The Role of Indigenous Knowledge in Advancing Science and Technology

The topics of this week led me to look into indigenous knowledge and how it has advanced so much of the science and technology we use today. In particular, when it comes to understanding ecological relationships…

“Cheddar Man” and Bad Science

There was a recent discovery announced two weeks ago in Great Britain that made by analyzing the mtDNA (mitochondrial DNA) from the skeleton of a Mesolithic man, discovered in Cheddar Gorge, Somerset, England. According to the announcement, what researchers discovered in their…

“Designer Babies” and Society

With recent class discussions and readings on eugenics and how it is still prevalent in modern society led me to further look into recent accounts of this concept. A recent local news article by Desert News Utah has presented the positive effects of new gene editing tool…

Ethical Considerations behind Human and Animal Cloning

Interdisciplinary approach

People are starting to realize that the world is incredibly connected and that an interdisciplinary approach to…

Coolest technology innovation in the winter Olympics, and… Cyborg.

The 2018 winter Olympics is just around the corner. In fact, the opening ceremony is being held today in PyeongChang, by the host nation South Korea. This week, I would like to talk about the technological…

Franz Boas: The First Modern Anthropologist

This year, on July 9th, will be the 160th anniversary of the birth of Franz Boas, one of the greatest pioneers of anthropology. While the majority of his discoveries and researches took place over 100 years ago, his brilliantly progressive and critical…

No Easy Solutions: Ethics and the Opioid Epidemic

This week, we discussed the complex topic of ethics in science and technology and how anthropologists need to be aware of the ethical considerations of their work in these fields. It is especially important to study medicine from an…

Why History of Science is Taught as a Western Phenomenon

I was never one totally on board with the conception (in many respects, misconception) that the history of science is, in essence, a “Western” thing. Yet it wasn’t until I grew older, and became more exposed to post-colonial…

Online Racism: Blaming the Wrong Man

This week, I read the article Nukes, death threats, and racism. Another day in the life of the…