The Far Western Speaker Series provides a forum where scholars can present their research, and discuss their ideas. Speakers and audience members are diverse, and include some of the top academics in the country, graduate students engaged in cutting-edge research, and archaeologists from the contracting world. Lectures are held at the Far Western Lab at 2727 Del Rio Place, Davis, CA 95618 from 5-7pm.
Selected Occasional Speaker Citations
Graduate Speaker Series – May 18th @ 4:30pm
Distribution and Chronology of Schist Millingstones in Owens Valley
by Katie Hanrahan, M.A., California State University, Sacramento
To assess how, why, and when thin portable schist millingstones were used in Owens Valley (Payahǖǖnadǖ), data for 1,432 schist artifacts from 156 sites and isolates were compiled and analyzed. Results support previous interpretations that schist millingstones were portable, curated, and associated with residential sites and features. Results of this research do not support the argument that schist millingstones are temporally diagnostic of the Marana Period, but that use of schist millingstones culminated during the late Haiwee and Marana periods. These findings are integrated to identify implications for Owens Valley prehistory, and suggestions for future research and understanding of ground stone technology in the eastern Sierra.
CalNAGPRA and AB 275: The Reality of Collections Consultation and Repatriation by Leslie Hoefert, M.A., California State University, Sonoma
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the benefits and shortcomings of the California Assembly Bill 275 (AB 275) as an amendment to the California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (CalNAGPRA), related to the process of consultation and repatriation of funerary objects and human remains. A sample of experiences and opinions of the repatriation process were gathered from institutions and tribes to address the beneficial aspects of the legislation, determine what changes have occurred in the consultation and repatriation process as a result of AB 275, and determine the challenges that have been identified by tribes and institutions during compliance efforts. While AB 275 has created additional challenges for tribes and institutions, it was determined to be beneficial in the efforts to address the importance of Indigenous perspectives in collections management and the historical trauma Indigenous communities have experienced over the generations.
Industry and Malady: Entanglements of and Disease Afflicting Breast Cancer Patients in the Bay Area by Brieann DeOrnellas, M.A., San Jose State University
In the United States, breast cancer is culturally understood as a disease that afflicts the individual (Jain 2012); breast cancer is something that “just happens” (DeOrnellas 2017). However, studies have shown that breast cancer rates of industrialized nations have risen over time (Hopkins 1993; Hill 1997). These pockets of the country that have higher incidence rates of women’s cancers can be situated diachronically and alongside the historical context of war, agrochemical use, and notions of American industrial and technoscientific “progress”. As such industries ebb and flow over time, and humans and chemical carcinogens move across space, these maps have become increasingly complex, and obscure links between breast cancer causation and affliction. For this research project, I have utilized autoethnographic and ethnographic research methodologies to interview breast cancer patients, in efforts to understand whether prevailing discussions of “lifestyle choices” or “genetic risk” are rhetorical controlling processes (Nader 1997) that divert attention from corporate, governmental, or other institutional accountability, and whether or not these discursive diversions shift culpability onto women who are at risk of – or living with – breast cancer.
The Sacramento City Garbage Crematory Faunal Assemblage: Early Twentieth Century Consumer Patterns by Rachel Davies, M.A., California State University, Sacramento
In response to unsavory sanitation conditions caused by rapid population growth, the Sacramento City Garbage Crematory (CA-SAC-1252H) was established as the city’s first municipal garbage incinerator in 1906 and operated for approximately twenty years. The analysis of the faunal remains recovered from SAC-1252H allows for the examination of historic consumer patterns in Sacramento on a communal level as they relate to increased urbanization, improved product accessibility, industry innovation, and changes to endemic animal populations. Consumption patterns suggest increased reliance on domesticated and non-native animal products. Results regarding industrialized animal husbandry practices and transportation of animal goods from rural areas to urban centers are largely inconclusive due to limited sample size.
Speaker Series Graduate Thesis – May 18
The event is also being livestreamed! Register for the webinar link here:
https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/9e1f345e-6ae8-4ec7-b31f721336cf8035@b52184b6-5dbc-4883-9087-14742c0bc7df
Brittany Hill
2023
Bioarchaeology of Care in Three San Francisco Bay Area Muwekma OOhlone Ancestral Sites. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 2023.
Phil Gross and Brian Byrd
2022
Film: Time Has Many Voices. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. December 2022.
Carolina Mallol
2022
What Lies Under the Surface and … How Can We Excavate It? Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 2022.
Tammara Norton
2020
Film: A Point in Time. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. January 2020.
Kevin Smith and Martijn Kuypers
2019
An Experimental Approach and Cautionary Note Regarding Manufacturing Strategies, Efficiency, and Lithic Use Wear Associated with Tule Canoe Production. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. June 2019.
Kate Magargal
2019
Wood fuel ecology in the Intermountain West. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 2019.
Todd Braje
2019
Confronting the Clovis-First Void: The Peopling of the Americas and Paleolandscapes of Submerged California. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 2019.
Chris Parker
2019
The Archaeological Consequences of Human Fire Use: Analyses, Interpretations, and Implications for Understanding the Evolution of Pyrotechnic Behaviors. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. January 2019.
November 14, 2018 – Thomas Whitley SSU
Carly Whelan
2018
An Acorn in the Hand is Worth Two in the Granary: Future Discounting and Food Storage in Prehistoric California. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 2018.
Randy Haas
2018
The Last Altiplano Foragers: Archaeology, Ethnoarchaeology, and Economics at 7000BP and 3800masl. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. March 2018.
Albert Gonzalez
2018
Excavating Latinidad: Archaeologies of Latinxs in the United States. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 2018.
2018
The Paleoindian Archaeology of the Old River Bed Delta. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. January 2018.
2017
The Deep Archaeological Record of San Francisco Bay. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 2017.
