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Evolving Complexity and
Environmental Risk in
the Prehistoric Southwest
EVOLVING COMPLEXITY
AND ENVIRONMENTAL RISK
IN THE PREHISTORIC
SOUTHWEST
Proceedings of the Workshop
"Resource Stress, Economic Uncertainty, and
Human Response in the Prehistoric Southwest,"
Held February 25-29, 1992 in Santa Fe, NM

Editors

Joseph A. Tainter
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service

Bonnie Bagley Tainter

Proceedings Volume XXIV

Santa Fe Institute
Studies in the Sciences of Complexity

The Advanced Book Program

Boca Raton London New York

CRC Press is an imprint of the

Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business
Director of Publications, Santa Fe Institute: Ronda K. Butler-Villa
Publications Assistant, Santa Fe Institute: Delia L . Ulibarri

F i r s t published 1996 by Westview Press

Published 2018 by CRC Press

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About the Santa Fe Institute

T h e Santa Fe Institute ( S F I ) is a m u l t i d i s c i p l i n a r y graduate research a n d teach-

i n g i n s t i t u t i o n f o r m e d t o n u r t u r e research o n complex systems a n d t h e i r simpler
elements. A p r i v a t e , independent i n s t i t u t i o n , S F I was founded i n 1984. I t s p r i -
m a r y concern is t o focus t h e tools o f t r a d i t i o n a l scientific disciplines a n d emerging
new c o m p u t e r resources o n t h e problems a n d o p p o r t u n i t i e s t h a t are involved i n
t h e m u l t i d i s c i p l i n a r y s t u d y o f complex systems—those fundamental processes t h a t
shape almost every aspect o f h u m a n life. U n d e r s t a n d i n g complex systems is c r i t i c a l
t o realizing t h e f u l l p o t e n t i a l o f science, and m a y be expected t o y i e l d enormous
i n t e l l e c t u a l a n d p r a c t i c a l benefits.

A l l t i t l e s f r o m t h e Santa Fe Institute Studies

in the Sciences of Complexity series w i l l c a r r y
t h i s i m p r i n t w h i c h is based o n a M i m b r e s
p o t t e r y design (circa A . D . 9 5 0 - 1 1 5 0 ) , d r a w n
b y B e t s y Jones. T h e design was selected because
t h e r a d i a t i n g feathers are evocative o f t h e out-
reach o f t h e Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e P r o g r a m t o m a n y
disciplines a n d i n s t i t u t i o n s .
Santa Fe Institute Editorial Board
June 1993

D r . L . M . Simmons, Jr., Chair

V i c e President for Academic Affairs, Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e

Prof. K e n n e t h J. A r r o w
D e p a r t m e n t o f Economics, Stanford U n i v e r s i t y
Prof. W . B r i a n A r t h u r
C i t i b a n k Professor, Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e

Prof. M i c h e l e B o l d r i n
M E D S , Northwestern University

Dr. David K . Campbell

Head, D e p a r t m e n t o f Physics, U n i v e r s i t y of Illinois and
D i r e c t o r , Center for N o n l i n e a r Studies, Los A l a m o s N a t i o n a l L a b o r a t o r y

D r . George A . C o w a n
V i s i t i n g Scientist, Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e a n d Senior Fellow E m e r i t u s , Los A l a m o s
National Laboratory

Prof. M a r c u s W . F e l d m a n
D i r e c t o r , I n s t i t u t e for P o p u l a t i o n & Resource Studies, Stanford U n i v e r s i t y

Prof. M u r r a y G e l l - M a n n

D i v i s i o n o f Physics & A s t r o n o m y , C a l i f o r n i a I n s t i t u t e of Technology

Prof. J o h n H . H o l l a n d
D i v i s i o n o f C o m p u t e r Science & Engineering, U n i v e r s i t y of M i c h i g a n
Prof. S t u a r t A . K a u f f m a n
School o f M e d i c i n e , U n i v e r s i t y o f Pennsylvania
Dr. Edward A. Knapp
President, Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e

Prof. H a r o l d M o r o w i t z
R o b i n s o n Professor, George M a s o n U n i v e r s i t y

D r . A l a n S. Perelson

T h e o r e t i c a l D i v i s i o n , Los A l a m o s N a t i o n a l L a b o r a t o r y

Prof. D a v i d Pines
Department o f Physics, U n i v e r s i t y o f Illinois
Prof. H a r r y L . Swinney
Department o f Physics, U n i v e r s i t y o f Texas
Santa Fe Institute
Studies in the Sciences of Complexity

Proceedings Volumes
Vol. Editor Title
I D. Pines Emerging Syntheses i n Science, 1987
II A. S. Perelson Theoretical Immunology, Part One, 1988
III A. S. Perelson Theoretical Immunology, Part Two, 1988
IV G. D . Doolen et al. Lattice Gas Methods for Partial Differential
Equations, 1989
V P. W . Anderson, K . Arrow, The Economy as an Evolving Complex System,
D. Pines 1988
VI C. G. Langton Artificial Life: Proceedings of an Interdisciplinary
Workshop on the Synthesis and Simulation
of Living Systems, 1988
VII G. I . Bell & T . G. M a r r Computers and D N A , 1989
VIII W . H . Zurek Complexity, Entropy, and the Physics of
Information, 1990
IX A. S. Perelson Sz Molecular Evolution on Rugged Landscapes:
S. A . Kauffman Proteins, R N A and the Immune System, 1990
X C. G. Langton et al. Artificial Life I I , 1991
XI J. A . Hawkins & The Evolution of Human Languages, 1992
M . Gell-Mann
XII M . Casdagli & S. Eubank Nonlinear Modeling and Forecasting, 1992
XIII J. E. M i t t e n t h a l & Principles of Organization i n Organisms, 1992
A. B . Baskin
XIV D. Friedman & J. Rust The Double Auction Market: Institutions,
Theories, and Evidence, 1993
XV A. S. Weigend & Time Series Prediction: Forecasting the Future
N . A . Gershenfeld and Understanding the Past
XVI G. Gumerman & Understanding Complexity i n the
M . Gell-Mann Prehistoric Southwest
XVII C. G. Langton Artificial Life I I I
XVIII G. Kramer Auditory Display
XIX G. Cowan, D . Pines, Complexity: Metaphors, Models, and Reality
and D . Meltzer
XX D. H . Wolpert The Mathematics of Generalization
XXI P. E. Cladis & Spatio-Temporal Patterns i n Nonequilibrium
P. Palffy-Muhoray Complex Systems
XXII H . Morowitz & & The M i n d , The Brain, and Complex
J. L . Singer Adaptive Systems
XXIII B . Julesz & Maturational Windows and A d u l t Cortical
I . Kovacs Plasticity
XXIV J. A . Tainter & Evolving Complexity and Environmental
B. B . Tainter Risk i n the Prehistoric Southwest
XXV J. B . Rundle, W . Klein & Reduction and Predicability of Natural
D. L . Turcotte Disasters
XXVI R. K . Belew & A d a p t i v e I n d i v i d u a l s i n E v o l v i n g Populations:
M . Mitchell Models and Algorithms
 Lectures Volumes
Vol. Editor Title
I D . L . Stein Lectures i n the Sciences of Complexity, 1989
II E. Jen 1989 Lectures i n Complex Systems, 1990
III L . Nadel & D . L . Stein 1990 Lectures i n Complex Systems, 1991
IV L . Nadel & D . L . Stein 1991 Lectures in Complex Systems, 1992
V L . Nadel & D . L . Stein 1992 Lectures i n Complex Systems, 1993
VI L . Nadel & D . L . Stein 1993 Lectures i n Complex Systems, 1995

Lecture Notes Volumes

Vol. Author Title
I J. Hertz, A . Krogh, & Introduction to the Theory of Neural
R. Palmer Computation, 1990
II G. Weisbuch Complex Systems Dynamics, 1990
III W . D . Stein & F. J. Varela Thinking A b o u t Biology, 1993

Reference Volumes
Vol. Author Title
I A . Wuensche & M . Lesser The Global Dynamics of Cellular Automata:
Attraction Fields of One-Dimensional Cellular
Automata, 1992
Contributors to This Volume

Eric A . Angstadt-Leto,
A r i z o n a State U n i v e r s i t y

Linda Cordell,
U n i v e r s i t y M u s e u m , U n i v e r s i t y o f Colorado

Jeffrey S. Dean,
L a b o r a t o r y o f Tree-Ring Research, U n i v e r s i t y o f A r i z o n a

Michelle Hegmon,
N e w M e x i c o State U n i v e r s i t y

T i m o t h y A . Kohler,
W a s h i n g t o n State University, P u l l m a n and the Santa Fe
Institute

Paul E. Minnis,
University of Oklahoma

M a r g a r e t C. Nelson,
State U n i v e r s i t y o f N e w Y o r k , Buffalo

Alison E. Rautman,
M i c h i g a n State U n i v e r s i t y

K a t h e r i n e A . Spielmann,
A r i z o n a State U n i v e r s i t y

A l a n P. S u l l i v a n I I I ,
University of Cincinnati

Joseph A . T a i n t e r ,
U.S. D e p a r t m e n t o f A g r i c u l t u r e , Forest Service

C a r l a R. V a n West,
C r o w C a n y o n Archaeological Center, Cortez, and
S t a t i s t i c a l Research, Inc.
For Elizabeth and George Tainter,
and i n memory of Willis H . Bagley
Contents

Introduction: Prehistoric Societies as Evolving Complex

Systems
Joseph A. Tainter 1

Demography, Environment, and Subsistence Stress

Jeffrey S. Dean 25

Notes on Economic Uncertainty and Human Behavior in

the Prehistoric North American Southwest
Paul E. Minnis 57

Hunting, Gathering, and Health in the Prehistoric

Southwest
Katherine A. Spielmann and Eric A. Angstadt-Leto 79

Technological Strategies Responsive to Subsistence Stress

Margaret C. Nelson 107

Risk, Anthropogenic Environments, and Western Anasazi

Subsistence
Alan P. Sullivan III 145

The Calculus of Self-Interest i n the Development of Coop-

eration: Sociopolitical Development and Risk Among the
Northern Anasazi
Timothy A. Kohler and Carla R. Van West 169

Risk, Reciprocity, and the Operation of Social Networks

Alison E. Rautman 197

Evolving Complexity & Environ. Risk in Prehistoric Southwest, Eds. J. Tainter,

& B. B. Tainter, SFI Stud. Sci. Complexity, Vol. XXIV, Addison-Wesley, 1996 xi
xii Contents

Variablity in Food Production, Strategies of Storage and

Sharing, and the Pithouse-to-Pueblo Transition in the
Northern Southwest
Michelle Hegmon 223

Models and Frameworks for Archaeological Analysis of

Resource Stress in the American Southwest
Linda S. Cordell 251

Index 267
Joseph A. Tainter
USDA Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range Experiment Station, Albuquerque,
NM87106W

Introduction: Prehistoric Societies as

Evolving Complex Systems

O n e o f t h e great challenges of c o n t e m p o r a r y science is t o trace t h e m i x o f

s i m p l i c i t y a n d c o m p l e x i t y , r e g u l a r i t y a n d randomness, order a n d disorder
u p t h e ladder f r o m elementary p a r t i c l e physics and cosmology t o t h e r e a l m
o f c o m p l e x a d a p t i v e systems.
— M u r r a y G e l l - M a n n (1994:119-120)

T h e late Southwestern archaeologist E m i l H a u r y once asked a group o f graduate

students a b o u t t h e i r interests. W h e n one aspiring archaeologist answered "complex
societies," H a u r y queried, "Do y o u know of any simple societies?" W H u m a n societies
are b y t h e i r n a t u r e a m o n g t h e most suitable subjects for t h e s t u d y of complexity.

^ T h e preparation of this chapter was funded by the U S D A Forest Service, Rocky Mountain
Forest and Range Experiment Station. For comments on previous versions I am grateful to L i n d a
Cordell, George Gumerman, David Kelley, Jane Kelley, Timothy Kohler, Richard Periman, Carol
Raish, and Bonnie Bagley Tainter.
f ^I am grateful for this anecdote to my colleague Randall McGuire, who related it in a plenary
2

address to the 23rd Annual Chacmool Conference at the University of Calgary, November, 1993.
T h e theme of the conference was "Debating Complexity."

