Concluding address: Ruminations on mathematics in archaeology

This volume contains essays that discuss different roles for and logics underlying the use of quantitative methods in archaeology (Doran [Foreword]; Barceló [Chapter 1]; Djindjian [Chapter 2]; Nicolucci et al. [Chapter 3]; Read [Chapter 4]; and Barceló et al. [Chapter 25]), useful reviews of current technologies (Mucha et al. [Chapter 9]; Richards et al. [Chapter 12]; Bronk-Ramsey [Chapter 14]; Ducke [Chapter 18]), and descriptions and applications of novel methods (most of the remainder). Throughout his wide-ranging manifesto for digital archaeology, Barceló [Chapter 1] maintains a welcome focus on the ultimate goal of explaining social action. This introductory chapter supplies a surprising coherence to what might otherwise seem to be a collection of disparate methodological chapters. At the same time, through his essay, Barceló substantially enhances many of the individual contributions by providing needed conceptual context and background.