Hadick, Kacey
2017
Innovations in Reality Capture Technologies for Heritage Sites + Virtual Reality Demonstration. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. October 2017.
Greenwald, Alexandra M.
2017
Parental Investment Strategies and Women’s Foraging Efficiency in Central California.Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. June 2017.
Jazwa, Christopher S.
2017
Settlement, Seasonality, and Climate on Santa Rosa Island, California. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. April 2017.
2017
The Potential Role of Geophytes, Digging Sticks, and Formed Flake Tools in the Western North American Paleoarchaic Expansion. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 2017.
2016
Two Early Sites in Alaska: a Dramatic Tale of Legacy Collections, Lithic Technology, and Community Perspectives in the Research of the First Americans. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. December 7, 2016.
Sullivan, Alan P.
2016
Fire Farming and Food Security in the Prehistoric Upland Southwest: Some Implications of New Evidence from the Grand Canyon Area. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. October 19, 2016.
Wisely, Justin
2016
Starch Grain Analysis of Bedrock Mortars in the Sierra Nevada Mountains: Experimental Studies to Determine their Function. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. September 21, 2016.
2016
Following the Movement of Stone: A Study of Ancient Maya Obsidian from Caracol, Belize. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 25, 2016.
2016
Toolstone Source Characterization in the Olduvai Basin, Tanzania. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. April 20, 2016.
Lambert, John M.
2016
Paleoindian Colonization of the Recently Deglaciated Great Lakes: Mobility and Technological Organization in Northern Wisconsin. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. March 30, 2016.
2016
Diving into Digital Data: A Look at 3-Dimensional Modeling Applications in Underwater Archaeology. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 24, 2016.
Hampson, Jamie
2015
Rock Art and Contested Identity. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 4, 2015.
Zwyns, Nicolas
2015
The Upper Paleolithic of Eurasian Steppe Belt: A View from Northern Mongolia. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. October 21, 2015.
Warnash, Scott
2015
Archaeology of the World Trade Center: Lessons Learned from Two Very Different Recovery Approaches. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. September 24, 2015.
2015
The Utility of Experimental Archaeology for Addressing Research Questions: A Case Study of Crescents from the Western United States. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. September 10, 2015.
Murphy, Laura R.
2015
Geoarchaology, Paleoenvironments, and Hunter-Gatherer Landscape Interactions: Case Studies from the Great Plains, USA. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. June 10, 2015.
Munson, Jessica
2015
Cultural Variation in Classic Maya Royal Rituals: A Lexical Perspective. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. April 29, 2015.
Scholnick, Jonathan B.
2015
Stylistic Patterns and Culture Change: Revisiting Eighteenth-century New England Gravestones. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. March 25, 2015.
2015
Limits to the Central California Acorn Economy: Fine-grained Floral Findings from the Lower Sacramento Valley. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 25, 2015.
O’Connell, James F.
2015
Where Shall We Have Lunch? The First Colonization of Australia 48,000 Years Ago. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. January 22, 2015.
Smith, Kevin N.
2014
San Nicolas Island Fishhook Production. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. December 3, 2014.
Tremayne, Andrew H.
2014
The Origin and Development of Maritime Adaptations in Northern Alaska: An Ecological Perspective. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 19, 2014.
Whelan, Carly S.
2014
Hunter-Gatherer Storage and Settlement: A View from the Central Sierra Nevada. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 21, 2014.
Lightfoot, Kent
2014
The Anthropocene in California: An Eco-Archaeological Perspective. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 20, 2014.
Smith, Chelsea M.
2014
Stable Isotope Analysis to Reconstruct Dog and Fox Diet on San Nicolas Island. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. January 22, 2014.
Woodfill, Brent
2013
Community Engagement and Industrial Archaeology at a Classic-Period Maya City in Guatemala. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. December 3, 2013.
Ugan, Andrew, and Jeff Rosenthal
2013
Planorbids, People, and Paleolakes: Freshwater Molluscs and their Implications for Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Human Occupation of China Lake Basin, Western Mojave Desert. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 13, 2013.
Rich, Michelle
2013
El Perú-Waka’, Guatemala: Archaeological Research in a Classic Maya Kingdom. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. September 26, 2013.
Sandos, James A., and Patricia B. Sandos
2013
Mapping Social and Cultural Change at a California Mission: San Jose, 1797-1840. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. August 22, 2013.
Eerkins, Jelmer
2013
Why Fishing and Hunting Matter: Health and Diet in Prehistoric Central California. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 15, 2013.
Barker, Pat
2013
Animal Imagery in European Ice Age Cave Art. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. March 20, 2013.
Costello, Julia
2013
Summer in Tyre, Southern Lebanon. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 27, 2013.
Bartelink, Eric
2012
Forensic Anthropology: Past, Present, and Future. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. December 5, 2012.
Bettinger, Robert
2012
Hunter-Gatherer Origins of Millet Agriculture in China. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. November 13, 2012.
Bartelink, Eric
2012
Interpersonal Violence in the Prehistoric San Francisco Bay Area. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. June 6, 2012.
Stevens, Nathan
2012
Technological Plasticity and Cultural Evolution Along the Central Coast in California. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 29, 2012.
Darwent, John
2012
Beach Ridge Archaeology on Cape Espenberg, Alaska. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. May 16, 2012.
Garvey, Raven
2012
Saying Uncle to Mother Nature: The Middle Holocene in Andean Argentina and Other Arid Regions. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. April 11, 2012.
Zeanah, David
2012
Diesel and Damper: Disintensification among the Martu of Western Australia. Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. March 20, 2012.
Yengoyan, Aram A.
2012
World’s Fairs and Exhibitionary Complex: Civilization and Culture (1851-1940). Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc., Davis, California. February 15, 2012.
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