Happy Howl-O-Ween!

From my family to yours, have a Happy (and safe!) Halloween, Samhain, New Year, All Saints Days, and the rest!

 

Dahlia says, "Really, Mom?  Really?"

And from the Monster Panel today...

The only female faculty member to represent on the Monster panel, where I discussed how smoking a body to make a mummy does not involve getting high.  Interesting story on how we got there.

 

The Importance of Reaching Out...

Today's post is a little off the beaten path from what I usually do.  Today I want to tell you about my recent experience with public outreach.

Talking about Chinchorro Statuette Mummies at the Discovery Museum.

Recently, I have been involved in several public outreach initiatives through the Discovery Museum.  The purpose of these initiatives is to educate the public about social sciences and anthropological subject matter, specifically Chinchorro mummies, but these talks have also been instrumental in raising the public profile of the museum itself,  TMCC (the community college to which I teach), and drumming up interest in anthropology.  This is particularly crucial right now when so many people could utilize anthropology but do not understand it or realize the utility of the discipline.  It is an ethical responsibility for all anthropologists to educate the public and disseminate research; an ethical responsibility made all the more crucial in our current economic and social climate. 

I personally enjoy giving these talks because I enjoy giving back to the community and capturing the public's imagination about my research, which some find fascinating and some find horrifying.  I find that these types of talks assist me in being a better educator as I learn how to navigate explaining the complexities of my research to a lay and diverse audience.  This talk, Mummy Mia! The Not So Musical Review of Chinchorro Mummification Practices, was geared to a primarily child audience, but I also had to be informative and entertaining to their parents.  Balancing that mixed audience is a challenging but rewarding.  I believe that I was successful based on the number of great questions I received from the children and adults.  I think I even convinced one young girl to go into anthropology.  :)  

   

But I definitely learned a lot about my own presenting skills and what I can improve on.  Overall, I felt that the whole experience was very worthwhile and great for myself and the audience.  If you are a scholar, academic, or professional in your field, I implore you to go out and work within your community to inform them about what you do-the utility, the importance, and the fun about it.  If what you do is your passion, share that passion with others.  The experience will be quite fulfilling.  I can promise you that.

 

Debunking Mummy Myths: The Mummies Rise from Death (AKA Mummies as Zombies)

Today’s blog post is dedicated to debunking a myth about mummies: the idea that the mummies will rise from the dead to join the living, aka mummies as the original zombies.  

London, Ontario, Zombie Walk.  Photo by Dr. Christine Boston

This is a  myth that exists in regards to mummies, albeit not nearly as popular as other mummy myths (that will be discussed at a different date since I will be presenting on this very topic in a couple of weeks).  This myth is an extension of the mummy’s curse myth, coming from the idea that mummies will rise and enact his own revenge for having his rest disturbed.  There is some historical evidence to support this myth, principally the ideology that the deceased, in the form of the mummy, would rise again in the afterlife in order to continue where they left off in life.  This is a common theme that we see in all sorts of cultures that practice anthropogenic mummification.  This myth has been popularized by movies, such as Dawn of the Mummy and the more recent Mummy franchise, and shows, such as Buffy the Vampire Slayer and many more, which depict mummies rising from the dead and take their revenge on unsuspecting mortals. 

                ©Harmony Pictures

But can this actually happen?  Do we need to be worried about an army of zombies coming out and killing us all?  Think about that for a moment.  Think about where all the mummies are housed around the world, in all of the museums, and think about that possibility.  Do we need to be scared?

The simple answer is no.  You can all breathe a sigh of relief.  Even if mummies do rise, they probably would not get very far.  Why?  Because in general, mummies are in pretty fragile condition when they are discovered. 

Mummy housed at the Museo Arqueologico de San Miguel de Azapa.  Photo taken by Dr. Christine Boston

The above picture is one such mummy found in northern Chile.  These mummies are considered phenomenally preserved, but even the ones where they are completely intact, they have to be handled very carefully.  There is a minimum of four people needed to move the mummies, which are moved one at a time.  And again, incredibly carefully, meaning very slowly and with strong and able bodied individuals.  If one of these were to all of a sudden reanimate, it is not going to get far because it is probably going to fall apart under its own weight.

But what about other mummies?  We find that all other mummies are in similar dire straits.  This same situation applies to bog bodies, the ice man, the Peruvian mummies, and many more.  And Egyptian mummies that were anthropogenically mummified had all organs removed except the heart, so these mummies could not physiologically function.  Plus, without brains, they would not know what to do, except for maybe search for brains.   

Source: www.theawesomer.com

So while it may be fun to think about, mummies will not be a threat in the unlikely event that they reanimate and try to take over the world or enact their revenge or talk about how they were the original zombies.  So we can all breathe a sigh of relief and know that this, as well as the greater mummy’s curse, is just a figment of our wild imaginations and continued fascinations with the dead.

