SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act of 1990, or NAGPRA, is supposed to curb the illegal possession of ancestral Native American remains and cultural items. But a year after it was passed by the U.S. federal government, a significant African burial ground in New York City was uncovered. And there was zero legislation in place for its protection. Dr. Rachel Watkins shares the story of the New York African Burial Ground—and what repatriation looks like for African American communities. (00:00:44) Enter the Peabody Museum of Archeology and Ethnology and its NAGPRA controversy. (00:03:19) A discovery in Manhattan is not covered by NAGPRA. (00:05:19) Intro. (00:05:44) Dr. Rachel Watkins, the New York African Burial Ground Project and Michael Blakey. (00:11:40) Dr. Rachel Watikins meets the Cobb Collection. (00:23:44) Exploring Repatriation for the New York African Burial Ground Project. (00:28:26) The issue of repatriation for the Cobb Collection. (00:34:02) Revisiting season 4. (00:40:49) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Thank you this time also to The Harvard Review and their podcast, A Legacy Revealed for permitting us to use a clip from Episode 4 I Could See Family in Their Eyes, hosted by Raquel Coronell Uribe and Sixiao Yu and produced by Lara Dada, Zing Gee, and Thomas Maisonneuve. Additional Sponsors: This episode, and entire series, was made possible by the Cornell Institute of Archaeology and Material Studies, the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, UC San Diego Scripps Center for Marine Archaeology, the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropological Archaeology, the Joukowsky Institute for Archaeology at Brown University, UMASS Boston’s Fiske Center for Archaeological Research, UC Berkeley’s Archaeological Research Facility, and the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Additional Resources: From SAPIENS: Why the Whiteness of Archaeology Is a Problem Craft an African American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act New York African Burial Ground The Mismeasure of Man Guest: Rachel Watkins is a biocultural anthropologist with an emphasis on African American biohistory and social history, bioanthropological research practices, and histories of U.S. biological anthropology.

Archaeology helps reimagine a fuller range of experiences, including how people ate, innovated, and rebelled. In this episode, “slave cuisine” opens a window to honor the legacy of Black creativity, resistance, and community. Dr. Peggy Brunache, a food historian and archaeologist, finds shellfish remains in a village of enslaved people, uncovering an untold story of how people found ways to resist. Dr. Kelley Deetz uses Southern food, which is really African food, to initiate difficult conversations about the history of slavery. (00:01:44) A history of asking “why” – from Caribbean markets to American history classrooms. (00:04:50) Introduction. (00:05:56) Dr. Peggy Brunache’s journey to food archaeology as a Haitian-American. (00:13:57) Uncovering slave cuisine. (00:22:33) Dr. Kelley Deetz describes education through food at Stratford Hall. (00:30:43) Slave cuisine today. (00:34:38) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Additional Sponsors: This episode was made possible by the UC Berkeley Archaeological Research Facility and the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Additional Resources: About Whitney Battle-Baptiste About Stratford Hall From SAPIENS: The Resistance and Ingenuity of the Cooks Who Lived in Slavery Guests: Dr. Peggy Brunache is a lecturer in the history of Atlantic slavery at the University of Glasgow and the first director of the newly established Beniba Centre for Slavery Studies. Follow her on Twitter @peggybrunache. Dr. Kelley Fanto Deetz is a historian and archaeologist who works as the director of collections and visitor engagement at Stratford Hall, the director of education and historic interpretation at Virginia’s Executive Mansion, and a visiting scholar in the department of African American studies at the University of California, Berkeley.

The sky island of Dzil Nchaa Si'an is more than a mountain. It is a significant landmark in Arizona for Apache tribal members to collect medicinal plants, perform ceremonies, and connect with their ancestors. It is also a site of resistance against the development of an observatory informally known as the “Pope Scope,” for its ties to the Vatican. (00:01:47) A history of competing interests atop Dzil Nchaa Si'an, or Mt.Graham. (00:04:18) Introduction. (00:05:06) Nick and the “Pope Scope” conflict. (00:07:04) About Field schools and Apache Trust Lands. (00:08:49) How Nick becomes an archaeologist. (00:11:09) Sacred vs holy on Mt. Graham. (00:14:30) Fire on Mt. Graham illuminates value systems. (00:18:32) Apache lands and the 1872 Mining Act. (00:23:19) Guidelines for archaeology learned from Apache ways of knowing. (00:25:18) The Apache methodology of Ni. (00:31:00) Credits SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Additional Sponsors: This episode was made possible by the Fiske Center for Archaeological Research at the University of Massachusetts, Boston and the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Additional Resources: The indivisibility of land and mind: Indigenous knowledge and collaborative archaeology within Apache contexts Ndee Hotspots: Ethics, Healing and Management From Sapiens: Why the Camp Grant Massacre Matters Today Guest: Dr. Nicholas Laluk is a member of the White Mountain Apache Tribe in east-central Arizona. He completed his Ph.D. at University of Arizona and is currently an assistant professor in the department of anthropology at the University of California, Berkeley.

