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Articles 151 - 180 of 307

Full-Text Articles in Anthropology

Virgin Anasazi Research And Exhibition, Samantha Annette Bonser, Dr. Marti L. Allen Oct 2013

Virgin Anasazi Research And Exhibition, Samantha Annette Bonser, Dr. Marti L. Allen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Rise Up from Fragments features the largest collection of Virgin Anasazi artifacts from one site. Until recently, this prehistoric group had remained in the shadow of more visible branches of the Anasazi such as Mesa Verde and Chaco Canyon. Now, it is fast becoming the focus for archaeologist researching in the southwest. Located at a natural crossroads near Kanab, Utah, the artifacts from the Talbot site offer new insights to the Virgin branch of the Anasazi and their interactions with the groups around them.

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Economic Influence On Pediatric Health Care In A Medically Pluralistic Society: An Ethnographic Study Among The Asante People Of Ghana, Kevin Gamett, Dr. Randy Val Johnson, Dr. William Carl Sep 2013

Economic Influence On Pediatric Health Care In A Medically Pluralistic Society: An Ethnographic Study Among The Asante People Of Ghana, Kevin Gamett, Dr. Randy Val Johnson, Dr. William Carl

Journal of Undergraduate Research

There are many factors that influence decisions regarding medical care, including financial, situational, and ideological issues. Families may choose to avoid modern health care facilities because of the costs associated with hospital stays, treatment regimes, transportation, and lost time. Long waiting times, disrespectful treatment from doctors and nurses, and family obligations are also qualitative issues that contribute to the eschewing of modern medicine. Other families choose to go to hospitals and health clinics because they believe that medicines are the ultimate source of healing, following the western paradigms set by principles of physiology, anatomy, chemistry, and internal medicine. In questions …

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Motivation And Peer Relations In A Second Grade Spanish-English Dual-Immersion Program, Melinda Clement Hardman Sep 2013

Motivation And Peer Relations In A Second Grade Spanish-English Dual-Immersion Program, Melinda Clement Hardman

Journal of Undergraduate Research

While there are many different models for how motivation works and what it is in second language acquisition, Gardner’s model dominated the research for over 30 years and continues to be the most well-known (Oxford 1996). Gardner explained motivation in second language acquisition with what he called the Socio-Educational Model (Gardner 1998). This model distinguished between three levels of motivation which move upward toward a broader and broader degree of motivation. At the first level is integrative orientation (An orientation, according to Gardner and Tremblay 1994, is a group of reasons for studying a language). Integrative orientation deals with having …

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Snapshot Of A Nabataean Tomb, Jean Marie Vance, Dr. David Johnson Sep 2013

Snapshot Of A Nabataean Tomb, Jean Marie Vance, Dr. David Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The Nabataean kingdom existed as an independent entity from about 3rd century BC to 1st century AD and continued to exist through the 3rd century AD as a province of the Roman Empire. The Nabataeans flourished as traders and they were able to establish their capital city at Petra. With the development of trade among the Nabataeans came an influx of ideas and technologies among those ideas was stylistic considerations involved with art – in particular frescos.

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Cultural Components Of Infant Mortality In Asante, Ghana, Adriana Matos, Dr. William Olsen Sep 2013

Cultural Components Of Infant Mortality In Asante, Ghana, Adriana Matos, Dr. William Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Among the Asante people of central Ghana, health and healing are conceptualized quite differently than the western biomedical model. Religious cosmology has special significance in relation to healing. Health is thought of holistically; every illness is a product of physical, spiritual, emotional, and cosmological forces. Illnesses manifest themselves in the body, but unlike the biomedical view of health, it is not the bodily affliction that is the root of the problem. In order to cure a disease, the true cause must be discovered and resolved. Although many of the traditional beliefs have been pushed out or reduced by the growing …

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K’Iche’ Kinship Terms And Social Identity, Kristine Kinship Whipple, Dr. John Hawkins Sep 2013

K’Iche’ Kinship Terms And Social Identity, Kristine Kinship Whipple, Dr. John Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

During the summer of 2005, I lived and worked among the indigenous Maya-K’iche’ of the Guatemalan highlands. Prior to leaving, I had anticipated examining kinship terms in a bilingual country and whether the use of K’iche’ terms vs. Spanish terms would indicate a difference in the type of kinship relationship created. Upon arrival, I learned that I would spend the season in a rural, monolingual K’iche’ hamlet. Without my informants knowing any Spanish, I abandoned my bilingual project altogether and studied, instead, the native conceptions of communication and how these conceptions interplayed with their models of kinship and family. Having …

