I Study Dead People

As a professional archaeologist, not a day goes by without someone inquiring about my discipline. Some people congratulate me on my choice of career and for the completion of the several years of education required to obtain the B.A. and the graduate degree required to pursue work as an archaeologist. Children, in particular exude excitement at meeting a "real" archaeologist; their perceptions of the job range from Indiana Jones' adventures, to the study of dinosaurs, to other activities sometimes akin to collecting (looting) archaeological artifacts from sites. After dispelling these notions, my standard answer is thus: "Archaeology is the study of prehistoric and historic human cultures through the examination and analysis of their material remains, as found in archaeological sites, structures, features, and landscapes. Material remains may include the stone tools utilized for hunting or processing plant foods, bone tools for making clothing and shelter material, seeds and animal bones indicating the foods people subsisted on, burial features, ceramics, and wooden structures. Since my research specializes in the material remains of ancient and prehistoric people, in a nutshell--I Study Dead People.

For more information, use the Google Search tool at the top of the page and SEARCH "What is Archaeology". Thanks for visiting my blog, and have a great day! --AFN


http://indiancountrytodaymedianetwork.com/2011/09/illinois-high-school-says-goodbye-to-final-remnant-of-native-mascot/

Good-bye to final remnant of Native Mascot

According to the news article, Bloomington High School's Purple Raiders have detached themselves from the last vestiges of the American Indian mascot that has been used for 30 years. The life-sized statue of an American Indian will be auctioned off at an annual high school booster's event. Half of the proceeds are expected to fund this year's senior class.

This is good news, particularly in a climate where American Indian mascots are often seen as discriminatory and insensitive to the Native American people of this country. Change is good, and in Indian Country, this example of positive change may be applauded. --AFN

Go here to read the newspaper article

Prehistoric tools, gravestones, and Herty Cups!

http://www.ocala.com/article/20110927/ARTICLES/110929712/1005/sports01?Title=Archaeological-dig-near-Fairfield-turns-up-fascinating-tales The Senator Edwards Site Cluster is an archaeological site being excavated in Marion County, Florida by archaeologists from the College of Central Florida. Multiple components indicate the site was utilized by Native Americans who mined chert (rock used for making stone tools) in the area, and in more modern times became homesteads during the settlement days of the early 19th century. A clearing has produced several tombstones dating betwwen 1830 and 1884. Ground penetrating radar (GPR) will be enlisted to help identify additional unmarked burials as well as the boundary of the cemetery. "Herty Cups" found at the site attest to the importance of turpentine production in Marion County. Patented in 1902, the metal cups were nailed at the bottom of the tree with two "gutters" used to direct the gum into the container. An interesting site. The archaeologists indicate that many of the artifacts will be curated into a museum. It is my hope they will work with the local Native American tribes who may hold significant the artifacts left by their ancestors.--AFN

Forest Service to host summer field trips for Travel Management

http://www.examiner.com/x-1197-Boomer-Biker-Examiner~y2009m6d2-Forest-Service-to-host-summer-field-trips-for-Travel-Management

The Mountain City, and Jarbidge & Ruby Mountains District Rangers (Elko, NV) announced today that they are planning six consecutive Saturday field trips, and are open to scheduling some additional field trips during the week if requested.
This series of field trips will concentrate on looking at roads and trails and discussing resource issues and public recreational travel needs as part of the ongoing Travel Management scoping process initiated back in January...

...One seasonal topic that may arise on these trips and that we would like to address is a concern that was discussed in Wednesday's commissioners meeting. The topic was closed roads and fire access. Elko County residents should know that the 2005 Travel Management Rule allows firefighters to travel on any road or cross country to respond to wildfires on the National Forest. The exception is Congressionally designated wilderness areas, which requires prior approval.
The public needs to know that the Forest Service will continue to suppress all human-caused wildfires to protect firefighters and provide for public safety. Fire emergencies allow agencies the use of a full complement of equipment and aircraft to manage the fire, including helicopters, fire engines, dozers, or retardant planes. The Forest Service and our inter-agency partners will work to keep wildfire away from structures and communities - using whatever equipment is available and necessary to get the job done...