Evolving Complexity & Environ. Risk in Prehistoric Southwest, Eds. J. Tainter,

& B. B. Tainter, SFI Stud. Sci. Complexity, Vol. XXIV, Addison-Wesley, 1996 1
2 J. A. Talnter

T h e r e b e i n g n o t h i n g simple i n h u m a n social and c u l t u r a l behavior, t h e t o p i c offers

t w o general problems t h a t t h e s t u d y o f c o m p l e x i t y should account for. T h e first is
t h e development o f extrasomatic systems of p r o b l e m solving, i n c l u d i n g technology,
social relations, s y m b o l i n g , a n d language, a m o n g our h o m i n i d ancestors. These
are a m o n g t h e constituents o f w h a t anthropologists call culture. T h e second is t h e
tendency o f h u m a n societies t o change and v a r y i n c o m p l e x i t y , often v e r y rapidly.
These m a t t e r s consume m u c h of the a t t e n t i o n o f archaeologists, a n d should also
concern scientists w h o s t u d y c o m p l e x i t y across different types of systems.
T h i s v o l u m e reflects t h e c o n t i n u i n g interest o f the Santa Fe I n s t i t u t e ( S F I ) i n
c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y . I t contains papers presented i n a w o r k s h o p t i t l e d Resource
Stress, Economic Uncertainty, and Human Response in the Prehistoric South-
west, h e l d 25-29 F e b r u a r y 1992 at the I n s t i t u t e . T h e conference was planned b y
L i n d a C o r d e l l , M a r c u s F e l d m a n , M u r r a y G e l l - M a n n , George G u m e r m a n , and t h e
author J J 3

T h i s w o r k s h o p was t h e f o u r t h i n a series. T h e series progressed f r o m analysis

of specific aspects o f Southwestern prehistory, t o b r o a d t h e o r e t i c a l f o r m u l a t i o n s ,
a n d back again t o specifics. T h e first conference was an A d v a n c e d Seminar held
at t h e School o f A m e r i c a n Research ( S A R ) , Santa Fe, i n September 1983 under
t h e t i t l e Dynamics of Southwestern Prehistory (Cordell and G u m e r m a n 1989a). I n
t h i s conference, Southwestern p r e h i s t o r y was approached f r o m t h e perspective of
subregions. C o r d e l l a n d G u m e r m a n (1989b) i n t r o d u c e d t h e concept o f hinge points
i n Southwestern prehistory. These were times of significant, r a p i d c u l t u r a l change
across m u c h o f t h e Southwest, distinguishable f r o m the "background" p a t t e r n o f
relative stasis or localized change. T h e idea m a y a p p l y t o m u c h of w o r l d p r e h i s t o r y
a n d h i s t o r y , a n d is reminiscent o f the biological concept o f p u n c t u a t e d e q u i l i b r i u m
( G o u l d a n d E l d r i d g e 1977).
T h e first conference was followed b y t w o more workshops conceived a n d or-
ganized b y G u m e r m a n a n d G e l l - M a n n , and sponsored j o i n t l y by S A R a n d S F I . M
These workshops were intended t o be a set, w i t h t h e first establishing a conceptual
f o u n d a t i o n for t h e second. I n September 1989, S A R held an A d v a n c e d Seminar
t i t l e d The Organization and Evolution of Prehistoric Southwestern Society. T h e

^ T h e workshop was funded by the U S D A Forest Service, Rocky Mountain Forest and Range
Experiment Station. Dr. George Peterson arranged the contractual matters for Rocky Moun-
tain Station. T h e workshop participants included Linda Cordell, Pamela Bumstead, Jeffrey Dean,
Marcus Feldman, Murray Gell-Mann, George Gumerman, Michelle Hegmon, Stuart Kauffman,
Timothy Kohler, Robert Leonard, Paul Minnis, Margaret Nelson, Robert Preucel, Alison Raut-
man, Katherine Spielmann, Alan Sullivan I I I , Christine Szuter, Wolfgang Fikentscher, and Joseph
Tainter. Andi Sutherland and Patrisia Brunello made our visit to S F I a most enjoyable experience.
O n behalf of all the authors, I am pleased to express appreciation to Ronda Butler-Villa and Delia
Ulibarri for their fine work in preparing the book for publication.
l J Murray Gell-Mann's lifelong interest in archaeology, documented in his recent book (1994), has
4

shaped the interest of the Santa Fe Institute and its affiliated scientists in Southwestern societies
as complex adaptive systems. T h e two workshops on Southwestern prehistory held at S F I were
made possible through his interest.
Introduction 3

use of t h e singular f o r m i n t h e final w o r d o f the t i t l e suggests t h e concept b e h i n d

b o t h t h e seminar a n d t h e r e s u l t i n g b o o k ( G u m e r m a n 1994a). W h i l e t h e Dynam-
ics of Southwestern Prehistory conference m a i n l y concerned approaches t o local
prehistory, t h i s seminar emphasized e v o l u t i o n a r y processes t h a t occurred across
m u c h o f t h e Southwest. These processes involved e n v i r o n m e n t a l a n d demographic
stresses, hunter-gatherer land-use patterns, h e a l t h and disease, aggregation, aban-
d o n m e n t , a n d regional i n t e r a c t i o n . G u m e r m a n (1994b) a n d G u m e r m a n and G e l l -
M a n n (1994a) i n t r o d u c e d t h e v o l u m e w i t h i n t e g r a t i n g syntheses.
T h e S F I w o r k s h o p under t h e same t i t l e followed i n October 1990. I n S F I style i t
involved a n assortment o f scholars f r o m various disciplines, w o r k i n g w i t h archaeol-
ogists. These scientists h a d available t h e papers f r o m t h e S A R A d v a n c e d Seminar,
p o s i t i o n papers d r a f t e d for t h e workshop^ ! ( G u m e r m a n , G e l l - M a n n , and C o r d e l l
5

1994:9-10), a n d i n t r o d u c t o r y p l e n a r y addresses. Groups of archaeologists a n d other

scientists w o r k e d o n t h e focus topics for five days, p r o d u c i n g a unique v o l u m e t h a t
m e r i t s a place i n t h e h i s t o r y o f archaeology ( G u m e r m a n and G e l l - M a n n 1994b).
I t is a b l e n d o f t h e perspectives o f archaeology, ethnology, c o m p u t a t i o n a l science,
e v o l u t i o n a r y biology, h u m a n physiology, and c o m p l e x i t y theory, focused o n under-
s t a n d i n g t h e e v o l u t i o n of prehistoric Southwestern societies as complex adaptive
systems. I t is t h e k i n d o f m e r g i n g o f ideas and perspectives t h a t S F I was estab-
lished t o b r i n g a b o u t .
T h e w o r k s h o p r e p o r t e d i n t h i s v o l u m e was a logical sequel t o t h e previous ef-
forts. T h e books r e s u l t i n g f r o m t h e S A R A d v a n c e d Seminars and t h e S F I w o r k s h o p
b r o u g h t together recent a n d t h o u g h t f u l theories o n t h e e v o l u t i o n o f t h e prehistoric
Southwest. I n any field, t h o u g h , t h e b e a u t y and power of b r o a d syntheses are real-
ized f u l l y w h e n t h e y help t o clarify more specific topics: t h e devil is always i n t h e
details. T h e papers i n t h i s v o l u m e , t a k e n together, p r o v i d e a comprehensive v i e w
of t h e ways i n w h i c h prehistoric Southwesterners made decisions a n d t o o k steps
to solve some o f t h e i r everyday problems, and changed thereby t h e c o m p l e x i t y o f
t h e i r economies, technologies, societies, a n d religious i n s t i t u t i o n s . T h e c u m u l a t i v e
t o t a l o f such changes, m a n y o f w h i c h were reversible o n l y under great h a r d s h i p ,
comprises t h e e v o l u t i o n of Southwestern societies f r o m s m a l l foraging bands t o
sedentary pueblo c o m m u n i t i e s and regional networks. T h e strategies and decision
c r i t e r i a e x p l o r e d here are t h e mechanisms by w h i c h subsistence a g r i c u l t u r a l societies
increase or decrease i n c o m p l e x i t y .
T h i s i n t r o d u c t i o n is i n t e n d e d for b o t h archaeologists and other scientists inter-
ested i n c o m p l e x i t y . For t h e l a t t e r readers I w i l l t r y not t o plunge t h e discussion
i n t o archaeological technicalities. Instead I refer readers t o t h e excellent overviews
a n d syntheses t o be f o u n d i n C o r d e l l (1984), C o r d e l l a n d G u m e r m a n (1989b),
G u m e r m a n (1994b), G u m e r m a n a n d G e l l - M a n n (1994a), a n d Lekson, C o r d e l l , a n d
G u m e r m a n (1994). I n t h e n e x t section I w i l l discuss some topics o f significance

t^The position papers covered archaeological explanation, historical processes, environmental

modeling, systems modeling, and environment, demography, and health.
4 J. A. Talnter

i n u n d e r s t a n d i n g c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y . ^ C u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y is different i n some
respects f r o m c o m p l e x i t y i n other l i v i n g systems, and is perhaps more enigmatic.
T h e final section describes how t h e adaptations t o risk and stress described i n the
various chapters p r o v i d e an extensive glimpse i n t o some of t h e ways t h a t societies
p r a c t i c i n g subsistence economies change i n complexity.

CULTURAL COMPLEXITY
COMPLEXITY AS TEXT
As every serious student of t h e t o p i c knows, c o m p l e x i t y can be q u i t e difficult t o
define. W h i l e t h i s is a disconcerting state of affairs for the t e r m t h a t identifies an
entire field o f learning, i t is n o t unusual. F u n d a m e n t a l terms t h r o u g h o u t science,
such as species, evolution, culture, or collapse, have proved equally elusive. I n t h e
face o f t h i s p r o b l e m i t is t e m p t i n g at times t o adopt a Supreme C o u r t t y p e of
concept: we m a y n o t be able t o define complexity, b u t we k n o w i t w h e n we see
i t J ) O r at least we t h i n k we do. Recently I suggested a know-it-when-you-see-it
7

i l l u s t r a t i o n o f c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y t h a t is w o r t h presenting here ( T a i n t e r 1995b).

I n t h e f o o t h i l l c o u n t r y of southwestern Colorado, the U.S. B u r e a u o f L a n d
M a n a g e m e n t m a i n t a i n s a new i n s t i t u t i o n of archaeological research a n d p u b l i c i n -
t e r p r e t a t i o n : the Anasazi Heritage Center. I t was b u i l t following several seasons
of research a m o n g archaeological sites now i n u n d a t e d by McPhee R e s e r v o i r . ^ T h e
Center rises b e h i n d a s m a l l pueblo r u i n o f t h e t w e l f t h c e n t u r y A . D . , t h e Dominguez
R u i n . T h i s r u i n has been left uncovered and stabilized so t h a t visitors can see an
Anasazi r u i n near t h e museum ( F i g u r e 1).
T h e j u x t a p o s i t i o n of the t w o structures is i l l u s t r a t i v e . Here is a prehistoric
pueblo, e x p e d i e n t l y b u i l t , consisting of a few rooms, and once home t o a h a n d f u l
of people. T h e s t r u c t u r e is small, and the architecture r e p e t i t i v e a n d predictable.
B e h i n d i t rises a great edifice, m a n y times t h e size of the l i t t l e pueblo. I t represents
a s m a l l p a r t o f our abilities i n engineering and materials science. I t exists because
our n a t i o n a l government commissioned i t t o be b u i l t , and pays each year for a
p e r m a n e n t staff, energy t o heat and cool t h e b u i l d i n g , and a fleet of vehicles. W e

^ T h e perspective offered here is that of an anthropologist concerned with the evolution of cultural
complexity, and considering that evolution partly in an economic framework. Recognizing the
advantages of a plurality of views, inherent in S F I ' s philosophy, I offer this perspective to augment
the current discussion, not to displace any part of it.
^ 1 am paraphrasing the pronouncement of a learned justice of the court in a 1970s case which
concerned, in part, attempts to define pornography.
t l T h e paper by Timothy Kohler and C a r l a Van West in this volume is an effort that grew out of
8

this research.
Introduction 5

FIGURE 1 The Simple and the Complex: Dominguez Ruin and the Anasazi Heritage
Center. Dominguez Ruin is in the left foreground. Photograph by J. Fleetman, courtesy
of Victoria Atkins and the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Land Management
and Bureau of Reclamation.

