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SAPIENS Magazine

@sapiens.org

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A digital magazine about everything human, told through the stories of anthropologists.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · Jul 24

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THREAD: It’s with deep regret we share the news that SAPIENS will halt publication of new content by the end of this year. We are so proud of everything SAPIENS has achieved and for our role in furthering public anthropology. Wenner-Gren’s letter to our community. wennergren.org/important-ne...

Important News about SAPIENS

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 16h

From the archive. The term “political correctness” can be readily deployed as a racist dog whistle—one that President Donald Trump has been blowing with increasing vigor since his election in 2016. Read more: www.sapiens.org/language/whi...

What White Power Supporters Hear Trump Saying

"Political correctness” can be deployed as a White power dog whistle—one that Trump has been blowing since 2016.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 1d

From the archive. Researchers refute a popular idea that black-furred squirrels behave more aggressively than gray ones—and suggest the myth stems from some people’s racist attitudes. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/blac...

Are People Projecting Racist Stereotypes Onto Squirrels?

Researchers refute the idea that black-furred squirrels are more aggressive than gray ones—and suggest the myth stems from racist attitudes.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 2d

From the archive. In her study of a community devastated by industry’s flight, anthropologist Christine Walley raises questions about how to create and support meaningful work in a postindustrial world. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/post...

Life and Death After the Steel Mills

Anthropologist Christine Walley raises questions about how to create and support meaningful work in a postindustrial world.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 2d

“As they weave, volunteers are simultaneously unraveling Ukraine’s colonial past and building community.”

Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/ukra...

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 3d

From the archive. Remains in France found by archaeologists and geneticists suggest at least two lineages—not just one—of late Neanderthals in Europe. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...

Unraveling a “Ghost” Neanderthal Lineage

Remains in France found by archaeologists and geneticists suggest at least two lineages—not just one—of late Neanderthals in Europe.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 4d

From the archive. An anthropologist who is also a singer-songwriter explores how Southwestern Native bands shake up the notion of “cowboys and Indians.” Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/nava...

Why Navajos Love Their Country Music

An anthropologist explores how Navajo music and Southwestern Native bands shake up the notion of “cowboys and Indians.”

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 5d

From the archive. Anthropologist David Graeber’s celebrated theory of “bullshit jobs” continues to provide a critical window into why modern work is often so useless, soul-sucking, and absurd. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/davi...

Revisiting the Spiritual Violence of BS Jobs

Anthropologist David Graeber’s theory of BS jobs provides a critical window into why modern work is so often so soul-sucking.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 6d

From the archive. Researchers in artificial intelligence have made extraordinary strides in mimicking human language—but they still can’t capture the parts that truly make language human. Read more: www.sapiens.org/language/ai-...

Why AI Will Never Fully Capture Human Language

Researchers in artificial intelligence have made strides in mimicking language—but they still can’t capture what truly makes it human.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 6d

“While breast reconstruction helps many women regain a sense of self following a mastectomy, it is not always a clearly informed choice.”

Anthropologist Arianna Huhn describes her experience fighting breast cancer and her decision to “go flat”: www.sapiens.org/culture/wome...

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 7d

From the archive. A poet-anthropologist celebrates relatedness across difference in a poem that honors the festivals of Navratri, Durga Puja, Kali Puja, Day of the Dead, and Halloween—all of which draw on otherworldly connections and mysteries. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/harv...

A poet-anthropologist celebrates relatedness across difference, honoring a variety of festivals that draw on otherworldly mysteries.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 8d

From the archive. At Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, a new co-management plan brings together federal agencies and a consortium of Native American tribes—revealing deep tensions over land rights and demands for environmental justice. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/bear...

Gathering Firewood—and Redefining Land Stewardship—at Bears Ears

At Bears Ears National Monument in Utah, a new co-management plan brings federal agencies and a consortium of Native tribes together.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 9d

From the archive. A new book chronicles a Palestinian family’s life and connections to their land over decades under Israeli occupation in the West Bank. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/west...

A Palestinian Family’s History—Told Through Olive Trees

A new book chronicles a Palestinian family’s life and connections to their land over decades under Israeli occupation in the West Bank.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 9d

As Breast Cancer Awareness Month begins, anthropologist Arianna Huhn describes her experience fighting breast cancer and her decision to “go flat.”