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Fossils As Votive Offerings In The Greco-Roman World, Holly A. Raymond, Dr. David Johnson Sep 2013

Fossils As Votive Offerings In The Greco-Roman World, Holly A. Raymond, Dr. David Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Often archaeologists fail to recognize objects of veneration and cult worship in religious contexts. These objects may at first glance be difficult to identify as votive offerings. Consequently, they are often overlooked because of their seemingly ordinary appearance and functional purpose. Robin Osborne says of votive offerings “… it may be an object made for everyday use and ‘converted’ into an item that might be employed in an exchange with supernatural powers, as a cup or piece of jewelry may be” (Osborne 2004: 2). This type of votive offering may have been more widely employed among those of a non-elite …

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A Hairy Tale Analysis Of Adobe-Embedded Hair From Arrowhead Hill, Escalante, Utah, Bradley A. Newbold, Dr. Joel Janetski Sep 2013

A Hairy Tale Analysis Of Adobe-Embedded Hair From Arrowhead Hill, Escalante, Utah, Bradley A. Newbold, Dr. Joel Janetski

Journal of Undergraduate Research

During the Spring Term of 2004, the BYU Archaeological Field School excavated a portion of Arrowhead Hill, a Formative (or early agricultural) Period site a few miles west of Escalante, Utah. Two intriguing finds were made during that field season: two pit-house structures of varying style situated within a few meters of each other and multiple large, deep, spherical underground pits. Diagnostic characteristics of Formative Period pit-houses are, among others, the style of structure construction and the style and type of ceramic vessels recovered on or near the original floor of the structure. From this, it was concluded that one …

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Determining The Value Of Subsistence And Cash Crop Farming In Tamil Nadu, Indian Family’S Subsistence Strategies, Joseph Neil Ransom, Dr. Charles Nuckolls Sep 2013

Determining The Value Of Subsistence And Cash Crop Farming In Tamil Nadu, Indian Family’S Subsistence Strategies, Joseph Neil Ransom, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

It is nearly impossible to asses the true conditions of a community from older books or research papers about neighboring areas. That said my background reading leading up to this research project had left me with the impression a large percentage of Indian farmers completely subsisted from their land. While other farmers spent their time cultivating crops for the market, these subsistence farmers planted their favorite foods for future consumption. Reading about subsistence farmers in Africa had lead me to believe these farmers lived a better quality of life than cash crop farmers because they were able to grow a …

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“They Are All My Children:” Grandparenting And Globalization In The K’Iche’ Eldercare System, Melarie Wheat, Dr. John Hawkins Sep 2013

“They Are All My Children:” Grandparenting And Globalization In The K’Iche’ Eldercare System, Melarie Wheat, Dr. John Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

“Tojo papi, tojo amor,” Juana playfully beckoned her young grandson from across the kitchen. The child glanced over at her, but instead toddled towards the plancha, the ceramic stove, aiming directly for the fire. Once there he proceeded to play with the ash emerging from the front of the plancha. The family, however, looked on unconcerned and continued their conversation about how many cows to buy in the market the next day. Suddenly Miguel, the grandfather, lunged forward shouting “no, no, no!” as he confiscated a flaming stick from his young grandchild. “Ai hombre!” the child’s exasperated mother exclaimed as …

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Field Study Impact Assessment In Highland Guatemala, Adriana Smith, Dr. John Hawkins Sep 2013

Field Study Impact Assessment In Highland Guatemala, Adriana Smith, Dr. John Hawkins

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I felt at home walking down the cement block street through Nahualá’s town center. It was good to be back in the small highland community in Guatemala where I had spent nearly every summer of my undergraduate career. It had been 10 years since the first group of anthropology students had come to study in these communities and since then, BYU students have been visiting every year for several months at a time. My interaction in years past with the K’iche’ has always left me wondering what they thought of me living in their homes, eating their food, and asking …

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Rise Up From Fragments: The Life And Arts Of The Virgin Anasazi, Cynthia Lee Killian Young, Dr. Marti L. Allen Sep 2013

Rise Up From Fragments: The Life And Arts Of The Virgin Anasazi, Cynthia Lee Killian Young, Dr. Marti L. Allen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The adventure of planning and creating a museum exhibition began September 2003. While other museums may take a year or more to install a series of exhibits, we at the Museum of Peoples and Cultures (MPC) were able to create a professional exhibition in eight months. My whole project centers on a collection of Virgin or Western Anasazi artifacts that Mr. Lanny Talbot retrieved from his lands. The Talbot collection is one of the largest collections of Western Anasazi pottery allegedly found from one site.