u n d e r t a k e a l l t h i s merely to interpret t h e s m a l l pueblo and others like i t . Indeed,

t h e energy we have spent t o excavate these s m a l l pueblos, analyze and curate t h e i r
remains, a t t e n d scientific conferences, p u b l i s h i n t e r p r e t a t i o n s and theories, and t e l l
t h e p u b l i c w h a t we have learned m a y well exceed w h a t t h e prehistoric Puebloans
themselves consumed i n t h e i r lives. A m a s s i n g and expending such large quantities
of energy are h a l l m a r k s o f a complex society ( W h i t e 1949:363-393). Here, i n t h e
contrast between t h e D o m i n g u e z R u i n and t h e Anasazi Heritage Center, is surely a
clear i l l u s t r a t i o n o f t h e difference between a society t h a t was c o m p a r a t i v e l y simple,
i n an a n t h r o p o l o g i c a l sense, a n d one t h a t is m u c h more complex.
I n an earlier s t u d y I advanced t h e following characterization o f social complex-
ity:

C o m p l e x i t y is generally u n d e r s t o o d t o refer t o such t h i n g s as t h e size o f a so-

ciety, t h e n u m b e r a n d distinctiveness o f its parts, the v a r i e t y of specialized
social roles t h a t i t incorporates, the number of d i s t i n c t social personalities
6 J. A. Tainter

present, a n d t h e v a r i e t y o f mechanisms for organizing these i n t o a coherent,

f u n c t i o n i n g w h o l e . A u g m e n t i n g any o f these dimensions increases t h e com-
p l e x i t y o f a society. Hunter-gatherer societies ( b y w a y o f i l l u s t r a t i n g one
contrast i n c o m p l e x i t y ) c o n t a i n no more t h a n a few dozen d i s t i n c t social
personalities, w h i l e m o d e r n E u r o p e a n censuses recognize 10,000 t o 20,000
u n i q u e o c c u p a t i o n a l roles, and i n d u s t r i a l societies m a y c o n t a i n overall more
t h a n 1,000,000 different kinds o f social personalities [ M c G u i r e 1983:115]
( T a i n t e r 1988:23).

T h i s c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n is along t h e lines o f ones t h a t other archaeologists have

a d o p t e d (e.g., P l o g 1974). I t derives f r o m t h e l i t e r a t u r e o f systems t h e o r y (e.g.,
M i l l e r 1965, 1978), t o w h i c h m a n y archaeologists were exposed i n t h e 1960s and
1970s.
G e l l - M a n n has p o i n t e d o u t t h a t w h i l e no objective definition o f c o m p l e x i t y has
been f o u n d , i n b o t h scientific usage and p o p u l a r discourse w h a t is meant b y t h e
c o m p l e x i t y o f a system is essentially the l e n g t h of the description o f its regulari-
ties ( G e l l - M a n n 1992, 1994; G u m e r m a n and G e l l - M a n n 1994a). C o m p l e x i t y i n t h i s
sense is n o t an a t t r i b u t e o f a system b u t o f our description o f i t . C o m p l e x i t y is not
inherent i n t h e object or system o f perception. One hopes, o f course, t h a t there
is (or can be) i s o m o r p h i s m between system c o m p l e x i t y a n d t h e l e n g t h o f a de-
s c r i p t i o n . F o r t u n a t e l y i t does seem t h a t other conceptions o f c o m p l e x i t y employed
i n archaeology are c o m p a t i b l e w i t h G e l l - M a n n ' s approach. I n regard t o t h e above
q u o t a t i o n , for example, a society characterized by fewer parts, less differentiated
parts, a n d fewer or simpler i n t e g r a t i v e mechanisms can c e r t a i n l y be described more
succinctly t h a n can a society w i t h more of these. Dominguez R u i n can s i m i l a r l y be
described m o r e briefly t h a n can t h e Anasazi Heritage Center. A t least one a n t h r o -
pologist a n t i c i p a t e d t h i s approach over 40 years ago. J u l i a n Steward p o i n t e d o u t
t h e q u a n t i t a t i v e contrast between t h e 3,000 t o 6,000 c u l t u r a l elements documented
b y early ethnographers a m o n g n a t i v e peoples o f western N o r t h A m e r i c a , and t h e
more t h a n 500,000 a r t i f a c t types landed by U.S. forces at Casablanca i n W o r l d W a r
I I (1955:81).
Y e t as G e l l - M a n n p o i n t s o u t , even t h i s conception ( w h i c h we m i g h t call com-
plexity as text) implies a p l e t h o r a o f difficulties. I f c o m p l e x i t y inheres o n l y i n de-
scriptions, t h e n i t is likely t o be context-dependent a n d subjective ( G e l l - M a n n
1994:33). Differences i n language, and i n i n d i v i d u a l or c u l t u r a l styles o f c o m m u n i -
c a t i o n , can lead t o descriptions o f different l e n g t h being given t o t h e same objective
phenomenon. I n t h e E u r o p e a n i n t e l l e c t u a l t r a d i t i o n , for example, where t h e style o f
e x p o s i t o r y prose is often e l l i p t i c a l (e.g., Spengler 1962; B o u r d i e u 1984), t h e l e n g t h
of system descriptions m a y be longer t h a n i n other l i t e r a r y t r a d i t i o n s . Presum-
ably, t h e n , comparisons o f c o m p l e x i t y should be based o n t h e shortest message
t h a t could describe a system. T h a t requires s t a n d a r d i z a t i o n of t e r m i n o l o g y and
language, a n d equal levels of knowledge and s k i l l a m o n g a l l communicants, t h i n g s
t h a t are o b v i o u s l y infeasible. Archaeologists, for example, can h a r d l y agree o n a
lexicon o f stone-tool t e r m i n o l o g y , let alone s t a n d a r d descriptions of social features.
Introduction 7

I n a famous essay, A l f r e d K r o e b e r a n d C l y d e K l u c k h o h n f o u n d a n o t o r i o u s level o f

d i v e r s i t y i n definitions o f t h e central concept o f a n t h r o p o l o g y : c u l t u r e (1952). A r -
chaeologists cannot agree o n t h e d e f i n i t i o n o f w h a t is an archaeological site ( T a i n t e r
1983).
G e l l - M a n n (1992, 1994) has analyzed i n d e t a i l t h e idea o f c o m p l e x i t y as de-
s c r i p t i o n , i n c l u d i n g such subtleties as crude complexity, a l g o r i t h m i c c o m p l e x i t y ,
a n d lengths o f schemata. Since t h i s m a t e r i a l is available t o readers w i s h i n g t o ex-
plore t h e t o p i c f u r t h e r , I w i l l t u r n t o some i m p l i c a t i o n s for archaeology. Despite
its s u b j e c t i v i t y , t h e n o t i o n of c o m p l e x i t y as t e x t offers a perspective o n archaeolog-
ical research t h a t p r a c t i t i o n e r s m a y find useful. Some of t h e i m p l i c a t i o n s of t h a t
perspective m e r i t b r i e f remarks.
T h e apparent c o m p l e x i t y o f past c u l t u r a l systems w i l l have m u c h t o do w i t h
standards o f fieldwork. I t is possible t h a t a M e s o p o t a m i a n t e l l excavated p o o r l y ( b y
t o d a y ' s standards) i n t h e nineteenth c e n t u r y could be described more s u c c i n c t l y
t h a n a pithouse village excavated w e l l today. T h e u r b a n society t h a t p r o d u c e d
t h e t e l l was u n d o u b t e d l y more complex. A s another example, our description o f t h e
c o m p l e x i t y o f a prehistoric land-use system w i l l depend g r e a t l y o n w h a t we consider
an archaeological deposit w o r t h y of being recorded ( T a i n t e r 1979, 1983; T a i n t e r a n d
Lucas 1983). Archaeological d a t a bases t h a t exclude low-density remains or isolated
artifacts w i l l a u t o m a t i c a l l y lead t o descriptions o f past l a n d uses t h a t are shorter
t h a n w o u l d be a p p r o p r i a t e .
T h e fact t h a t a m o r e complex society requires a longer description m a y be re-
l a t e d i n u n e x p e c t e d ways t o how archaeologists set t h e i r research priorities, how
t h e y allocate t i m e a n d other resources, and how t h e y d i s t r i b u t e t h e i r efforts a m o n g
topics o f study. I n areas such as t h e Southwest or the Eastern W o o d l a n d s , t h e
m a j o r i t y o f archaeologists seem a t t r a c t e d t o t h e periods o f sedentary a g r i c u l t u r a l
villages w h e n p o p u l a t i o n s were highest, cultures were most complex, t h e greatest
numbers o f sites were produced, and sites were most salient J 1 These periods ac- 9

c o r d i n g l y have t h e m o s t scientific l i t e r a t u r e . Fewer archaeologists specialize i n either

t h e preceding h u n t i n g a n d g a t h e r i n g periods ( P a l e o l n d i a n a n d A r c h a i c ) , or t h e pe-
r i o d after E u r o p e a n contact w h e n p o p u l a t i o n s declined. I n b o t h cases t h e c u l t u r a l
systems were, for t h e m o s t p a r t , simpler t h a n i n t h e i n t e r m e d i a t e periods, and sites
t e n d t o be fewer i n n u m b e r and less conspicuous. T h e level o f archaeological effort
t h a t is expended o n s t u d y i n g such simpler periods is suitable for c u l t u r a l systems
a n d t h e i r archaeological remains t h a t w i l l i n t h e end require shorter descriptions.
Phrased another way, Puebloan archaeology i n t h e Southwest n o t o n l y has m o r e
l i t e r a t u r e t h a n P a l e o l n d i a n , A r c h a i c , or A t h a b a s k a n archaeology, i t requires more

t l Salient archaeological sites are those that display the strongest patterning and that stand out
9

most clearly from background noise (Tainter and Plog 1994). T h e most salient archaeological
sites in the Southwestern United States are pueblos, and in the Midwest, burial, ceremonial, and
residential mounds.
8 J. A. Tainter

l i t e r a t u r e . W h a t e v e r t h e c r i t e r i a b y w h i c h archaeologists choose t h e i r research i n -

terests, those c r i t e r i a , at least i n these parts of N o r t h A m e r i c a , seem t o result i n a
d i s t r i b u t i o n of research effort t h a t is serendipitously a p p r o p r i a t e d ! 10

A l t h o u g h h u m a n societies of t h e last 12,000 years or so have seemed i n e x o r a b l y

t o increase i n c o m p l e x i t y , t h i s t r e n d is i n t e r r u p t e d occasionally b y episodes of sim-
p l i f i c a t i o n . W h e n m a j o r s i m p l i f i c a t i o n occurs over a short p e r i o d ( r o u g h l y 50 t o
100 years), i t is considered a collapse (Tainter 1988:4). Some authors, c i t i n g as-
pects o f c u l t u r a l c o n t i n u i t y across c o m m o n l y recognized collapses (such as those of
t h e W e s t e r n R o m a n E m p i r e or t h e southern L o w l a n d Classic M a y a ) , question t h e
concept. P a r t o f t h i s confusion arises from the different meanings assigned t o t h e
t e r m "collapse" ( w h i c h , i n different contexts, can mean such t h i n g s as t h e demise
of an e m p i r e , t h e consequence of a s t r u c t u r a l defect i n a bridge, or w h a t one does
at t h e e n d o f a difficult d a y ) . A n o t h e r p a r t of t h e confusion, t h o u g h , arises f r o m
the fact t h a t few social scientists a t t e m p t a c t u a l l y t o measure c o m p l e x i t y . T h e idea
of c o m p l e x i t y as t e x t provides b o t h a definition and a measure. B y w a y o f illus-
t r a t i o n , a colleague recently suggested t o me t h a t the c o m p l e x i t y o f t h e R o m a n
E m p i r e has been exaggerated relative t o the c o m p l e x i t y of the G e r m a n i c k i n g d o m s
t h a t succeeded i t i n western Europe. I f one considers the volumes of t e x t describing
these systems, such a n o t i o n seems spurious. T h e l i t e r a t u r e o n t h e collapse of t h e
R o m a n E m p i r e began six centuries before the event itself (Polybius 1979), a n d has
scarcely k n o w n an idle p e r i o d since (Tainter 1988, 1994b). A s for t h e l i t e r a t u r e o n
M e r o v i n g i a n G a u l or V i s i g o t h i c Spain, the D a r k Ages are called t h a t w i t h good
reason. W h i l e t h e relative sizes of the literatures on these systems does n o t prove
t h a t t h e R o m a n E m p i r e was more complex, t ! i t does suggest t h a t a system de-
11

s c r i p t i o n o f R o m e requires more intensive scholarly effort t h a n do descriptions of

early p o s t - R o m a n societies. I t also suggests approaches t o resolving t h e dispute.
A s i m i l a r approach can be applied i n the Southwest. Were there prehistoric
Southwestern societies t h a t were more complex t h a n the historic Pueblos? H o w
complex was t h e Chacoan system at A . D . 1050 vs. 1200 (i.e., pre- a n d post-collapse)?
H o w does c o n t e m p o r a r y P i m a n society differ i n c o m p l e x i t y f r o m t h a t of t h e H o -
hokam? W h i l e there are no definitive answers t o such questions, insight i n t o t h e
n a t u r e o f these issues is gained merely by asking how long a complete d e s c r i p t i o n
of each system w o u l d need t o be. E v e n an i n t u i t i v e response w o u l d i m p r o v e t h e
q u a l i t y o f some debates i n Southwestern archaeology.

