The dispersal processes of anatomically modern humans in Asia during the late Middle to early Upper Paleolithic periods have been a focus of intensive research in recent years through interdisciplinary approaches including genetic, paleoanthropological, and archeological studies. However, sparse datasets, often only available from limited time-space contexts have not produced a satisfactory picture of the vast geographic extension of this continent. This study investigated how the chrono-spatial patterning of lithic technological records, which are widely available across Asia, might contribute to our better understanding of the population dynamics in this period. The study is based on a large database (PaleoAsiaDB) recently developed by the authors to accommodate the relevant datasets, including geographical coordinates of each site and available radiometric dates, for the Middle and Upper Paleolithic periods in Asia. Each of the 895 lithic assemblages was characterized in terms of the presence/absence of 24 lithic modes/submodes that were adapted from the work of John Shea to fit our research objective. The dataset was analyzed using exploratory statistical methods, including principal component analysis. The results revealed marked spatiotemporal patterns in technological variability from the late Middle to early Upper Paleolithic periods. Some can be interpreted as a result of modern human dispersal, whereas others are better explained from ecological and other perspectives rather than authorships. Although this study has obvious limitations due to its reliance on the information sourced from the literature, it provides a global synthesis of lithic variability in the crucial period of the dispersals of modern humans on a continental scale for the first time. The results serve as a guide to be tested with evidence from other research strategies, such as genetics and fossil studies.

近年来，通过跨学科方法（包括遗传学、古人类学和考古学研究），解剖学上现代人类在旧石器时代晚期中期至早期在亚洲的传播过程一直是深入研究的重点。然而，通常只能从有限的时空上下文中获得的稀疏数据集并没有对这个大陆广阔的地理延伸产生令人满意的图片。这项研究调查了在亚洲广泛使用的石器技术记录的时间空间模式如何有助于我们更好地了解这一时期的人口动态。该研究基于一个大型数据库（PaleoAsiaDB) 最近由作者开发，以容纳亚洲旧石器时代中期和晚期的相关数据集，包括每个站点的地理坐标和可用的辐射测量日期。895 个岩石组合中的每一个都根据 24 个岩石模式/子模式的存在/不存在进行表征，这些模式/子模式改编自 John Shea 的工作以符合我们的研究目标。使用探索性统计方法分析数据集，包括主成分分析。结果揭示了从旧石器时代晚期中期到早期早期技术变异的显着时空模式。有些可以解释为现代人类传播的结果，而另一些则可以从生态和其他角度而不是作者身份进行更好的解释。尽管该研究由于依赖文献信息而存在明显的局限性，但它首次提供了现代人类在大陆范围内扩散的关键时期的全球综合岩屑变化。结果可作为指南，用其他研究策略的证据进行测试，例如遗传学和化石研究。