Anthropocene ecosystems are relatively recent in that all are impacted by human activity. The world is debatably an archaeological site. The bulk of six continents and parts of oceans and seas are layered with evidence of humanity's undertakings. Where humans have travelled and lived, they have named and renamed lands and coasts and tidal zones and even whirlpools--over and over again through the ages. Among the many special places of our storied planet are those repeatedly deemed transcendent. These sites are the considered the dwellings of the supernatural, thresholds to other worlds and the realms of ancestors where tradition bans ordinary human activities. The landscapes or waterscapes shaping the context of such places and their associated topographical features also become sources of awe, wonder, meaning, healing and identity, and portals to grace and the Divine. This course examines sacred topographies and Natural Sacred Sites around the globe to identify: 1) patterns in human imaginings of the sacred and 2) what cross-cultural similarities and the folk science encoded in associated rituals and stewardship can teach us for addressing global environmental crises.
What drives the human propensity for warfare? How have cultures achieved peace after prolonged eras of violent conflict? This course addresses these questions, and others, from an anthropological perspective to understand how war and peace have shaped the human experience, from the early origins of our species to the 21st century. The course begins with major debates regarding the antiquity of warfare in the ancient past and the nature of conflict in modern nonhuman primates. Archaeological contributions to theories of social complexity and the prevalence of war are also examined. Further, class discussion includes topics related to ethnographies of war, structural violence, issues of gender, and AI’s role in contemporary conflicts.
This seminar explores the relationships between an organism's anatomical structures and its ecology and behavior. For instance, how do bird wings enable flight? Can we predict variations in bird flight habits based on wing shape or feather structure? We will start by discussing animal body size and metabolism, then move on to various forms of locomotion. After that, we will explore morphological adaptations related to prey capture, predator avoidance, and reproduction. Lastly, we will examine how animal morphology inspires human innovation. Lectures include discussions of the scientific literature.
Housing affordability has become an important issue. This course will focus on various factors that impact housing affordability, including, but not limited to, mortgage interest rates, mortgage terms, tax incentives, zoning laws, construction costs, and insurance costs and availability. This course will also examine current proposals from the current administration and others to address housing affordability.
This course explores the dramatic and conflicting stories that have been told about Latin America’s natural resources from the 16th century to the present. From the legends of El Dorado to contemporary debates over oil drilling, Latin America’s minerals, plants, and animals have captured literary, political, economic, scientific, and artistic imaginations for centuries. Drawing on multiple disciplinary approaches from within the environmental humanities, this course considers visions of Latin America as a source of vast natural resource wealth as well as narratives that complicate and challenge that discourse.
A seminar on applied methods that places the history of the University of the South within the larger cultural history of the Bible. The Bible examined as an anthology of ancient texts, a material artifact, a transmedia storyworld, and cultural capital. The interpretation of the Bible explored as a collective process of meaning-making through rhetoric and ritual. Particular attention paid to the visual and material culture of the University’s campus (place names, inscriptions, memorials, monuments, art work, family bibles), institutional discourses (the motto, commemorative ceremonies, hymns, sermons, speeches, college policies), and popular culture (film festivals, sports teams, local biographies, folk art).