In this episode, museum curators challenge the status quo and connect their ancestry to advance how history is told in cultural institutions. Mary Elliot brings listeners behind the scenes into the Slavery and Freedom exhibition at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African American History and Culture. And Dr. Sven Haakanson helps re-create an angiaaq, which is like a kayak, at the Burke Museum in Seattle, Washington. (00:01:24) Meet Mary Elliott, the curator of American slavery at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African-American History and Culture. (00:06:46) Introduction. (00:07:20) How Mary Elliott began tracing her own ancestral roots. (00:11:43) How Dr. Sven Haakanson begins his studies of the Alutiiq people. (00:15:57) A year of ethno-archaeology with the Nenets. (00:20:49) resurrecting the Angyaaq. (00:26:47) Sven and Mary share best practices and protocols for being museum curators. (00:33:13) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Additional Sponsors: This episode was made possible by the Brown University’s Joukowsky Institute of Archaeology and Columbia University’s Center for Archaeology and the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Additional Resources: Slavery and Freedom at the Smithsonian's National Museum of African-American History and Culture Burke Museum in Seattle, Washington From SAPIENS: How Museums Can Do More Than Just Repatriate Objects Guests: Dr. Sven Haakanson Jr. is Sugpiaq and was born in Old Harbor on Kodiak Island, Alaska. He is a curator of North American anthropology at the Burke Museum, and an associate professor in anthropology at the University of Washington. Mary Elliot is a curator of American Slavery at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC). Follow her on Twitter @Mne7829.

For its practitioners, archaeology can feel like it is unearthing events deep in the past … until it doesn’t. What is the experience of researchers who discover their life stories are tied to an archaeological site? Dr. Kisha Supernant and Lenora McQueen share their journeys to the unmarked graves of First Nations and Métis peoples and African American burial grounds, respectively, and how their connections to their ancestors transform their work. (00:00:16) The Truth and Reconciliation Commission seeks to understand what happened at Indian residential schools. (00:01:02) Dr. Kisha Supernat introduces her work as a Méthis archaeologist uncovering unmarked Indigenous graves at residential schools. (00:03:34) Introduction. (00:06:43) How Dr. Kisha locates unmarked graves. (00:10:45) Lenora McQueen shares her search to unmarked African American burial grounds. (00:12:23) The story of the Shockoe Hill African Burial Ground. (00:15:58) Introducing heart-centered archaeology. (00:23:41) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Additional Sponsors: This episode was made possible by the University of Michigan’s Museum of Anthropological Archaeology and the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Additional Resources: Shockoe Hill African Burial Ground From SAPIENS: A Weak Commission Brought Forth Survivors’ Truths, but Has It Made Reconciliation Possible? From SAPIENS: Archaeology’s Role in Finding Missing Indigenous Children in Canada Guests: Dr. Kisha Supernant is Métis/Papaschase/British and the director of the Institute of Prairie and Indigenous Archaeology at the University of Alberta. Follow her on Twitter @ArchaeoMapper. Lenora McQueen is an educator, researcher, community historian, and advocate for the preservation and interpretation of African American historic sites in Virginia.

For many, archaeology means digging up historical artifacts from beneath the ground. But to some, that framework is also violent and colonial. What would it mean to leave ancestors and belongings where they’re found? In this episode, Gabrielle Miller, a PhD student studying African Diaspora Archaeology at the University of Tulsa shares a story about excavations in St. Croix. And Dr. Ayana Flewellen and Dr. Justin Dunnavant discuss how black archaeologists began uncovering sunken slave ships. (00:02:26) What parts of Archaeology as we know it should be preserved? And what needs to be destroyed? (00:02:51) Introduction. (00:03:24) Gabrielle Miller explains their research on the Free Black Community in St. Croix. (00:07:07) Meet, a ship called the Guerrero. (00:08:43) How Diving with a Purpose originated. (00:09:39) Justin Dunnavant and Ayana Flewellen create The Society of Black Archaeologists. 00:12:25) A guide to underwater, or maritime archaeology. 00:16:09) What Black Feminist archaeology is adding to the field. (00:21:29) How learning from artists can help stretch the academic container. (00:25:17) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. This episode was also sponsored by the Scripps Center for Marine Archaeology at the University of California, San Diego and The Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. For more information and transcripts, visit https://www.sapiens.org/. Additional Resources: Diving with a Purpose Cornell University's RadioCIAMS Gabrielle Civil, an American performance artist La Vaughn Belle artist statement Guests: Gabrille Miller is a PhD student at the University of Tulsa studying African Diaspora Archaeology. Her current research engages the expressions and legacies of freedom and resistance in an eighteenth-and-nineteenth-century free Black community in St. Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands in collaboration with the heritage practitioners, artisans, historians, and descendants of that community. Dr. Justin Dunnavant is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at UCLA. His current research in the US Virgin Islands investigates the relationship between ecology and enslavement in the former Danish West Indies. In addition to his archaeological research, Justin is co-founder of the Society of Black Archaeologists and an AAUS Scientific SCUBA Diver. Dr. Ayana Omilade Flewellen (they/she) is a Black Feminist, an archaeologist, a storyteller, and an artist. Flewellen is the co-founder and current President of the Society of Black Archaeologists and sits on the Board of Diving With A Purpose. They are an Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of California, Riverside. Her research and teaching interests address Black Feminist Theory, historical archaeology, maritime heritage conservation, public and community-engaged archaeology, processes of identity formations, and representations of slavery.

