Annotated bibliography 5 sources

Tiffany Davis

English 102

10/28/2014

Annotated Bibliography

Koss, Lorelei. "Sustainability in a Differential Equations Course: A Case Study of Easter Island." International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science & Technology 42.4 (2011): 545-553. Computer Source. Web. 16 Oct. 2014.

            This article takes a mathematical approach to Easter Island by using simple differential equations to investigate sustainability issues. Koss is a professor in the department of mathematics and science at Dickenson College. In order to teach differential equations with a real world scenario, Koss delineates various potential causes of the collapse of Easter Island, and uses differential equations to analyze them. I will use this source to show how disease may have contributed to Easter Island’s collapse.

Hamilton, Sue, Mike Seager Thomas, and Ruth Whitehouse. "Say It with Stone: Constructing with Stones on Easter Island." World Archaeology 43.2 (2011): 167-190. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.

            This Source exams the stone statues constructed on Easter Island. Sue Hamilton, Mike Seager Thomas, and Ruth Whitehouse work at the institute of archaeology at University College in London. The three authors examine what kinds of stone the Islanders used, how they used them, and the meaning the statues had to the people on Easter Island. I will use this article to show that the availability of pine trees increasingly declined from AD 1500 and was partially due to the introduction of these famous statues. This article does not go as in depth as I need, however, it also includes various maps of the island that I may use as a visual aid in my own document.

Stevenson, Christopher M., et al. "Prehistoric and Early Historic Agriculture at Maunga Orito, Easter Island (Rapa Nui), Chile." Antiquity 80.310 (2006): 919-936. Academic Search Premier. Web. 21 Oct. 2014.

            This article delineates the different farming/agricultural methods used on Easter Island, how they developed over time, and ways they adapted to circumstances such as deforestation. Christopher M. Stevenson is from the Virginia Department of Historic Resources, Thomas Jackson is from Pacific Legacy, both Andreas Mieth and Hans-Rudolf Bork are from the University of Kiel, and Thegn N. Ladefoged is from the University of Aukland. These five authors examine agricultural practices starting with the first settlers on Easter Island by examining soil profiles, carbon dating samples, and inspecting various remnants of their civilization throughout the Island. This article is not as useful for my argument as I thought it would be, though I can use this information to show how the Islanders adapted to their degrading environment.

Flenley, John, Paul Bahn. “Conflicting Views of Easter Island.” Rapa Nui Journal 21.1 

(2007): 11-13. Web. 23 Oct. 2014.

            John Flenley and Paul Bahn scrutinize Paul Rainbird and Benny Peiser’s articles regarding the causes of Easter Island’s collapse. John Flenley is an Emeritus professor in biogeography, and a retired professor from Massey University. Paul Bahn is an archaeologist with a PHD from the University of Cambridge. They thoroughly oppose Rainbird and Peiser’s articles that state Easter Island’s collapse was primarily due to visits from Eastern European’s which resulted in the spread of disease and slave trafficking. Flenley and Bahn argue that the community was collapsing even before those incidences due to the deforestation and other effects of the Islander’s inhabitance/practices on that Island. I will use this article to show opposing viewpoints regarding the collapse of Easter Island, and to support my argument that it was deforestation and the islander’s practices that resulted in the collapse of their society, not external factors.

Diamond, Jared. “Easter Island Revisited.” Science, New Series 317 (2006): 1692-1694. American Association for the Advancement of Science. JSTOR. Web. 16 Oct. 2014.

            Jared Diamond is a professor of geography at the University of California. This is one of several written works by Diamond that I will be referring to. In this particular article Diamond examines deforestation on Easter Island by showing how it occurred and what the results were. By identifying 78,000 bits of burnt wood from radiocarbon-dated ovens/fire pits Diamond is able to show what species of trees were exterminated and when. This article will be incredibly useful for my argument that the deforestation of the Island was one of the main causes of Easter Island’s collapse.

Hughes, J.D. “Easter Island: Model for Environmental History?” Capitalism, Nature, Socialism 14.2 (2003): 77. Proquest Research Library. Web. 7 Oct 2014.

            J.D. Hughes is a professor emeritus of history at the University of Denver Colorado. In this article Hughes delineates how Easter Island began by stating approximately when the first inhabitants arrived and the key plants/animals they brought with them. He then gives a brief summary of their life on the island, describes the deforestation and its effects, and continues on to examine when the European’s arrived and what their effect was on the Island’s inhabitants. I will use this article primarily as a timeline of what happened when so that I can show deforestation was the main cause of the Island’s collapse. I will also use this article to show what the Islanders had in the beginning, because without knowing what they started with, my audience wouldn’t understand what they destroyed.

Hunt, Terry L. “Rethinking the Fall of Easter Island.” The American Scientist. (2014). Web. 2 Oct. 2014.

            Terry L. Hunt is a professor at the University of Hawai’i. In this article he argues that Easter Island collapsed due to the European’s introduction of disease and rats. Hunt attempts to discredit Diamond’s works on Easter Island without backing up any of his claims with evidence. This article was written for popularity, not for its scholarly merits. I will be opposing his view points with my argument. I will use this article to show some of the controversy regarding Easter Island’s collapse.