Anthropology Commons^™

Do You Know How To Dance?: Mediating Identity Through Film And Dance In Visakhapatnam, India, Kaitlin Patterson, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

I went to India to study gender relations in the family, but as I spent more time there I came to know a group of striking individuals and instead focused my research on a similar topic, film as a mediator of culture, but in this case a mediator for the deaf. The Omkar and Lions School for the Deaf (OLSD) looks out onto the bright blue bay of Visakhapatnam, India. Despite the beautiful view, the students rarely spend time in the water; their time is consumed with other things. They have school to go to, homework to complete, temple to …

A Modern Ethnohistorical Understanding Of Ancient Plant Use, Emphasis On The Fremont Near Goshen, Utah, Insight Into Diet And Medicine, Madison Mercer, Dr. Michael Searcy

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The research for this project began in August 2011 and finished in April 2012. The goal was to understand how plants were anciently used for food or medicine. To determine this, archaeological data would have to be coupled with more modern ethnographic data of living peoples. This is because there is no clear way to determine how people anciently used plants and because it is possible that modern indigenous groups used plants in similar ways.

Prophets, Scripts, And Nations: Hmong Religious And Ethnonational Borders In Northern Thailand, Belinda Ramirez, Dr. Jacob Hickman

Journal of Undergraduate Research

As a sociocultural anthropology major, my ORCA project entailed spending three months on an ethnographic study. I chose to conduct this study in northern Thailand among the Hmong, a small hill tribe ethnic group. During my stay in a Hmong community near Pua, Nan Province, I spent much of my time with a small messianic religious group known as Is Npis Mis Nus (pronounced “ee bee mee new”), or Is Npis for short. My goals were to understand the various concepts of nationalism and ethnicity for both the Is Npis and the Hmong in general, which I ascertained largely through …

Who Is “We”?: Community Development In El Salvador, Hilary Munger, Dr. Jacob Hickman

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Where will you be vacationing for Fiestas Agostinas? During the weeks leading up to the most anticipated holiday in El Salvador I was asked this question by almost every individual with whom I came into contact. As a new comer to the country and its customs reusing others greetings and topics of conversation from one social interaction to the next became a common practice as I endeavored to give the impression that I understood what was going on around me. As I traveled outside the capitol to indigenous communities living in the periphery, both literally and figuratively, my assumptions of …

Change And Continuity In A South Indian Fishing Village, Andrew Pieper, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

Vasuvanipalem, a once isolated fishing village on the South Eastern coast of India has in recent years been absorbed in to the rapidly growing city of Visakhapatnam. The accompanying changes of urbanization and modernization within this community have changed dramatically the lives of fishermen within the community and their families.

Investigations At The Fort St. Joseph Archeological Project Unit N25 W9, Erika Mammen

Honors Theses

The Western Michigan University Archaeological Field School is a program that allows students with an interest in Anthropology or History an opportunity to participate in a learning community devoted to the practice of archaeology. Since 2002 the field school has been held regularly at the site of historic Fort St. Joseph (20BE23). During the summer field season of 2011 I was a student archaeologist at Fort St. Joseph. For my honor’s thesis I am presenting a summary of my field experience and a discussion of my findings.

The purpose of this thesis is twofold. First, I aim to provide future …

Short-Distance Cultural Remittances Of Shakti Among Domestic Workers In Vizag, India, Kirk Hepburn, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

The project under question has taken turns dramatic enough to make it nearly unrecognizable and its title almost entirely inapplicable. Problems, faced early in research but insurmountable, make it necessary that the collected data be used for purposes beside my original intent. While I originally planned to study the remittance of shakti notions among domestic workers, the project now seeks to describe the social power-based elaborations and subtractions that made translation work among this group unwieldy and useless for my purposes. While I cannot address my original hypothesis, this current iteration of my project speaks to literature detailed in the …

To Stand On Their Own Legs: Independence And Other Motivations For Women’S Pursuit Of Post- Graduate Studies, And Their Parents’ Influence On Them, In Vishakhapatnam India, Colleen Mcdermott, Dr. Charles Nuckolls

Journal of Undergraduate Research

In recent years, there have been countless studies on the benefits of educating women. Though there is a general consensus on the positive results of women’s education, their access to education is still rather limited in many areas of the world. One such area is India, where traditional views of gender are still very widespread and female education levels are extremely low. Despites these rates, a minority of women in India are pursuing higher education. I interviewed female students living at a hostel (college dormitory) and attending the post-graduate institution Andhra University inquiring about their motivations for continuing school, their …

The Remittance Intentions Of Second-Generation Ghanaian-Americans, Kirstie Kwarteng

Capstone Collection

Remittances have become an integral part of economies all over the Global South and Ghana is no exception. Official accounts estimate that remittances to Ghana have been as high as US $1 billion a year, although the true number is likely to be much higher as funds are also remitted through informal channels. This is a significant inflow of foreign currency, sent almost completely by first generation Ghanaian immigrants abroad. To maintain this level of inflows over the long run, however, would require that second-generation Ghanaian immigrants continue to remit at the same level as their parents. This study examines …

Artists In Residence (Fa 609), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 609. Project conducted in Bourbon, Boyd, Breckenridge, Caldwell, Christian, McCreary and Union counties to identify and utilize local folk artists within school programs. Materials include project reports, artist rosters and helps for using folklore within the classroom. This collection, while making reference to the larger program, only includes specific programming information for Caldwell and Christian counties.

