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A red bus is parked under a digital street sign that reads “via downtown” and two smaller street signs, each written in a different language.

What Klingon and Other Constructed Languages Reveal

Meet Christine Schreyer, a linguistic anthropologist who created the Kryptonian language for a Superman movie and researches the people who invent new tongues and seek to sustain ancient ones.
The word "SAPIENS" on a soft green background.

SAPIENS Podcast Season 4 Reflections and Celebrations

In this live event, a panel of archaeologists and podcasters celebrates the completion of SAPIENS Podcast Season 4 and RadioCIAMS’ SAPIENS Talk Back series.
A landscape image shows clouds sitting low between hilltops and an open grassy plain.

Stop Calling the Aleutians Pristine

Indigenous peoples who lived in the Aleutian Islands for thousands of years didn’t trash the environment—that doesn’t mean their presence should be dismissed.
A large group of people walk down an avenue holding signs behind those who carry a long blue-and-white banner that reads “March for Science.”

What’s Behind the U.S. War on Science?

President Biden’s administration has promised to reinsert science into government decision-making. An anthropologist looks to Finland to argue that solutions must go far beyond reversing Trump’s policies.
race scientific taxonomy

How Scientific Taxonomy Constructed the Myth of Race

Botanist Carl Linnaeus’ classification system has been adopted around the globe—but have we adequately reckoned with how his ideas about humans laid the groundwork for scientific racism?
community supported agriculture - Growing and harvesting this food helped the author connect with nature.

What Parsnips Taught Me About Nature

One anthropologist’s research on Community Supported Agriculture—which saw him wrestling with parsnips and talking to leeks—spurs thoughts on closing the gap between Western urban life and the natural world.
Drug Use - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s war on drugs has targeted alleged drug dealers, such as this 18-year-old man, and left thousands of suspects dead.

Why Are People Who Use Illegal Drugs Demonized?

In many parts of the world, people who take illegal substances are punished with harsh prison sentences or executions that are unjustified. Behind this treatment lie prejudices that have a surprising history.
Traditional Ecological Knowledge - A team of researchers in northern Australia have documented kites and falcons, “firehawks,” intentionally carrying burning sticks to spread fire: It is just one example of western science catching up to Indigenous Traditional Knowledge.

Western Science Is Finally Catching Up to Traditional Ecological Knowledge

Time and again, Western researchers are realizing that Indigenous peoples have long had sophisticated insights and deep wisdom about the world.

How Smart Were the First Toolmakers?

State-of-the-art brain imaging technology is shedding new light on the evolution of human intelligence.