In this episode, anthropologists consider what the novel coronavirus reveals about how humans negotiate crises that seem too big to be real.
Haitian Deportees Face an Unconscionable Crisis During the PandemicFor Haitian nationals who are being deported from the U.S. amid the COVID-19 pandemic, racial injustices and health inequities run deep, to tragic effect.
Can Archaeology Explain the Bread Baking Craze?An archaeological look at the history of cuisine changes illuminates why the COVID-19 pandemic has prompted America’s new bread obsession—and whether it will last.
How Elders Make Us HumanAn anthropologist responds to the suggestion that older people sacrifice themselves for the sake of the economy in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Is Celebrity Attention Helping or Hurting Amazonian Peoples?As stars around the world petition Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro to protect Indigenous peoples from the COVID-19 pandemic, anthropologists debate whether the call for action reproduces longstanding racist claims.
Could the Coronavirus Pandemic Be Good for the Environment?Archaeological research into environmental impacts of the Black Death in Eurasia and historic pandemics among Native Americans during European colonization may provide answers to possible impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.
Rethinking Easter Island’s Historic “Collapse”Controversial new archaeological research casts doubt on a classic theory of this famous island’s societal collapse.
Ventilators Alone Won’t Save UsAmid the rush to ramp up the production of ventilators to battle COVID-19, the public has lost sight of an even more desperate need.
Preppers and the PandemicWere preppers more prepared for the COVID-19 pandemic than others? The SAPIENS podcast turns to an anthropologist on the inside of the preppers movement to find out.
Are Pandemics Good for the Environment?An anthropologist looks at past disease outbreaks to consider how the COVID-19 crisis may—or may not—benefit the environment.
