Peter C. Dawson

Space syntax analysis of Central Inuit snow houses

Space syntax is a graph-based theory used by architects to examine how the spatial layout of buildings and cities influences the economic, social, and environmental outcomes of human movement and social interaction. Archaeologists have explored this concept by analyzing how social structure is reflected in the spatial configuration of public and domestic architecture. In this paper, space syntax is used to examine the spatial morphology of snow houses built by three Central Inuit groups in the Canadian Arctic, based on ethnohistoric and ethnographic accounts. The results of this study demonstrate that variation in family structure and the behavioral directives present in Inuit kinship systems are reflected in the spatial configurations of snow house architecture. This has important implications for understanding how architecture might be used to identify enduring and changing patterns of household and community organization in the archaeological record.

Interpreting variability in Thule Inuit architecture : A case study from the Canadian high Arctic

The semisubterranean whale-bone house is one of the most recognizable aspects of Thule Inuit culture. Following their arrival in the Canadian Arctic approximately 1,000 years ago, Thule peoples built these impressive and often enigmatic dwellings for occupation during the long winter months. Variability in the architectural properties of semisubterranean house forms has traditionally been used by archaeologists to infer cultural and historical relationships between regions, and establish seasonal and/or functional distinctions in usage. An analysis of 31 semisubterranean houses from two Thule winter village sites in the Canadian High Arctic using multivariate statistics and computer-aided drafting reveals a range of architectural variability that may represent attempts by Thule builders to accommodate 1) fluctuations in the availability of key building materials, 2) differences in household mobility, or 3) whaling-related social differentiation between households. These results have important implications for understanding the relationships among house form, environment, and culture in Thule Inuit society.

‘Breaking the fourth wall’: 3D virtual worlds as tools for knowledge repatriation in archaeology

Interactive 3-dimensional worlds and computer modeling can be used to excite interest in archaeology among indigenous groups such as the Inuit of the North American Arctic and Greenland. Using two case studies – a recently completed exhibition for the Virtual Museum of Canada on Thule Inuit whalebone houses and an interactive virtual world structured around the Siglit-Inuvialuit sod house – we explore how digital replicas might be used in the repatriation of traditional knowledge. This idea is examined through theexperiences of nine Inuit Elders who explored our digital reconstructions of Thule and Siglit-Inuvialuit dwellings in 3D. Discussions with the Elders suggest that the generic sense of ‘presence’ generated by 3D viewing enhanced their feelings of connectedness to their past. This would imply that virtual reality and 3D technology might be useful in establishing new discourses in archaeological interpretation, as well as assisting in the exploration, construction, and maintenance of cultural identities through knowledge repatriation.

Simulating the behaviour of light inside Arctic dwellings: implications for assessing the role of vision in task performance

Abstract Visibility studies in archaeology have been criticized because they tend to emphasize the importance of vision over other senses. The burgeoning field of sensory anthropology argues that the relative significance of visual, olfactory, acoustic and haptic (touch) senses varies cross-culturally, and is a function of how human beings interact with their particular environments. The Canadian Arctic is a unique sensory environment because prolonged periods of winter darkness make artificial light essential for everyday tasks. In this paper, we use 3D computer modelling to simulate the levels of light produced by the small stone lamps used inside pre-contact Thule Inuit winter dwellings. The results demonstrate that interior light levels fall well below those recommended by Western architectural standards for tasks requiring high levels of visual acuity. We conclude that this may have influenced where activities were situated inside the dwelling and encouraged greater use of touch relative to vision when performing tasks such as sewing and carving.

Reconstructing a thule whalebone house using 3D imaging

In this article, the authors share with us an interesting use for the latest laser-scanning-based 3D imaging technology for reconstructing a thule whalebone house. All major components (such as date capturing, data modeling, display, and interaction) are covered to demonstrate how archaeological research can benefit from this new technology for the purposes of testing and education. Although this article focuses on building the skeletal models of a whale, it also provides a stepping-stone to the researchers, engineers, architects, and archaeologists who are interested in virtual reality. Interactive digital media is becoming one of the hot areas in the multimedia community, which aims to provide users with an immersive experience while consuming media.