Students Tell Local Immigrant Stories Through Films And Photos, Kim Hill

News and Events (Discontinued Series)

No abstract provided.

Investigating Perspectives Of Rural Nevadans On Climate Change Solutions, Tricia Dutcher

Graduate Research Symposium (2010 - 2017)

Rural perspectives are important for the issue of climate change. Rural areas are high concentrations of active voters who deny the problem of anthropogenic climate change. Rural residents also face decisions about inviting large, utility scale renewable energy developments in their areas. This research examines rural Nevadan’s perspectives on climate change to offer insights about the relationship between climate change perceptions and communication strategies. The research offers policy implications that address context specific issues, solution-oriented dialogue, and interest matching to mitigate anthropogenic climate change.

Environmental Restoration In Amazon, Ecuador, Katherine Elizabeth Jones

Collection of Engaged Learning

In summer 2012, I worked for six weeks on an environmental conservation project in the Amazon Rainforest of Ecuador through UBELONG, an international volunteer organization. I was blessed with the opportunity to take what I had been reading in environmental economics textbooks and apply it to an experience far outside of my comfort zone. The site I worked on was a 6,200-acre reserve called Jatun Sacha, which was set aside by the Ecuadorian government in 1985. During these six weeks, I was able to immerse myself in an entirely new culture while helping further the efforts of Jatun Sacha. My …

Folklorist In The Parks (Fa 608), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 608. Project conducted in communities surrounding Jenny Wiley, Kenlake, Natural Bridge, Pennyrile Forest and Pine Mountain State Resort Parks to identify and utilize local folk artists and performers. Materials include administrative papers and slides.

Folklorist In The Parks - Pine Mountain State Resort Park (Fa 607), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archves Project 607. Project conducted in Bell County, Kentuky and Pine Mountain State Resort Park to identify and utilize local folk artists and performers. Materials include field notes, a daily activity log, and audio interviews on cassette tapes with traditional artists.

"And We Had Fun, Fun, Fun . . ." Till We Went Over The Net Energy Cliff: Cultural Aspects Of The Twilight Of The Petroleum Age, Thomas Love

Faculty Presentations

Despite optimistic headlines, industrial humanity finds itself in a predicament of converging and increasingly intractable problems such as climate change, financial collapse, biodiversity loss, crashing fish stocks, poverty, and famine. The ability to manage this problem is hindered by increasingly unaffordable supplies of oil, the very lifeblood of our way of life. Easily extracted reserves of oil are being depleted, exports are drying up from the few remaining countries that continue to export, and net energy is declining. This presentation addresses how expectations that were developed during a period of energy abundance from 1920 to 2005 might fare when confronted …

Eastern Pequot Archaeological Field School, 2003 - 2013, Stephen W. Silliman

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

The Eastern Pequot Archaeological Field School began in 2003 as a cooperative effort between Anthropology Professor Stephen Silliman and the Eastern Pequot Tribal Nation, a Native American community in southeastern Connecticut. It uses a six-credit summer archaeological field course to achieve four objectives set within a model of community-engaged scholarship.

Anthropology Research Project: Through The Portal To The World Exciting Research, Melanie Johnson

Undergraduate Research Conference

The idea of creating a webpage as a resource for anthropology developed over several years as anthropology professors saw their students struggling to do research. The need for another resource was clear. As an anthropology student, I went through the same classes and struggled in the same areas as other students.

The Railroad's Effect On Racial And Gendered Consumption Practice In Nacogdoches County, East Texas: A Case Study Of Melrose, Tx, Evadney Cooper

Undergraduate Research Conference

This project is an in depth look on the disproportionate lifestyles of black and white households during Nineteenth Century East Texas, from women's shopping records

Folklorist In The Park - Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park (Fa 606), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archives Project 606. Project conducted in Hopkins, Christian and Caldwell Counties and Pennyrile Forest State Resort Park to identify and utilize local folk artists and performers. Materials include field notes, a daily activity log, and audio interviews on cassette tapes with traditional artists. Also includes an index of the interviews (Click on "Additional Files" below).

