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Anthropology + Archaeology

woman in dark light and shadow with red streaks of light
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Jane Ward is a professor and chair of UCSB's Department of Feminist Studies

How feminist witch studies redefine magic and power

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An avocado cut in half displayed on a yellow background
Photo Credit
iStock / Olena Kovalova

Avocado cultivation’s ancient origins hold lessons for a changing climate
wooden block with one happy and sad faces

Is ‘U-shaped happiness’ universal? Not for rural subsistence populations, say researchers
a group of Tanzanian men gather around a table and speak with a researcher
Photo Credit
David W. Lawson
A focus group of young men in Tanzania, led by project co-investigator Alexander Ishungisa (standing) and social scientist Elisha Mabula. (Photograph shared with participant consent.)

On gender: misperceptions about others can stifle women’s empowerment
mother nursing baby

Researchers find that a new mother’s immune status varies with her feeding strategy
Black man with trays of different insects
Photo Credit
Umberto Diecinove

Edible Insect Art Show displays culinary diversity & sustainability
gears as brains on wooden silhouettes of heads facing each other

A holistic framework for studying social emotions
a black stone arrow point

How a prehistoric cosmic airburst is assisting archaeologists today
kristine chua
Biological anthropologist Kristine Chua, postdoctoral fellow

Biological anthropologist expands Filipina maternal health research
Wayne Chapman uses a hand drill to start a coal, which Chumash Elder Ernestine Ygnacio-De Soto (seated) will use to start the fire.
Photo Credit
Matt Perko
Wayne Chapman uses a hand drill to start a coal, which Chumash Elder Ernestine Ygnacio-De Soto (seated) will use to start the fire.

A Chumash cultural burn reignites ancient practice for wildland conservation
Archeological remains from El Gigante
Photo Credit
Thomas Harper
Botanical remains from El Gigante.

Lessons in sustainability, evolution and human adaptation — courtesy of the Holocene
Anthropology associate professor David Lawson
Photo Credit
Jeff Liang
Associate Professor David W. Lawson, May 2023

New collection of articles unpacks the importance of culture in the evolution of gendered conflict
Tsimané fishing with bows and arrows
Photo Credit
Michael Gurven
Compared to industrialized counterparts Tsimané people of lowland Bolivia have less food availability and must expend more effort to get it

Greater fat stores and blood cholesterol increase with brain volume, but beyond a certain point they are associated with faster brain aging
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