[ ] T h i s subjective impression may seem to be contradicted by the relative paucity of archaeologists

10

practicing Euroamerican archaeology in North America. T h e resolution of this contradiction may

lie in the fact that Euroamerican culture is already well known through historical records and our
everyday experiences.
t 1 It is possible that the relative sizes of these literatures reflect scholarly aversion to early Me-
11

dieval Europe, but that seems unlikely.

Introduction 9

DISTINCTIVENESS OF CULTURAL COMPLEXITY

T h e p o s t - W o r l d W a r I I l i t e r a t u r e o n systems t h e o r y and i n f o r m a t i o n t h e o r y (e.g.,
Weaver 1949; Shannon 1949; Bertalanffy 1968; G a t l i n 1972) i n some ways a n t i c i -
p a t e d t o d a y ' s interest i n complex adaptive systems. One of the points established
i n t h i s l i t e r a t u r e is t h a t l i v i n g systems are characterized b y s t r u c t u r a l a n d p r o -
cessual regularities (e.g., M i l l e r 1965, 1978). These regularities make i t possible t o
generalize a b o u t c o m p l e x adaptive systems. Yet inevitably, there w i l l always be
specialists w h o feel t h a t t h e i r t y p e of complex adaptive system is unique enough
t o m e r i t special consideration. A n t h r o p o l o g i s t s are c e r t a i n l y no exception t o t h i s .
N o t w i t h s t a n d i n g t h i s tendency t o scientific niche separation, there are indeed as-
pects o f c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y t h a t m e r i t special discussion. T h e first o f these, t h e
cost of complexity, m a y be applicable t o a l l l i v i n g systems, t h o u g h n o t i n q u i t e t h e
same ways. T h e second, the meaning of complexity, is, as far as we know, exclusively
human.
I n t h e w o r l d o f complex adaptive systems there is, t o use a colloquial expression,
no free l u n c h . C o m p l e x i t y always has an energy cost. As the c o m p l e x i t y of an
a d a p t i v e system increases, so also does the q u a n t i t y ! ! of energy needed t o create,
12

m a i n t a i n , a n d replace t h e system's components, t o s u p p o r t t h e i r interactions, a n d

t o regulate t h e i r behavior. Leslie W h i t e ' s ideas o n t h e relationship of energy capture
t o t h e e v o l u t i o n o f c u l t u r e (1949:363-393) made i t clear t h a t energy a n d c u l t u r a l
c o m p l e x i t y are opposite sides o f a coin. He once estimated t h a t a c u l t u r a l system
a c t i v a t e d p r i m a r i l y b y h u m a n energy can generate o n l y a b o u t 1/20 horsepower per
c a p i t a per year ( W h i t e 1949:369, 1959:41-42). T h a t is, moreover, a l l t h e energy
t h a t such a system requires. I n societies today, 1/20 horsepower per c a p i t a suffices
o n l y for a fleeting m o m e n t of i n d u s t r i a l life. C o m p l e x i t y costs.
A c o m p l e x a d a p t i v e system, as characterized b y G e l l - M a n n , " . . .acquires i n -
f o r m a t i o n a b o u t its e n v i r o n m e n t and its o w n i n t e r a c t i o n w i t h t h a t e n v i r o n m e n t ,
condensing those regularities i n t o a k i n d of 'schema' or m o d e l , and a c t i n g i n t h e real
w o r l d o n t h e basis of t h a t schema" (1994:17). H u m a n c o g n i t i o n and c u l t u r e clearly
qualify as c o m p l e x adaptive systems ( a l t h o u g h not a l l anthropologists choose t o
t r e a t t h e m as such). I n t h e e v o l u t i o n o f cultures as adaptive systems, c o m p l e x i t y
has been a p r i m a r y p r o b l e m - s o l v i n g t o o l . There is m u c h l i t e r a t u r e , i n c l u d i n g t h e
papers i n t h i s v o l u m e , t o show t h a t the risks a n d stresses t h a t h u m a n societies have
faced have often been resolved b y becoming more complex. W h e t h e r t h i s has been
i n t h e r e a l m o f technology, economics, settlement, sociopolitical o r g a n i z a t i o n , or
i n f o r m a t i o n processing, as h u m a n p o p u l a t i o n s have found e x i s t i n g arrangements at
any t i m e u n s u i t a b l e , t h e s o l u t i o n has been t o increase c o m p l e x i t y i n one or more of
these dimensions ( T a i n t e r 1988, 1995a). T h e development o f increasingly complex
m i l i t a r y t e c h n o l o g y a n d o r g a n i z a t i o n provides a p a r t i c u l a r l y clear example of t h i s

t l Requirements for high quality energy may increase as well. For the concept of energy quality
12

(the ability of different kinds of energy to support useful work), see Hall, Cleveland, and Kaufmann
(1992:55-56).
10 J. A. Tainter

( T a i n t e r 1992), b u t there are others i n the areas o f subsistence (Boserup 1965; C l a r k

a n d H a s w e l l 1966; A s c h , F o r d , and Asch 1972; Cohen 1977), s o c i o p o l i t i c a l organi-
z a t i o n ( T a i n t e r 1988, 1994b), a n d i n f o r m a t i o n processing ( M a c h l u p 1962; Rescher
1978, 1980; R o s t o w 1980; T a i n t e r 1988, 1995a). I t is reasonable t o suggest t h a t
t h e success o f humans as a species is a t t r i b u t a b l e n o t o n l y t o large a n d r i c h l y net-
w o r k e d brains, u p r i g h t posture, a n d opposable t h u m b s , b u t also t o t h e fact t h a t
these a t t r i b u t e s allow c u l t u r a l systems r a p i d l y t o become more complex.
T h e development of c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y is an economic process: c o m p l e x i t y
levies costs a n d yields benefits. N o d o u b t t h i s is t r u e of a l l complex adaptive sys-
tems. E v e r y s t r u c t u r e a n d process i n an organism, for example, has a m e t a b o l i c cost.
A n y increase i n t h e c o m p l e x i t y o f a language imposes steeper learning requirements
a n d a greater chance o f m i s c o m m u n i c a t i o n .
I f t h e development o f c o m p l e x i t y is an economic process, t h e n t h e appearance
of more c o m p l e x c u l t u r a l behavior m u s t always i m p l y a benefit/cost c a l c u l a t i o n .
Such calculations have r a r e l y been e x p l i c i t i n h u m a n h i s t o r y ( t h o u g h people seem
i n t u i t i v e l y t o u n d e r s t a n d t h e concept), a n d i n hierarchical societies those w h o ben-
efit f r o m c o m p l e x i t y are often not those w h o must bear its costs. Nevertheless, t h e
benefit/cost r a t i o t o investment i n c o m p l e x i t y has powerfully influenced c u l t u r a l
e v o l u t i o n , a n d t h e course of h u m a n h i s t o r y ( T a i n t e r 1988, 1994a, 1994b).
T h e fact t h a t c o m p l e x i t y is a benefit/cost e q u a t i o n influences c u l t u r a l e v o l u t i o n
i n at least t w o m a j o r ways. T h e first is t h a t t h e cost o f becoming more c o m p l e x must
always have t e n d e d t o i n h i b i t t h e development o f c u l t u r a l complexity. I f people must
w o r k harder t o s u p p o r t complex i n s t i t u t i o n s ( T a i n t e r 1994a), w h y do so unless there
is a clear need or benefit? T h i s simple p o i n t clarifies m a j o r riddles i n our history.
For example, i t helps us t o u n d e r s t a n d why, a l t h o u g h our e v o l u t i o n as a species
extends over several m i l l i o n years, t h e most complex societies—states—have existed
for o n l y a b o u t five m i l l e n n i a . T h e r e is no latent or inherent tendency t o c u l t u r a l
c o m p l e x i t y , as m a n y authors ( a n d m u c h o f t h e p u b l i c ) have m i s t a k e n l y assumed.
C o m p l e x i t y is a p r o b l e m - s o l v i n g response.
T h e economic n a t u r e o f c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y influences h u m a n h i s t o r y i n a sec-
o n d way: investment i n increasing c o m p l e x i t y can reach t h e p o i n t o f d i m i n i s h i n g
r e t u r n s . D e v e l o p i n g costly i n s t i t u t i o n s is suitable as long as there are stable or
increasing r e t u r n s t o t h e investment. U l t i m a t e l y , t h o u g h , as inexpensive techno-
logical or o r g a n i z a t i o n a l solutions are exhausted, increasing c o m p l e x i t y reaches t h e
p o i n t o f d e c l i n i n g m a r g i n a l r e t u r n s . B e y o n d t h i s p o i n t g r o w i n g more complex yields
progressively lower benefits per u n i t of investment ( t h a t is, the m a r g i n a l u t i l i t y o f
further c o m p l e x i t y declines). C o m p l e x societies t h a t have reached t h i s p o i n t have
usually h a d three o p t i o n s : i m p o v e r i s h t h e s u p p o r t p o p u l a t i o n , acquire new energy
subsidies t o pay for greater c o m p l e x i t y (often accomplished i n ancient societies
b y e x p a n d i n g t e r r i t o r i a l l y ) , or collapse. These options are n o t m u t u a l l y exclusive:
often t h e first a n d second lead u l t i m a t e l y t o t h e t h i r d ( T a i n t e r 1988).
T h e p r o b l e m o f d i m i n i s h i n g returns t o c o m p l e x i t y is well i l l u s t r a t e d b y t h e
development a n d collapse o f t h e Western R o m a n E m p i r e . W h e n confronted w i t h
a m i l i t a r y crisis, w h i c h happened increasingly over t i m e , R o m a n E m p e r o r s often
Introduction 11

f o u n d t h e m o n e y t o respond by debasing t h e silver currency and seeking ways t o

