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ANTH 2363 The Science of Our Past: Introduction to Archaeology
Syllabus

This course is an introduction to contemporary archaeology, the methods through which we can recover the past and how these differ from the portrayal of archaeology and archaeologists in the popular media. The goal of this class is to provide you with the background to make informed decisions concerning the preservation, destruction, exploitation, or investigation of the past and to be able to think critically about information concerning the past presented to you via newspapers, magazines, TV programs, films, the Internet and other media. Course material will be presented through lectures, slides, films, and assigned readings. Grading is based upon attendance, performance upon a midterm and a final exam, and participation in all laboratory projects. The exams are objective in format (i.e. true-false, multiple choice) and will test the your knowledge of material covered in lectures, assigned reading, films and other visual presentations.

ANTH 3318 Southwest Archaeology
Syllabus
Course Web Site

This course provides an introduction to the archaeology of the American Southwest and provides Anthropology majors and graduate students with essential background knowledge of an important cultural region along with an opportunity to begin working with the professional literature. We will begin by examining the initial settlement of the Southwestern United States by Paleo-Indian hunter-gatherers nearly 12,000 years ago, as well as early cultural developments such pottery manufacture. We will then examine the unique cultural trajectories of specific areas, focusing on the Phoenix and Tucson basins, the Mimbres Valley, Chaco Canyon, Mesa Verde, and the Little Colorado and Rio Grande valleys. As we discuss culture history, we will touch on topics that include settlement pattern, demography, aggregation, abandonment, subsistence, technology, and ritual. Capitalizing on our detailed knowledge of the archaeological record, we will then consider each area in the broader context of contemporaneous developments in the Southwest and Mesoamerica, where we will devote attention to current research issues that require consideration of multiple regions through time.