Course Descriptions
UNDERGRADUATE LEVEL
ANT 2000- Introduction to Anthropology
Writing Across Curriculum (Gordon Rule) This is an IFP/General Education course.
Anthropology encompasses the study of the prehistoric, historic and contemporary development of humans as both social and biological creatures. This course explores the roots of humanity in the fossil and archaeological record and examines both the great diversity and the similarities among contemporary cultural groups.
ANT 2410- Introduction to Cultural Anthropology
Perspective on the human condition by examining some of the principal cultural differences between traditional and modern societies. Using ethnographic materials, examination of how people formulate their world views (cosmology) and live by the social logics of reciprocity and kinship. These are compared with world views and social logics of markets and bureaucracy in industrial societies. This is a General Education course.
ANT 2511- Introduction to Biological Anthropology
(Corequisite: ANT 2511L) (Satisfies Natural Science Core)
Biological (physical) anthropology as the study of human biology: human genetics, genetic variation, anatomy, physiology, growth, adaptation, evolution.
ANT 2511L- Introduction to Biological Anthropology Lab
(Corequisite: ANT 2511)
Students perform procedures similar to those used by professional anthropological researchers and engage in hands-on activities designed to reinforce the material presented in the lecture section.
ANT 4917 -Directed Independent Research
Prerequisites: ANT 2000 or ANT 2410 or ANT 2511, 2511L with a minimum grade of "C" or permission of instructor
Students work closely with faculty members on a specific research project. Course requirements and evaluation are determined by the supervising faculty member for each student project.
ANT 4918 -Directed Independent Research
Prerequisites: ANT 2000 or ANT 2410 or ANT 2511, 2511L with a minimum grade of "C" or permission of instructor
Students work closely with faculty members on a specific research project. Course requirements and evaluation are determined by the supervising faculty member for each student project. Grading: S/U
ANT 4957- Anthropology Study Abroad
Prerequisite: Freshman or Sophomore Standing. Credit for enrollment in approved study abroad programs.
ANT 3163-The Maya and Their Neighbors
Investigates the ancient cultures of Mexico and northern Central America with an emphasis on the ancient Maya, their calendar and hieroglyphic writing. Also studies their Olmec predecessors and contemporary civilizations in central Mexico, such as Teotihuacán, the Toltecs and Aztecs.
ANT 3165- South America Before Columbus
An introduction to the archaeology and people of ancient South America. Early hunters/gathers, origins of agriculture, and complex societies to the rise and fall of the great Inca civilization.
ANT 3190- Real Archaeology
Course contributes to professional development of archaeology students by teaching them the theory, methods, and techniques of public archaeology and cultural resources management. Course includes a review of health, safety and ethics issues in archaeology; international, federal, state and local statutes affecting public archaeology; and hands-on instruction in practical methods.
ANT 3241- Anthropology of Religion
A cross-cultural study of magic and religion with emphasis on belief systems and rituals and their practitioners.
ANT 3312-Native-American Culture and Society
A description and analysis of aboriginal and contemporary North-American-Indian cultures in their historical and ecological contexts.
ANT 3391-Anthropology of Film: An Introduction to Visual Anthropology
A history and analysis of selected ethnographic films and film makers that give valuable insights into culture and human behavior.
ANT 3516-Human Variation
An examination of the biological and sociological meaning of race in its application to humans. Processes affecting biological variation in human populations: the mechanisms of biological evolution and the interaction of human genetic factors with culture and the natural environment.
ANT 3586-Human Evolution
An investigation of the biological evolution of the human species. The hominid fossil record is surveyed in conjunction with explanation in terms of the principles of evolution and genetics..
ANT 4006-Human and Cultural Rights
The course focuses on the definition of human and cultural rights by international bodies and cultural organizations. The starting point for the discussion is the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The course explores how the declaration has been received, implemented, debated or ignored in cultures around the world.
ANT 4025-The Anthropology of Death
This course takes an anthropological perspective on how humans understand death. The course explores examples from various time periods and locations through ethnography, archaeology, bioarchaeology and social theory perspectives.
ANT 4116-Archaeological Research Methods
This course focuses on what archaeologists actually do in the field and laboratory to learn about ancient societies. Methods are placed in context through discussion of scientific research design in archaeology, which determines what methods are chosen, including field methods, analytical methods and laboratory methods.
