The next Landscape Arcaeology Conference (LAC2026 – https://lac2026.com) will take place from 18 – 21 March 2026 in Bamberg (Germany).
The call for papers is out soon so I would like to draw your attention to the session #2 which might be of interest for MAIA members:
From Point Clouds to Patterns: Machine Learning in Landscape Archaeology
Airborne Laser Scanning (ALS)/Lidar and other remote sensing technologies are revolutionizing the way we document and interpret archaeological landscapes. When combined with machine learning—a dynamic field within artificial intelligence—these datasets unlock new possibilities for detecting, classifying, and understanding subtle archaeological features such as ancient settlements, roads, and earthworks. Machine learning models (MLMs) can rapidly analyse vast amounts of topographic and aerial imagery, revealing patterns and sites that traditional methods might overlook. However, integrating MLMs into landscape archaeology presents a series of challenges and opportunities.
Key considerations include ensuring data quality and consistency from diverse sources, selecting optimal preprocessing and visualization techniques for training models, and tailoring algorithms to different landscape types and research questions. The transferability of models across regions, managing false positives, and designing efficient human-in-the-loop verification workflows are critical for practical application. Additionally, the development of user-friendly, open-source software tools and FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) workflows is essential for sustainable and inclusive research.
This session invites contributions that address these technical, methodological, and practical questions, fostering a dialogue on best practices and innovative solutions for harnessing machine learning in the exploration of archaeological landscapes.
Please feel free to submit a paper for this session (https://easychair.org/account2/signin?l=1260451923129708787) and to forward this call to anyone who might also be interested in doing so!
All the best, see you in Bamberg next March!