Biography
Neil Duncan is an archaeologist specializing in paleoethnobotany. He received his PhD in Anthropology at the University of Missouri-Columbia. Dr. Duncan served as a Fulbright Research Specialist in Ecuador and was a postdoctoral scholar at the Archaeology Center at Stanford University. Dr. Duncan’s research focuses on the interrelationships of humans and plants in prehistory using micro-remain analyses, starch grains and phytoliths, as well as plant macro-remains. His current research areas include Bolivia, Peru, Colombia, the Caribbean, and China.
Dr. Duncan directs the Paleoethnobotany and Environmental Archaeology Laboratory (PEAL).
Working with Dr. Duncan
I am committed to mentoring and advising students in research in paleoethnobotany and archaeology. I work with students to engage them in independent research that is scholarly and intellectually rewarding, and furthermore practical for the degree that they are seeking. I strongly emphasize methodology in paleoethnobotany and rigorous scientific approaches. However, as an anthropological archaeologist, I am also interested social, cultural, and symbolic aspects of human societies. Interested students are welcome to contact me directly: neil.duncan@ucf.edu
Dr. Duncan is looking for students interested in:
- Archaeology in the Americas
- Paleoethnobotany and Archaeobotany
- Phytoliths, Starch Grains, Plant Macro-remains
- Foodways, Cuisine, Feasting
- Historical Ecology
- Plant Domestication
- The Andes, Amazon
Examples of projects conducted by Dr. Duncan’s students:
- Coring in the southwestern Amazon
- Starch and phytolith analyses of ceramic residue from lowland Bolivia, Florida, and Kansas
- Phytolith analysis of sediments
