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" Environmental Variability, Wealth Inequality, and Empire: Agent-Based Simulation of Nomadic Pastoral Complexity "
Shultz, Daniel R.
Bennett, Gwen
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Latin Dissertation
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| Language of Document
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English
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| Record Number
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1058826
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| Doc. No
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TL57943
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| Main Entry
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Shultz, Daniel R.
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| Title & Author
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Environmental Variability, Wealth Inequality, and Empire: Agent-Based Simulation of Nomadic Pastoral Complexity\ Shultz, Daniel R.Bennett, Gwen
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| College
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McGill University (Canada)
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| Date
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2019
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| Degree
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Ph.D.
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2019
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| Note
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167 p.
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| Abstract
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This dissertation uses agent-based computer simulation to examine general processes that generate patterns of social organization among nomadic pastoral populations in Inner Asia. Of particular interest are processes related to the formation of nomadic states and empires, such as those of the Mongol (1206 – 1368 CE) and Xiongnu (209 BCE – 48 CE) periods. Three main topics are addressed. First is the development of wealth inequality and hierarchical social networks among nomadic pastoralists, particularly in relation to environmental variability. Second is the effect of large fixed urban centres on livestock herding network dynamics and wealth inequality. Third is an exploration of the factors of nomadic pastoral livestock production, and how these factors generate spatial features of social organization. Findings are threefold: first, inequality develops rapidly under heterogeneous environmental conditions, due to the differential effects of natural disasters. This inequality can easily lead to hierarchical networks among herding households as an adaptive response. The size and resilience of these hierarchical networks increases in more favourable environmental herding conditions, characterized by increased biomass. Thus, large complex hierarchical societies such as states and empires are more likely to form in periods or regions with increased biomass. Second, the provision of disaster relief to herding households via urban centres increases the size and resilience of hierarchical herding networks during environmental downturns. Third, the extensive nature of nomadic pastoral food production exerts unique requirements, generating significant features of social organization. While many features exhibit a significant range of variation through time, the demands of food production generally lead to striking spatial continuities in Inner Asian nomadic pastoral social organization. The results of this dissertation contribute to a growing body of knowledge emphasizing the internal capacity for the development of complex social organization among nomadic pastoral populations.
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| Descriptor
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Agrarian society
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Anthropology
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Archaeology
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Civilization
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Computer simulation
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Cultural anthropology
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Environmental conditions
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Ethnography
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Evolution
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Farming
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Feudalism
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Field study
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Food
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History
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Households
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Humanities
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Inequality
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Interest groups
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Landowners
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Livestock
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Nobility
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Nomads
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Perceptions
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Social sciences
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| Added Entry
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Bennett, Gwen
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McGill University (Canada)
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