ANT 4141-Development of Ancient Civilization
An analysis of human cultures from the emergence of humanity through the rise of civilization. An ecological orientation will focus on the close interplay among early humans, their paleoenvironments and the dynamics of culture change. Relevance for modern times in understanding the past and projecting the future. Examination of major archaeological concepts.
ANT 4158-Florida Archaeology
Native-American peoples and cultures of Florida in pre-Columbian times as revealed by the archaeological record. The development of Florida's indigenous cultures is traced from earliest known human occupancy to their disappearance after the European conquest.
ANT 4192-Research Methods in Bioarchaeology
Prerequisite: ANT 2511 or ANT 3516 or ANT 3586 or ANT 4520
Training in the research methodology of biological anthropology and archaeology. Application to an original research project and the presentation of a written research report.
ANT 4302- Gender and Culture
An examination of the variation of gender roles in non-Western societies across different levels of social organization. Femininity, masculinity, and additional genders are examined within the context of anthropological theory.
ANT 4409-Anthropology of Peace and Violence
Explores the meaning and forms of peace and violence that are a part of our daily lives, in cultures and globally. These are subjects that have engendered many debates about human behavior. The course also explores some general and directed questions about peace and violence.
ANT 4414-Cultural Anthropology
Culture: its nature, structure and dynamics; its relation to society and the individual. Tribal cultures as contrasted with state formations, exemplified by several widely varied case studies.
ANT 4419-Anthropology of Nature
Using theory from cultural anthropology, this course examines the relationship between culture and the physical environment or "nature," focusing on political, medical, religious, linguistic/discursive, ecological, development and gender issues in a variety of communities and countries around the world.
ANT 4433-Psychological Anthropology
A study of culture and personality with emphasis on anthropological approaches to childhood development, Oedipus complex, consciousness, rationality and other topics across world cultures.
ANT 4480-Global Health and Culture
This course examines the historical interdependencies of, and the current issues related to, medical anthropology and global health. The objective of the course is to provide students an in-depth examination of the relationships of culture, health and illness from a global perspective. The course features perspectives from anthropologists as well as others working in the fields of global health and medicine. ANT 4495- Research Methods in Cultural/Social Anthropology
ANT 4495-Research Methods in Cultural/Social Anthropology
Training in the research methodology of cultural/social anthropology. Application to an original research project and the presentation of a written research report.
ANT 4514-Biological Anthropology
Biological (physical) anthropology as the study of human biology: human genetics and genetic variation, human anatomy and physiology, human growth and adaptation, and the biological evolution of the human species, together with primatology.
ANT 4520-Forensic Anthropology
Course covers the application of scientific and anthropological techniques to criminal investigations in support of law enforcement, focusing on the skills necessary to carry out a basic analysis of human skeletal remains to determine identity of the decedent and the manner and cause of death.
ANT 4532-Epidemics: Culture, Science and Policy
This course explores the evolving relationship between humans and non-human microbiota. Beginning with the modern era, we will study infectious disease epidemics and the critical contexts in which they occur (e.g., ecological, political, social, and cultural).
ANT 4802- Ethnographic Fieldwork
(Prerequisites: Anthropology major, junior or senior standing, and permission of instructor)
Supervised fieldwork includes construction of research design, data gathering, interviewing techniques, and development of other research skills in a field situation.
ANT 4824-Archaeological Feildwork in Ecuador.
Prerequisites: ANT 2000 and permission of instructor
On-site field experience in methods of archaeological fieldwork, recovery techniques, recording, sampling strategy and survey. The course may include attendance at field schools directed by qualified faculty outside the University, with permission of the department.
ANT 4905-Directed Independent Study
Prerequisite: For Anthropology majors only or by permission of instructor
ANT 4917-Directed Independent Research
Prerequisites: ANT 2000 or ANT 2410 or ANT 2511, 2511L or permission of instructor
Students work closely with faculty members on a specific research project. Course requirements and evaluation are determined by the supervising faculty member for each student project.
ANT 4918-Directed Independent Research
Prerequisites: ANT 2000 or ANT 2410 or ANT 2511, 2511L or permission of instructor
Students work closely with faculty members on a specific research project. Course requirements and evaluation are determined by the supervising faculty member for each student project. Grading: S/U
ANT 4930-Special Topics
Selected topics in Anthropology. Special topics will be categorized by subfield. May be repeated as topics vary.