The Metropolitan Myth: Catastrophic Language, Ecologies Of Violence, And The Storm Of Progress In A South Asian City, Kartik Amarnath '13

Honor Scholar Theses

Humanity is faced with an impending urban crisis, as the urban population is expected to move far beyond the rural in coming decades. With unprecedented rates of urbanization and sprawl, we find proliferations of informal communities such as slums and shantytowns. UNHCR estimates a population of 3 billion slum dwellers – a third of humanity – by 2050 (UNHCR). Much of this sprawl will take place in the Global South in mid-sized urban spaces, rather than present-day megalopolises. It is important for academia to engage with processes of urbanization, understanding how systems of power, culture, and production shape urban landscapes …

Sweet Memories: Confectionary And History In Japan, Jon Holtzman

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

This project examined practices, attitudes and memories surrounding confectionary as a lens on historical consciousness in contemporary Japan. Building on a growing scholarly literature that shows food and eating practices to be a potent arena key developments in recent history through the lens of sweets, considering practices that have remained relatively stable and those which have seen considerable change as Japanese society has itself undergone radical transformations.

Playing Politics: Presidential Elections In Board Games, Stephen Damm

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

No abstract provided.

Investigation Of The Effect Of Diet, Sex And Age On Dental Health Among Ancient Asian Populations From China And Mongolia, Jamie M. Gomez, Erdene Myagmar

Research and Creative Activities Poster Day

No abstract provided.

Morphometric Analysis Of Acetabular Rim Shape Among Ancient Mongolian Pastoralists, Jacqueline T. Eng, Andrew Baker, Pingbo Tang, Shannon Thompson, Jamie M. Gomez

Faculty Research and Creative Activities Award (FRACAA)

The adoption of nomadic pastoralism may have marked new physiological stresses to the hip for the bipedally-adapted human rider. Relatively few studies have examined differences in acetabular shape resulting from long-term equestrianism. Steppe populations of Mongolia began a nomadic pastoral lifestyle during the Late Bronze Age, which has persisted to the present day, with whole communities of men, women, and children riding horses as part of their lifeway.

Geographic Variation In Chin Shape Challenges The Universal Facial Attractiveness Hypothesis, Zaneta M. Thayer, Seth D. Dobson

Dartmouth Scholarship

The universal facial attractiveness (UFA) hypothesis proposes that some facial features are universally preferred because they are reliable signals of mate quality. The primary evidence for this hypothesis comes from cross-cultural studies of perceived attractiveness. However, these studies do not directly address patterns of morphological variation at the population level. An unanswered question is therefore: Are universally preferred facial phenotypes geographically invariant, as the UFA hypothesis implies? The purpose of our study is to evaluate this often overlooked aspect of the UFA hypothesis by examining patterns of geographic variation in chin shape. We collected symphyseal outlines from 180 recent human …

Issue 62, Spring 2013, Society Of Bead Researchers

The Bead Forum: Newsletter of the Society of Bead Researchers

Seed Beads from a Shipwreck: More Than Pretty Trinkets: Part II in a series of II articles, by Lisa Hopwood.

Through Women’S Eyes The Development Of Lijiang And Nakhi Cultural Change, Wyatt Gordon

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This paper is an analysis of the current state of Nakhi minority culture as practiced by Nakhi women living in the city of Lijiang and its surrounding areas. This analysis presents a historical assessment of the cultural, economic, historical, and political factors that have lead to the creation of the Lijiang Old Town that we see today and the current state of Nakhi culture surrounding that development. As well, this paper presents a field assessment of the current state of Nakhi cultural practice in light of the internalized discourses of the Chinese state and the indigenous discourses of the Nakhi …

“La Voz De Los Sin Voz:” Teatro Político En Los Movimientos Sociales Chilenos 1973-2013, Dan Katz-Zeiger

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Esta investigación analiza el uso del teatro político en los dos movimientos sociales más grandes en la última siglo, el movimiento contra la dictadura desde 1973 hasta 1990 y los movimientos estudiantiles, empezando en su forma masiva en 2006 y continuando hasta hoy. Con las medias de comunicación en los manos del gobierno, a lo largo de la historia Chilena, el teatro político se usó como una herramienta para propagar una conciencia política en la gente y se hizo un vinculo entre los problemas actuales y la política del gobierno. Muchas instituciones teatrales (facultades, compañías) han existido desde el periodo …

Fort St. Joseph Post - Spring 2013, Department Of Anthropology

Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Project

Vol 4. No. 1 Table of Contents:

• Greetings from the Director!
• The 2012 Field Season: Exploring Structures and Exciting Finds!
• The Work Starts When We Leave the Field: News from the 2012-2013 Lab Students
• A Public Presence: Conferences Attended by Members of the Project
• New Film Released: Militia Muster at Fort St. Joseph
• Reenactor Perspectives at Fort St. Joseph
• Alumni News
• Geophysical Survey: Exploring the Unknown Space
• Recent and Upcoming Events and Activities
• Fifth Annual Summer Archaeology Lecture Series
• 2013 Fort St. Joseph Archaeology Summer Camp
• 2013 Fort St. Joseph Archaeological Open House