raise new funds. W h e n m i l i t a r y crises became constant i n t h e t h i r d c e n t u r y A . D . , t h e
E m p e r o r s d o u b l e d t h e size o f t h e a r m y a n d increased b o t h t h e size a n d c o m p l e x i t y of
t h e government. T o pay for t h i s , masses o f worthless coins were produced, supplies
were commandeered f r o m peasants, and the level o f t a x a t i o n was made even more
oppressive. L a n d s a n d p o p u l a t i o n were surveyed across t h e empire and assessed
for taxes. C o m m u n i t i e s were held c o r p o r a t e l y liable for any u n p a i d amounts. A s
overtaxed peasants w e n t h u n g r y or sold t h e i r c h i l d r e n i n t o slavery, massive f o r t i f i -
cations were b u i l t across t h e empire, t h e size o f t h e bureaucracy doubled, p r o v i n c i a l
a d m i n i s t r a t i o n was made more complex, large subsidies i n gold were p a i d t o Ger-
m a n t r i b e s , a n d new i m p e r i a l cities and courts were established. A s taxes rose,
m a r g i n a l lands were abandoned and p o p u l a t i o n declined: peasants c o u l d no longer
s u p p o r t large families. T o avoid now-oppressive civic obligations, t h e w e a l t h y fled
f r o m cities t o establish self-sufficient r u r a l estates. U l t i m a t e l y , t o escape t a x a t i o n ,
peasants v o l u n t a r i l y entered i n t o feudal relationships w i t h these l a n d holders. A
few w e a l t h y families came t o o w n m u c h o f t h e l a n d i n t h e western empire, a n d
were able t o defy t h e i m p e r i a l government. T h e empire came t o sustain itself b y
c o n s u m i n g i t s c a p i t a l resources: p r o d u c i n g lands and peasant p o p u l a t i o n . Collapse
was i n e v i t a b l e (Jones 1964, 1974; T a i n t e r 1988, 1994b). T h e R o m a n E m p i r e pro-
vides perhaps h i s t o r y ' s best-documented example of how increasing c o m p l e x i t y t o
resolve problems leads t o higher costs, d i m i n i s h i n g returns, alienation of a s u p p o r t
p o p u l a t i o n , economic weakness, a n d collapse (Figure 2).
T h e r e is another aspect o f c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y t h a t is u n i q u e l y h u m a n : people
give meaning to complexity. W e assign value t o i t . People care about h o w complex
t h e i r lives are, a n d w h e t h e r t h e i r government is w o r t h the cost. N o other c o m p l e x
a d a p t i v e system has t h i s characteristic. N e i t h e r D a r w i n ' s finches, nor chimpanzees,
nor, so far as we k n o w , any other l i v i n g system constructs symbols r e g a r d i n g t h e
c o m p l e x i t y o f its behavior. W e are t h e o n l y species t h a t can increase t h e c o m p l e x i t y
of its behavior, a n d t h e n wonder i f we were r i g h t t o do so.
A s a s i m p l e i l l u s t r a t i o n o f t h i s p o i n t , consider the m e a n i n g o f c o m p l e x i t y i n a
Chinese banquet. T h e q u a n t i t y , diversity, and c o m p l e x i t y of t h e dishes, and how
t h e y are presented, are used n o t o n l y t o provide calories t o t h e guests, b u t also
t o convey a v a r i e t y o f c u l t u r a l meanings. These include t h e status o f t h e host, t h e
i m p o r t a n c e o f t h e guests, a n d t h e significance o f the occasion. O f course t h e use of
c o m p l e x i t y i n t h i s w a y is meaningful largely because t h e cost of t h e banquet varies
w i t h its c o m p l e x i t y .
T h e power o f o u r a b i l i t y t o give meaning t o c o m p l e x i t y should never be u n -
derestimated. T h e difference between an approach t h a t incorporates t h i s fact a n d
one t h a t ignores i t is at least as great as t h e difference between L a m a r c k i a n
a n d M e n d e l i a n inheritance. M a n y aspects o f our behavior can be characterized as
complexity-averse. I n science, the P r i n c i p l e of Occam's Razor has e n d u r i n g appeal
because i t states clearly t h a t s i m p l i c i t y i n e x p l a n a t i o n is preferable t o c o m p l e x i t y .
T h e so-called " c o m p l e x i t y o f m o d e r n life" is a regular c o m p l a i n t i n p u b l i c discourse.
12 J. A. Tainter

Cl C2 C3

Level of Complexity

FIGURE 2 The Marginal Return to Investment in Complexity (after Tainter 1988:119).

The area on the curve beyond B1,C1 marks a region of diminishing returns to
complexity, and associated economic and political problems. At B1,C3 the benefits
of social and political organization have declined to those available at lower levels of
complexity and expenditure. For a society in such a condition collapse is imminent.

M u c h of t h e c u r r e n t p o p u l a r discontent w i t h government stems from t h e fact t h a t

government adds c o m p l e x i t y t o people's lives, t h r o u g h behavioral r e g u l a t i o n a n d
increases i n t h e n u m b e r a n d diversity o f activities i n w h i c h people m u s t engage.
So s t r o n g is t h e aversion t o h i e r a r c h i c a l l y imposed c o m p l e x i t y t h a t p o l i t i c i a n s i n
our day successfully base t h e i r careers o n e x p l o i t i n g t h e discontent i t creates, and
j o u r n a l i s t s w i n prizes for exposing i t .
R e c e n t l y I h a d an o p p o r t u n i t y t o observe g o v e r n m e n t - r u n e n v i r o n m e n t a l educa-
t i o n projects i n t r a d i t i o n a l villages i n southern M a l i . These efforts, a n d t h e reaction
t o t h e m , exemplified t h e topics o f t h i s chapter: increasing complexity, increasing
costliness o f complexity, g i v i n g m e a n i n g t o complexity, and aversion t o complexity.
T h e e d u c a t i o n a l endeavors concerned such t h i n g s as firewood use, soil p r o d u c t i v -
ity, a n d g a t h e r i n g honey. T h e e d u c a t i o n is done i n t h e context of t r a d i t i o n a l types
of village gatherings ( a l t h o u g h called b y government officials) or by professional
a c t i n g t r o u p e s ( F i g u r e 3). T h e basic message is t h a t villagers should do t h i n g s
t o enhance conservation. These include p l a n t i n g trees, and using i m p r o v e d types
of beehives a n d stoves. Yet t o do these t h i n g s increases t h e c o m p l e x i t y a n d costliness
Introduction 13

FIGURE 3 Exhortations to Complexity: Environmental Education in Southern Mali.

Photograph by the author.

of t h e v i l l a g e r s ' lives. A villager w h o plants a tree must, w h e n i t is m a t u r e , o b t a i n

a government p e r m i t t o c u t i t d o w n . T h i s requires money, w h i c h is always h a r d t o
come by, a n d a t r i p t o t h e nearest forestry official. T o o b t a i n an i m p r o v e d beehive
t h e v i l l a g e r m u s t t r a v e l t o t h e c a p i t a l , B a m a k o , a n d have s t i l l more money. N o t sur-
prisingly, w h i l e villagers enjoy the gatherings a n d listen p o l i t e l y t o t h e conservation
message, t h e y do n o t seem t o r u s h t o adopt the new technologies.
D e v e l o p m e n t workers, a n d indeed most outsiders, w o u l d ascribe t h i s t o conser-
v a t i s m . M a l i a n s , like a l l people, are indeed e m o t i o n a l l y attached t o t r a d i t i o n a l ways
of d o i n g t h i n g s , a n d change is stressful. U n d o u b t e d l y there is some o f t h i s i n any
resistance t o change. T h e r e is another aspect t o the m a t t e r , t h o u g h : the t r a d i t i o n a l
ways are simpler a n d less expensive. E v e n i n the absence of e m o t i o n a l a t t a c h m e n t ,
t h i s w o u l d suffice t o e x p l a i n w h y new technologies are not embraced.
M a l i a n s give m e a n i n g t o c o m p l e x i t y i n d a i l y social relations. A t r u r a l markets,
for example, government officials sit n e x t t o cartoonlike b i l l b o a r d s t h a t i l l u s t r a t e
14 J. A. Tainter

how t h e government recommends people manage t h e i r lives. (Since M a l i has a

l i t e r a c y rate o f a b o u t t e n percent, t h e messages are conveyed t h r o u g h drawings,
w h i c h t h e government official elaborates u p o n t o anyone w h o approaches.) One
b i l l b o a r d exhorts people t o conserve t h e i r flocks o f chickens: sell eggs a n d keep y o u r
l a y i n g hens. Villagers respond w i t h statements like "Perhaps [the m a n depicted i n
t h e drawings] h a d t o sell his chickens t o b u y medicine for a sick relative." I n t h i s
answer, t h e c o m p l e x i t y o f social relations is employed t o deny t h e government's
c l a i m t o superior knowledge a n d t o resist t h e government's e x h o r t a t i o n s . I n B a m a k o
itself, a l t h o u g h residents always have r u r a l k i n w h o can s u p p l y m u c h o f t h e i r needs,
t h e y often deploy t h e c o m p l e x i t y of a "Western" style of l i v i n g t o signify t h e i r
" m o d e r n i t y . " T h i s extends even t o how m a n y wives and c h i l d r e n a m a n wishes t o
h a v e J l M a l i a n s can either adopt or deny c o m p l e x i t y t o indicate t h e i r views o f
13

M a l i ' s desired f u t u r e (Western or t r a d i t i o n a l ) and t o c l a i m a place i n t h i s social

order.
F u r t h e r c o m p l i c a t i n g t h e m a t t e r is t h e fact t h a t most o f t h i s c o m p l e x i t y —
government i n s t r u c t o r s , education, new technologies, u r b a n life—is s u p p o r t e d b y
funds f r o m e x t r a t e r r i t o r i a l donors. A s M a l i adopts increasing c o m p l e x i t y i t m u s t i n -
crease i t s i n v o l v e m e n t w i t h e x t e r n a l financiers, w h o w i l l seek t o channel t h e nation's
policies. I n t h e case o f a state like M a l i , p a r t o f t h e price o f financing c o m p l e x i t y is
s t i l l m o r e complexity.
C u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y thus shows some interesting paradoxes. I t is b o t h self-
reinforcing a n d self-inhibiting. C o m p l e x i t y reinforces itself t h r o u g h several mecha-
nisms, such as t h e following.

A. A s t h e c o m p l e x i t y o f one p a r t o f a c u l t u r a l system increases (e.g., technical spe-

c i a l i z a t i o n ) , other parts m a y also need t o become more complex (e.g., economic
a n d social i n t e g r a t i o n ) (e.g., Olson 1982; T a i n t e r 1988).

B. E c o n o m i c development m a y be needed t o pay t h e cost o f higher complexity.

C. Since c o m p l e x i t y m a y confer m i l i t a r y advantages ( T a i n t e r 1992), t h e neighbors

o f a m o r e c o m p l e x society m a y need t o adapt b y increasing t h e i r o w n c o m p l e x i t y
t o a s i m i l a r level.

I n t h e c o n t r a r y d i r e c t i o n , c o m p l e x i t y is i n h i b i t e d b y its cost and b y c o m p l e x i t y

aversion. T h e l a t t e r m a y largely be a f u n c t i o n o f cost.

t l Unfortunately I was not able to talk to Malian women about these matters. Not as many of
13

them speak French as do men, and attempts to approach them would have been misunderstood.
It is interesting, however, that during my first visit (October-November 1992) our translator
published the first Western-style "women's magazine" to appear in Mali. Both the publishing and
the reading of such a magazine signify "modernity," yet acquiring literacy and the money to buy
such a magazine adds complexity to people's lives.
Introduction 15

T h e n e g o t i a t i o n of these conflicting forces creates tension i n evolving c o m p l e x

societies.t l T h i s tension can be seen i n t h e fact t h a t w h i l e we value complex so-
14

cieties ( c a l l i n g t h e m "civilizations" i n p o p u l a r discourse), people prefer n o t t o pay

t h e cost o f c o m p l e x i t y , a n d seek t o m i n i m i z e i t i n t h e i r o w n lives. C u l t u r a l com-
p l e x i t y is q u a l i t a t i v e l y different f r o m c o m p l e x i t y i n other kinds o f l i v i n g systems.
C u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y generates consciousness of itself, and t h i s consciousness i n t u r n
modifies c o m p l e x i t y . C o m p a r e d t o other kinds o f systems, we m a y find t h a t c u l t u r a l
c o m p l e x i t y is (for a lack o f a b e t t e r t e r m ) more complex.