“Breast reconstruction has become so routine that it is easy to miss the ways it is rooted in patriarchy.”

Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/wome...

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 10d

From the archive. As toxic polarization deepens in the U.S., some global conflict prevention experts are now addressing political violence at home. An anthropologist shares three key insights from a community action program in Wisconsin. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/poli...

Playing Rock, Paper, Scissors Across the Red-Blue Divide

As toxic polarization deepens in the U.S., some global conflict prevention experts are now turning to address political violence at home.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 10d

“Central to the art of ethnographic narratives is their ability to hold ... different truths and epistemologies together in all their constitutive frictions.”

Anthropologist Sophie Chao reflects on the School for Advanced Research Writing Seminar: sarweb.org/blog-words-a...

Sophie Chao Guest Post: Words and Worlds - School for Advanced Research

Anthropologist Sophie Chao shares a guest post. An environmental anthropologist, she reflects on ecological crisis, Indigenous knowledge in West Papua, and the ethics of storytelling. Exploring…

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 11d

From the archive. Changing offensive place names on public lands is a strong move toward decolonization. But to heal relationships and address ecological crises, non-Native people must do more. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/dero...

Derogatory Place Names Need Indigenous Revision

Changing offensive place names is a strong move toward decolonization. To heal relationships and ecological crises, non-Native people must do more.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 11d

“Readers across the world should decide for themselves what to read and why. And ask: how can a book become a singular threat to any authority claiming legitimacy?”

SAPIENS contributor Ather Zia on book bans in Kashmir, including of her own: www.outlookindia.com/books/the-si...

Another Censorship: A Dulling Of Memory In Kashmir | Outlook India

Books live beyond bans. In the digital age, measures like banning books are not only moot, but also reiterate that the state continues to fear ideas

www.outlookindia.com

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 12d

From the archive. As climate change makes some hurricanes more intense, social inequalities are cast in sharp relief. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/hurr...

Natural Disasters Are Social Disasters

As human-caused climate change makes some hurricanes more intense, social inequalities are cast in sharp relief.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 12d

“Community-led conservation is the most sustainable way to ensure heritage endures for future generations.”

Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 13d

From the archive. While most of New Orleans has recovered, disaster is a part of life for residents of the Lower 9th Ward. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/hurr...

Hurricane Katrina's Forgotten Survivors

While most of New Orleans has recovered, disaster is a part of life, for better and often worse, for residents of the Lower 9th Ward.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 13d

“It matters what stories we tell about growing older. The conversations I had at Jesus Green revealed how one community is understanding what it means to live and age well.”

Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/cold...

SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 14d

From the archive. The decades out-of-date genetics taught in most U.S. schools stokes misconceptions about race and human diversity. A biological anthropologist calls for change. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/gene...

People Are Not Peas—Why Genetics Education Needs an Overhaul

The dated genetics taught in U.S. schools stokes misconceptions about race and human diversity. A biological anthropologist calls for change.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 14d

“Since ultraconservative President Javier Milei took office in 2023, his policies have intensified Argentina’s economic crisis. In addition to experiencing job losses and frozen salaries, many people lack adequate food—sliding into what academics and humanitarian workers call food insecurity.”

Feeding Community When Government Aid Runs Dry

An anthropologist discusses the biological consequences of inadequate food—and why Argentina's community kitchens need support.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 15d

From the archive. The proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, along California’s Central Coast, would be the first of its kind in the U.S. to be nominated by Native peoples. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/chum...

Protecting Ancestral Waters Through Collaborative Stewardship

The proposed Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary along California’s coast would be the first in the U.S. nominated by Native peoples.

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SAPIENS Magazine @sapiens.org · 16d

From the archive. When producers for a popular Netflix series sought a permit to film on public lands in the U.S. Southwest, many Native leaders objected. A Hopi tribal official, Stewart B. Koyiyumptewa, shares his views. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...

Digging Into the Ancient Apocalypse Filming Controversy

When a popular Netflix series sought a permit to film on public lands, many Native leaders objected. A Hopi tribal official shares his views.

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