SAPIENS Magazine
@sapiens.org
A digital magazine about everything human, told through the stories of anthropologists.
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SAPIENS Magazine
@sapiens.org
· Jul 24
Important News about SAPIENS
wennergren.org
1/
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...
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...
From the archive. New analyses from Iron Age burials reveal that women remained in their natal communities and provided the key to kinship. The findings offer essential clues about gender roles and social structures in ancient Europe. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
In Iron Age Britain, Descent Was Matrilineal
New analyses from Iron Age burials reveal that women remained in their natal communities and provided the key to kinship.
www.sapiens.org
November 25, 2025 at 8:03 PM
From the archive. New analyses from Iron Age burials reveal that women remained in their natal communities and provided the key to kinship. The findings offer essential clues about gender roles and social structures in ancient Europe. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
“Migratory behavior may come and go throughout the deep history of an animal species. ... [C]onservation efforts should ... understand the ecological conditions that spur or deter spectacular migrations.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
November 25, 2025 at 3:00 PM
“Migratory behavior may come and go throughout the deep history of an animal species. ... [C]onservation efforts should ... understand the ecological conditions that spur or deter spectacular migrations.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
From the archive. Along mountain pilgrimages, two anthropologists learn how an Indigenous Mesoamerican religion helps people practice a reciprocal relationship with the Earth. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/nahu...
Why Nahua Pilgrims Carry Thousands of Papers Up Sacred Peaks
Along a Nahua pilgrimage, anthropologists learn how a Mesoamerican religion helps people practice a reciprocal relationship with the Earth.
www.sapiens.org
November 24, 2025 at 8:02 PM
From the archive. Along mountain pilgrimages, two anthropologists learn how an Indigenous Mesoamerican religion helps people practice a reciprocal relationship with the Earth. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/nahu...
A poet and aspiring anthropologist in Indonesia reflects on the values reflected in rice cultivation in a traditional village in Southern Banten, West Java, Indonesia.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/padi...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/padi...
November 24, 2025 at 3:00 PM
A poet and aspiring anthropologist in Indonesia reflects on the values reflected in rice cultivation in a traditional village in Southern Banten, West Java, Indonesia.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/padi...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/padi...
From the archive.The speaker in this broken sonnet form utters disobedience for structures that extract care in the Anthropocene. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/brok...
Broken Sonnets for the Anthropocene
The speaker in this broken sonnet form utters disobedience for structures that extract care in the Anthropocene.
www.sapiens.org
November 23, 2025 at 8:01 PM
From the archive.The speaker in this broken sonnet form utters disobedience for structures that extract care in the Anthropocene. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/brok...
“These layered histories of how seals were used, imagined, and storied in Orkney continue to shape arguments over how they are treated today.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
November 23, 2025 at 3:00 PM
“These layered histories of how seals were used, imagined, and storied in Orkney continue to shape arguments over how they are treated today.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
From the archive. When activist and anthropologist Graeber died unexpectedly in 2020, scholars gathered to mourn him. Contributors to a resulting volume, As If Already Free, reflect on his legacy. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/davi...
David Graeber’s Lasting Influence on Anthropology and Activism
When activist and anthropologist Graeber died unexpectedly in 2020, scholars gathered to mourn and reflect on his legacy.
www.sapiens.org
November 22, 2025 at 8:01 PM
From the archive. When activist and anthropologist Graeber died unexpectedly in 2020, scholars gathered to mourn him. Contributors to a resulting volume, As If Already Free, reflect on his legacy. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/davi...
An anthropologist-poet listens to echoes of laughter and other sounds of crossings in Kashmir.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
November 22, 2025 at 5:30 PM
An anthropologist-poet listens to echoes of laughter and other sounds of crossings in Kashmir.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
“As a medical anthropologist, I’m fascinated by the political, economic, and social networks that have transformed humble bird’s nests into one of the most expensive animal products in the world.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
November 22, 2025 at 3:00 PM
“As a medical anthropologist, I’m fascinated by the political, economic, and social networks that have transformed humble bird’s nests into one of the most expensive animal products in the world.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
From the archive. On Rusinga Island, a grassroots group is celebrating the field assistants who helped find famous fossils and inspiring future generations to study science and ancient history. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/loca...