"What a great way to gain input from the general public, enabling citizens who use the roads to offer comments and concerns on location."--aggie castronuevo

Historic Hidden Forest Cabin getting facelife

http://www.lvrj.com/news/45285857.html

http://www.lvrj.com/news/45285832.html

Kent Olson, 68, a historic log cabin restoration expert, on Tuesday checks out the Hidden Forest Cabin in the Sheep Mountains. The Hidden Forest Cabin is undergoing a $30,000 restoration. Historians believe the cabin was built in the late 1800s and was used by hunters, trappers, prospectors and maybe outlaws. Kent Olson flipped open his pocketknife and jabbed it into the bark of a log inside Hidden Forest Cabin. The blade stuck with ease.
"None of this lasts forever," he said, pulling the blade back out. "Pine doesn't do good getting soaking wet. Then you have the summer heat."
Olson, a mountain man from Husum, Wash., just north of the Oregon border, is the 68-year-old saw-slinger the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service sent last week to replace four rotting logs in the rare, century-old cabin and repair its leaking roof...

"Click on link for photographs of historic cabins in the Las Vegas, Nevada area"

Kipp Ruin: Exhibit for the Visually Impaired

http://www.nmsu.edu/~ucomm/Releases/2009/april/visuallyimpaired_exhibit.htm


NMSU student creates exhibit for the visually impaired
A project that was in the works for more than three years is now an exhibit that not only depicts the arts of the Mogollon culture but provides a display that also can be enjoyed by those who are visually impaired.
Amanda Stroud, a New Mexico State University student studying anthropology, created the University Museum exhibit entitled “Kipp Ruin.”
“I came up with the idea for the exhibit while in a museum studies class. A display like this hasn’t been done in the University Museum in 40 years,” Stroud said.
Stroud studied the Mogollon site eight miles east of Deming called Kipp Ruin. Stroud explained the site, which dates from 1300 to 1450, was the location from which the Kipp Ruin people vanished and includes 20 pueblo rooms where pottery and tools are found.
The exhibit consists of four stations, all of which have brailed text. Each station was designed to provide a hands-on experience for visitors...

"We applaud our fellow grad colleague on such a unique idea. I recall our round-table discussions about sensory perception and how visually impaired students would be able to interact with the display. I seem to recall something about lemons, strawberries, and bananas, or was it bubble-gum?"--aggie castronuevo

At age 80, USFS cabin is still in shape, and it’s historic

http://www.bendbulletin.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20090509/NEWS0107/905090445/1006/NEWS01&nav_category=NEWS01

The small log cabin near Elk Lake has been a summer base for U.S. Forest Service guards and their families and, more recently, an interpretive center for visitors.
And now, 80 years after it was built, the Deschutes National Forest’s Elk Lake Guard Station has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The building, located about 30 miles west of Bend off Cascade Lakes Highway, was added to the list because of the role it played in local events, said David Bogan, communications coordinator for the Oregon State Historic Preservation Office. The building’s application for the National Register notes that the guard station helped make the area a center for recreation.

"Paul Claeyssens says it in a nutshell...Historic buildings listed on the National Register still need a purpose, just like people, in order to survive. It sounds like the old Elk Lake Guard Station continues to have a purpose, long after its use as a guard station is long gone."--aggie castronuevo

Stimulus to help NPS

http://www.inyoregister.com/content/view/120871/1/


Obama stimulus bucks headed for Death Valley

Friday, 08 May 2009
By Mike BodineRegister Staff5-7-2009
National parks are getting a chunk of President Barack Obama’s Economic Stimulus money. Congress has approved more than $900 million in stimulus funding to make long-overdue improvements to infrastructure at more than 500 parks, including Inyo County’s own Death Valley National Park.It’s been just a little over two months since Obama signed the bill into law on Feb. 16, and already park officials are deciding where to spend the cash.However, the decision will not be very difficult to make, as the list of items in need of repair or upkeep is long after years of inadequate funding. Terry Baldino, Death Valley Park’s public information officer, said Tuesday that all national parks have had insufficient funding to keep up with maintenance for years, and so the money will go to repairing necessities such as roads and employee housing.

