Anthropology Commons^™

The Farmers' Market Experience: Food To Fuel The Body And Soul, Ellery Brett Hinson

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

This thesis examines the rise in popularity of the farmers' market through ethnographic research of the Fredericksburg Farmers' market. The farmers' market shopper has become a well known stereotype -- a white, upper-middle class suburbanite who sees it as their moral duty to support their local community and economy through their consumer power. I argue that these shoppers are buying more than just healthy local food. Their interactions with the market and vendors build an experience that feels more authentic and real than the larger capitalist society the market exists within. Through their consumption of the farmers' market and its …

Graham, Kenny (Fa 851), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archive Project 851. Collection titled “Epitaphs,” a study of epitaphs collected from tombstones in the Franklin County Cemetery in Frankfort, Kentucky. Western Kentucky University student Kenny Graham completed this project for a grade in his folk studies course.

Armstrong, E. Thomas (Fa 852), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archive Project 852. Survey of folk housing in northeast Oldham County, Kentucky, with a focus on remnants of vernacular houses in the area and the types represented. Project conducted by E. Thomas Armstrong, a student at Western Kentucky University for a folk studies class.

Why Did The Anthropologist Cross The Road: On The Anthropology Of Humor And Laughter, Christopher Michael Broyles

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

"Laughter is the best medicine," the old maxim goes. However, it wasn't until recently that scientists tested this theory to prove the validity of this claim. In my thesis, I investigate the origins of Euro-American inquiries of human laughter, from Plato to Hobbes, and demonstrate how historical imaginings of laughter impact the modern biosocial discourse of humor and laughing to see how far we have- or haven't- come in proving ourselves right. With this "anthropology of professionals," I will offer an anthropological account of what laughter means to humans in order to better understand why biosocial models of laughing fall …

"We The People": An Anthropological Analysis Of Property Rights Discourse And Practice, Enoila Afolayan

Departmental Honors & Graduate Capstone Projects

While the everyday rhetoric around property rights tends to focus on land and land rights, I assert that beneath that rhetoric is the set of ideas about what it means to be a person by normative American standards. I look to anthropology to specify what these standards are, as well as review the discipline's other contributions to the concept of property rights. Following Bill Maurer (2003), I will suggest that property is an interesting topic for anthropology to study because of the duality of the concept: it is both ideology and jurisprudence.This dual role of property rights produces social categories …

Karl, Debbie (Fa 853), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archive Project 853. Collection titled “The Bell Witch: Witch or Ghost” uses motifs to help determine whether the famous Bell Witch of Adams, Tennessee, was a witch or a ghost. The motif index by Stith Thompson is cited throughout the paper. Debbie Karl, a student at Western Kentucky University, completed this project for a folktale course.

Integrative 3d Recording Methods Of Historic Architecture: Burg Hohenecken From Southwest Germany, Aaron C. Pattee

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

This research explores the methodology and application of photogrammetric and laser-scanning recording methods to a castle ruin, with the primary purpose of digitally preserving the castle. Both methods generated interactive 3D models via the combination of still images (photogrammetry) and precise laser measurements (laser-scanning), which were then combined into a single model. The case study is the medieval castle ruin Burg Hohenecken located in the city of Kaiserslautern in southwest Germany. The castle was active from 1212-1689, as one of over fifty castles within the region of the Pfalz. The inhabitants included the noble von Hoheneck family and various …

A Population-Based Analysis Of Increasing Rates Of Suicide Mortality In Japan And South Korea, 1985–2010, Eric N. Reither, Sun Jeon, Ryan K. Masters

Sociology, Social Work and Anthropology Faculty Publications

Background: In the past two decades, rates of suicide mortality have declined among most OECD member states. Two notable exceptions are Japan and South Korea, where suicide mortality has increased by 20 % and 280 %, respectively.

Methods: Population and suicide mortality data were collected through national statistics organizations in Japan and South Korea for the period 1985 to 2010. Age, period of observation, and birth cohort membership were divided into five-year increments. We fitted a series of intrinsic estimator age-period-cohort models to estimate the effects of age-related processes, secular changes, and birth cohort dynamics on the rising …

Bradley, Stella (Fa 848), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archive Project 848. This collection discusses not only the collecting process of epitaphs, which can be lonely and dirty, but the art found in the writing of them. The majority of these epitaphs was taken from the graves of infants. This project was conducted by Stella Bradley, a student at Western Kentucky University for a folk studies class.

Local Disease Concepts Relevant To The Design Of A Community-Based Surveillance Program For Influenza In Rural Guatemala, Alejandro Cerón, Maria Renee Ortiz, Danilo Álvarez, Guy H. Palmer, Celia Cordón-Rosales

Anthropology: Faculty Scholarship

Background

Early detection of emergent influenza strains is a global health priority. However, maintaining active surveillance is economically and logistically challenging. While community-based surveillance is an attractive alternative, design and operation of an effective epidemiological surveillance program requires community engagement that can be linked to public health reporting and response. We report the results of a study in rural Guatemalan communities aimed at identifying opportunities for and barriers to community engagement in disease surveillance.

