The Department | News and Events | People | Programs | Courses | Field Schools | Links | Apply
John Vede Dudgeon, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor
- Background
- Research Interests
- Ongoing Research
- Selected Publications
- Courses Taught
- Awards
- Curriculum Vita
- Student Opportunities
B.A., University of Colorado (1990); M.A., University of Washington (1998); Ph.D., University of Hawai'i (2008).
I have conducted archaeological field work, archaeological chemistry and related bioanthropological research in Washington State, Arkansas, Missouri, Mississippi, Fiji, and Rapa Nui (Easter Island). I joined the faculty at Idaho State University in 2008. I am also an Associate Curator of Anthropology at the Idaho Museum of Natural History and Research Curator for the Pleistocene faunal and archaeological collections from the Wasden Site, SE Idaho.
I have current affiliations with the Center for Archaeology, Materials and Applied Spectroscopy (CAMAS), the Interdisciplinary Laboratory for Elemental and Isotopic Analysis (ILEIA) and the Photon Activation Analysis in Archaeology Laboratory (PA^3L) at the Idaho Accelerator Center (IAC). I also serve as an Associate Editor for the Journal of Evolutionary and Historical Sciences.
My research is focused on lineage formation and community structure, as told through biological archaeology and demographic history. My primary research area is on Pacific Islands, due to the unusual historical trajectories written on them by isolation and insularity. Within an explicitly evolutionary theoretical approach, I use trace element geochemistry and molecular genetic methods to understand human migration and community relatedness as a function of geography, social organization and population genetics.
In addition to chemical analyses of bone, I also use Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA ICP-MS) to perform non-destructive chemical fingerprinting of archaeological glass, ceramic and metal artifacts that bear on the larger questions of prehistoric social organization and resource exploitation. In this capacity, I serve as a research scientist in the Center for Archaeology, Materials and Applied Spectroscopy (CAMAS) at Idaho State University, facilitating archaeological contract analysis and student training in archaeometric analytical techniques.
I am conducting archaeological chemistry and ancient DNA research using skeletal remains from Rapa Nui (Easter Island). My field and laboratory work is focused on the explanation of demographic change through this small and remote island's prehistory. This work involves undergraduate and graduate students, both on the island and at ISU and I am currently planning an archaeological research and museum curation field school (in collaboration with the P. Sebastian Englert Anthropological Museum) on Rapa Nui in the summer of 2010.
In prep. Dudgeon, J.V., A. Cucina. Micro-chemical and micro-morphological evidence and basis of human enamel hypoplasias. For submission to American Journal of Physical Anthropology.
n.d. Dudgeon, J.V., H. Hogue, H. Neff. Chemical traces of blackish staining on pauper’s grave remains from Mississippi. Submitted to Journal of Archaeological Science.
2008 Dudgeon, J.V. The Genetic Architecture of the Late Prehistoric and Proto Historic Rapa Nui (Easter Islanders). Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Hawai‘i, Mānoa.
2008 Janaab Pakal of Palenque: Reconstructing the Life and Death of a Maya Ruler. Tiesler, V., A. Cucina (eds.). Book Review: Latin American Antiquity (1):19.
2008 Heavy Metal Concentrations in the “Baby Teeth” of Children with Autism Spectrum Disorders. Presented at the 2008 International Meeting for Autism Research, London, England. (with M. M. Abdullah, A.R. Ly, W. A. Goldberg, A. Clarke-Stewart, T. Chan, E. Kent, C. Mull, K. Osann, M. A. Spence, J. E. Ericson)
2007 Dudgeon, J. V., W. Balsanek, H. Neff, A. Saint. Exploring the Analytical Utility of LA-ICP-TOFMS for the Provenancing of Archaeological Materials. Special session publication, Federation of Analytical Chemistry and Spectroscopy Societies (FACSS).
2007 Dudgeon, J.V., H. Neff, A. Saint, W. Balsanek. Evaluating the precision requirements for isotope ratio determination of archaeological materials using LA-TOF-ICP-MS: Increasing Ratio Precision. In M. D.Glascock, R. J. Speakman and R. S. Popelka-Filcoff, (eds), Archaeological Chemistry: Analytical Techniques and Archaeological Interpretation. Oxford University Press.