EVOLVING COMPLEXITY IN PREHISTORIC SOUTHWESTERN

SOCIETIES
C u l t u r a l e v o l u t i o n c u l t u r a l complexity, change i n (i.e., changes i n c u l t u r a l complex-
i t y ) responds t o a n u m b e r of s t i m u l i . T h e papers i n t h i s v o l u m e focus o n one o f
these: t h e need t o g a i n adequate energy from the n a t u r a l e n v i r o n m e n t . T h i s is t h e
t o p i c t h e w o r k s h o p p a r t i c i p a n t s were charged t o address, and t h e y were selected
for h a v i n g done significant research o n t h e m a t t e r . O t h e r scholars emphasize differ-
ent s t i m u l i for e v o l v i n g complexity. T h e self-reinforcing and self-inhibiting n a t u r e
o f c u l t u r a l c o m p l e x i t y have j u s t been discussed. I n hierarchical societies, conflict
between rulers a n d r u l e d has m u c h t o do w i t h w h e t h e r c o m p l e x i t y changes, a n d i n
w h a t d i r e c t i o n . C o m p l e x i t y m a y increase f r o m either t r a d e or c o m p e t i t i o n a m o n g
equivalent societies, w h i c h Renfrew has labeled "peer polities" (1982, 1986; see also
Price 1977; T a i n t e r 1988, 1992). These are a l l v a l i d perspectives, a n d s h o u l d be
components o f a general m o d e l . I n t h e a r i d Southwest, t h o u g h , archaeologists have
l o n g f o u n d strategies o f s u r v i v a l a c o m p e l l i n g t o p i c .
I n her c o n c l u d i n g assessment, L i n d a C o r d e l l p o i n t s o u t t h a t definitions o f stress
or risk are absent f r o m m a n y papers, a n d o p e r a t i o n a l l y defined i n others. M a r g a r e t
Nelson is perhaps t h e most e x p l i c i t i n addressing issues of definition. I t is appro-
p r i a t e t o consider t h e m a t t e r here. I n t h e context o f a d a p t a t i o n t o t h e n a t u r a l
e n v i r o n m e n t , I consider stress t o be t h e consequences t h a t arise w h e n t h e energy
needs o f a h u m a n p o p u l a t i o n are n o t met. T h e t e r m "energy needs" i n t h i s case
includes t h e n u t r i e n t s people must consume, energy for other physical needs (such
as c o o k i n g a n d h e a t i n g ) , a n d energy required t o fund extrasomatic aspects o f t h e
c u l t u r a l system (e.g., t r a d e , ceremonies, prestige goods). Risk is t h e l i k e l i h o o d t h a t
energy needs w i l l n o t be m e t , I l a n d can be considered a set of p r o b a b i l i t y d i s t r i b u -
15

t i o n s covering stresses o f different d u r a t i o n s a n d degrees of intensity. S h o r t - d u r a t i o n

t l l t did so in prehistory as well. Alden Hays (1981) has suggested that contacts with Mesoamer-
14

icans could have led to factionalism in Puebloan societies.

( J Bruce Winterhalder's conception of risk is along similar lines (1990:67), and is adopted by
15

Nelson (this volume).

16 J. A. Tainter

or m i l d stress is a priori more likely t h a n l o n g - d u r a t i o n or severe stress. Conceived

t h i s way, there obviously is no simple p o i n t at w h i c h risk begins or stress sets i n .
B o t h are continuous d i s t r i b u t i o n s , and i t is meaningful t o t a l k o n l y of degrees of
stress a n d risk. Moreover, a risk t h a t generates stress at one t i m e , b u t t o w h i c h t h e
c u l t u r a l system responds, m a y thereafter cease t o be risky. A n example w o u l d be
the risk o f s t a r v a t i o n i n a late w i n t e r / e a r l y s p r i n g lean season w h i c h is ameliorated
b y t h e development o f storage technologies or exchange ties.
T h e papers i n t h i s v o l u m e cover a v a r i e t y of topics. T h e s t u d y by Jeffrey Dean is
f u n d a m e n t a l t o a l l o f t h e others. C o n t i n u i n g his w o r k o n t h e effects o f low-frequency
( > 25 years) a n d high-frequency ( < 2 5 years) e n v i r o n m e n t a l fluctuations, he traces
t h e d i s t r i b u t i o n o f u n i m o d a l and b i m o d a l annual p r e c i p i t a t i o n p a t t e r n s across t h e
Southwest. T h e p a t t e r n s r e m a i n t h e same for about 1500 years, a p e r i o d long enough
for c u l t u r a l m e m o r y no longer t o r e t a i n techniques for coping w i t h departures f r o m
t h e p a t t e r n (see G u n n 1994). T h e d i s t r i b u t i o n breaks d o w n between A . D . 1250 and
1450, d u r i n g w h i c h t i m e there is no simple geographical p a t t e r n . T h i s event came at
t h e end of a p e r i o d of p o p u l a t i o n expansion ( G u m e r m a n and G e l l - M a n n 1994a: 2 0 -
22), a n d coincides i n t i m e w i t h one of the major, unexplained facts of Southwestern
p r e h i s t o r y : t h e apparent abandonment of the Four Corners region a n d large parts
of t h e uplands o f A r i z o n a a n d N e w M e x i c o .
P a u l M i n n i s ' s paper should also be read as background t o those t h a t follow.
M i n n i s ' s t o p i c concerns responses t o food acquisition problems, and the sequence
i n w h i c h different responses m i g h t be t r i e d . He employs a scheme developed by
Halstead a n d O'Shea (1989), w h o classify responses i n t o m o b i l i t y , diversification,
physical storage, a n d exchange. M i n n i s suggests t h a t responses t h a t are less costly
a n d m o r e reversible w i l l be employed before responses w i t h o u t these qualities. I m -
p o r t a n t l y , he proposes t h a t social relations provide an effective vehicle for respond-
i n g t o t h e most serious food p r o v i s i o n i n g problems, b u t t h e i r cost i n reciprocal
obligations is h i g h .
K a t h e r i n e S p i e l m a n n a n d E r i c A n g s t a d t - L e t o consider the consequences o f spe-
cific n u t r i e n t deficiencies. Strategies for countering shortfalls i n meat include trade,
t u r k e y husbandry, and the use o f plants w i t h some of the n u t r i e n t s t h a t meat pro-
vides. T r a d e i n m e a t is n o t w e l l documented i n most areas. Turkeys d i d become an
i m p o r t a n t source o f p r o t e i n i n some times and places. Except for beans, there is no
evidence for great emphasis on plants w i t h n u t r i e n t s complementary t o those found
i n maize. A lack o f adequate a n i m a l p r o t e i n m a y have been a recurrent source of
stress o n Puebloans.
Technological change is a p r i m a r y response t o a need for subsistence i n t e n -
sification. M a r g a r e t Nelson provides perhaps t h e archaeological l i t e r a t u r e ' s best
d e s c r i p t i o n o f how technological o r g a n i z a t i o n responds t o subsistence stress. Possi-
ble responses include subsistence specialization, diversification, and p o o l i n g of risk.
Designing technology t o respond t o risk is an appropriate strategy, b u t has costs.
For example, designing a projectile p o i n t t o stay i n an a n i m a l m a y cost t h e p o i n t
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thickened triradiate rod of specialised cuticle (Fig. 62); these fins,
however, do not run far down the body. As a rule the cuticle is quite
smooth, but it may be ringed, as in Filaria laticaudata and in F.
denticulata; and the rings may bear backwardly-projecting teeth.

The skin of Nematodes consists of three layers—(i.) the above-

mentioned cuticle, which is presumably secreted by (ii.) the sub-
cuticle or epidermis which underlies it; the latter surrounds in its turn
(iii.) the muscular layer.

The nature of the sub-cuticle is one of the debateable points in the

morphology of the Nematoda. No cell outlines have been detected in
it, although nuclei are scattered through it; it is in fact a syncytium, or
protoplasmic mass in which cell limits cannot be distinguished. Many
of the cells forming it have broken down into fibrils, and these form a
close meshwork, which is occasionally specialised, as, for instance,
round the nerve-cords. Along the median dorsal and ventral lines,
and along the lateral lines, this tissue is heaped up in such a way as
to divide the enclosed muscle-cells into four quadrants. These
thickenings surround dorsally and ventrally a specialised nerve-cord,
and laterally the excretory canals.

According to Jammes[155] this lack of differentiation in the sub-

cuticular layer is caused by the early appearance of the cuticle,
which he thinks is necessitated, at any rate in many of the parasitic
forms, by the action which the digestive juices of the host would
have on the otherwise unprotected body-wall.
 Fig. 62.—A transverse section through the body of Ascaris transfuga
Rud., in the region of the oesophagus: a, the muscular
oesophagus with its triradiate lumen; b, the cuticle; c, the sub-
cuticle; d, the muscular layer; e, the lateral nerves running in the
lateral line; f, the excretory canal; g, the dorsal, and h, the ventral
nerve; i, the triradiate rod in the fin.

The nervous system, according to the same writer, is of the same

nature as this sub-cuticular tissue, only it is more differentiated, or
perhaps we should say it has retained more of the primitive cellular
character of the embryonic tissue. The fibres of the sub-cuticular
tissue are closely connected with the fibrils which compose the
spongioplasm (Fig. 64, d) of the muscles,[156] and form also the
sheaths of the various nerves; in fact the passage of these fibrils into
the nerves is so gradual that it is impossible to make any separation
between them.

The Nervous System.—The central organ of the nervous system is

the circumoesophageal ring which surrounds the pharynx, close to
the anterior end of the body, in A. megalocephala 1½ to 2 mm.
behind the mouth.[157] Ganglion cells are found in the ring, but they
are not numerous, and are chiefly aggregated round the points of
origin of the nerves.

Six short nerves, three on each side of the median line, run forward
from the ring, a pair of these ending in each of the three papillae
which surround the mouth.

Behind, the nerve-ring gives off six main nerve trunks, of which the
dorsal and ventral nerves are usually the largest. These run in the
median dorsal and ventral thickenings of the sub-cuticular tissue,
and are connected one with another by numerous fine lateral
branches running through the sub-cuticle.
 Fig. 63.—Diagram of the nervous system at the two ends of the body in
Ascaris megalocephala Cloq., ♂ . (After Hesse.) a,
Circumoesophageal nerve-ring; b, opening of excretory ducts; c,
dorsal nerve; d, dorso-lateral nerve; e, ventro-lateral nerve
becoming the bursal nerve posteriorly; f, the ventral nerve; g,
cloacal opening; h, sub-cuticular nerves running from c to f; k,
spicules.

The lateral nerves, which consist of two or four bundles, one or two
lying dorsal and one or two ventral to each excretory canal, have a
double origin. The dorsal branches arise directly from the nerve-ring,
and at their point of origin there is a considerable accumulation of
ganglion cells, from which two commissures on each side run into
the ventral nerve (Fig. 63, f). The ventral branches arise from the
ventral nerve-cord immediately in front of the excretory pore. At the
posterior end the lateral nerves pass into the two branches into
which the ventral nerve divides. Just before the point where the
ventral nerve splits it swells out into an anal ganglion situated just in
front of the anus. In the male[158] this anal ganglion gives off two
lateral nerves which pass round the cloaca and form a ring, and in
this sex the ventro-lateral nerve, which is much strengthened by
fibres from the ventral nerve, and has received, owing to the
mistaken impression that it was a special nervus recurrens, the
name of the "bursal nerve," gives off numerous branches to the
sense papillae which are found in this region of the body and on the
tail. The arrangement of these parts is shown in Fig. 63.

Sense organs are but poorly developed in the Nematoda, as is usual

in animals which are, as a rule, either parasitic or live underground.
Eyes, consisting of masses of dark pigment with or without a lens,
occur in the neighbourhood of the circumoesophageal nerve-ring in
some free-living forms. Leuckart described as possible auditory
organs certain giant-cells lying near the orifice of the excretory ducts.
Later research has shown these cells to have some phagocytic
action on the contents of the body-cavity. The chief sense organs are
the papillae, of which in A. megalocephala there are two kinds, the
lip papillae being distinguished from the genital papillae by the fact
that the nerve supplying them ends in a fine point and pierces the
cuticle in the former case, whilst in the latter it swells out into an
"end-organ," which is always covered by a layer of cuticle, though
sometimes by a very thin one.

Muscular System.—The muscular system is one of the most

characteristic features of the Nematoda, both as regards the
histology of the muscle-cells and the way in which the cells are
arranged.

Each muscle-cell is of considerable size, and is of the shape of a

somewhat flattened spindle produced into a process near the middle.
Each end of the spindle cell is said to be continuous with the fibrils of
the sub-cuticular layer.[159] The muscle-cell consists of two portions,
a contractile part which lies next the sub-cuticle, and which usually,
to some extent, wraps round the second or medullary half. The latter
consists of a fibrillar spongioplasm, in the meshes of which lies a
clear structureless hyaloplasm. The nucleus always lies in the
medullary half.

The contractile portion consists of a number of columns, very

regularly arranged in two rows and close together, but allowing
sufficient space between adjacent columns for fibrils of the
spongioplasm to penetrate; and these become continuous with the
fibrils of the sub-cuticle, which is thus intimately connected with both
nervous and muscular systems.

