Southwest Archaeology Today for April 8 2007

Southwestern Archaeology Making the News – A Service of the Center for Desert Archaeology

– Ancient Puebloan Migrations -What Really Happened? Perched on a lonesome bluff above the dusty San Pedro River, about 30 miles east of Tucson, the ancient stone ruin archaeologists call the Davis Ranch Site doesn’t seem to fit in. Staring back from the opposite bank, the tumbled walls of Reeve Ruin are just as surprising. Some 700 years ago, as part of a vast migration, a people called the Anasazi, driven by God knows what, wandered from the north to form settlements like these, stamping the land with their own unique style.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/08/science/08anasazi.html?8dpc

– Employment Opportunity at the Center for Desert Archaeology: The Center for Desert Archaeology seeks qualified applicants for a Preservation Outreach Coordinator. This position coordinates and implements the Center’s cultural heritage preservation activities. The Preservation Outreach Coordinator is a key member of the Center’s preservation team and will be responsible for expanding the scope of the Center’s preservation field services in the Southwest. We are seeking an applicant who is interested in working to preserve the cultural heritage–archaeological sites, historic buildings, and cultural landscapes–of the Greater Southwest.
http://www.cdarc.org/sat/cdarc_preservation_announcement.pdf

– Innovative Project Creates DVD to Interpret Aztec Ruins National Monument: Touring Aztec Ruins can inspire students to capture the heart and soul of the Pueblo people. “Students’ writing and artwork brings the hidden stories and the spirits of the Pueblos to life,” said Terry Nichols, park ranger at Aztec Ruins National Monument. Nichols said fourth-graders and eighth-graders who visited last spring were filmed for an educational DVD, “Connections: Teaching, Writing and Art at Aztec Ruins,” that will be released today. The students listened to the stories of Bennie and Edna Romero, descendants of the Santa Clara and Taos Pueblos. The students then developed their own stories and artwork.
http://www.daily-times.com/ci_8835157?source=most_emailed

– Gesture Of Kinship” Exhibit Opens At Anasazi Heritage Center: The Anasazi Heritage Center will unveil a new exhibit called A Gesture of Kinship on April 15th in museum’s Special Exhibit gallery. It weaves the thoughts and experiences of 20 young Navajos as they grew from children to adults in recent decades. Their maturation is captured in photographs and their own voices. The exhibit continues through October 31.
http://www.blm.gov/co/st/en/fo/ahc.html

– Historic Preservation is as “Green” Strategy: Historic preservation has always been the greenest of the building arts because it necessarily involves the conservation of energy and natural resources. Now it’s time to make sure everyone knows it. It’s all about sustainability. According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), transportation accounts for just 27 percent of America’s greenhouse gas emissions, while 48 percent – almost twice as much – is produced by the construction and operation of buildings. Nearly half the greenhouse gases Americans send into the atmosphere is from our buildings. More than 10 percent of the entire world’s greenhouse gas emissions is from American buildings. Historic preservation must be a key component of any effort to promote sustainable development. The challenge is to help people understand that preservation is environmentally, as well as economically, sustainable.
http://www.cdarc.org/page/9d8l – New American Media

– Aztec Arithmetic System Decoded: A study by U.S. and Mexican researchers has found evidence of an ancient method of arithmetic in Aztec property records. Barbara Williams of the University of Wisconsin-Rock County and Maria del Carmen Jorge y Jorge of the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico studied more than 2,000 drawings dating back to 1540 that were used to document agricultural properties by the Acolhua people who lived in the city-state of Tepetlaoztoc, the University of Wisconsin said Thursday in a release.
http://www.cdarc.org/page/koci – UPI International

– Field School Announcement: Ft Lewis College Summer 2008 field Season. Explore Southwestern Pueblo Architecture While Earning College Credit. Excavations at the Pigg Site (5MT4802) June 23 through August 1, 2008. Application Deadline May 1, 2008. Contact Charles Riggs, Ph.D, Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive, Durango, CO 81301-3999. voice: (970) 247-7409, fax: (970) 382-6952. email: riggs_c@fortlewis.edu

– Internship Opportunity with the Hopi Tribe: Two paid, summer internships are being offered through the Hopi Tribe, to assist in the Homolovi Park Project. One of the goals of the partnership between Arizona State Parks and the Hopi Tribe is to provide learning and training opportunities at the park. Two paid, full-time, ten (10) week internships at the park are offered. One funded by a generous grant received from the Institute of Museums and Library Services, Native Americans and Native Hawaiians Museum Services grant and the other by the Hopi Tribe. The internship is designed for undergraduate college students, but applications from graduate students will be considered. The Hopi Tribe, to the greatest extent feasible, will give preference to Hopis, however if unable to find a qualified candidate, this internship will be awarded to a qualified non-Hopi. This internship is not associated with any college or university therefore it does not award college credit, but the program is willing to work with the candidate’s school to process credit through their university or college. The deadline is April 30, 2008. Thanks!! Contact: Susan Secakuku, PO Box 548. Second Mesa, AZ 86043
secakuku@hopitelecom.net 928.737.2510
http://www.cdarc.org/sat/Hopi_Internship.doc