2007 Cucina, A., J.V. Dudgeon, H. Neff. Methodological strategy for the analysis of human dental enamel by LAICP-MS. Journal of Archaeological Science 34(11):1884-1888.
2007 Hale, L.F., J.V. Dudgeon, A.Z. Mason and C. Lowe. Elemental signatures in the vertebral cartilage of the round stingray, Urobatis halleri, from Seal Beach, California. Environmental Biology of Fishes, Special Edition: Age and growth of chondrichthyan fishes: new methods, techniques, and analyses.
ANTH 499/599 - Advanced Analytical Methods
ANTH 499/599 ‐ Introduction to Laser Ablation ICP-MS for Archaeologists and Earth Scientists
ANTH 430/530 - Human Origins And Diversity
ANTH 615 - Seminar In Biological Anthropological Theory
ANTH 237 - Prehistory of Southeast Asia and the Pacific
ANTH 203 - Introduction to Archaeology
2009 NSF MRI Grant: Acquisition of a 600 MHz NMR at Idaho State University (Pending, $872,800; Senior Scientist)
2008 NSF Archaeometry Grant: Archaeometallurgy on the Asian Steppes (Pending, $179,983; Co-PI with David Peterson)
2008 Faculty Research Council, Idaho State University: Archaeogenetic Analysis of Prehistoric Easter Islanders: Replication Study in Advance of Publication ($4,797; PI)
2008 NSF MRI Grant: Proposal to Purchase a ESEM with CL, STEM, and EDX, at Idaho State University ($372,230; Co-PI with H. Maschner, J. J. Pak, M. McCurry, R. G. Rodriguez)
2007 NSF MRI Grant: Acquisition of Mass Spectrometers to Create the ISU Laboratory for Analytical Research (LAR) for Basic and Interdisciplinary Research in Anthropology, Biology, Geology, and Chemistry ($535,000; Senior Scientist)
2006 NSF Archaeometry Grant: Solid-Sample Inorganic Analysis Facilities for Archaeological Research at IIRMES, CSULB ($154,000; Co-PI with H. Neff and C. P. Lipo)
1998-2001 Research Corporation, University of Hawai‘i (RCUH) Dissertation Fellowship ($68,000)
Currently, I have volunteer opportunities for graduate students and advanced undergraduate students, both in my archaeological chemistry lab at CAMAS and in my bioarchaeology lab in Graveley Hall. My current project load includes:
- Pollen and phytolith analysis from archaeological human and animal calculus (tartar, the stuff your dentist scrapes off)
- Chemical and performance studies on archaeological obsidian (mostly from the Snake River Plain, some from Rapa Nui)
- Chemical studies on archaeological bone and teeth (to determine locality of origin and possible signatures of occupational trace element uptake, such as occurs with prehistoric metal producers)
- Retrieval and analysis of ancient DNA from human and animal bone to test for patterns of non-random association and mating (these include reanalysis of samples from Rapa Nui and small mammal remains from the Wasden Site on the Snake River Plain)
- A variety of projects to measure and understand post-depositional alteration of archaeological bone, ceramic and paleontological specimens
Generally speaking, my philosophy is to offer several students each semester opportunities to work in my lab, on an unpaid, internship basis, to determine both the student's aptitude and possible fit for future research opportunities on my projects. I will generally try to find ways to fund the top students who work in my lab in subsequent semesters. This funding may be in the form of ISU-based research grants and fellowships, NSF or other national funding agencies and paid research assistantships.
Since I value the time and effort of the successful student researcher in my lab, students will be offered the opportunity to be a coauthor on the research product that we create, contingent on your performance and contribution to the project.
The Department | News and Events | People | Programs | Courses | Field Schools | Links | Apply
Department of Anthropology • College of Arts and Sciences • Idaho State University
921 S. 8th Avenue, Stop 8005, Pocatello, ID 83209-8005
Tel: (208) 282-2629 • Fax: (208) 282-4944 • e-mail: clovrebe@isu.edu