Hosts Dr. Ora Marek-Martinez and Yoli Ngandali share how they found their way to archaeology and what it means to be Black and Indigenous archaeologists. From defying the status quo in a classroom to diving through sunken ships, Ora and Yoli bring listeners on a journey of reclaiming stories and reimagining history. (00:00:10) How hosts Dr. Ora Merek-Martinez and Yoli Ngandali met. (00:03:27) Why Indigenous archaeology is not the same as non-Indigenous archaeology. (00:09:11) What is Maritime archaeology? (00:12:18) Important vocabulary for Season 4. (00:18:10) What is the future of archaeology? (00:19:38) Credits. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. Additional Sponsors: - The Cornell Institute of Archaeology and Material Studies - The Denver Museum of Nature & Science - The Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas For more information including episode transcripts, visit https://www.sapiens.org and check out the following resources: From the Margins to the Mainstream: Black and Indigenous Futures in Archaeology Land Acknowledgments Are Not Enough About The Hosts: Dr. Ora Marek-Martinez (she/her/asdzaìaì) is a citizen of the Diné Nation, she's also Nez Perce. A Director at the Native American Cultural Center, her work includes supporting & ensuring the success of Northern Arizona University Native American & Indigenous students through Indigenized programming & services. An Assistant Professor in the Northern Arizona University Anthropology Department, her research interests include Indigenous archaeology & heritage management, research and approaches that utilize ancestral knowledge, decolonizing & Indigenizing methodologies and storytelling in the creation of archaeological knowledge to reaffirm Indigenous connections to land & place. Dr. Marek-Martinez is a founding member of the Indigenous Archaeology Coalition. Yoli Ngandali (she/he/hers) is a member of the Ngbaka Tribe from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a Ronald E. McNair Fellow, and a Ph.D. Candidate in Archaeology at the University of Washington. Her research interests span Archaeologies of colonialism, Indigenous archaeology, Archaeologies of Central Africa, Trans-Indigenous traditions of culture sharing, Black & Indigenous futurity, digital conservation science, remote sensing, and multi-spectral imaging. Her doctoral dissertation develops digital and community-based participatory research approaches to Indigenous art revitalization within museum settings and highlights Indigenous carving traditions in the Pacific Northwest.

We're launching a new season, asking what makes you … you? And who tells which stories and why? SAPIENS hosts Ora Marek-Martinez and Yoli Ngandali explore stories of Black and Indigenous scholars as they transform the field of archeology and the stories that make us … us. (00:00:02) Meet Dr. Ora Marek-Martinez and Yoli Ngandali. (00:00:51) How season four came to be. (00:01:53) Season four previews. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human, is produced by House of Pod and supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation. SAPIENS is also part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This season was created in collaboration with the Indigenous Archaeology Collective and Society of Black Archaeologists, with art by Carla Keaton, and music from Jobii, _91nova, and Justnormal. For more information and transcriptions, visit sapiens.org. For more information including episode transcripts, visit https://www.sapiens.org and check out From the Margins to the Mainstream: Black and Indigenous Futures in Archaeology. About The Hosts: Dr. Ora Marek-Martinez (she/her/asdzaìaì) is a citizen of the Diné Nation, she's also Nez Perce. A Director at the Native American Cultural Center, her work includes supporting & ensuring the success of Northern Arizona University Native American & Indigenous students through Indigenized programming & services. An Assistant Professor in the Northern Arizona University Anthropology Department, her research interests include Indigenous archaeology & heritage management, research and approaches that utilize ancestral knowledge, decolonizing & Indigenizing methodologies and storytelling in the creation of archaeological knowledge to reaffirm Indigenous connections to land & place. Dr. Marek-Martinez is a founding member of the Indigenous Archaeology Coalition. Yoli Ngandali (she/he/hers) is a member of the Ngbaka Tribe from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a Ronald E. McNair Fellow, and a Ph.D. Candidate in Archaeology at the University of Washington. Her research interests span Archaeologies of colonialism, Indigenous archaeology, Archaeologies of Central Africa, Trans-Indigenous traditions of culture sharing, Black & Indigenous futurity, digital conservation science, remote sensing, and multi-spectral imaging. Her doctoral dissertation develops digital and community-based participatory research approaches to Indigenous art revitalization within museum settings and highlights Indigenous carving traditions in the Pacific Northwest.

SAPIENS host Chip Colwell speaks with evolutionary geneticist Hugo Zeberg about his surprising discovery of a connection between Neanderthal DNA and a greater risk for severe COVID-19. Zeberg is also a researcher at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden and the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Germany.Read the paper in Nature Zeberg co-authored announcing the discovery: “The Major Genetic Risk Factor for Severe COVID-19 Is Inherited From Neanderthals.”

SAPIENS host Chip Colwell speaks with Melanie Adams, the director of the Smithsonian’s Anacostia Community Museum (ACM), about #Moments of Resilience, the ACM’s effort to document and eventually tell African Americans’ stories about the times we're living through now. They also discuss the unique role of a community museum, the value of oral history, and the communities the ACM serves from its home in Washington, D.C. Check out these links to the three stories Melanie reads in this episode: Spreading Joy; One Rock at a Time More Than a Cup of Coffee The Resurrection of Gloria The following pieces are sources Chip mentions in his introduction: “As Pandemic Deaths Add Up, Racial Disparities Persist—and in Some Cases Worsen” by Daniel Wood “No, ‘Racial Genetics’ Aren’t Affecting COVID-19 Deaths” by Sonia Zakrzewski

SAPIENS host Jen Shannon speaks with biological anthropologist Helen Fisher about her research on love, sex, and everything in between. Fisher is the author of six books, the chief scientific adviser for the online dating site Match.com, and a leading researcher on dating trends in America. In this episode, Fisher shares insights from a recent survey. The New York Times piece Fisher references in this episode is available here: “How Coronavirus Is Changing the Dating Game for the Better.”

SAPIENS host Chip Colwell talks with experimental archaeologist Farrell Monaco about her work re-creating ancient Roman bread and what it means to reconnect with bakers of the past. Farrell also offers some tips for pandemic-era bakers who want to take their new hobby to the next level. For more from Farrell, her award-winning website is Tavola Mediterranea. Read more about experimental archaeology, including Farrell and her work, at SAPIENS.org: “Pandemic Bakers Bring the Past to Life.” And go ahead and try to make the Roman bread recipe described by Cato the Elder.

