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Inferences from absences

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 January 2025

Kim Sterelny*
Affiliation:
School of Philosophy, Research School of the Social Sciences, Australian National University, Acton, Canberra, Australia Kim.Sterelny@anu.edu.au
*
*Corresponding author.

Abstract

Stibbard-Hawkes shows that cultures using material symbols might well not leave traces of that practice in the archaeological record. The paper thus poses an important challenge: When is absence of evidence evidence of absence? This commentary uses behavioural ecology to make modest progress on this problem.

Information

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © The Author(s), 2025. Published by Cambridge University Press

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