ANT 4940-Internship in Anthropology
Prerequisite: Permission of department
This internship provides an opportunity for students to participate in a hands-on experience, one in which they are exposed to working environments where they can put anthropological knowledge and technical skills into effect.
ANT 4957-Anthropology Study Abroad
Prerequisite: Junior or senior standing
Credit for enrollment in approved study abroad programs.
ANT 4972-Honors Thesis in Anthropology
Prerequisite: Permission of instructor
Includes studies of research design, the conduct of field laboratory and library research and the writing of an honors thesis in anthropology.
GRADUATE LEVEL
ANG 5930-Special Topics
Special topics in Anthropology. (May be repeated as topics vary)
ANG 5940- Internship in Anthropology
Apprenticeship experience in museums, nonprofit institutions, government agencies, and business settings, supervised by an on-site supervisor and Anthropology Department faculty sponsor.
ANG 6034- Seminar in Anthropological Theory
This course examines in depth the development of anthropological theory from the establishment of anthropology as a discipline in the mid-20th century. The course focuses on major schools of thought that crosscut the four subfields of anthropology and covers important theoretical works written by prominent figures of those schools. Introduction to the history and development of anthropoligical theory and the interrelationships of theory across the four disciplines of anthropology.
ANG 6090- Advanced Anthropological Research 1
Advanced application of anthropological methods through active application in both field- and lab-based settings.
ANG 6092- Advanced Anthropological Research 2
Prerequisite ANG 6090
Course focuses on active student participation in the application of subdiscipline-based research methodologies.
ANG 6095- Proposal Development and Writing
This course provides the student with knowledge about, and skills in, the construction of research proposals in the fields of biological anthropology, archaeology and cultural anthropology.
Note: The prerequisite each graduate-level seminar below is the completion of the corresponding 4000-level course or its equivalent. (This prerequisite does not apply to ANG 6486.)
ANG 6115- Seminar in Archaeology
Archaeological method and theory as well as reconstruction and description of prehistoric cultures.
ANG 6199- Research Methods in Archaeology
This course provides graduate students with a review of archaeological methods to assist them in conceiving and planning research projects. Methods are placed in context through discussion of scientific research design and theory in archaeology.
ANG 6390- Ethnographic Perspectives on Health
Prerequisite: Graduate Standing
Culture's role in shaping health and medicine across a range of societies and institutions is critically assessed through in-depth ethnographic examination of the impact that ethnicity, gender, politics, technology, religion and class have on people's health status, their access to health care resources and their roles as health care providers.
ANG 6486- Quantitative Reasoning in Anthropological Research
Introduction to the process of conducting quantitative research in anthropology and developing an anthropological database suitable for statistical application.
ANG 6490- Seminar in Cultural Anthropology
Cultural theory is historical perspective. This seminar is organized as a foray into contemporary social and cultural anthropology, with an emphasis on journal literature of the recent past. The readings chosen from major anthropological journals reflect the currents present in the state of the discipline and cover the following major topical areas as well as others: political economy (globalization, human rights), ecology/political ecology (environmentalism), humanistic approaches, medical anthropology, feminist approaches, and ritual and religion.
ANG 6496- Research Methods in Sociocultural Anthropology
This course is designed as a graduate level introduction to research methodologies in sociocultural anthropology. It focuses on hypothesis and research question development, adapting research methods to goals and using interpretive/analytic frameworks.
ANG 6535- Research Methods in Bioarcheology
Training in the research methodology of biological anthropology and archaeology. Application to an original research project and the presentation of a written research report.
ANG 6587- Seminar in Biological Anthropology
Biology and environment in human existence: theoretical considerations. This course provides master's students with a foundation in the core principles of biological anthropology, which involves the synthesis of research from the subfields of evolutionary theory, genetics, primate behavior and ecology, and paleontology.
ANG 6732-Advanced Global Health and Culture
This course examines the historical interdependencies of, and the current issues related to, medical anthropology and global health. The objective of the course is to provide students an in-depth examination of the relationships of culture, health and illness from a global perspective. The course features perspectives from anthropologists as well as others working in the fields of global health and medicine.
ANG 6905- Directed Independent Study
ANG 6930- Special Topics
Selected topics in anthropology. (May be repeated as topics vary)
ANG 6971- Master's Thesis
Grading: S/U