SAPIENS host Jen Shannon speaks with Agustín Fuentes, a professor of anthropology at Princeton University, to unpack his insight that the COVID-19 pandemic is a biosocial phenomenon. They also discuss his recent suggestion that the virus “is not the only hazard to human health and well-being” right now. Recently elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Fuentes is a decorated anthropologist and an author of many books. His latest is Why We Believe: Evolution and the Human Way of Being. For more from Fuentes, an excerpt of Why We Believe is available at SAPIENS.org: “How Did Beliefs Evolve?” Also on SAPIENS.org, he hosted the debate, “Why Are Humans Violent?”

The SAPIENS podcast will return in several months, and we want you to help us understand what it means to be human amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Do you have a question, thought, or idea about what it means to be human right now? Tweet at us @SAPIENS_org, message us on Facebook, or leave us a voicemail at 1-970-368-9730.

Everyone seems to have a story about the moment when the novel coronavirus pandemic stopped being an abstract problem “somewhere out there” and started being a very real and personal threat. In this episode of the SAPIENS podcast, hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell interrogate the problem with abstract threats with the help of anthropologists Hugh Gusterson and Kristin Hedges. In closing, Steve Nash returns to discuss a different abstract concept: time. Hugh Gusterson is a professor of anthropology and international affairs at George Washington University. Follow him on Twitter @GustersonP and read his recent piece at SAPIENS magazine: “The Problem of Imagining the Real.” Kristin Hedges is an applied medical anthropologist who studies how understanding cultural constructions of illness is essential for successful health intervention campaigns. She is an assistant professor at Grand Valley State University in Allendale, Michigan. Follow her on Twitter @kristinhedges6 and read her recent piece at SAPIENS magazine: “The Symbolic Power of Virus Testing.” Steve Nash is a historian of science, an archaeologist at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, and a columnist for SAPIENS. Follow him on Twitter @nash_dr, check out his column Curiosities, and read the column post he mentions in this episode: “The Long Count.”

At some time in the future, the novel coronavirus pandemic will fade. What will this globally traumatic contagion leave in its wake? In this episode of the SAPIENS podcast, hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell keep an eye on the future while looking to the past for answers: In the 14th century, the Black Death killed as much as one-third of the population of Europe, but it also sparked new ideas that linger to this day, including one of our favorite modern myths. In closing, Steve Nash returns to discuss the plague doctors of Venice and the many meanings of masks. Sara Toth Stub is a journalist based in Jerusalem who writes about religion, business, travel, and archaeology. Follow her on Twitter at @saratothstub and read her recent piece at SAPIENS magazine: “Venice’s Black Death and the Dawn of Quarantine.” Matteo Borrini is a forensic anthropologist in the School of Biological and Environmental Sciences at Liverpool John Moores University. Check out one of his academic papers for more about “Carmilla.” Jane Stevens Crawshaw is a senior lecturer in early modern European history at Oxford Brookes University and the author of Plague Hospitals: Public Health for the City in Early Modern Venice. Steve Nash is a historian of science, an archaeologist at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, and a columnist for SAPIENS. Check out his column Curiosities and follow him on Twitter @nash_dr.

SAPIENS host Jen Shannon interviews Laurence Ralph, a professor of anthropology at Princeton University. Ralph is also a co-director of Princeton’s Center on Transnational Policing, the editor of Current Anthropology, and the author of the new book The Torture Letters: Reckoning With Police Violence, which exposes the Chicago Police Department’s history of torturing black men and women, and documents the community activism intent on stopping such violence. The poll Jen mentions in this episode was conducted by Monmouth and published on June 2, 2020.

SAPIENS host Chip Colwell interviews Elic Weitzel, a doctoral candidate in anthropology at the University of Connecticut, about his recent article for SAPIENS that considers how the global pandemic may impact climate change—for better or for worse. Weitzel is currently working on his dissertation on the environmental effects of the Black Death on 14th-century Eurasia and the depopulation of Native Americans in the wake of European colonization. Read his SAPIENS article: “Are Pandemics Good for the Environment?”

With the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic, the SAPIENS podcast is going viral. In this first episode of season 3, SAPIENS hosts Chip Colwell and Jen Shannon revisit a story about preppers from our first season. Jen calls Chad Huddleston, one of the anthropologists featured on that show, to find out how he and the preppers he studies are handling the COVID-19 crisis. In closing, Chip reaches out to SAPIENS columnist and anthropologist Steve Nash to discuss panic buying, toilet paper, and more. Chad Huddleston is an adjunct assistant professor at St. Louis University and an instructor at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. Read his SAPIENS article: “For Preppers, the Apocalypse Is Just Another Disaster.” Steve Nash is a historian of science, an archaeologist at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, and a columnist for SAPIENS. Check out his column Curiosities and follow him on Twitter @nash_dr.

In this season 2 finale of the SAPIENS podcast, hosts Jen Shannon, Chip Colwell, and Esteban Gómez field questions from listeners on Twitter and at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science about what it means to be human. They address human origins and self-awareness, discrimination, social media, and more! You can follow all of our expert guests on Twitter: Augustin Fuentes at the University of Notre Dame (@Anthrofuentes); Daniel Miller at the University College London (@DannyAnth); and Barbara King, professor emerita at William and Mary (@bjkingape). Mark Shriver, professor at Pennsylvania State University, did a study on human nose shape and climate adaptation that also informed our conversation. Finally, here's a link to the nose-picking gorilla photos mentioned in this episode. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is a part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

