Anthropology

For this project you will be participating in The Garbage Project or modern-day archaeology. The goals of this project include getting you to think like an archaeologist concerned with remains and critically thinking about your own material record, relating it to your own means of subsistence (how you get your food), consumerism, and the sustainability of that lifestyle.

For four full days you will record all the garbage/recycling/compost your household disposes of in a trash bin, recycles, composts, burns, or puts down the garbage disposal. If you live in a large household, you may choose to monitor only your own waste (but it will be more interesting if you can include the whole household), or post some sort of list near the garbages and kitchen sink for members of your house to help you out. Alternatively you might invest in some rubber gloves and detail the trash each day. The list must be detailed and kept for four consecutive days (listed by day of the week).

After you have completed your garbage list, become the objective archaeologist. Try to objectively analyze your household from the archaeological data alone. Questions you should try to answer include:

Can you determine how many people live in this household based on the items disposed? What about their ages? sexes? general health?
Can you determine their economic status of the individuals?
How is it that the individual/group is obtaining their food? What types of foods are being consumed?
What types of waste products are produced? Could these be minimized (produce less waste and still have the same foods consumed)? Are there alternative/better ways to dispose of the wastes (e.g. recycled or composted)?
Do you have any additional comments about the group or their garbage?

Please provide corresponding evidence or support for your analysis €“ what garbage supports your assessment? At the end please provide the actual answers to how many people live in the household. How well do you think the artifacts reflect reality?