February 23, 2009
Four Stone Hearth #60 is up, hosted by Middle Savagery.
Yes, I know, I’ve been remiss in carnivalling lately. Heck, I’ve been remiss in posting. The water in the Bathtub is actually too cold for bathing at the moment, as I’m away metaphorically, working on serious curriculum matters.
So, it’s a good time to take a look at something like the best archaeology blog carnival around. It’s up to edition Number 60? Great news, really, that there is so much material to cover. There is some delightful morsel in every edition.
Bad Death Ritual - See the entire post at Ideophone: "A 'bad death' ritual in Ghana's Volta Region. On the village cemetery, relatives of a man who died in a hunting accident listen anxiously to a woman who is possessed by the spirit of the deceased. The hunters, who have just brought the spirit home from the place of the accident deep in the jungle, keep their distance. Red is the colour of danger, black that of death." Photo by Mark Dingemanse
FSH #60 is heavy on photos — grist for your better slide presentations, no?
Zenobia, Empress of the East looks at a project that used lasers to scan a bas relief on a rock in the 3rd century A.D. Parthian empire — er, maybe Persian — but wait! Is that Greek influence in that carving?
This extraordinary relief is carved on a huge limestone boulder at the cliff edge of a remote, not to say ‘hidden’ valley in the rugged mountains of northeastern Khuzistan [at the southwestern edge of the Iranian plateau, sharing a border with southern Iraq (= the big red blob on the map, below right)]. In ancient times, this was the heartland of Elymais, sometimes a small empire, more often a vassal to more powerful states.
21st century technology and science applied to help solve a 700-year-old mystery. Does archaeology get much better than that?
Especially if you’re inclined to study Neanderthals, or for a great sidebar on the value of biodiveristy, take a look at Remote Central’s post on the last stand of Neanderthal, on Gibralter.
There is much more in Four Stone Hearth #60.
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Posted by Ed Darrell
February 2, 2009
Fred Wendorf, an in-the-digs sort of archaeologist, will talk about his life and work Thursday night at the DeGolyer Library.
Remember, teachers who call in advance may earn continuing education credit from the SMU History Department.
This will be a good session for geography and world history teachers, and probably for U.S. history teachers, too.
(SMU PRess, 2008)
Fred Wendorf
Henderson-Morrison Professor of Prehistory
Emeritus, Southern Methodist University
Thursday, February 5, 2009
6:00 pm reception.
6:30 pm lecture followed by book signing
DeGolyer Library
Southern Methodist University
6404 Hilltop Lane at McFarlin
“Archaeologists know that Fred Wendorf’s expeditions produced most of what we know about the Stone Age prehistory of northeastern Africa. They also realize that he contributed centrally to the archaeology of the American Southwest before he focused his talents on Africa. They know he’s consistently reported his research in timely, thorough, and lucid monographs. In this book, they’ll discover he can also describe, with modesty and candor, the circumstances that shaped his extraordinary career.”—Richard Klein, Professor of Biology and Anthropology and Bass Professor in Humanities and Sciences, Stanford University
“Celebrated by his colleagues in the Americas, Europe, and Africa as a brilliant innovator who made significant advances in archaeological method and theory, Fred Wendorf has been a dominant figure in American and North African archaeology in an extremely productive career spanning nearly six decades. His engaging autobiography chronicles his personal and professional lives—warts and all.”—Don D. Fowler, Mamie Kleberg Distinguished Professor of Anthropology Emeritus, University of Nevada-Reno
“Fred Wendorf is an archaeological Midas. He and his collaborators have written the prehistory for vast swaths of the Sahara, work thatinvolves adventure, decades-long persistence, and the ability to piece together seemingly irreconcilable small pieces of a very large jigsaw puzzle.”—John Yellen, president of the Paleoanthropology Society and for many years an excavator in Kenya, Ethiopia, and the Congo
“Wendorf’s rousing good story of archaeological adventures in harsh desert environments demonstrates that real archaeological adventures are only made possible by good planning, sound organization, scientific discipline, and hard work.”—Raymond H. Thompson, Riecker Professor of Anthropology Emeritus, University of Arizona, and Director Emeritus, Arizona State Museum
FRED WENDORF, Henderson-Morrison Professor of Prehistory Emeritus, Southern Methodist University, grew up in Terrell, Texas, was wounded as a lieutenant serving in Italy during World War II, received his Ph.D. from Harvard, and spent more than sixty years as a field archaeologist in this country and in Africa. In 1987 he was elected to the American National Academy of Sciences.