Until very recently, Colin Turnbull was the only anthropologist who had lived and studied with both the Mbuti people of the Congo region and the Ik of Uganda. Because of his writings, one community became known for its egalitarianism and the other for its selfishness. His observations of the Ik in particular, as “inhuman” and “inhospitable,” led to them being dubbed as “the loveless people.” Then in 2009, Cathryn Townsend earned the chance to live with the Ik to study to generosity. In this episode, she shares her insights on what she found, and what Turnbull may have gotten wrong. To learn more about Cathryn Townsend's work, follow her on Twitter @CathrynTownsend. This episode is inspired by the SAPIENS.org article “Is a More Generous Society Possible?” Learn more about the Human Generosity Project, of which Cathryn is a part. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is a part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music for this episode includes: “Hello World,” “Who Were These People,” “Malaria,” “In Transit” by Matthew Simonson. “As I Was Saying,” “Curiosity,” “Quizitive,” Reflections,” All I have Left Are These Photographs” by Lee Rosevere “Silver Flame” by Kevin Macleod “Walking Bells” by Studio D

Anthropologist Elisa Sobo never wanted to study the issue of vaccination. The topic was too fraught, she says, and she didn't want to touch it. But then she initiated a children’s health study at a school in California. Today her work on vaccine hesitancy offers insights into how those on opposing sides might better understand each other and work through this highly controversial issue. For more, check out Elisa Sobo’s SAPIENS piece about her work on vaccination: “Beyond the Vaccination Rift.” For the other vaccination-related SAPIENS article Chip mentions in this episode, see: “Why Eradicating Polio Is More Complicated Than It Seems.” SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music for this episode includes: “Metadata in One Lesson,” “School Daze,” “Museum,” “In Transit” by Matthew Simonson “Missa Pastoralis Bohemica, Hej, Mistre” by Georg Munzel “Trusted News V2” by David Fesliyan “Here’s the Thing,” “Sad Marimba Planet” by Lee Rosevere “Come As You Were” by Blue Dot Sessions

What is it about certain musical traditions that cause them to take root in communities far away from where they originated? Anthropologist Kristina Jacobsen leads SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell on a musical journey into the U.S. Southwest to understand the phenomenon that is Navajo country music. In addition to authoring the book The Sound of Navajo Country: Music, Language, and Diné Belonging, Jacobsen is a singer-songwriter. This episode includes one of her songs and a number of others she learned about during her time on the Navajo Nation. Listen to more music by Dennis Yazzie and the Night Breeze Band here. For more on Navajo country music, read Jacobsen's article at SAPIENS: “Why Navajos Love Their Country Music.” SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music for this episode includes: “Selja Star” by Ken Jacobsen “El Tajo,” “Moon Bicycle Theme,” “FasterFasterBrighter,” “Villano,” “Waltz for Zacaria” by Blue Dot Sessions “In Transit,” “Chads Story” by Matthew Simonson “Room at the Top of the Stairs,” “Wanted Man,” “Made in Japan” by Dennis Yazzie and the Night Breeze Band “Inez” by Kristina Jacobsen

How do language, biology, and culture shape an individual’s experience of color? A journalist investigates the anthropological debate about whether color is a human universal. Remember the meme #TheDress? Was it white and gold, or blue and black? With the help of Nicola Jones, a freelance science journalist who writes for Nature and SAPIENS, SAPIENS host Jen Shannon explores the question of color perception to find answers. She learns about the book The World Color Survey, an Amazonian tribe in Peru whose language has no color words, the biology of the human eye. Nicola Jones is a science reporter and journalist. Follow her on Twitter @nicolakimjones. Simon Overall is a linguist and guest lecturer at the University of Otago in New Zealand. You can follow him at @ginsengburger. For more on the debate about color perception, read Jones' article at SAPIENS.org: "Do You See What I See?" SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music for this episode includes: “I’m That Guy,” “Chads Story,” “Cerutti,” “In Transit,” “Museum,” “School Daze” by Matthew Simonson “Palms Down,” “Soothe,” “Bridgewalker” by Blue Dot Sessions “Marimba Colors” by Jason Paton

Anthropologist Sabine Hyland attempts to uncover the secrets held in twisted and colored Andean cords called khipus. Thanks to the collaborative approach of anthropologist Sabine Hyland and local communities, outsiders are finally coming to understand what these khipus mean—for the people of the Andes and for the rest of us. Sabine Hyland is a professor of anthropology at the University of St. Andrews. Follow her on Twitter @Coyagirl. For more on khipus, read Hyland’s article about the Collata khipus at SAPIENS.org: “Unraveling an Ancient Code Written in Strings.” The book Chip mentions at the end of this episode is called Wisdom Sits in Places by Keith Basso. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Correction: Hyland confirmed for us that the 1783 rebellion was against the Spanish, not the Inca, as she said in one quote in the initial version of this episode. We have since removed the error. Music for this episode includes: “Denzel Sprak,” “Weathervane,” “Are We Loose Yet,” “Bidious Transit,” “Borough,” “Gullwing Sailor,” “Cases to Rest” by Blue Dot Sessions “4,” “Cerutti,” “Ballgames,” “In Transit” by Matthew Simonson “Hero Down” by Kevin Macleod

Anthropologist Roger Lohmann sees a ghost in a dream while working in Papua New Guinea. Even though he knows it's just a dream, he's scared long after he wakes up. To make sense of his dream, Lohmann explores the role dreams play in our waking life and how different cultures make sense of dream worlds. Do all humans dream the same? Or do the cultures we are immersed in shape our dreams? Lohmann has six cultural dream theories that offer some answers to what dreams are and what they mean. Roger Lohmann has six cultural dream theories that offer some answers to what dreams are and what they mean. Roger Lohmann is a professor of anthropology at Trent University, where he specializes in religion, cultural change, and cultural dream theory. Follow him on Twitter @rogerlohmann. Read Lohmann’s article at SAPIENS: “The Night I Was Attacked by a Ghost.” And for more, check out an essay about Islamic dream culture: “Do Dreams Give Voice to the Divine?” SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music for this episode includes: “Thoughtful” by Lee Rosevere “In Transit,” “Metadata in One Lesson” by Matthew Simonson “Balti,” “The Provisions” by Blue Dot Sessions