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Orca, Erin Huff Sep 2013

Orca, Erin Huff

Journal of Undergraduate Research

My ORCA project changed considerably from the time I applied for the grant, to when I stepped off of the airplane back in the U.S. after researching in Ghana. I initially wanted to study elder care in Ghana, but after reviewing the resources I had available to me in Ghana, I decided to study the experiences of Ghanaian diabetics. My research – which I reported in a paper entitled “Knowledge, Pain, and Poverty: Insights from Sixteen Ghanaian Diabetics” – sought to chronicle the daily experiences diabetics face in Ghana. Specifically, I was looking to see what kind of health care …

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Discussing Gender Equality In An Unequal Environment: Misrepresentations Of Life By Tamilian Women, Evan Carpenter, Dr. Julie Hartley Sep 2013

Discussing Gender Equality In An Unequal Environment: Misrepresentations Of Life By Tamilian Women, Evan Carpenter, Dr. Julie Hartley

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In May through September of 2005 I shot a documentary film about social progress for women in a village just outside the city of Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, India. The original purpose was to learn how the social and domestic roles of a family are affected by a specific development program aimed at helping women become financially independent through microlending and vocational training. What I ended up with instead was an experiment in visual anthropology and an unusual story about the day to day lives of Tamil women and the other stories they tell to misrepresent their experiences.

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Relatedness And The Symbolic Substance Of Kinship Among The K’Iche’, Stephen Brady, Dr. Janis Nuckolls Sep 2013

Relatedness And The Symbolic Substance Of Kinship Among The K’Iche’, Stephen Brady, Dr. Janis Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Kinship studies was a central concern of socio-cultural anthropology for decades. The centrality of kinship within the discipline was due to the traditional anthropological practice of studying social structure among small-scale societies. Social anthropologists found that kinship provides people with an effective form of organization in the absence of a state. In many small-scale societies, descent determines the economic, political, religious, and social position of individuals. By the second half of the twentieth century kinship studies faced a rapid decline within social anthropology, in part because some anthropologists found that kinship studies were based on Western presuppositions about the biogenetic …

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Facilitating Effective Training Programs For Traditional Medical Practitioners In Ghana: Guidelines Based On Prior Successes And Current Attitudes, Amy Lamprecht, Dr. William C. Olsen Sep 2013

Facilitating Effective Training Programs For Traditional Medical Practitioners In Ghana: Guidelines Based On Prior Successes And Current Attitudes, Amy Lamprecht, Dr. William C. Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The medical system extant in Ghana today is a complex one made up of many different health care delivery sectors. As is often the case wherever competing systems of medicine exist, the traditional and Western medical systems that participate in health care in Ghana are not effectively integrated and do not cooperate at a level where efficacious communication between the two groups can be facilitated. In a nation where most of the government focus and funding for health care is directed towards Western medicine but where seventy percent of the population relies on traditional medicine, the need for an effective …

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The Resurgence Of Tuberculosis: Its Alliance With Hiv/Aids And The Challenges Faced By Health Care Practitioners And Governments As They Strive To Combat The Effects Of This Deadly Duo, Sheila Bibb, Dr. William C. Olsen Sep 2013

The Resurgence Of Tuberculosis: Its Alliance With Hiv/Aids And The Challenges Faced By Health Care Practitioners And Governments As They Strive To Combat The Effects Of This Deadly Duo, Sheila Bibb, Dr. William C. Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Tuberculosis has long been a scourge throughout the world but in the 1950’s medical developments enabled most countries to bring this insidious air-borne disease under control and it was firmly believed that by the end of the century tuberculosis would be eliminated worldwide. The reality is that since the 1990’s tuberculosis rates have increased dramatically and seem set to continue this upward trend. It has been noted that this upsurge often coincides with an increasing rate of HIV/AIDS. Most of the affected areas occur in sub-Saharan Africa, and I choose to investigate the situation in the Mampong-Ashanti area of Ghana.

