More than artifacts, stratigraphy, or any other tangible thing, I
     would have to argue that an archaeologist's most important tool is
     that grey matter nestled inside the cranium.  It is our training and
     theoretical foundation that enables us to integrate artifacts and
     depositional context in order to make sense of what we observe.  It
     also allows us to learn more about things we do not already know, and,
     if we are honest in our scholarship, it cautions us to stay out of the
     dirt when outside our competence.

     One cannot understand a language by knowing only vocabulary, nor
     morphologic or syntactic rules alone.  One has to be able to bring
     together all three in the mind to achieve fluency.