When Thomas Pearson’s newborn daughter was diagnosed with Down syndrome, it changed the course of his life forever. Pearson joins SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell to talk about his story, how his training in anthropology prepared him for his daughter’s diagnosis, and what he hopes other people can learn from his experience. Pearson is a professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Wisconsin, Stout. Read more about Pearson’s story and his research into disability studies on SAPIENS: “A Daughter’s Disability and a Father’s Awakening.” The book Chip recommends at the end of the episode is titled The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music included in this episode are: Walking Bells - Studio D Not Alone, Betrayal, Waiting for the Moment That Never Comes, Under Suspicion, Compassion - Lee Rosevere Cerutti, Who Were These People, School Daze - Matthew Simonson Gymnopedie No 1 - Kevin Macleod

The Denisovans have long been one of the most elusive ancient human cousins, until now. In May 2019, scientists revealed the first fossil evidence of Denisovans outside of the Denisova Cave in Siberia. As the historical human family tree grows, what are we learning about why we're the only ones left? In this episode, we pose this question to science journalist Carl Zimmer, a columnist for The New York Times and the author of 13 books. Follow him on Twitter @carlzimmer. We also speak with archaeologist Anna Goldfield about Neanderthals, another close ancient cousin. Goldfield is a columnist at SAPIENS.org, co-host of The Dirt podcast, and the illustrator of The Neanderthal Child of Roc de Marsal: A Prehistoric Mystery. Follow her on Twitter @AnnaGoldfield. Learn more about Denisovans and Neanderthals. SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. Music in this episode is by: "Willow and the Light" by Kevin MacLeod https://filmmusic.io "Honey Bee" by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.com) License: CC by (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)Music from leerosevere.bandcamp.com "Featherlight" by Lee Rosevere (leerosevere.bandcamp.com) "Curiosity" by Lee Rosevere “Let That Sink In” by Lee Rosevere License: CC BY (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) “In Transit” by Matthew Simonson. "Summit" by K2 produced by Blue Dot Sessions, purchased with a professional license.

How come some people think eating insects is disgusting? Join SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell as they dine on many-legged delicacies and delve into the world of entomophagy with anthropologist Julie Lesnik, author of the new book Edible Insects and Human Evolution. Julie is a professor of anthropology at Wayne State University. She tweets @JulieLesnik and her website is at www.entomoanthro.org. Learn more about eating insects at Sapiens.org: [Why Don’t More Humans Eat Bugs?](%20https:/www.sapiens.org/culture/eat-bugs/) SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, and mixed, audio edited and sound designed by Jason Paton. It was hosted by Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell. Sapiens is produced by House of Pod, with contributions from executive producer Cat Jaffee and intern Freda Kreier. Meral Agish is our fact-checker. Matthew Simonson composed our theme. Giancarlos Hernandez performed the excerpt from the diary of Diego Alvarez Chanca. A special thanks this time to Beau and everyone else at Linger, as well as our guest this week, Julie Lesnick. This podcast is funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation, which has provided vital support through Danilyn Rutherford, Maugha Kenny, and its staff, board, and advisory council. Additional support was provided by the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Thanks always to Amanda Mascarelli, Daniel Salas, Christine Weeber, Cay Leytham-Powell, and everyone at SAPIENS.org. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. For this episode, we used the compositions, "Hello World", "4", "Cerutti", "Metadata in one Lesson", "School Daze", and "In Transit" by Matthew Simonson; aand "Thinking Music," and "Umbrella Pants," by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.

Hello fellow sapiens! We’re coming back with new episodes starting on July 30. This season is just a little different, though. SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell are still asking big questions about what it means to be human, but this time they’re jumping off from some of the best stories from Sapiens.org, and culminating in questions... from you! If you have a query about what it means to be human, we want to hear it! Send your questions to us on Facebook at Sapiens.org, tweet them at us @sapiens_org with the hashtag #sapienspodcast, or leave us a short voicemail at 970-368-9730. Make sure to include your name so we can thank you when we play your question on the show. A fun side note: One of the songs in this trailer was composed by Joachim Neander himself. Our editor Matthew Simonson discovered it in the public domain.

How does an immigrant become an American? How does anyone join any group? SAPIENS host Esteban Gomez shares the story of Dr. Morwari Zafar, a researcher who has studied the changes in her own community of Afghan-Americans in Fremont, California, in the wake of 9-11. From the first major wave of immigration in the late 1980s and early 1990s, to 9-11 and the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the Afghan-American community has been in flux, exemplifying the mysteries of group identity, dynamics, and nationhood. Morwari recently completed a PhD in anthropology at Oxford University. Her PhD dissertation is available online: COIN-operated anthropology: Cultural knowledge, American counterinsurgency and the rise of the Afghan diaspora. Zafar is now managing partner at Sentient Group, a consulting company focused on the national security, international development, and private sectors. This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Esteban Gómez. Sapiens producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. More from sapiens.org: Trump and the Echo of Amache by Esteban Gómez Racism by any Other Name is Still Racism by Esteban Gómez SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

