Thanks to Eric Poehler for pointing me to the latest News & Notes (No. 210 Summer 2011) from the Oriental Institute. This issue focuses on the Jericho Mafjar Project, which has been mentioned here before. In the “From the Director’s Study” section,  Gil J. Stein refers to their use of tablets on the project.

This “paperless archaeology” has the potential to transform the way we conduct archaeological research by recording the excavations in digital form in the field at the exact moment that the discoveries are being made. Most archaeologists count on spending ten hours in the lab for every hour spent digging. Paperless archaeology will not only cut our lab time in half, but it will also allow us to analyze our data so quickly in the field that we can see patterns and adjust the way we excavate almost immediately.

Advertisement