IBS Speaker Series: Sarah Klassen
October 16 @ 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
Join in person or via Zoom, email ibs-contact@colorado.edu for the password.
*Light lunch served at 11:45, please RSVP.
Title: Mapping Cambodia’s Ancient Cities: Lidar, Radar, and AI Insights into Ancient Settlements
Abstract: In tropical regions, now lush with dense vegetation, technologies such as lasers, radar, and artificial intelligence have uncovered compelling evidence of extensive preindustrial settlements. In this talk, Klassen will provide an overview of findings from the Cambodian Archaeological Lidar Initiative on early urbanism in Cambodia. It will delve into how lidar scans have enabled archaeologists to detect historical urban landscapes, while also shaping research initiatives to gain a deeper understanding of their evolution, endurance, and vulnerabilities. The resulting maps have prompted a reevaluation of what constituted an ancient Angkorian “city” and have sparked discussions on the boundaries that separate urban from rural areas. Additionally, this research invites comparisons between ancient Angkor and contemporary concepts like settlement scaling in modern cities.
Bio: TBD