SAPIENS host Jen Shannon goes on a mission to find out how quinoa travels from farmers’ fields in Huanoquite, Peru, to markets in Lima and the U.S. She discovers quinoa’s complicated past and present: a bloody civil war that shook the nation, the chefs who tried to use food as a racial reconciliation project, and the current economic and social pressures small producers face when they take on huge risks to bring their product from field to market. Linda Seligmann is a professor emeritus of sociocultural anthropology at George Mason University. She has worked in the Andean region of Latin America for over forty years. Her current project tracks production of quinoa and gender dynamics in the highlands of Peru. Emma McDonell is a PhD candidate in cultural anthropology at Indiana University, where she works on food politics, political ecology, and quinoa in the Andes. Follow her on Twitter @EmMcDonell. María Elena García is an associate professor in the Comparative History of Ideas Program at the University of Washington. She is currently working on a book project about Peru’s food boom and return to democracy after civil war. Learn more about food at SAPIENS: Cooking Up an International Market for Quinoa by Adam Gamwell and Corinna Howland Will GMOs Put an End to Hunger? Ask the Hungry by Karen Coates Reclaiming Native Ground by Barry Yeoman This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Jen Shannon. SAPIENS producer Paul Karolyi, along with executive producer Cat Jaffee, House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek, and SAPIENS host Esteban Gómez, provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Scientists have thought about burial—the act of interring a dead body—as a distinctly human behavior. So what happened when a group of paleoanthropologists discovered a primitive hominid that may have entombed its dead? And how do people respond when they are unable to find and care for the remains of their loved ones? SAPIENS host Jen Shannon talks to Mercedes Doretti, co-founder of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, about the 38,000 people who have disappeared in Mexico since 2006. They discuss forensic scientists’ strategies in cases in which missing migrants cannot be found and others in which remains have not yet been identified. Paige Madison is a Ph.D. candidate at Arizona State University, where she studies the history of paleoanthropology. Her dissertation research examines the history of research on Neanderthals, Australopithecines, and Homo floresiensis. She blogs and tweets about fossils and the history of science. Follow her on Twitter @FossilHistory. Mercedes Doretti is a forensic anthropologist who investigates human rights violations. She is a co-founder of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF), where she directs the Central America, North America section. Doretti was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007 for her work with the EAAF. She completed an advanced degree (Licenciatura) in 1987 from the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina, and she took courses in biological anthropology at Hunter College, City University of New York. Learn more about caring for and honoring the dead at SAPIENS: Who First Buried the Dead? by Paige Madison Gathering the Genetic Testimony of Spain’s Civil War Dead by Lucas Laursen Grief Can Make Us Wise by Richard Wilshusen This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, Jen Shannon, and Esteban Gómez. SAPIENS producer Paul Karolyi, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Surprise! As a special holiday treat, the SAPIENS team is presenting this unedited conversation between SAPIENS host Chip Colwell and acclaimed science journalist Carl Zimmer about DNA, identity, and heredity. This conversation was previously excerpted in our episode “Is Your DNA You?” It took place in front of a live audience at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science on June 20, 2018. Carl Zimmer’s new book is She Has Her Mother's Laugh: The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity. Learn more about Zimmer’s work at carlzimmer.com. This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, with support from SAPIENS co-hosts Esteban Gómez and Jen Shannon. SAPIENS producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod. Additional funding for this episode was provided by our friends at Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas.

From space junk and the International Space Station to Elon Musk and SpaceX, space is becoming a more human place. What will it mean for us to live among the stars? SAPIENS host Jen Shannon probes the nascent field of space archaeology and looks to the mystery of exoplanets for answers. Alice Gorman is a senior lecturer in the college of humanities at Flinders University, and Justin Walsh is associate professor and chair of the Art Department at Chapman University. Together, they lead the International Space Station Archaeology Project. Lisa Messeri is assistant professor of anthropology at Yale University and the author of Placing Outer Space: An Earthly Ethnography of Other Worlds. She is currently investigating place-making in the field of virtual reality technology. Learn more about space at sapiens.org: Unmanning Space Language Anthropologists in Outer Space Interplanetary Environmentalism This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Jen Shannon, with support from Sapiens co-hosts Esteban Gomez and Chip Colwell. SAPIENS producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Some athletes seem larger than life. They are revered and imitated—and they seemingly hold a lot of power. But whether they feel empowered in their lives and choices off the field depends on a variety of complex factors. We explore the experiences of black college football players in the U.S. and Fijian rugby players who migrate to play on teams in France to learn more. Tracie Canada is a graduate student in the anthropology department at the University of Virginia. In 2017, her research project Tackling the Everyday: Race, Family, and Nation in Big-Time College Football was awarded a dissertation fieldwork grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation. Niko Besnier is a professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Amsterdam and has a research professorship at La Trobe University, Melbourne (Australia). He is also a fellow at Stanford University's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. Besnier is a co-author of The Anthropology of Sport: Bodies, Borders, Biopolitics. This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Cat Jaffee, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Esteban Gómez, with support from SAPIENS co-hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell. SAPIENS producers Paul Karolyi and Arielle Milkman, along with House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek, provided additional support. Cat Jaffee is our executive producer. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

What is home? Is it a physical space, a set of relationships, or a state of mind? SAPIENS host Esteban Gómez follows Amy Starecheski, a researcher who has studied how squatters went legit and secured homeownership in New York City, as she seeks to answer these questions and more. With Starecheski, Gómez moves through two of New York’s most fascinating neighborhoods—the Lower East Side in Manhattan and Mott Haven in the Bronx. They discuss how people have navigated massive restructuring and shifts in housing policy in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Amy Starecheski is a cultural anthropologist and an oral historian whose research focuses on the use of oral history in social movements and the politics of urban property. She holds a Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the City University of New York and is the director of the Oral History Master of Arts program at Columbia University. Starecheski is the author of Ours to Lose: When Squatters Became Homeowners in New York City and the winner of the 2016 SAPIENS-Allegra Margaret Mead writing competition with her article “The Transformation of One of New York City’s Most Famous Squats.” She is currently working on a public sound art project about the Bronx’s Mott Haven neighborhood using oral histories. This episode of Sapiens was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Esteban Gómez. Sapiens producer Paul Karolyi, producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. Special thanks to 2.5 Children Inc. for use of the song “building number 44.” Learn more about how humans navigate their sense of home at SAPIENS: The Transformation of One of New York City’s Most Famous Squats Shattered Homes and Hard Choices in Post-Quake Nepal How Fracking’s Appetite for Sand is Devouring Rural Communities SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

