Table of contents

All stories

An image focuses on two hands of a statue in shadow coming together holding a white flower.

Survival Notes

Black African women in former colonial centers such as London gesture to subversive ways of communicating with those imprisoned in archives across generations.
People walk through a long, wide museum hallway with high arched ceilings and skylights framed by tall tan columns.

Spain’s Move to Decolonize Its Museums Must Continue

In early 2024, Spain’s culture minister announced that the nation would overhaul its state museum collections, igniting a wave of anticipation—and controversy.
La gente camina por un largo y ancho pasillo del museo con altos techos arqueados y claraboyas enmarcadas por altas columnas de color canela.

El impulso de España para descolonizar sus museos debe continuar

A principios de 2024, el ministro de cultura de España anunció que el país renovaría las colecciones de sus museos estatales, desatando una ola de expectación y controversia.
A person wearing a dark blue shirt and a red umbrella hat walks through a lush field of tall green grasses.

It’s Time to Replace “Prehistory” With “Deep History”

A team of archaeologists working in Southeast Asia is pushing toward a deeper understanding of history that amplifies Indigenous and local perspectives to challenge traditional archaeological timelines.
A line of cattle travel across a dry desert landscape, kicking up dust.

An Imagined Monograph for Nongqawuse

A 19th-century prophetess reportedly bore a serious message from the ancestors to her Xhosa people amid British colonial assault. The written archives judged her—but much still remains unknown and unacknowledged.
On a quiet street at night, a small, glowing rectangular device rests on the sill of a stall window shuttered with a corrugated metal cover.

Phantom Vibrations of a Lost Smartphone

An anthropologist who studies human-computer interactions explores how and why losing one’s smartphone feels so unsettling.
A U-shaped cove encircled by rugged peaks covered in green forest opens to an ocean in varying shades of blues that extends to the horizon where colossal white clouds sit.

How and When Did Humans First Move Into the Pacific?

New archaeological research reveals insights into the first-known seafarers to brave ocean crossings from Asia to the Pacific Islands more than 50,000 years ago.
An old bucket coated in multicolored limestone sits in front of a limestone-covered wall out of which protrudes a faucet dripping water that falls into the bucket.

Her Dirge

A poet-historian reflects on women’s labor carrying memories and the past.
A gray-haired woman sits on an exam table in a light-filled doctor’s office and looks out a window.

Doctors Are Taught to Lie About Race

Decades ago, anthropologists dispelled the myth of biological race. Lagging behind in scientific understandings of human diversity, the medical profession is failing its oath to “do no harm.”
An ape-like mannequin, with protruding facial features and a body covered in fur, stands in a museum exhibition under dramatic lighting. Next to it, a text panel starts, “The human story begins.”

Lessons From Lucy

Fifty years ago, the remains of an Australopithecus afarensis ancestor, named “Lucy” by archaeologists, rewrote the story of human evolution.
A photo shows the back of a person in a dark suitcoat standing at a podium and speaking to a large, captive, seated audience. Most onlookers wear red MAGA hats and Trump T-shirts.

Five Reasons Why Trump Won Again

In an effort to address toxic polarization in the U.S., an anthropologist of the “Trumpiverse” explains MAGA supporters’ thinking in the 2024 U.S. presidential election.
A large moose stands in the shallow waters of a lake at sunset, with the water reflecting vibrant golden and orange hues.

Do Moose “Belong” in Colorado?

As moose populations multiply in the Southern Rocky Mountains, decision-makers are questioning whether the animals are endemic or invaders. Archaeology can offer answers—and potential solutions.
The ruins of a gray stone building stand below a cerulean sky with fluffy white clouds.

How Colonialism Invented Food Insecurity in West Africa

Archaeological evidence and Oral Histories show people in what is today Ghana lived sustainably for millennia—until European colonial powers and the widespread trade of enslaved people changed everything.
A black squirrel sits atop a trash can in a busy urban setting, with a crowd of people out-of-focus in the background.

Are People Projecting Racist Stereotypes Onto Squirrels?

Researchers refute a popular idea that black-furred squirrels behave more aggressively than gray ones—and suggest the myth stems from some people’s racist attitudes.
Two people crouch down to create colorful chalk art on a street. Intricate designs and language characters surround a central circular moti

Tackling the Impossibility—and Necessity—of Counting the World’s Languages

A language scientist delves into historic and current efforts to catalog the planet’s 7,000-plus languages, uncovering colorful tales and Herculean challenges.
Dos mujeres crean colorido arte con tiza en la calle para celebrar el Día Internacional de la Lengua Materna, con intrincados diseños y escritura bengalí alrededor de un motivo circular central.

La imposibilidad —y la necesidad— de contar las lenguas del mundo

Un científico del lenguaje se adentra en los esfuerzos históricos y actuales por catalogar los más de 7.000 idiomas del planeta, descubriendo historias pintorescas y retos hercúleos.