Internet Archaeol. 13 Harland et al. Quantification and reports

Quantification and reports

Most computerised recording systems of the past have produced summary statistical data (e.g. Armitage 1978; Hardy 1982; Klein and Cruz-Uribe 1984; Desse et al. 1986; Campana and Crabtree 1987; Shaffer and Baker 1992). Data collected using the York System can be queried and manipulated within Access, exported into other programs, saved as text files or summarised using a series of built-in reports. The latter produce simple NISP data, MNE (Minimum Number of Elements) estimates, MNI (Minimum Number of Individuals) estimates and summaries of other variables such as butchery, tooth wear, pathologies and non-metric traits. The calculations which underlie these summaries are transparent in the reports themselves but are also discussed further in the help files supplied with the database.