To register for this event, please click here.
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Leave a Comment » | Anthropology, Archaeology, History, Science | Tagged: Africa, Archaeology, Desert Southwest, History, Science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
January 18, 2009
Listverse has a list called “The top 10 signs of evolution in modern man.”
It’s a decent, well-intentioned list, but is it really the “top 10?” What about DNA? Shouldn’t our relationships to other creatures as demonstrated by DNA make at least the top 10 list?
Here’s the list:
10. Goose bumps
9. Jacobson’s Organ
8. Junk DNA
7. Extra ear muscles
6. Plantaris muscle
5. Wisdom teeth
4. Third eyelid
3. Darwin’s point
2. Coccyx
1. Appendix
I think there are some difficulties with the list, too. There are minor problems, such as calling vestigial DNA “Junk DNA” when we know much of it still functions. And there are major problems, like missing the ancestry aspects of DNA. The appendix is known to play roles in the immune system, so some of the claims appear dated.
But I still wonder: Are these the real top 10? How about our inablity to manufacture vitamin C? How about the vagus nerve’s loop from the head down to the heart and back up?
What do you think, Dear Reader? If we make a list of the top 10 signs of evolution in modern humans, what goes on that list? Please include links in your post, if you have them (the spam filter will kick in at five links, so let me know if you’ve got more than five).
And, is there any value to such a list?
Tip of the old scrub brush to Gnomestrath.
Resources:
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4 Comments | Anthropology, Archaeology, Biology, Evolution, Paleontology, Science | Tagged: Biology, Evolution, Genetics, human evolution, Science, Top Ten List | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
December 5, 2008
Cognition and Culture hosts the 54th edition of 4 Stone Hearth, the blog carnival on issues archaeological. Interesting venue — solidly academic, and a valuable resource for teachers all by itself.
It’s a great carnival, really — marriage, poetry, and even a video of a new toy from Bandai.
And on a related note, here’s a post that ought to make the 55th edition of 4 Stone Hearth: Remote Central found a list of the top 100 anthropology blogs. Useful searching. There be great resources for the classroom, I’ll wager.
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2 Comments | Ancient history, Anthropology, Archaeology, Research, Weblogs | Tagged: Ancient history, Anthropology, Archaeology, Education, Four Stone Hearth, marriage | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
August 3, 2008
Oh, the life of the globe-trotting, Indiana Jones-style archaeologist!
Millard Fillmore’s Bathtub brought you the world’s oldest animation.
MFB brought you the world’s oldest playable musical instrument.
And now, with a tip from Dr. Bumsted at Grassroots Science, the world’s oldest joke. It’s a one-liner about flatulence.
Academics have compiled a list of the most ancient gags and the oldest, harking back to 1900BC, is a Sumerian proverb from what is now southern Iraq.
“Something which has never occurred since time immemorial; a young woman did not fart in her husband’s lap,” goes the joke.
Perhaps it loses something in the translation from Sumerian. (The oldest animation comes in at 5,200 years, the oldest joke at about 3,900 years — cartoons lacked punch lines for more than 1,000 years?)
“Jokes have varied over the years, with some taking the question and answer format while others are witty proverbs or riddles,” said Dr Paul McDonald, who led the study by academics at the University of Wolverhampton.
“What they all share, however, is a willingness to deal with taboos and a degree of rebellion.”
My students complain my jokes are too dry as it is. Should I try to work these into the presentations?
As today, world leaders make good foils for ancient humour, particularly Egyptian pharaohs, as shown by this 1600BC joke:
“How do you entertain a bored pharaoh? Sail a boatload of young women dressed only in fishing nets down the Nile – and urge the pharaoh to go fishing.”
One Roman jape dating back to the 1st Century BC details the Emperor Augustus touring his realm and coming across a man who bears a striking resemblance to himself.
Intrigued, he asks the man: “Was your mother at one time in service at the palace?”
The man replies: “No your highness, but my father was.”
Full press release on the World’s Ten Oldest Jokes, from the University of Wolverhampton and the full list of the jokes from Dave TV, below the fold.