"It's good to see that money is finally getting to programs that have suffered in recent years; especially those that preserve and protect our Heritage resources. Unlike natural resources, vestiges of our heritage are not renewable, once they have succombed to time, disrepair, and the effects of vandalism." --aggie castronuevo

Gov. Gregoire Presents Medal of Honor to Forest Service Officer

Slain Forest Service officer awarded Medal of Honor
From the PDN:

Peninsula Daily News

'Forest Service Officer Kristine Fairbanks, who died in the line of duty near Sequim in September, will be posthumously awarded the state's highest law enforcement award today.Gov. Chris Gregoire and Attorney General Rob McKenna will give the Medal of Honor to five officers at a ceremony at 1 p.m. at the Law Enforcement Memorial Site in Olympia.'

"It is sobering to be reminded that violence can happen to anyone, and anywhere; even on our National Forests."--aggie castronuevo johann

FORESTS: 'Lightning rod' undersecretary looks back without regrets

http://www.eenews.net/public/Greenwire/2009/01/20/12

http://www.nytimes.com/gwire/2009/05/06/06greenwire-career-conservationist-picked-to-oversee-fores-19116.html

Career conservationist picked to oversee Forest Service.
President Obama nominated a career Agriculture Department employee yesterday to a political post overseeing the Forest Service and farmland conservation programs.
If confirmed by the Senate, Homer Lee Wilkes -- currently the Mississippi state conservationist and a 28-year veteran of USDA's Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) -- would be undersecretary for natural resources and environment. The post directs the Forest Service and conservation projects at NRCS.
The selection of a career NRCS employee for the job is a shift from the previous two administrations. Jim Lyons, who had worked on forestry issues on Capitol Hill and for the Society of American Foresters, held the post during the Clinton administration. A former timber lobbyist, Mark Rey, held the job in the Bush administration.

COURT DECISION: OTERO MESA

http://wilderness.org/files/TWTD-NM-Otero.pdf
http://wilderness.org/content/otero-mesa-drilling-court-decision


Our victory on New Mexico's Otero Mesa this week took a turn for the pithy in the U.S. 10th Circuit Court of Appeals' decision rejecting the Bureau of Land Management's drilling scheme for the mesa.
If you're not familiar with Otero Mesa, it occupies a blank spot on the map between Las Cruces and Carlsbad, and, at 1.2 million acres, it's the largest untouched Chihuahuan Desert grassland found anywhere in the United States.

Mount Taylor Endangered

http://www.indiancountrytoday.com/national/44086517.html

The National Trust for Historic Preservation named Mount Taylor, near Grants, N.M., to its 2009 list of America’s 11 Most Endangered Historic Places. This annual list highlights important examples of the nation’s architectural, cultural and natural heritage that are at risk of destruction or irreparable damage.Located in the southwestern corner of New Mexico’s San Mateo Mountains, midway between Albuquerque and Gallup, Mount Taylor, with an elevation of nearly 12,000 feet, is a startlingly beautiful, sacred place. Visible from up to 100 miles away, the mountain has been a pilgrimage site for as many as 30 Native American tribes, with special significance for the Acoma people...

The complete list of the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s 2009 Endangered Sites:• Mount Taylor, Grants, N.M.• Century Plaza Hotel, Los Angeles, Calif.• Miami Marine Stadium, Fla.• Dorchester Academy, Midway, Ga.• Lãna’i City, Hawaii• Unity Temple, Oak Park, Ill.• Ames Shovel Shops, Easton, Mass.• Memorial Bridge, Portsmouth, N.H. & Kittery, Maine• Human Services Center, Yankton, S.D.• Cast-Iron Architecture of Galveston, Texas• The Manhattan Project’s Enola Gay Hangar, Utah

"see link above for entire article"--aggie castronuevo