Paleoanthropology News

Because paleoanthropology is always controversial: http://www.cnn.com/2013/10/17/world/europe/ancient-skull-human-evolution/index.html

Primate Profile: Bonobos

Scholars who strive to learn more about human evolution from both the biological and cultural perspective often turn to multiple lines of evidence.  One means of completing this goal is to study living creatures to understand our hominid ancestors, and our closest living relatives, primates, provides a suitable sample for study.  The following is a profile of one such primate that is studied by primatologists and is one of the more popular primates among anthropology students: the bonobo.

Image Credit: http://gifts.worldwildlife.org/gift-center/gifts/Species-Adoptions/Bonobo.aspx

The bonobo (or the pygmy chimpanzee) live in the lowland forests of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.  Bonobos are the same size as regular chimpanzees, but they are just slighter in build and have smaller heads and shoulders.   Bonobos are not avid hunters, only parttaking in the activity on rare occasions, and there is no cooperative hunting.  Also, it is an activity undertaken by the females, not males.  The game they hunt include small animals, such as flying squirrels and antelope.  Bonobos use tools for protection and social behavior: e.g. using leaves as hats to keep them dry during the rain, sticks to initiate movement of the group, as well as point individuals in the proper direction.   

Females are dominant in bonobo groups.  Males have a camaraderie type of relationship where they will instigate play fighting, but females respect those older than them and have their hierarchy established based on seniority.  Bonobos are very altruistic, meaning they will participate in behaviors that are helpful to others but not necessarily themselves.  They will share food, including but not limited to meat.  

Bonobos cement their relationships through sexual activity.  As demonstrated in the video, bonobos are a very free sort of ape, and they really enjoy sexual intercourse with one another, including heterosexual and homosexual relations.  Bonobos will posture by bending over, displaying their genitals, rubbing their bodies or bums against others, etc. as invitations to sexual intercourse, either for pleasure or as requests for forgiveness.  Sex is usually face-to-face, which is an uncommon position for all primate species.  Also, another uncommon behavior among bonobos is that females are almost always in estrus, making them always receptive to sex.  So sexual intercourse serves psychological, social, and reproductive purposes and functions as a means to ease tensions, resolve conflicts, greet individuals, offer reconciliation, and provide reassurance.  Sex has even been used as a means of ensuring food procurement/sharing among bonobos as it has been demonstrated that bonobos will participate in sexual intercourse prior to eating. 

Physical Anthropology News

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131008091234.htm#.UlXUTH3m7P4.facebook

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2013/10/131007094247.htm#.UlXYrKibzT4.facebook

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/11/121129093951.htm

See what's new and happening in physical anthropology news!

Basking in the Basque...

Today's post has been inspired by a recent concert I attended.  The concert was Kalakan, a trio of Basque men who play traditional instruments and sing both traditional and fusion songs.  If you have the opportunity to see them in concert, I highly recommend it, but this concert inspired me to learn more about Basque culture, which is a culture that I have always heard about but know little about.  And this post will present a brief summary on the topic of Basque culture.

The Basque live around the world, but they have their own territory known as Basque Country, which is in and between the modern countries of Spain and France.  Despite being one unified nation that belong to one culture, the Basque in either country seem to practice their culture differently, which is a result of historical oppressions/freedoms.  Basque who do not reside in Basque Country also practice their culture variably, dealing with processes of acculturation and assimilation that is present in their new countries of residence.

The Basque speak a unique language that shares this same name.  According to some, this language is unlike any other language spoken around the world, although to my own ear it sounded like a mixture of Spanish, French, and one more additional language that I could not pick up on.  Bear in mind that I am not a language expert, and this assessment is my personal opinion.  The language is considered an endangered language, however, since many Basque do not speak the native language.  Efforts are in place to remedy this language loss, although the results are yet to be seen in regards to long term effects of these efforts.

Traditionally, the Basque are farmers and herders (or, formally, agriculturalists and pastoralists).  They are also considered expert sailors.  Their cultural traditions revolve around these economic strategies, and there is a heavy reliance on family/kinship, which is traditional in agricultural societies.  This emphasis was also evidence in the music the Kalakan trio played as many of their songs involved stories of family.  They are also known as skilled metallurgists. 

The Basque have a series of traditional instruments that are associated with their musical arts.  Their musical instrument collections include the txistu, a flute that produces a high pitch but melodic sound and the  txalaparta, a wooden xylophone, in conjunction with the tambourine and drums.  Based on my observations of the Kalakan trio, their music is a mixture of a cappella (without musical instrument accompaniment) and instrumental. 

If you are interested in learning more about the Basque culture, please visit the following websites:

http://buber.net/Basque/

http://www.euskalkultura.com/portadako_albisteak_plantilla?set_language=en

http://www.euskadi.net/r33-2220/eu (Basque or Spanish language options only)