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NARRATOR: This evening, members of the survey team return to the range. Having solved the glitch, they are able to reestablish their grid, and begin producing additional units across the site.
WILLIAM CARAHER: So we’re setting up the transit for the first day, on a known datum point, on our old grid. And then we’ll shoot a whole bunch of new grid squares to the east and slightly to the south.
DAVID PETTEGREW: That’s looking better.
WILLIAM CARAHER: So is it supposed to go in the same direction, or the opposite direction?
Our grid is slightly offset from magnetic north. And we originally did it to run parallel to the road. We have a transit that we can set to our grid north, basically.
DAVID PETTEGREW: That is, you can use it to establish a grid relative to itself, or relative to a datum.
WILLIAM CARAHER: And so our primary concern is keeping our grid accurate to itself. We basically pick one side of the square as north and then we do east, west off of it – north, south, east west off of it – which will allow us to set up subsequent grid squares. So then all we do is use a laser range finder to take off forty meter intervals. Scott and Mike are going to bring up our GPS units to fix our entire grid within space.
SCOTT MOORE: Well mine seems to be having a real problem now. I can’t get any satellites.
MICHAEL FRONDA: You’ve got a bum steer. You’ve got a lemon, buddy.
WILLIAM CARAHER: We have the –. What kind of a crazy device is this?
MICHAEL FRONDA: I couldn’t tell you. I don’t know how to use it.
WILLIAM CARAHER: My specific area of expertise doesn’t really exist. I mean, I do a lot of little things. But my job on the project is mostly technological – is doing data management stuff. And it’s not any expertise; it’s just that I’m the one who seems willing to do it.
You know what’s really fun? The more Dave’s concentrating, the more you hit this button.
Yeah, I don’t really have any expertise. I could be fazed out of this project at almost any minute.
DAVID PETTEGREW: You get to be really mature and make noises.
WILLIAM CARAHER: Back off. We’re professionals. Alright, Dave!
DAVID PETTEGREW: We’ve now reestablished grid north, so what we’re going to do is to go ahead and layout more grid square units. Mr. Caraher is going to take a stack of flags and a laser range finder, which shoots a laser and then back and computes distance. And he’s going to walk a transect which ninety degrees east of magnetic north. He’s going to walk directly along that transect and we’re going to put in flags every forty meters.
WILLIAM CARAHER: More Roman fine ware.
DAVID PETTEGREW: Okay, take half a step back. And you need to plant the flag right between your feet.
WILLIAM CARAHER: Easy. Hey, I found a found a little molded piece of pottery with a little guy.
DAVID PETTEGREW: Great. Can you mark it for that?
WILLIAM CARAHER: We were really hoping that our site was really contained up there, but now we find that scatter extends quite a bit in this direction. We’ll put in a bunch more grid squares. It’ll keep Scott busy.
NARRATOR: But, if each new grid square contains a high concentration of artifacts, Dr. Scott Moore will not have enough time to analyze them all for the team’s anticipated publication.
DAVID PETTEGREW: I think if we’re going to contextualize our site in terms of the Mediterranean, it’s crucial that we get some units up in here.
SCOTT MOORE: I understand that. We have one problem: we have one ceramist.
WILLIAM CARAHER: I mean, I really think that once you get through this insanity – once again, the optimism from the guy who doesn’t do the pottery – once you get through this insanity, you’re just going to hit a bunch of bags with like three artifacts, four artifacts in them.
DAVID PETTEGREW: I could go survey all the time at this point now that I’m back in the mood. I got my bowl of Special K and my cup of coffee and so this is going to start me off right.
Often times just a patch of vegetation will obscure your view. So it’s easiest to destroy a bush than to actually move the transit.
Go six steps away from me. Stop. Stop. Stop. Stop. Take half a step to your right. Your other right. There. Right there! Plant the flag.
WILLIAM CARAHER: Yeah, you see that? Precision! We done?
DAVID PETTEGREW: Yeah, come on in. The light’s bad. I’m not sure I can get the distance.
WILLIAM CARAHER: Okay. We’re done.
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