Read the rest of this entry »
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5 Comments | Ancient history, Anthropology, Archaeology, History, Humor, psychology, Science | Tagged: Archaeology, History, Humor, psychology, Science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
July 30, 2008
Summer travel has me farther behind than I imagined!
Two editions of Four Stone Hearth whizzed by in the past three weeks. Number 45 was hosted by Remote Central, “Caves, Graves and Audio Files Edition (with a tip to a post from Millard Fillmore’s Bathtub); Number 46 is out today at Testimony of the Spade.
In #45: Open Anthropology notes concerns about archaeological digs in Iraq during the U.S. military operations; you’ll need to follow threads around, since some of the sources referred to were deleted after the post appeared. This is the 100th anniversary of the finding of a famous Neandertal specimen which has fueled all sorts of misconceptions about Neandertal and evolution; Writer’s Daily Grind has a remembrance, “Happy 100th, La Chapelle aux Saintes!” Some people even worry about how we will structure our societies when we take to touring the stars. There’s a lot more, at Remote Central.
Check out these things in #46: Texas history teachers, and U.S. history teachers will want to look at the “dig” in the Gulf of Mexico from Remote Central; also, check out the post at Hot Cup of Joe on the Serpent Mound in Ohio (pre-history should come fairly quickly in August or September, no?). Be sure to check out this post at John Hawks’ Weblog on teaching science, and teaching humanities.
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Leave a Comment » | Anthropology, Archaeology, Education, History, Paleontology, Science | Tagged: Archaeology, Education, Evolution, Pre-history, Research, Science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
May 7, 2008
Testing, grading, trying to correct errors, and meanwhile progress continues.
Four Stone Hearth’s 40th edition is out today at the redoubtable Remote Central — but I missed #39 at Hominin Dental Anthro.
Real science is almost so much more interesting than faux science. #39 features the discussions about the claims that the Hobbits had dental fillings. While such a claim is damaging either to the claims of the age of Homo floresiensis or to the claims about the age of the specimens and, perhaps, human evolution, no creationist has yet showed his head in the discussion. When real science needs doing, creationists prefer to go to the movies. There is even a serious discussion of culture, and what it means to leadership of certain human tribes, with nary a creationist in sight.
While you’re there, take a careful look at the header and general design of Hominin Dental Anthro. Very pretty layout, don’t you think?
#40 at Remote Central is every bit as good. World history and European history teachers will want to pay attention to the posts on extinctions on the islands of the Mediterranean. Any one of the posts probably has more science in it in ten minutes’ reading than all of Ben Stein’s mockumentary movie, “Expelled!” That’s true especially when science is used to skewer the claims of the movie, or when discussion turns to the real problems the mockumentary ignores.
Enjoy the cotton candy.
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1 Comment | Academic freedom, Accuracy, Ancient history, Anthropology, Archaeology, Education, Evolution, History, Native Americans, Natural history, Paleontology, Prehistory, Religion, Research, Science, Travel, World history | Tagged: Anthropology, History, human evolution, Science, Weblogs | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
March 27, 2008
Lent’s over, Easter’s done — time to carnival once again.
Very good stuff in several different carnivals on history and other subjects we like to peruse and ponder while soaking in Millard Fillmore’s Bathtub.
The passings of those who saw history, commemorated at the 12th Carnival of Military History, at Thoughts on Military History:
Next we have a series of posts commemorating the deaths of veterans who have recently passed away. First, at UKNIWM we have a post about the passing away of the last Scottish veteran of the Spanish Civil War. Second, again at UKNIWM, we have a post on the death of the last French veteran of the First World War. Finally, we have a post at Rantings of a Civil War Historian about the anniversary of the death of Sir Henry Shrapnel, the inventor of the shrapnel artillery shell. [Link on Shrapnel not working]
There’s a whole lesson plan in that paragraph, all of it important and fascinating, and none of it important in your state’s history standards, probably.
A Hot Cup of Joe, appropriately, hosts the Four Stone Hearth #37, the carnival of archaeology — in a strangely futuristic Pulp Science Fiction fashion. Go see the thing just for the pulp sci-fi images, if you must — but as usual there are great gems there. This week our youngest son expressed some exasperation at the short shrift given Angkor Wat in high school texts, which led to a discussion about cultures and histories generally not part of the U.S. canon. Four Stone Hearth features a post at Wanna Be An Anthropologist that digs through Angkor Wat in some depth. I love timely posts.