Humans may have been in North America much earlier than previously thought. Here’s the evidence: chipped rocks, crushed mastodon bones, and reliable dates showing the remains are 130,000 years old. Is that enough to rewrite the history? SAPIENS co-hosts Chip Colwell and Jen Shannon talk to Steven and Kathleen Holen, archaeologists and co-authors of a controversial discovery. And they further evaluate the claims with the help of anthropologist Todd Braje. Steven Holen and Kathleen Holen are co-directors of the Center for American Paleolithic Research. Steven’s publications include series on Great Plains Paleoindian Archaeology and Ice Age Humans in the Americas. (He co-edited both series with Kathleen.) Steven and Kathleen were co-authors of the Nature article “A 130,000-Year-Old Archaeological Site in Southern California, USA,” published in April 2017. Todd Braje is a professor of anthropological archaeology. He has published two books and a co-edited volume. His most recent book is Shellfish for the Celestial Empire: The Rise and Fall of Commercial Abalone Fishing in California. Braje also serves as co-editor of The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology. For SAPIENS’ original coverage of the mastodon site discovery, check out the news article “Broken Bones Could Rewrite Story of the First Americans.” This episode of Sapiens was produced by Cat Jaffee, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell and Jen Shannon, with help from Esteban Gomez. Sapiens producer Arielle Milkman, producer Paul Karolyi, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

It’s the end of the world as we know it. How do you feel? SAPIENS co-host Jen Shannon follows the trail of some contemporary preppers with the help of anthropologist Chad Huddleston. Then she dives into history with Tim Kohler, an archaeologist and expert on Ancestral Puebloan peoples of the U.S. Southwest. Chad Huddleston is an adjunct assistant professor of anthropology at Saint Louis University in Missouri and an instructor at Southern Illinois University, Edwardsville. In March, he published an article about his work with preppers at SAPIENS.org: “For Preppers, the Apocalypse Is Just Another Disaster.” Tim Kohler is a professor of archaeology and evolutionary anthropology at Washington State University. He also serves as coordinator for the Village Ecodynamics Project, a multidisciplinary effort to study the connection between Ancestral Puebloan peoples and their environment in the U.S. Southwest. This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, Esteban Gomez, and Jen Shannon. Sapiens producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. All music is produced and designed by Matthew Simonson with illustration by David Williams, and fact-checking by Christine Weeber. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Can robots care? And why should we care if they do? SAPIENS host Jen Shannon meets Pepper the robot, and host Chip Colwell goes on a quest to find out how the robotics industry is (re)shaping intimacy in Japan. He speaks with anthropologists Jennifer Robertson, Daniel White, and Hirofumi Katsuno, all researchers in the field of robotics, to learn more about what artificial emotion can teach us about what it means to be human. Jennifer Robertson is a professor of anthropology and of the history of art at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. Hirofumi Katsuno is an associate professor in the department of media, journalism, and communications at Doshisha University, Kyoto. Daniel White is a postdoctoral fellow in the department of history and cultural studies at the Freie Universität Berlin. Learn more about artificial intelligence at SAPIENS.org: The Age of Cultured Machines by Matthew Gwynfryn Thomas and Djuke Veldhuis Learning to Trust Machines That Learn by Matthew Gwynfryn Thomas and Djuke Veldhuis Life and Death After the Steel Mills by Elizabeth Svoboda An original score inspired by the 1927 film Metropolis called 2026: Musik Inspired by Metropolis by the composer Scott Ampleford appeared in this episode. This episode of Sapiens was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, Esteban Gomez, and Jen Shannon. Sapiens producer Paul Karolyi, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. All music is produced and designed by Matthew Simonson with illustration by David Williams, and fact-checking by Christine Weeber. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

What does your DNA have to do with who you are? On a journey for answers, SAPIENS hosts Chip Colwell, Jen Shannon, and Esteban Gómez take consumer DNA tests and confront murky, interconnected issues of identity and heredity. Their guides include science journalist Carl Zimmer and anthropologists Deborah Bolnick and Kim TallBear. Carl Zimmer has authored 13 books about science, including his latest work She Has Her Mother’s Laugh, which traces the history of heredity: Deborah Bolnick is an incoming associate professor of anthropology at the University of Connecticut. Her research interests include anthropological genetics, ancient DNA studies, paleoepigenetics, and a variety of other related subjects. Kim TallBear is an associate professor in the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Native Studies. The University of Minnesota Press published her book Native American DNA in 2013. Learn more about DNA at SAPIENS.org: I’ve Got the Neanderthal Blues by Emma Marris The Ethical Battle Over Ancient DNA by Michael Balter How Molecular Clocks Are Refining Human Evolution’s Timeline by Bridget Alex and Priya Moorjani This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, Esteban Gomez, and Jen Shannon. Sapiens producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. All music is produced and designed by Matthew Simonson with illustration by David Williams, and fact-checking by Christine Weeber. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

What makes you … you? Is it your DNA, culture, environment? SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon, Esteban Gómez, and SAPIENS.org Editor-in-Chief Chip Colwell speak with anthropologists from around the globe to help us uncover what makes us human. Subscribe now to learn more. The SAPIENS podcast is supported by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.