Connecting Local Communities to Paleoanthropology in Kenya
On Rusinga Island, a group is celebrating field assistants who helped find famous fossils and inspiring locals to study ancient history.
www.sapiens.org
November 21, 2025 at 8:02 PM
From the archive. On Rusinga Island, a grassroots group is celebrating the field assistants who helped find famous fossils and inspiring future generations to study science and ancient history. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/loca...
Reposted by SAPIENS Magazine
So good, by @cammy-06.bsky.social @sapiens.org: "Selkie stories often centered female autonomy. Female selkies choose their partners, return to the sea leaving families behind..Giving voice to women’s agency, these narratives shape reality, empowering human women" #Orkney #anthropology #multispecies
Connections and Conflicts With Seals in a Scottish Archipelago
An environmental archaeologist investigates deep-time, mythical, and contemporary relations between seals and Orkney Islanders.
www.sapiens.org
November 21, 2025 at 4:00 PM
So good, by @cammy-06.bsky.social @sapiens.org: "Selkie stories often centered female autonomy. Female selkies choose their partners, return to the sea leaving families behind..Giving voice to women’s agency, these narratives shape reality, empowering human women" #Orkney #anthropology #multispecies
Reposted by SAPIENS Magazine
What a privilege to be among the final contributing authors for @sapiens.org. This piece grows out of my Earth fellowship in Orkney, Scotland, exploring deep-time human–seal relations.
Grateful for the chance to share it and keen to hear what you think. www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Grateful for the chance to share it and keen to hear what you think. www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Connections and Conflicts With Seals in a Scottish Archipelago
An environmental archaeologist investigates deep-time, mythical, and contemporary relations between seals and Orkney Islanders.
www.sapiens.org
November 20, 2025 at 8:36 PM
What a privilege to be among the final contributing authors for @sapiens.org. This piece grows out of my Earth fellowship in Orkney, Scotland, exploring deep-time human–seal relations.
Grateful for the chance to share it and keen to hear what you think. www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Grateful for the chance to share it and keen to hear what you think. www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
From the archive. In a series of essays, a collaborative research project brings together “space anthropologists” to investigate how communities around the globe are grappling with the current boom in outer space exploration. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/oute...
How Cosmic Explorations Are Reshaping Life on Earth
Space anthropologists collaborate on a research project investigating the current boom in outer space exploration.
www.sapiens.org
November 20, 2025 at 8:03 PM
From the archive. In a series of essays, a collaborative research project brings together “space anthropologists” to investigate how communities around the globe are grappling with the current boom in outer space exploration. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/oute...
“These layered histories of how seals were used, imagined, and storied in Orkney continue to shape arguments over how they are treated today.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
November 20, 2025 at 3:20 PM
“These layered histories of how seals were used, imagined, and storied in Orkney continue to shape arguments over how they are treated today.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/seal...
From the archive. As the European Space Agency launches its flagship mission to explore Jupiter’s moons, an anthropologist explores the gap between launch enthusiasts and local residents. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/juic...
A Spacecraft’s Dance From French Guiana to Jupiter
At a European Space Agency mission launch to Jupiter, an anthropologist explores the gap between launch enthusiasts and local residents.
www.sapiens.org
November 19, 2025 at 8:02 PM
From the archive. As the European Space Agency launches its flagship mission to explore Jupiter’s moons, an anthropologist explores the gap between launch enthusiasts and local residents. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/juic...
An anthropologist-poet listens to echoes of laughter and other sounds of crossings in Kashmir.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
November 19, 2025 at 3:00 PM
An anthropologist-poet listens to echoes of laughter and other sounds of crossings in Kashmir.
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
Read the full poem: www.sapiens.org/culture/soun...
From the archive. An anthropologist recounts how a small island nation built and deployed its first satellite—and what their effort says about unequal access to the growing space economy on Earth. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sate...
The First Space Launch for Mauritius
An anthropologist recounts how Mauritius launched its first spacecraft—and what the nation's effort says about the growing space economy.
www.sapiens.org
November 18, 2025 at 8:03 PM
From the archive. An anthropologist recounts how a small island nation built and deployed its first satellite—and what their effort says about unequal access to the growing space economy on Earth. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sate...