Methods

Using an ethnographic approach followed by a descriptive cross-sectional survey, we documented local terms and ideas about animal illnesses, including the possibility of animal-human transmission. …

Meeting Halfway: Collaborative Public Outreach And Lithic Material Sourcing In The High Plains Of Nebraska, Luke R. Hittner

Department of Anthropology: Theses and Student Research

This master’s thesis is comprised of one technical paper and two public archaeology initiatives that support the creation of a significant digital heritage product that utilizes citizen science to further the stewardship of archaeological and historical resources. The first chapter is comprised of a methodological use of the Video Spectral Comparator 6000 and ImageJ software. The methodology explores quantitative and qualitative aspects of lithic sourcing utilizing ultraviolet light treatments on two macroscopically similar lithic material sources, Knife River Flint and White River Group Silicates. The development of a non-destructive, non-invasive method to source lithic raw materials provides a tool for …

Great Thanksgiving Listen (Fa 850), Manuscripts & Folklife Archives

Folklife Archives Finding Aids

Finding aid only for Folklife Archive Project 850. This collection consists of interviews conducted by students in Professor Barry Kaufkins’ Introduction to Folk Studies course. The students interviewed family, friends, and loved ones during Thanksgiving break on various topics.

What Do Men Want? Re-Examining Whether Men Benefit From Higher Fertility Than Is Optimal For Women, Cristina Moya, Kristin Snopkowski, Rebecca Sear

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Several empirical observations suggest that when women have more autonomy over their reproductive decisions, fertility is lower. Some evolutionary theorists have interpreted this as evidence for sexual conflicts of interest, arguing that higher fertility is more adaptive for men than women. We suggest the assumptions underlying these arguments are problematic: assuming that women suffer higher costs of reproduction than men neglects the (different) costs of reproduction for men; the assumption that men can repartner is often false. We use simple models to illustrate that 1) men or women can prefer longer interbirth intervals (IBIs), 2) if men can only partner …

Pathways From Education To Fertility Decline: A Multi-Site Comparative Study, Kristin Snopkowski, Mary C. Towner, Mary K. Shenk, Heidi Colleran

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Women’s education has emerged as a central predictor of fertility decline, but the multiple possible mechanisms by which education can affect fertility have not been subject to detailed comparative investigation across multiple sites. In this paper, we use structural equation modelling to examine potential pathways between education and fertility in three different geographic locations: Matlab, Bangladesh; San Borja, Bolivia; and rural Poland. Using a comparable set of variables we show that the pathways by which education affects fertility differ in important ways, yet also show key similarities. In particular, we find that across all three contexts, education affects age at …

Ethnographic Overview And Assessment Of Mammoth Cave National Park: A Progress Report, Michael Ann Williams, Kristen Clark, Eleanor Haskin, Rachel Haberman

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Pregnancy And Childbirth Practices Among Immigrant Women From India: “Have A Healthy Baby”, Rama Cousik, M. Gail Hickey

The Qualitative Report

In India, practices relating to pregnancy, childbirth and child development have been rooted in cultural beliefs and traditions that are based on knowledge contained in ancient Indian texts. Many Indians residing across the globe continue to observe these practices. Some may find it challenging to do so when they are residing abroad, away from familiar surroundings and separated from their extended families. A small body of research exists that shows that migrant Indian women do observe traditional maternal practices based on cultural beliefs, but there is a need to learn more about how this knowledge is acquired, disseminated and preserved. …

The Effects Of South Korean Pop Culture On The Country’S Standards Of Beauty And Success, Cristina Cervantes, Charles Springwood, Faculty Advisor

John Wesley Powell Student Research Conference

Oral presentation abstract.

Reawakening In Bundelkhand: Cultural Identity In Orchha And The Effects Of Tourism On Its Creation, Preservation, And Loss, Brenton David Kalinowski

Black & Gold

The purpose of this study is to explore the roots of the cultural identity of the Indian town of Orchha today, and with that context in place, to analyze the influence tourism has had in Orchha in the past twenty years. In particular, how tourism has created new cultural identity, how it has influenced a movement towards the preservation of cultural identity, but also how it has threatened loss of cultural identity. The research was conducted using a combined historical and ethnographic approach, using both archival research and ethnographic techniques. Throughout the study, and as this paper shows, the medieval …

Ideal Elves? Expressing A 3-Dimensional Personality In A 2-Dimensional Space, David Tauber, Joshua Wanner

Student Research Symposium

Published in 2007, the Ideal Elf is a classic article studying character creation in Online Games. It used quantitative methods to address the difference between the idealize self of individuals surveyed, and the online characters they create. In their survey they found the difference between an individuals ideal self and the traits of the character they created was considerably smaller than the difference between the difference between the individual’s ideal self and their actual self. From this they suggested the creation of characters in game is partially a way for individuals to express their ideal selves. Our research attempted to …

The Hetzel-Hunter Quarry: A Case Study In The Use Of Photogrammetry To Reevaluate Previously Excavated Sites, Catherine G. Kinsley

Theses & Honors Papers

Archaeology is constantly evolving and as new technologies develop it becomes possible to examine sites in ways that were previously unknown. Photogrammetry, a still-developing technology, has the potential to become an invaluable tool that can provide new information when applied to sites that were excavated more than 50 years ago. The Hetzel-Hunter quarry in Clifton, Virginia is a prehistoric soapstone quarry that was originally excavated in 1894 by the Bureau for American Ethnography. By using photogrammetry to produce a 3D map of the site that details aspects ranging from the general shape of the quarry to the grooves in the …