A Three-Dimensional Model of a Thule Inuit Whale Bone House

Abstract The semi-subterranean whale bone house is one of the most distinctive features of Thule Inuit culture in the Canadian Arctic (A.D. 1000–1600). An understanding of how these remarkable dwellings were designed and built has been hindered by measurement and recording techniques restricted to two dimensions. Determining how the unusual shapes and sizes of whale bone elements would have influenced the strength of the roof frame and the volume of the houses interior requires a three-dimensional point of view. We constructed a three-dimensional computer model of such a house by first employing laser scanning technology to create a digital model of a North Atlantic Right Whale skeleton on display at the New England Aquarium in Boston, Massachusetts. Individual elements from the digital model were used in combination with archaeological data to construct an accurate representation of a Thule whale bone dwelling. Constructing a model in a virtual world is analogous to building one in the real world. Consequently, we gained a deeper understanding of the design principles used by Thule builders, and conclude that the development of an architectural tradition based upon whale bone may be among the greatest technological achievements in Arctic prehistory.

Unfriendly Architecture: Using Observations of Inuit Spatial Behavior to Design Culturally Sustaining Houses in Arctic Canada

In the decades following the Second World War, Inuit of the Canadian Arctic were introduced to Euro-Canadian architecture in communities that were scattered throughout the North. These houses, and the settlements in which they were situated, were spatially designed around Euro-Canadian concepts of family, community, economics and administrative control. Direct observations of space use by Inuit families were carried out in a remote Canadian Arctic community, and interpreted using space syntax analysis and agency theory. The results of this study indicate that the programmatic categories typically used to structure Euro-Canadian houses, such as bedrooms, kitchens, living rooms and porches, are rarely adhered to by Inuit families. While this apparent mismatch between intended versus actual uses of space may appear arbitrary, it is, in fact, systematically matched to the spatial structure of the houses they inhabit. These interpretations have important implications for the development of aboriginal housing policy in northern Canada.

Peopling the Past: Interpreting Models for Pedestrian Movement in Ancient Civic-Ceremonial Centres

The study of complex societies, in particular urban spaces such as those of the ancient Maya, can effectively focus on the human interactions and entanglements that animated such locales. Further, many of the concerns related to crowd dispersal, pedestrian traffic patterns, the constitution of community, and socio-spatial control that underlay spatial analyses of modern urban centres were equally valid in past, non-Western, urban centres. From space syntax to agent simulation and crowd modelling, this paper adopts a methodological ‘train of thought’ with origins well outside the archaeological mainstream that may be applied in the creation of explanatory/exploratory models for socio-spatial interaction. Within Maya studies (and indeed, other ancient contexts), these models may be profitably invoked to direct research toward a deeper understanding of how the ancient Maya may have actually lived within the monumental built environments that so strongly define them in both popular and professional consciousness. The unit of analysis in all such approaches is the plano-metric representation of architecture and space. In concert with the other papers presented in this volume, particular attention is focused on the analytical consequences (both opportunities and limitations) of such mapping. The Classic Period centre of Copan, Honduras, has been adopted as a case study.

Reconstructing traditional Inuit house forms using three-dimensional interactive computer modelling

Virtual heritage environments provide researchers and the general public with a tool for exploring archaeological data in a dynamic and interactive fashion. This paper discusses recent attempts by the authors to construct a prototype three-dimensional interactive computer model of an Inuvialuit sod house based on archaeological, ethnohistoric and ethnographic data from the outer Mackenzie Delta area in Arctic Canada. Such computer models have the potential to provide significant insights into the design principles used in traditional Inuit architecture. They can also be integrated with three-dimensional scans of cultural artifacts and other recorded media to create an interactive virtual heritage environment. In addition to providing an armature for the collection of oral histories and traditional knowledge, these web-based virtual environments allow members of the general public to experience cultural sites in inaccessible areas like the Canadian Arctic. Virtual environments may also provide archaeologists with new insights into the role that human senses may have played in the design of small-scale dwellings. This paper will focus on how the computer model was constructed, and presents examples of how the model can be used both as a research and education tool.

Self-calibration of a structured light based scanner for use in archeological applications

It is frequently necessary in archaeology to map excavated features so their structure can be recorded before they are dismantled in order for the excavation to continue. This process can be time consuming, error prone and manually intensive. Three-dimensional recording devices, which have the advantage of being faster, less labor intensive and more detailed, present an attractive alternative method of mapping. A small, portable hand scanner such as the DotProduct DPI-7, could be used for this purpose. However, the three-dimensional data collected from this device contain systematic distortions that cause errors in the recorded shape of the features being mapped. The performance of the DPI-7 scanner is evaluated in this paper using self-calibration based techniques. A calibration field consisting of spherical targets rigidly mounted on a planar background was imaged from multiple locations, and the target deviations from expected locations are used to quantify the performance of the device. The largest source of systematic error in the DPI-7 data was found to be a scale error affecting dimensions orthogonal to the depth. These in-plane distortions were modeled using a single scale factor parameter in the self-calibration solution, resulting in a 54% reduction in the RMS coordinate errors.