These things lead off into all sorts of rabbit trails. Wanna Be An Anthropologist also has this post on “Mogollon Snowbirds,” a wry title twist on a very good, deep post on archaeology and anthropology study in the Mogollon Rim area of Arizona. No bit conclusion, but sources you can use, and a great look at what real scientists really do.
We’re all back from spring break in our household, but still appreciative of the Teachers Gone Wild edition of the Carnival of Education (#165), at Bellringers.
One feature on the Education Carnival midway was this post, “Luddite Lite,” at Teacher in a Strange Land. It’s sharp little spur under my seat, about actually using technology to promote learning for the students, rather than as a crutch for the teacher. But in that blog’s archives, right next door to that post, is this evocative post from a 30-year, in-the-trenches veteran teacher, to my old boss at Education, Checker Finn — a response to one of his posts (which we’ve commented on before). What makes education work? Are you delivering it? Check out both posts.
Oops. Gotta scoot. Lesson plans to tweak.
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3 Comments | Anthropology, Archaeology, Education, Education blogs, History, History blogs, Science, War, World War I | Tagged: Archaeology, Education, Education Policy, History, Technology, War, Weblogs | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
March 10, 2008
An Italian team of archaeologists unearthed the bowl goblet in the 1970s from a burial site in Iran’s Burnt City, but it was only recently that researchers noticed the images on the bowl tell an animated visual story.
The oldest cartoon character in the world is a goat leaping to get the leaves on a tree.
According to an article in the Circle of Ancient Iranian Studies:
The artefact bears five images depicting a wild goat jumping up to eat the leaves of a tree, which the members of the team at that time had not recognised the relationship between the pictures.
Several years later,Iranian archaeologist Dr Mansur Sadjadi, who became later appointed as the new director of the archaeological team working at the Burnt City discovered that the pictures formed a related series.
The bowl has some controversy associated with it. Some researchers claimed the tree on the bowl to be the Assyrian Tree of Life, but the bowl dates to a period before the Assyrian civilization.
Tip of the old scrub brush to Kris’s Archaeological Blog at About.com:
Now this is deeply cool. The Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts Organization (CHTHO) in Iran has made a short film using the images on a bowl from the Burnt City. The Burnt City (Shar-i Sokhta) is a site in Iran that dates to about 2600 BC, and has seen some decades of investigation. The bowl shows five images of a wild goat leaping, and if you put them in a sequence (like a flip book), the wild goat leaps to nip leaves off a tree.
Bugs Bunny has nothing to worry about yet, if you ask me.
Animate discussion, share the word:
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183 Comments | Anthropology, Archaeology, History, History and art, History blogs, Science | Tagged: Ancient Iran, animation, Archaeology, History, Humor, Pottery, Science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
February 18, 2008
We owe a great debt to newspapers, especially those shunned by bloggers as MSM (“mainstream media”). This article in the Austin American-Statesman is a key exhibit.
While the minions and poobahs at the Texas Education Agency work to frustrate the teaching of evolution in science classes, real Texas scientists practicing real Texas science dig away at the Gault Site, an archaeological dig that recently has yielded 1.5 million artifacts from ancient Texans, Clovis Man, living 13,500 years ago.
So far nothing indicates any of these ancient people were Baptist or creationist. Surprisingly, perhaps, they didn’t play football, either.
Pamela LeBlanc, a digger at the site wrote the article in first person.
The pasture, named for the Gault family who once farmed the land, made its debut into professional archaeology in 1929 when J.E. Pearce, founder of the UT archaeology department, excavated here. Over the years, visitors could pay a fee to dig at the farm, hauling off what they found and leaving behind shallow craters.
Today, it’s considered the most prolific site of its kind. Gault has generated more than half of the excavated artifacts from the Clovis people, long considered the first human culture in America. Until recently, most archaeologists believed the Clovis came from Asia across the Bering Strait land bridge at the end of the last ice age about 13,500 years ago, walked down the ice-free corridor of Western Canada and slowly spread across the Americas.
Collins and others believe people arrived in the Americas much earlier, probably by boat along the North Atlantic and North Pacific shores. And they believe this site will help prove it. “What we’re trying to do here is expand on our knowledge of the peopling of the Americas,” Collins says.
Even better, you can volunteer to help out at the site, to dig for prehistoric information.
To volunteer at the Gault site, contact Cinda Timperley at ctimperley@austin.rr.com. Membership in the Gault School of Archaeological Research is not required to volunteer, but members have priority. Membership is $10 for students; $45 for adults; and $65 for families. The school also needs non-monetary donations of everything from equipment to electrical work. For more information, call 471-5982.
Not only does the Austin paper print news that sticks in the craw of Don McLeroy, they give details on how you can participate in making such news.
Newspapers. Gotta love ’em.
Tip of the old scrub brush to Remote Central.
Also see Pamela LeBlanc’s earlier story about Lucy in Houson.
Texas A&M undergraduate diggers at Gault site, earlier; Texas Archaeological Society photo.
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5 Comments | Anthropology, Archaeology, Education, Evolution, Prehistory, TEKS, Texas history | Tagged: Archaeology, Clovis Man, Education, Evolution, Media, Newspapers, Science, Texas | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
February 18, 2008
Oh, remember to check out the latest 4 Stone Hearth. This carnival of archaeology was posted at Our Cultural World last week, its 34th outing.
John Hawks has a post featured about Neandertal’s roaming habits, all determined from a tooth. Interesting archaeology, interesting anthropology, and just how can they tell all that from one tooth? Hawks’ blog has articles I’ll use in U.S. history, world history, psychology, and maybe economics. One of the best things about 4 Stone Hearth is the way it points to outstanding sources.
Got a tagger in your classroom? He (rarely a she) may be interested in ancient taggers — if we may call them that.
If you live on the Pacific coast, or in the Caribbean, should you worry about your local volcano? A Very Remote Period Indeed pointed to a paper that suggests the hominids found at Dmanisi were a family killed by a volcanic eruption — perhaps your local volcano can help you become immortal, after a fashion?
Also featured is an article about language development at a blog I only recently discovered, Not Exactly Rocket Science. It’s another blog worth watching.
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Leave a Comment » | Anthropology, Archaeology, Geography - Physical, geology, Prehistory, Science, Weblogs | Tagged: 4 Stone Hearth, Anthropology, Archaeology, Science | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
February 17, 2008
I always loved school carnivals. The elementary school versions always featured silly games and activities to appeal to kids of third grade mentality — right up my alley! Then I joined the PTA board at our kids’ elementary, and saw the numbers. The annual carnival took in several tens of thousands of dollars. A lot of that money bought new library books, some bought new science programs, all of it went for better education.
I really like a well-run carnival now. Here are a few well-run carnival events.
Carnival of the Liberals #58 flew to England, at Liberal England. Double the posts, ten from England, ten from the Americas. Geography and history teachers might be particularly interested in a post at Pickled Politics on whether Australia’s government will follow up with real action following their official apology to the continent’s aboriginals, for past mistreatment.
Will I ever catch up with the Carnival of Education? Teachers ought to browse this weekly — I haven’t looked at it weekly in the past month. Let’s go back to #155: Bluebird’s Classroom has a post about a teachable moment, involving her unit on weather, and the tornado warning that popped up during class. Pay particular attention to her use of the LCD projector and live television link. Odds are that your classroom can’t support such teaching, as mine cannot right now.
The rest of Carnival of Education #155 plays out at Median Sib. But I’m much farther behind. #156 resides at Creating Lifelong Learners. #157 can be found at Colossus of Rhodey. #158 moves in at Instructify. That one features this post (from Creating Lifelong Learners) about using your iPod in class to high purpose. I’ll wager there is not a school of education in the U.S. that teaches iPod use as a tool of classroom control and educational excellence. This is why we need to read these on-line collections. (“Hot 4 Teacher” graphic borrowed from Instructify.)
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2 Comments | Anthropology, Education, Education blogs, Education quality, History, Justice, Politics, Teaching, Technology in the classroom, War on Education, Weblogs | Tagged: Education, Edumacation, Politics, Technology | Permalink
Posted by Ed Darrell
Millard Fillmore's Bathtub 
