As someone who used to do academic archaeology, there are plenty of people with both the time, energy, and ideas out there. The main thing that's missing is mon

As someone who used to do academic archaeology, there are plenty of people with both the time, energy, and ideas out there. The main thing that's missing is money. Funding is tight to a degree that I don't think people from the traditional STEM disciplines realize. The average grant size is far lower than the average NSF grant despite much greater fieldwork costs [1]. The financial restrictions mean you're constantly weighing how important it really is to do basic checks like carbon dating, or whether you can afford imagery (vs just using a printout of google maps). I remember being heartbroken at losing a drone because the money spent buying it, and having to camp in fields and eat fish for long periods because I couldn't afford lodging/other food. [1] https://dougsarchaeology.wordpress.com/2014/03/12/does-the-size-of-your-nsf-grant-request-matter/ https://dougsarchaeology.wordpress.com/2014/03/12/does-the-s...