First-Year Courses in Anthropological ArchaeologyConsult the new Course Guide at: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/lsa/cg_subjectlist/0,2030,8,00.html?show=20&termArray=f_04_1510&cgtype=ug This page was created at 1:00 PM on Wed, May 5, 2004. Fall Academic Term, 2004 (September 7 - December 23)Anthropology Waitlist/Override Procedures For courses that are closed and do not maintain waitlists on wolverine access:
ANTHRARC 180. First-Year Seminar in Anthropological Archaeology.Section 001 — The Origins of Us: An Evolutionary and Archaeological Perspective.Instructor(s): John D Speth (jdspeth@umich.edu)Prerequisites & Distribution: Only first-year students, including those with sophomore standing, may pre-register for First-Year Seminars. All others need permission of instructor. (3). (SS). May not be repeated for credit. First-Year Seminar Credits: (3). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. Theories about modern human origins have received tremendous media coverage, deservedly so because they incorporate the fundamental issues of human evolution. Modern humans differ not only from other animals but also from their predecessors. People not very different from living populations in their behavioral capacities and anatomical features only first appear perhaps 100,000 to 200,000 years ago. Considerable controversy surrounds the question of whether these behavioral capacities and anatomies are causally linked, and why they appear when and where they do. New data have addressed these issues from disciplines as diverse as mitochondrial genetics and the foraging ecology of ancient human hunters, but the issues remain far from resolved. In this seminar, we will explore these various sources of information and insight, drawing on genetics, fossils, and archaeology to outline and explain what actually constitutes modern humanity and its diversity, and how its unique aspects came about. Using the modern human origins controversy as an organizing principle allows us to delve deeply into the different aspects of how we came to be human. The course will be organized and run as a seminar in which student input and discussion are essential. Readings drawn from a required course pack will be assigned for each week's discussion. In addition, participants will prepare a research paper, due at the end of the term, that addresses some aspect of the modern human origins debate. Grades will be based on timely completion of the assigned readings, active participation in discussions, and the final research paper.
ANTHRARC 282(ANTHRCUL 282). Introduction to Prehistoric Archaeology.
Section 001.Instructor(s): John M O'Shea (joshea@umich.edu)Prerequisites & Distribution: (4). (SS). May not be repeated for credit. Credits: (4). Course Homepage: No homepage submitted. The course is designed to provide students with a general introduction to the techniques, methods, and theories of anthropological archaeology, and to provide an overview of human prehistory from earliest times to the emergence of complex societies. In the first half of the academic term, the class will consider how archaeologists can determine the age and other characteristics of past societies. Topics will range from radiocarbon dating to how sites are discovered and excavated. The second half of the academic term will involve a 'greatest hits' tour of world prehistory, looking critically at some of the key points in human cultural development, such as the appearance of the first proto-humans in Africa, the colonization of the New World, the spread of agriculture, and the origins social inequality. The course is specifically designed to be accessible to students regardless of their previous backgrounds in anthropology, but it will provide the foundation necessary for students that want to take more advanced courses in archaeology. There will be two lectures and one discussion section per week. Requirements: Two in-class exams, plus two take-home projects. Texts: Archaeology: Down to Earth, by David Hurst Thomas, and The Past in Perspective, by Kenneth L. Feder
Consult the new Course Guide at: http://www.lsa.umich.edu/lsa/cg_subjectlist/0,2030,8,00.html?show=20&termArray=f_04_1510&cgtype=ug This page was created at 1:00 PM on Wed, May 5, 2004.
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