The medullary portion of the cell varies greatly in size; it may stretch
far into the body-cavity, which may be thereby almost occluded, or it
may be flattened out, leaving a large space around the alimentary
canal. At one point, usually about its middle, it is produced into a
process, which bends inwards towards the dorsal or ventral nerve-
cord, and by means of this process the muscle receives its nerve
supply.

In most Nematodes there are numerous muscle-cells to be seen in

any transverse section, forming a layer within the sub-cuticle, and
broken up into four quadrants (Fig. 62) by the projection of the
dorsal, ventral, and lateral thickenings of the sub-cuticular tissue. In
some genera, however, such as Oxyuris, Strongylus, Pelodera,
Leptodera, etc., there are but eight muscle-cells in a row, two in each
quadrant. Such genera are classed together by Schneider,[160] and
termed Meromyarii (vide p. 137).

Fig. 64.—A, transverse section through the centre of a muscle-cell; B,

the same through a nerve fibre showing the sub-cuticular fibres
running into the sheath. (After Rohde.) a, Cuticle; b, sub-cuticular
fibres continuous with d; c, contractile columns; d, network of
spongioplasm; e, nucleus.

In addition to the characteristic muscles of the body-wall there are

others, such as those which move the spicules in the male, which
cross the body-cavity obliquely near the anus, and such as sphincter
muscles near the latter orifice, which have not the characteristic
arrangement of contractile and medullary parts described above.
The Body-Cavity.—The skin of a Nematode, as described above,
contains most of the important organs of the body within its
thickness. The chief muscular system, the nervous system with its
sense organs, and the excretory organs are all embedded in or form
part of the skin, which in its turn encloses a cavity—the body-cavity
—in which the other two systems of organs which are found in
Nematodes lie. These are the digestive system and the reproductive
system.

The body-cavity is continuous from one end of the animal to the

other, and is in no case divided up into compartments by the
presence of septa or mesenteries. It contains a coagulable fluid with
numerous corpuscles; this is, as a rule, colourless, but in Syngamus
trachealis Sieb. (Fig. 70), which lives on blood, the haemoglobin of
its host tinges it red, though the colour is said to disappear if the
parasite be isolated and starved.

The morphological nature of this body-cavity affords an interesting

problem. It is not a true coelom, such as exists in the earthworm,
since it is not surrounded by mesoderm, nor do the excretory organs,
with the possible exception of one or two genera, open into it, nor do
the generative cells arise from its walls. Essentially it is a space
between the mesodermic muscle-cells which line the skin and the
endodermic cells of the alimentary canal, and although in many of its
functions it resembles the coelom of other animals, its morphological
character is quite different.

There are no respiratory or circulatory organs in the Nematoda;

possibly the fluid in the body-cavity acts, to some extent, as a carrier
of oxygen, but from the inert and almost vegetative life of these
animals it seems probable that their respiratory processes are slow,
and in fact Bunge[161] has shown that Ascaris mystax, found in the
intestine of the cat, will live for four or five days in media quite free
from oxygen, and that A. acus from the pike will live and exhibit
movements in the same media for from four to six days.
The Digestive System.—The mouth of the Nematoda is usually
anterior and terminal, and is surrounded by from two to six projecting
lips, the most common number being three. These lips are well
provided with sense papillae. The mouth leads into an alimentary
canal, which with hardly an exception runs straight through the body
to the anus without twists or loops. The anus is usually placed
ventrally and is not terminal, but in Trichina and Trichocephalus it is
at the end of the body, and in Mermis, where the several parts of the
alimentary canal are said not to communicate, it is absent altogether.
Ichthyonema, Dracunculus, Allantonema, Atractonema, and other
Filariae are also aproctous.

The alimentary canal is divisible into three parts—(i.) the

oesophagus, (ii.) the intestine, and (iii.) the rectum. The suctorial
oesophagus is a very muscular, thick-walled tube, lined with cuticle
continuous with that which covers the body, and like it cast from time
to time. Its lumen is usually much reduced, and is almost invariably
triangular or triradiate in section (Fig. 62). In many genera the hinder
end of the oesophagus is swollen into a muscular bulb, which is
armed with teeth in Heterakis, Oxyuris, Pelodera, Leptodera, etc.
Other species, such as Tylenchus, Aphelenchus, Dorylaimus, are
armed with a spear, which in Onyx,[162] a genus recently described
and allied to the last named, is borne on a special bulb. The use of
the spear is to pierce the tissue upon the juices of which the animal
lives. A gland lies embedded in the thick walls of the oesophagus,
and opens into its lumen by a fine tube. This was first described by
Schneider[163] in A. megalocephala, and more recently it has been
found by Hamann[164] in a number of Ascaridae and Strongylidae
from the Adriatic, and also in Lecanocephalus.

With a few exceptions, such as Mermis, where it is blind, the

oesophagus opens posteriorly into the intestine. This is a somewhat
flattened tube, whose shape and position are often altered by the
development of the generative organs. Its wall consists of a single
layer of columnar cells, with large nuclei coated internally and
externally by a layer of cuticle. The inner layer of cuticle is usually
perforated by very numerous minute pores. In some species the
intestine is degenerate, in Mermis it is a closed tube opening neither
into the oesophagus nor into the rectum; in Trichina spiralis and in
the larva of Tylenchus tritici it consists of a single row of cells
perforated by a duct, but in the adult of the last named there are
many cells in a transverse section.

Fig. 65.—A longitudinal section through the body of Strongylus filaria

Rud. (From O. Augstein.[165]) A portion of the body, on each side
of the excretory pore, is seen in optical section. a, Mouth; b,
oesophagus; c, intestine; d, excretory canal; e, excretory pore,
and the opening of the poison glands, i; f, circumoesophageal
nerve-ring; g, ventral nerve; h, dorsal nerve; i, unicellular poison
glands; k, ovary, with the ova separate; l, oviduct; m, uterus, the
first egg in the uterus is surrounded by spermatozoa; n, opening
of uterus; o, inner end of ovary with the ova undifferentiated.

In some genera, Leptodera and Pelodera, the lumen of the intestine

at any one level is bounded by two horseshoe-shaped cells, but by
far the commonest arrangement is a tube formed of fairly numerous
columnar cells crowded with granules and with large nuclei.

The rectum is usually short; its cuticular lining, like that of the
oesophagus, is cast at intervals. At its anterior end there is usually a
sphincter muscle, and its walls are divaricated by muscular strands
which run from it to the body-wall. The anus is a transverse slit,
which in the male Strongylidae is surrounded by a funnel-shaped
membrane.

The food of Nematodes seems to be almost entirely fluid, and

consists, at any rate in the parasitic forms, of the elaborated juices of
their hosts. Little is known about the nutriment of the free-living
forms.

The Excretory System.—The excretory organs are peculiar, and,

like many other Nematode structures, do not fall readily into line with
what is known of similar organs in other animals. They consist of two
canals embedded in the lateral thickenings of the sub-cuticular
tissue. The canals end blindly behind, but near the anterior end of
the body they bend inwards, and after uniting, open by a common
pore situated in the middle ventral line, a little way behind the mouth.
The lateral canals are in some cases continued in front of the
transverse branch, and they then end blindly in the head. The walls
of these canals consist of an internal, structureless, refractive layer
surrounded by a granular layer with nuclei. They contain a fluid, but
nothing is known of its composition.

An interesting divergence from the usual form of excretory organ has

been described by Hamann[166] in the genus Lecanocephalus. Here
there is only one canal, the right; anteriorly this bends towards the
ventral surface and opens by a small median pore close behind the
nerve-ring. Posteriorly the canal does not extend much beyond the
middle of the body, where it forms a coiled mass, and diminishing in
size, opens into the body-cavity. The same author also states that
both canals in Dochmius have a similar internal opening; these
observations, if confirmed,[167] show a conformity to the ordinary
structure of excretory organs which was not supposed to exist in the
lateral canals of the Nematoda.

The Reproductive Organs.—With the exception of the genera

Angiostomum, Pelodytes, and of Rhabdonema nigrovenosum, which
are physiologically hermaphrodite and self-impregnating, the
Nematodes have separate sexes. The males are, as a rule, smaller
than the females, and may usually be distinguished by the posterior
end of the body being curved towards the ventral surface; a genital
bursa, and one or more spicules are often found in this sex. Further,
the position of the genital opening differs; in the male the vas
deferens opens on the ventral surface of the rectum close to the
anus, but the oviduct in the female opens in the ventral middle line,
usually near the middle of the body, but sometimes close behind the
excretory pore, or in some Strongylidae just in front of the anus. The
tail of the male bears very numerous papillae, which are of
considerable systematic importance.

Fig. 66.—Ascaris lumbricoides Cloq. ♂, natural size, cut open along the
dorsal middle line. a, Oesophagus; b, intestine; c, testis; d, vas
deferens; h, lateral excretory canals.

With rare exceptions, e.g. Filaria attenuata, where it is double, the

male reproductive organ consists of a single tube divisible into a
testis proper, a vas deferens, a vesicula seminalis, where the
spermatozoa are stored up, and a ductus ejaculatorius. The tube
stretches through the body in a straight line in the small free-living
forms, but is thrown into loops and coils in the larger parasitic
Nematodes. Within the testis the mother-cells of the spermatozoa
are attached to a rhachis or axial cord; the mother-cells divide, and
their products ultimately form spermatozoa. The latter have a very
peculiar shape; in accordance with the universal absence of cilia in
the Nematoda the spermatozoon has no flagellum, and at first
consists of a spherical nucleated cell, on one side of which a cap or
covering of some refractive substance appears. The cap elongates
and becomes conical, whilst the protoplasmic portion of the
spermatozoon throws out pseudopodia and becomes amoeboid, but
ultimately rounds itself off again. The spermatozoa do not attain
maturity until they reach the uterus of the female.

The internal female reproductive organs are, with few exceptions

(Trichina, etc.), double, but the vagina, which is lined with cuticle
continuous with that covering the body, is always single. They are
usually much coiled, and may be divided into ovary, oviduct, and
uterus. The ova arise from a polynucleated mass of protoplasm or
syncytium (Fig. 65, o) at the upper end, and acquire distinctness as
they approach the oviduct. Fertilisation takes place in the uterus, but
the segmentation may not begin until some time after the eggs are
laid; in Dochmius, however, it is well advanced at this period, and in
many genera, e.g. Pseudalius, Trichina, Dracunculus, etc., the whole
development of the larva takes place in the body of the mother.
 Fig. 67.—Ascaris lumbricoides Cloq. ♀, natural size, cut open along the
median dorsal line to show the internal organs. a, The muscular
oesophagus; b, the intestine; c, the ovary; d, the uterus; e, the
vagina; f, the external opening; h, the excretory canals; i, their
opening.

Embryology.—The eggs of many of the parasitic forms require a

considerable degree of warmth to develop. Those of Ascaris
lumbricoides require a temperature of 20° C., those of
Trichocephalus 22.5° C., and those of Oxyuris vermicularis, 40° C.
The latter develop in a few hours, the eggs of Dochmius in a few
days, whilst those of A. lumbricoides take weeks or even months,
and the young of Trichocephalus seldom develop within a year.[168]
The ova only develop in a damp atmosphere, and they can be
arrested at almost any stage, and for considerable periods, by
desiccation.

Our knowledge of the processes by which the fertilised egg-cell

develops into the larva is very imperfect. As a rule the segmentation
is complete and equal; it results in the formation of a blastula, which
may take the form of a hollow sphere of cells—A. megalocephala—
or the cavity may be reduced, and the blastula may consist of a
double-layered plate, as in Cucullanus.[169] The distinction into cells
which will form the three embryonic layers, the ectoderm, mesoderm,
and endoderm, is very early evident,—in the eight-cell stage. By the
growth of one side of the blastula and the tucking in of the other the
blastula becomes converted into a gastrula, which is a two-layered
stage with a cavity opening to the exterior by a pore termed the
blastopore. In Nematodes the blastopore is elongated and slit-like; it
either forms the mouth (Cucullanus) or closes from behind forwards,
the mouth ultimately arising at the point where the blastopore finally
closed (Rhabdonema nigrovenosum). The mesodermal cells lie
between the ectoderm and the endoderm; they ultimately develop
into the muscles of the body-wall, the lateral excretory canals, and
the reproductive organs; the last-named two systems arise each[170]
from a single cell. The nervous system arises from the ectoderm,
which also forms the sub-cuticle, and is turned in slightly at the
mouth and anus; the remainder of the alimentary canal develops
from the endoderm.

