a new crop to the existing millet and rice based agricultural systems. Eight crop types of foxtail millet, broomcorn millet, rice, wheat, barley, oats, soybean and buckwheat appeared and covered the main crop types of the two origin centers of East and West Asia around 4000 cal BP, which suggest the earliest complexity agriculture in Neolithic China. The land use and fire activity by early farmers are much different from the hunting-gathering society. The vegetation and environment were affected greatly by agricultural activity. Prehistoric farmers needed cultivated land and plants to live and caused an increase in farmland and influence on the vegetation during the Neolithic. Land degradation is probably the main cause for decreased agricultural activity and settlement abandonment in arid area. Agriculture induced soil fertility loss and land salinization contributed to the process of land degradation. The intensity and scale that prehistoric farmers impact on the landscape were much greater than previously thought during the Neolithic in NW China.
- ItemEarly bronze in two Holocene archaeological sites in Gansu, NW China(Elsevier, 2009-11) Dodson, JR; Li, XQ; Ji, M; Zhao, KL; Zhou, XY; Levchenko, VAUnderstanding of the origin and development of bronze technology in eastern Asia remains unresolved. Here we report on the distribution of copper and associated cations in sediments from Huoshiliang in northwestern Gansu, China, strontium and lead isotope analyses of ore and slag samples, and some artifact fragments at archaeological sites at Ganggangwa and Huoshiliang in the Black River valley. We conclude that bronze production began perhaps as early as 2135 BC and that the Baishantang modern mine site at Dingxin was a possible source of copper ore. There was at least one other, but currently unidentified, source of ore. The Bronze Age people were also farmers and planted cereals such as wheat, and they may have abandoned the region when wood was exhausted and desertification took over. © 2009, Elsevier Ltd.
- ItemEarly cultivated wheat and broadening of agriculture in Neolithic China(SAGE Publications, 2007-07) Li, XQ; Dodson, JR; Zhou, XY; Zhang, HB; Masutomoto, REvidence for cultivated wheat at 4650 cal. yr BP, as part of a broadening agricultural-based society (4650-4300 cal. yr BP), is presented from Xishanping in northwest China. This was established from archaeobotanical evidence and radiocarbon dating. Crops from SW Asia had therefore been adopted in China about 2500 years earlier than previously thought, and long before the 'Silk Road' route was known to be used. The data show that the early infiltration and blending of agriculture involving rice, buckwheat, barley, millet and wheat occurred in this region. This raises questions as to why crops from China do not appear further westward at this time and how the blending of agricultural practices contributed to the development of Chinese civilization. © 2007, SAGE Publications
- ItemEarly Neolithic diets at Baijia, Wei River valley, China: Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analysis of human and faunal remains(Past Global Changes, 2013-02-13) Atahan, P; Dodson, JR; Li, XQ; Zhou, XY; Hu, S; Chen, L; Bertuch, F; Grice, KThe first farmers of the Wei River valley belonged to the Laoguantai period (ca. 8500-7000 yr BP) and lived in small settlements that were sparsely distributed in the landscape. Understanding of Laoguantai farming practices is limited as only a small number of archaeological sites are known. Here we present stable carbon and nitrogen isotope values for faunal and human bone collagen from Baijia, a Laoguantai site in the Wei River valley of Shaanxi Province, China. Five of the collagen samples have been AMS 14C dated and have a calibrated age range of ca. 7659-7339 yr BP. Stable isotope results show millet and aquatic foods, such as fish and shellfish, being included in the human diet. Bovid samples, which are tentatively identified as water buffalo, have stable carbon isotope values reflecting some millet consumption. The question of whether these bovids were grazing on millet growing wild, or had diets directly influenced by humans, remains to be answered. Stable isotope results for a single pig reveal a markedly different diet, one dominated by C3 plants which would have dominated natural vegetation of the region. Overall, stable isotope results conform to the current view of Laoguantai people being millet farmers with subsistence strategies that included hunted wild foods.
- ItemEnvironmental and cultural changes during the terminal Neolithic: Qingpu, Yangtze delta, eastern China(SAGE Publications, 2007-11) Itzstein-Davey, F; Atahan, P; Dodson, JR; Taylor, D; Zheng, HBThe lower Yangtze, eastern China, was colonized by several Neolithic and Bronze Age cultures giving rise to possibly the highest concentration of prehistoric sites in the world. Early Neolithic cultures in the delta region cultivated rice (Oryza sativa) and agricultural developments appear to have occurred throughout the Neolithic with abrupt socio-economic changes possibly associated with the terminal Neolithic. Given the extensive history of environmental exploitation and well-preserved archaeological sites, the Yangtze delta is an ideal setting to explore the complex interactions between humans and their environment. Multiproxies of environmental changes, namely pollen, charcoal and phytoliths, in a C-14 AMS-dated sequence of sediments from an exposed profile at Qingpu, Yangtze delta, were investigated. C-14 AMS dating indicates that the age range of the sedimentary sequence analysed is from c. 1800 to 6000 BP, and therefore encompasses the terminal Neolithic and subsequent Bronze Age in the region. This paper reviews this sediment-based evidence in the light of current understanding of human-environment interactions during a critical phase of the development of the Yangtze delta and associated human cultures. © 2007, SAGE Publications