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An Investigation Of Ethnographic Musical Instruments For Presentation In A Public Exhibition, Christine Echols, Dr. Marti Lu Allen Sep 2013

An Investigation Of Ethnographic Musical Instruments For Presentation In A Public Exhibition, Christine Echols, Dr. Marti Lu Allen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I used my ORCA scholarship to study a significant group of ethnographic musical instruments that were held by the Museum of Art and the Museum of Peoples and Cultures at BYU. By research and study, I was able to address questions of patterns and commonalities in rituals that required music and the use of these instruments in various tribal and indigenous cultures. These results were presented in a public exhibition which opened at the Museum of Peoples and Cultures on May 14, 2005.

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The Kingdom Of Tonga And The Unwritten Order, Doug Farr Sep 2013

The Kingdom Of Tonga And The Unwritten Order, Doug Farr

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In this paper I will address the unwritten order that exists in the highly stratified society of the Kingdom of Tonga. The relationship between power and rank in Tonga has created informal laws that govern the people. These informal laws, as well as a struggle for power, have created a division between the elite class and the powerless class, and this division is generating an uprising of the powerless class. I argue that the powerless class may win independent battles against the informal laws, however they will not defeat it completely, as this system has proven to be a testing …

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Streamlining Research Planning, Data Collection And Archiving Using New Web-Enabled Tools, Andrew Arnott, Dr. Joseph Olsen Sep 2013

Streamlining Research Planning, Data Collection And Archiving Using New Web-Enabled Tools, Andrew Arnott, Dr. Joseph Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Collecting research data on human subjects can be time consuming and costly. The Internet provides a new channel to survey people so that collected data is automatically added to a dataset without any possibility of human error by a data entry person. The Internet also allows a researcher to survey people who are geographically distant and on such a scale as would be extremely costly or impossible using paper and pencil.

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Provenance Of Mortuary Hematite Artifacts At Petra, Jordan, Alvin D. Anderson, Dr. David Johnson Sep 2013

Provenance Of Mortuary Hematite Artifacts At Petra, Jordan, Alvin D. Anderson, Dr. David Johnson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

During a BYU archaeological excavation of Nabatean tombs at Petra, Jordan, Dr. David Johnson discovered hematite nodules that, he claims, contain the carved images or figures of several deities. These effigies were possibly ceremonial objects that served to protect the dead.

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Geometry And Art In Syrian Pearl Inlaid Furniture, Amanda Larsen, Dr. Cynthia Finlayson Sep 2013

Geometry And Art In Syrian Pearl Inlaid Furniture, Amanda Larsen, Dr. Cynthia Finlayson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I used my ORCA grant to aid in my research of Syrian pearl inlaid furniture from the Ottoman era. The money paid for part of my plane ticket to Amman Jordan. From Amman, I accompanied Dr. Cynthia Finlayson to Damascus, Syria. I was with a small group of students. We each had separate research projects, but we also all were there to help with conservation, cataloging and display in the Azem Palace in Damascus.

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Ottoman And European Influence In The Ninteenth-Century Bridal Collection Of The Azem Palace, Damascus, Syria, Julianne Parker Sep 2013

Ottoman And European Influence In The Ninteenth-Century Bridal Collection Of The Azem Palace, Damascus, Syria, Julianne Parker

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In 1829, Ottoman Emperor Mahmud II issued a proclamation mandating that all men under his rule must replace their traditional clothing with the “modern” European-style jacket and trousers.1 The interest and appeal of Europe had never been so publicly sanctioned in Ottoman history. The western influence was perhaps most greatly felt in outlying provinces like Damascus, whose government had long been semi-autonomous under local governors, including the Azem family, residents of the Azem Palace. As European entrepreneurs, statesmen, and tourists continued to visit Damascus, local Damascenes inevitably began to imitate these exotic foreigners. Fashion was one of the easiest ways …

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The Environmental Impact Of Culture: The Anasazi Farmers And The Anglo Farmers/Ranchers In Southeastern Utah, David N. Hanton, Dr. Ray T. Matheny Sep 2013

The Environmental Impact Of Culture: The Anasazi Farmers And The Anglo Farmers/Ranchers In Southeastern Utah, David N. Hanton, Dr. Ray T. Matheny

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In the 1880’s the Texas cattle barons brought thousands of sheep and cattle to Utah to exploit its grasslands.1 Some of them made their way to Montezuma’s Canyon. The purpose of my research in Montezuma’s Canyon was to determine if there is a correlation between the commencement of farming and herding and the acceleration of erosion in the past 120 years.