The post-embryonic development, which is very variable, and in

many cases very extraordinary, will be dealt with under the several
families.

Classification.—The classification of the Nematodes is a matter of

very considerable difficulty; their structure is unusually monotonous,
and, owing perhaps to their largely parasitic mode of life, they show
practically none of those external features which are so useful to the
systematist in other groups. Schneider in his Monograph divides the
group into three subdivisions—(i.) the Polymyarii, in which
numerous muscle cells are seen in a transverse section; (ii.) the
Meromyarii, in which only eight are seen, two in each quadrant; and
(iii.) the Holomyarii, in which the muscles are either not divided, or
only divided by longitudinal lines. This grouping has, however, to
some extent broken down, since Bütschli[171] and others have
shown that the third subdivision is founded on insufficient
observation, whilst the first two include, in different subdivisions,
Nematodes which are closely allied in all respects except as regards
their muscle cells.

The details of the life-history have been used by other writers as a

basis of classification. Linstow[172] enumerates fourteen distinct
modifications of the post-embryonic development (vide p. 159), and
Örley[173] has grouped these under three headings. The animals
which fall under each group to some extent resemble one another in
structure. Örley's groups are:—

(i.) Nematozoa.—Thread-worms with free larval life, the mature

forms being parasitic in animals. Enormous numbers of eggs are
produced, and the development is indirect. The genital organs are
complicated by many convolutions.

(ii.) Rhabditiformae.—Small, as a rule microscopic, thread-worms,

usually living free, but rarely parasitic. They become sexually mature
only in decomposing organic substances, or in earth saturated with
such substances. They live gregariously and do not produce
immense numbers of ova. The metamorphosis is slight, or is
complicated by sexual metamorphosis. The oesophagus has two
dilatations. The genital tubes are simple and not coiled.

(iii.) Anguillulidae.—Small microscopic thread-worms, with a free

existence in mould or water, throughout all stages. They produce
large eggs. They are provided with a caudal sucker and bristles,
sometimes with eyes and other structures characteristic of a free life.
Genital tube simple and not coiled.

The disadvantage of such a system is, that to accurately place a

specimen in its proper class we must be acquainted with its life-
history, and this is known in but few cases.

The determination of the species to which a Nematode belongs is a

matter of considerable difficulty. Amongst the more important
features for purposes of classification are the arrangement of the
muscles, the character of the tail in the male, especially when
papillae are present, the number and the size of the spicules, and
the arrangement of the lips and mouth-parts generally.

Cobb[174] has recently devised an ingenious formula in which

measurements of different parts of the body appear as percentages
of the whole length of the body. The nature of this will be understood
by reference to Fig. 68. Such a formula should, however, be used
with caution, since it rests on the assumption that the proportions of
the various parts of the body are constant in different individuals, and
it is by no means certain that this is the case.

Fig. 68.—Diagram to explain the descriptive formula used for

Nematodes. (From Cobb.) 6, 7, 8, 10, 6 are the transverse
measurements, while 7, 14, 28, 50, 88 are the corresponding
longitudinal measurements. The formula in this case is
7 14 28 50 88
6 7 8 10 6

The unit of measurement is the one-hundredth part of the length of the

worm. The measurements are therefore percentages of the
length.
The measurements are taken with the animal viewed in profile; the first
is taken at the base of the oesophagus, the second at the nerve-
ring, the third at the cardiac constriction, the fourth at the vulva in
females and at the middle in males, the fifth at the anus.

Taking everything into consideration, it has seemed advisable in the

following systematic account of the Nematoda to abandon the larger
groups, and to deal directly with the families. Claus distinguishes
seven of these, and the diagnoses given at the head of each are
mainly taken from his Grundzüge der Zoologie.[175]
 I. Family Ascaridae.

Body rather stout. A dorsal and two ventro-lateral lips, bearing

papillae. Buccal cavity distinct, seldom provided with chitinous
armature. The oesophagus often has two dilatations. The tail of the
male is ventrally curved, and usually there are two horny spicules.
The Ascaridae are found in the intestines of their respective hosts.

Genera: Ascaris, Heterakis, Oxyuris, Nematoxys, Oxysoma, and

many others.

Von Linstow[176] enumerates over 250 species of Ascaris, of which it

will only be possible to mention here one or two. They are all
parasitic in Vertebrata.

A. lumbricoides Linn. is one of the largest known Nematodes ♂ = 4-6

in., ♀ = 10-14 in.; Figs. 66 and 67). It is a common parasite in man,
and has been found in the ox. It is now generally recognised as the
same parasite which inhabits the pig, and which Dujardin regarded
as specifically distinct, and named A. suillae. In the latter host,
however, it never attains the dimensions it does in man. It inhabits
the upper and middle parts of the small intestine, and has been
known to escape into the body-cavity and set up abscesses there, or
to make its way into the stomach, and to be voided through the
mouth. It is practically cosmopolitan in distribution, and is very
common in Japan—Baely found it in twenty-one out of twenty-three
post-mortems—and in Tonquin and tropical Africa. Heller[177] states
that no one is free from these worms in Finland, and they are
common wherever there is a plentiful water supply, as in the marshy
districts of Holland and Sweden. In Iceland alone they seem absent.
When examined alive they give off an irritating vapour which
seriously affects some observers, causing catarrhal symptoms,
which in Bastian's case lasted six weeks. The usual number found in
one host is small, one to six or eight, but cases are on record where
many hundreds occurred in one person.
The details of the life-history of this form are not yet completely
worked out. The eggs leave the body of the host with the excreta,
and formerly it was thought they re-entered the alimentary canal in
drinking-water, etc., and there developed into the adult without
change of host. This view has been combated by Leuckart, who
failed to rear the Nematodes by direct feeding, and it has been
noticed that the youngest parasites found in the intestine are already
2 to 3 mm. long. Von Linstow has recently suggested that the larval
stages may be hatched out in the body of the millipede Julus
guttulatus, whose habits might easily lead it to eat the eggs of the
parasite in manured gardens, etc., and which is itself sometimes
unconsciously eaten when hidden in fruit or vegetables. This would
account for the frequent presence of the parasite in pigs, and also for
the fact that in man it is commonest in children who are apt to eat
windfalls, and in maniacs and people with perverted tastes.

A. megalocephala, which is found in the horse, ass, zebra, ox, etc.,

attains even greater dimensions than the foregoing. The male rarely
exceeds 7 inches in length, but the female sometimes reaches 17
inches. They are found in the small intestine of their hosts.
Cobbold[178] succeeded in rearing larvae which attained a high
degree of organisation when the eggs were placed amongst moist
horse-dung, and it seems probable that the larvae pass into the body
of their hosts in drinking water; at any rate no intermediate host has
yet been found, and Davaine, who fed cows, and Leuckart, who fed
horses with the unhatched eggs, both failed to infect the animals
they experimented on. A. mystax, which lives in cats, dogs, and
other Carnivora, has also been found in man. It is provided with fin-
like extensions on the side of its head (cf. Fig. 62), and varies much
in size in different hosts. When first found in man it received the
name of A. alata. It becomes sexually mature in about three weeks.

One of the most remarkable cycles of development amongst the

many curious life-histories met with amongst Nematodes, is that
presented by Rhabdonema (Ascaris) nigrovenosum. The free form of
this, formerly known as a distinct species, Rhabditis nigrovenosa,
lives in the excrement of frogs, and attains sexual maturity in a very
short time. The sexes pair, and the fertilised ova give rise to embryos
which hatch out within the body of the mother, and then begin to
devour her internal organs. After the destruction of the mother, the
embryos escape and live in water or slime, and sometimes burrow
into water snails, but they undergo no change until swallowed by a
frog. Then they make their way into its lungs and grow enormously,
attaining a length of almost an inch. This form, parasitic in the frog, is
a protandrous hermaphrodite, which first produces spermatozoa and
afterwards ova; the latter are fertilised by the spermatozoa, and give
rise to rhabditiform embryos, which escape by the alimentary canal
and form the free-living sexual stage mentioned above. Thus in the
life-history of this form we find an alternation of generation, a sexual
free-living form alternating with a hermaphrodite parasitic form.

Of the enormous number of other species of the genus, only a very

few can be mentioned. A. transfuga Rud. inhabits bears; A.
leptoptera Rud., lions; A. ferox H. and Ehrbg., Hyracoidea; A.
depressa Rud., vultures; A. rubicunda Schn., pythons; A. sulcata
Rud., turtles; A. mucronata Schn., the cod and pike; A. incurva Rud.,
the sword-fish.
 Fig. 69.—A male and female Oxyuris diesingi Ham. in copula, × 60. a,
Anus; b, oesophagus; c, bulb; d, testis; e, intestine; f, ovary. (From
Galeb.[179])

Oxyuris is Meromyarian (see p. 137), and is characterised by the

long capillary tail of the female. It includes another human parasite,
O. vermicularis, and it is one which it is difficult to get rid of. The
female has the characteristic tail and is about 10 mm. long. The male
is smaller. They are found in the caecum and rectum of man, and
cause great irritation and sometimes serious functional disturbance.
The eggs are laid in immense numbers but perish in water. If whilst
still in the egg-shell the larvae are swallowed on fruit or raw
vegetables, etc., they are set free in the stomach and small intestine
by the action of the digestive secretions. The distribution of this
parasite is universal. Besides numerous species that inhabit the
alimentary canal of Vertebrates, such as O. ambigua Rud., found in
hares and rabbits; O. curvula Rud., in the caecum of horses; O.
megatyphlon Rud., in iguanas; several species inhabit the rectum of
insects, such as O. blattae, O. diesingi, O. blatticola, found in the
cockroach; O. spirotheca, and O. hydrophili in the water beetle
Hydrophilus.[180]

The genus Nematoxys has the most complex arrangement of

muscles of any Meromyarian, and forms a transition to the
Polymyarian type. The whole body of both sexes is covered with
numerous irregularly scattered papillae. The members of this genus
have hitherto been found in snakes, Amphibia, and eels; there are
but few species.

Oxysoma is another small genus with but three species, found in the
intestines of opossums, frogs, and turtles respectively.

II. Family Strongylidae.

Mouth surrounded by papillae; an armature of teeth or spines often
present. The chitinous lining of the intestine projects into the interior
as ridges. No oesophageal bulb. The male orifice at the posterior
end of the body is surrounded by a bell-shaped bursa.

Genera: Eustrongylus, Strongylus, Dochmius, Sclerostomum,

Cucullanus, Syngamus, Pseudalius, Ollulanus, and others.

The genus Eustrongylus includes two species, E. gigas Rud. and E.

tubifex Nitsch. The former attains in the female the gigantic length of
860 mm., with a breadth of 7 mm. and a weight of over 40 grs.[181]
The male is a quarter to a third as long as the female. This parasite
inhabits the kidney capsules of carnivorous animals, especially of
those that eat fish, such as dogs, seals, etc., and has occasionally
been found in man, the horse, and the deer. It frequently destroys
the substance of the kidney. The worms are red in colour. The eggs
die when exposed to desiccation for a few days, but have been kept
alive for fifteen months in water; it is believed by Schneider and
Leuckart that they are eaten by fish, and that the larvae form the
Filaria cystica found in the peritoneal membrane of the fishes
Galaxias scriba and Symbranchus laticaudatus, and that they pass
into their final host, where they become sexually mature, by the latter
eating raw fish. E. tubifex is found in aquatic birds, e.g. ducks,
grebes, and divers, etc.

The genus Strongylus is easily recognised by its conspicuous genital

bursa, strengthened by variously arranged ridges which are of
specific value. There are numerous species, found in man and many
other mammals, and also in birds and reptiles. Some species inhabit
the intestine, others form aneurisms in the large blood-vessels, and
cause considerable mortality amongst horses; others live in the
tracheae and lungs of cattle and sheep, their presence often causing
great loss to the farmer. No intermediate host has been satisfactorily
demonstrated; the larvae live in damp earth, and it seems almost
certain that they pass directly into their host with its food.