Distinguishing butchery cut marks from crocodile bite marks through machine learning methods.

ABSTRACT: All models of evolution of human behaviour depend on the correct identification and interpretation of bone surface modifications (BSM) on archaeofaunal assemblages. Crucial evolutionary features, such as the origin of stone tool use, meat-eating, food-sharing, cooperation and sociality can only be addressed through confident identification and interpretation of BSM, and more specifically, cut marks. Recently, it has been argued that linear marks with the same properties as cut marks can be created by crocodiles, thereby questioning whether secure cut mark identifications can be made in the Early Pleistocene fossil record. Powerful classification methods based on multivariate statistics and machine learning (ML) algorithms have previously successfully discriminated cut marks from most other

SUBMITTER: Dominguez-Rodrigo M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5893542 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature