Anthropology

Climate Change: It’s Only Human To Exaggerate, But Science Itself Does Not

Credit: EPA By Rob MacKenzie, University of Birmingham To exaggerate is human, and scientists are human. Exaggeration and the complementary art of simplification are the basic rhetorical tools of human intercourse. So yes, scientists do exaggerate. So do ...

Article - The Conversation - Oct 18 2014 - 11:29am

Manly Men And Feminine Women Are Not Evolutionary Mandates- They Are Urban Ones

It is often believed that masculine men and more feminine women were prized in ancient societies and that modern culture is beyond gender simplifications, but a team of psychologists, anthropologists and biologists that surveyed 12 populations around the ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 20 2014 - 12:48pm

Ashes And Vegetables: The Diet Of Roman Gladiators Was Rather Poor

Ancient Greeks used onions as a performance-enhancing drug. Roman gladiators ate ashes and vegetables. If common-sense does not tell us that there was no ancient civilization with futuristic technology building pyramids, anthropology certainly can. Histori ...

Article - News Staff - Oct 20 2014 - 2:20pm

Slavery In America: Back In The Headlines

The Slave Trade painted by a French abolitionist artist. By Daina Ramey Berry, University of Texas People think they know everything about slavery in the United States, but they don’t. They think the majority of African slaves came to the American colonie ...

Article - The Conversation - Oct 21 2014 - 7:30pm

Red Baron: Air Ace, Nazi Killer, Emotional Patriot – Changing Faces Of A German War Hero

Baron Manfred von Richthofen, the Red Baron, with other members of his unit. Credit: Germany Army. By Ingrid Sharp, University of Leeds The idea of a war hero is still strong in the UK and in the other Allied countries. War memorials are a central feature ...

Article - The Conversation - Oct 27 2014 - 12:53pm

The Ghosts Of The First Neolithic People In A Paleo World

If you lived in Hilazon Tachtit, near  the Hilazon river of Israel 12,000 years ago, you might have borne witness to a world first; the earliest known religious ceremony. ...

Article - Hank Campbell - Oct 31 2014 - 12:40pm

Sexism Straight From The Horse’s Mouth: Life As A Female Veterinarian

Neigh problem with injections. Shutterstock By Adele Williams, University of Surrey Picture this. Your prize horse needs a vaccination. Who should turn up to deliver this but a veterinary graduate of ten years, specialist in equine internal medicine and t ...

Article - The Conversation - Nov 10 2014 - 7:24pm

Prosocial Behavior And The Need For Moral High Gods- What Birds And Linguistics Tell Us

The need for a moral higher power may have been as necessary for adapting to a dangerous world as physical adaptations, according to a new paper. The authors suggest that societies with less access to food and water are more likely to believe in such deit ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 11 2014 - 8:30am

Traditional Healers And Naturalistic Fallacy Contribute To HIV Care Delays

If you're a native of rural Mozambique who contracts a disease and becomes symptomatic, you'll likely consult a traditional healer before getting medical advice. ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 11 2014 - 2:15pm

Opportunity Is Often The Mother Of Invention, Not Necessity

Policy makers and amateur psychology pundits think "necessity is the mother of invention"- and sometimes it is, that is why that became a saying, but plain old opportunity matters a lot. Natural gas had been around for 70 years, for example, and ...

Article - News Staff - Nov 12 2014 - 11:14am