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Pregnancy, Birth, And The Conceptualization Of Personhood Among The Asante Of Western Ghana, Rebekah Olsen, Dr. William Olsen Sep 2013

Pregnancy, Birth, And The Conceptualization Of Personhood Among The Asante Of Western Ghana, Rebekah Olsen, Dr. William Olsen

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Giving birth in Mampong, Ghana is a ritualized process of behavior involving not only the mother and her child, but also many different segments of society. Upon giving birth, a mother’s life will change considerably and her role in society will transform radically upon the safe delivery of her infant. She will become initiated into a new culture of motherhood and will have various decisions to make concerning the birth of her child. Throughout this project, I kept a double focus. First, I attempted to record some of the birthing options available to mothers in rural Ghana. Next, I also …

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The Effects Of Maternal Adrenalectomy On The Sexual Behavior Of Male Rat Offspring, David Eliason, Dr. Reuben W. Rhees Sep 2013

The Effects Of Maternal Adrenalectomy On The Sexual Behavior Of Male Rat Offspring, David Eliason, Dr. Reuben W. Rhees

Journal of Undergraduate Research

It has been shown that several structures in the mammalian brain exhibit differences between males and females. These variations are referred to as sexually dimorphic areas. In recent years, study of the brain has demonstrated the complex interconnections between the sexual behavior of individuals and the neurological functions of the brain. It is now considered appropriate to refer to the brain as a part of the reproductive system in reference to the determining factor it plays in development of the sexual organs and in regulating the behavior of the organism. The mammalian fetus originally possesses the potential to become either …

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Transformation Of Urban Space: Somali Bantu Women Refugees And The Lynn Community Health Center, April Reynosa, Dr. Julie Hartly Sep 2013

Transformation Of Urban Space: Somali Bantu Women Refugees And The Lynn Community Health Center, April Reynosa, Dr. Julie Hartly

Journal of Undergraduate Research

This study evolved out of my experiences as a volunteer under Project North Star, a literacy program headed by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) that serves refugee women from Somalia. From September of 2006 through December 2006 I worked as the Child Development Instructor for this program. While working in this role I investigated and gathered details of the Somali Bantu women’s daily experiences involving urban immigrant acculturation and assimilation.

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Inventing Tradition: Changes In Local Basket-Making In Two Guatemalan Towns, Amy Maxwell, Dr. Ruth Toulson Sep 2013

Inventing Tradition: Changes In Local Basket-Making In Two Guatemalan Towns, Amy Maxwell, Dr. Ruth Toulson

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Guatemala has a rich indigenous heritage which has attracted the attention of researchers for over 75 years. This culture includes 21 indigenous Maya language groups scattered throughout the country. The civil war ended ten years ago and since then, the country has been healing. As the country has welcomed progress, it has also welcomed tourists from around the globe who come for the culture or to study Spanish. In the face of so many national changes, the Mayan culture is shifting and adapting.

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Establishing An Ethical Entrepreneurship, Scott Hannay, Dr. David P. Crandall Sep 2013

Establishing An Ethical Entrepreneurship, Scott Hannay, Dr. David P. Crandall

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Today more than ever, people have a desire to reach out to help others—both internationally and domestically. Technology has brought the world’s problems to the living rooms of the more for-tunate. Unlimited options exist for attempting to mitigate the challenges of addressing hunger, malnutrition, poor education, poverty and inequality. I had the opportunity to research the feasi-bility of establishing an ethical entrepreneurship in a rural tribal village on the edge of the Sahara Desert in Morocco. My research revealed steps to be considered when creating an ethical entre-preneurship and the challenges that may be encountered in the process.

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Assessing Anasazi Mobility Through Ceramics, Alan B. Gelder, Dr. Joel C. Janetski Sep 2013

Assessing Anasazi Mobility Through Ceramics, Alan B. Gelder, Dr. Joel C. Janetski

Journal of Undergraduate Research

There are some compelling questions about variations in the subsistence patterns of the Anasazi that are still unanswered. It is possible that within the Escalante Valley of south-central Utah, the Anasazi practiced a more mobile lifestyle than is thought to be common—camping at some distance from their permanent settlements. Suggestive evidence comes from the ceramic remains of the archaeological site of North Creek Shelter (42GA5863). While the full analysis is incomplete, it appears that the Anasazi used this temporary site.

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