In a message dated 2/10/2005 1:44:02 PM Pacific Standard Time,
[log in to unmask] writes:
Should questions such as posed below not be asked prior to starting the
analysis and used to guide both research questions and methodologies?  'What
else is out there' and 'what do I use to analyze the data' are pretty
fundamental questions to be asking so far into a project.
You have incorrectly assumed that I do not have a research design with
relatively thorough references and a publication record concerning shore whaling to
boot. This would be an incorrect assumption. In order to carry out our
research, we prepared a detailed research design that the United States Navy
archaeologists reviewed and approved prior to obtaining signatures by Navy command in
1999. A graduate student began working on the faunal analysis and, through a
federal contract at a local university, expended more than $40,000 toward
completing the analysis. Her work was not completed, due to circumstances beyond my
control (computer crashes, software failures, her faculty advisor left). To
remedy, we arranged an internship for a new graduate student and will be hiring
the previous person to work closely. My purpose of asking for new comparative
research was to stimulate discussion and leads that we had not pursued
previously.

While considerable research has been conducted in Canada, New Zealand, and
Australia on shore whaling stations, little has been reported from the United
States. I thought to take this opportunity to prod the gray literature and
memories of readers on HISTARCH to see if there is something further that we might
pursue. Moreover, we are frustrated by software selections to handle the
massive quantities of data and I had hoped for a friendly intellectual exchange.
When I typed that inquiry this morning, it seemed a reasonable question. Am I
incorrect?

Ron May
Legacy 106, Inc.