“As a medical anthropologist, I’m fascinated by the political, economic, and social networks that have transformed humble bird’s nests into one of the most expensive animal products in the world.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
November 18, 2025 at 3:00 PM
“As a medical anthropologist, I’m fascinated by the political, economic, and social networks that have transformed humble bird’s nests into one of the most expensive animal products in the world.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/edib...
From the archive. A paleontologist journeys through Indonesia’s Riau Archipelago in search of Homo erectus remains, but uncovers how environmental devastation has erased much of the region’s history. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
The Vanishing Traces of Our Earliest Ancestors in Indonesia
A paleontologist travels through Indonesia in search of Homo erectus remains, uncovering how environmental destruction has erased the past.
www.sapiens.org
November 17, 2025 at 8:02 PM
From the archive. A paleontologist journeys through Indonesia’s Riau Archipelago in search of Homo erectus remains, but uncovers how environmental devastation has erased much of the region’s history. Read more: www.sapiens.org/archaeology/...
“Immersed in dusty archives of personal letters, newspaper clips, and journal articles, I found a history I was not expecting: the influence of personality, politics, and power on scientific interpretation.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/pale...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/pale...
November 17, 2025 at 3:38 PM
“Immersed in dusty archives of personal letters, newspaper clips, and journal articles, I found a history I was not expecting: the influence of personality, politics, and power on scientific interpretation.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/pale...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/pale...
From the archive. Many museums are reckoning with the colonial legacies of the human remains and cultural objects in their collections. Now anthropologists are advocating to pay similar respects to primates. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/grea...
Envisioning a More Empathetic Treatment of Great Ape Remains
As museums reckon with the colonial legacies of human remains in their collections, anthropologists advocate paying similar respects to apes.
www.sapiens.org
November 16, 2025 at 8:00 PM
From the archive. Many museums are reckoning with the colonial legacies of the human remains and cultural objects in their collections. Now anthropologists are advocating to pay similar respects to primates. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/grea...
From the archive. New research uncovers how the last common primate ancestors typically birthed twins until evolutionary pressures began to favor singletons—likely driven by the advantages of birthing larger, brainier offspring. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/twin...
Were Twins the Norm in Our Primate Past?
New research uncovers how the last common primate ancestors typically birthed twins until evolutionary pressures began to favor singletons.
www.sapiens.org
November 15, 2025 at 8:02 PM
From the archive. New research uncovers how the last common primate ancestors typically birthed twins until evolutionary pressures began to favor singletons—likely driven by the advantages of birthing larger, brainier offspring. Read more: www.sapiens.org/biology/twin...
“The bull’s story reveals a broader urban paradox: Humans engineer nonhuman animals for utility, then often abandon them when economic situations or cultural practices shift.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sacr...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sacr...
November 15, 2025 at 4:02 PM
“The bull’s story reveals a broader urban paradox: Humans engineer nonhuman animals for utility, then often abandon them when economic situations or cultural practices shift.”
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sacr...
Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/sacr...
From the archive. In Northeast India, a controversial hydropower dam moves toward completion—causing great uncertainty for downstream dwellers whose livelihoods depend on the river. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/indi...
How a Megadam Disrupts the Flow of Water—and Money
In Northeast India, a controversial hydropower dam causes great uncertainty for downstream dwellers whose livelihoods depend on the river.
www.sapiens.org
November 14, 2025 at 8:07 PM
From the archive. In Northeast India, a controversial hydropower dam moves toward completion—causing great uncertainty for downstream dwellers whose livelihoods depend on the river. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/indi...
From the archive. A poet moves through rituals of silence and erasure that permeate the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/an-o...
An Order for My Backpack and Three Stages of Nowhere
A poet moves through rituals of silence and erasure that permeate the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba.
www.sapiens.org
November 13, 2025 at 8:01 PM
From the archive. A poet moves through rituals of silence and erasure that permeate the U.S. military prison at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba. Read more: www.sapiens.org/culture/an-o...