Forty-two degrees south: The archaeology of Late Pleistocene Tasmania

Over the past 18 years the results of archaeological field research in many parts of Australia have challenged the view of late Pleistocene archaeolog ical unity and homogeneity. Debates are increasingly focused on issues of i dentifying regional behavioral variability and away from a 'normalization' of Australia's prehistory. Prior notions of cultural transformations from ' simple (late Pleistocene) to 'complex (late Holecene) social behaviors, tec hnological homogeneity, and the timing of colonization are being increasing ly scrutinized. One such area that has become a spearhead of this challenge is Tasmania, which continues to demonstrate its ability to confront precon ceptions about the nature of past human behaviors.