Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · 4d

Our copy of "A Compendium of Curious Contraptions" by @drthinglearner.bsky.social came in! It's a big hit with the kiddo!

Photo of a toddler looking at a book. The illustrations show an ancient intricately adorned board game.

A brightly colored illustrated cover for a book titled "A Compendium of Curious Contraptions."

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Aug 12

Added to my sticker collection today. Vote in your local elections!!!

A hand placing an "I Voted" sticker on the back of a laptop. The laptop has many stickers already, including three other "I Voted" stickers.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Aug 3

My new hobby? Taking artistic photos of my toddler's tantrums. I call this one "Announcement of a Diaper Change."

A black and white photo of a toddler having a tantrum. He is on the ground with the top of his head facing the camera and his face towards the floor. One arm is raised.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · May 29

Broke out the pandemic DIY green screen today. Stay tuned for some hopefully not too embarrassing short form content!

A wrinkled bright green piece of fabric draped over a desk. It is being held onto the desk using the wright of two reams of paper.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · May 27

I also really wish they'd included more specific info. Phrases like "a multispectral optical device" and "a remote sensing program" are pretty vague. You can see the mark in this supplemental image. I'm interested to hear folks' thoughts on the statistical analysis of geometric relationships.

Greyscale image of a pebble produced with Ultraviolet reflectance argued to show a Neanderthal fingerprint.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · May 27

New scanner in the house!

A 3D scanner in a protective hard case surrounded by foam. The scanner had the branding Artec 3D.

A screenshot of the software program Artec Studio showing a 3D scan of a fox figurine.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · May 1

Some academic talks are extra fun! Thank you @umnpremodern.bsky.socialbfoe the great event! 🍹🍋‍🟩🧊

A PowerPoint slide with the text "The Surprising Origins of the Margarita. Michelle M. Hamilton." In the foreground are two out of focus margaritas on a table.

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Apr 30

Our grocery app has some interesting opinions about the categorization of diaper cream.

A screenshot of a grocery app. The item "butt paste" is listed under the category of "meat".

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Apr 25

Not that I know as I was just in the audience but you could reach out! anthropology.fas.harvard.edu/people/jack-...

Jack Bishop | Harvard Department of Anthropology

anthropology.fas.harvard.edu

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Apr 25

Had a jump scare while getting lunch at #SAA2025Denver!

Books on a messy counter. The name Graham Hancock can be seen on one of the spines.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Apr 25

Great talk by Jack Bishop about video games, storytelling, and archaeological education featuring Outer Wilds by @mobiusdigitalgames.com! #SAA2025Denver

A person giving a presentation at a conference. The screen shows a planetary chart from the Game Outer Wilds.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Mar 22

I see faded art, I DStretch.

Faded children's drawing on the side of some stairs. It resembles squares and an arch or castle.

Enhanced image of a children's drawing on the side of some stairs. It resembles squares and an arch or castle.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Mar 15

Happy Pi day!

A portion of chicken pot pie on a plate.

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Reposted by Sam Porter

McNulty Lab @mcnultylab.bsky.social · Mar 11

Visiting the Dallas Zoo, where they have an exhibit of amazing scientists, and look who is featured: @samscansstuff.bsky.social! Great to see UMN Anthropology graduate and LATIS staff member getting well-deserved national recognition!

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Mar 11

I was honored to have our lab featured in a tour for the Board of Regents showing off some of the amazing things happening in the College of Liberal Arts! Read about it here:

Scholarship in Motion: Regents Explore the Heart of Discovery in CLA

This special tour provided an in-depth exploration of advanced research and creative spaces across the West Bank.

cla.umn.edu

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Feb 18

It's a wee bit chilly out.

Selfie of a woman in winter gear wearing a medical style mask and headphones. Her eyelashes have ice crystals on them.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Feb 12

Also I should have written 'database' - my bad 🤮.

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Feb 12

Source:

Cruz-Led Investigation Uncovers $2 Billion in Woke DEI Grants at NSF, Releases Full Database

www.commerce.senate.gov

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Feb 12

This is exactly the file name I would expect from a database released by this administration.

A screenshot of a file name in a downloads folder called "Public Database_Release (1) (1).xlsx

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Jan 17

Spring cleaning day in the office! The winner for most expired item was this first aid kit that gave out the year Titanic was released.

First aid kit made of yellowed plastic with an expiration date of 4/97.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Jan 15

Useless skill acquired! After much consternation and a late night I now know how to solve Rubik's Cubes as long as I have access to YouTube.

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Jan 13

Saw this huge flock(?) of animals while leaving work over the Mississippi. Biology people, do bats stay in super cold places over the winter? Picture doesn't do it justice!

View of the Mississippi River at twilight from a bridge. There is snow on the ground and the river is partially frozen. Many dark colored animals can be seen flying high above the river.

Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Jan 11

I may actually use this idea next time I have an opportunity to attend an ugly sweater party 😂

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Jan 7

Not sure what it says about me that the highlight of my work day was getting Blender and Python to draw a box around another box.

A 3D render of a grey cube on a dark grey background. There is a magenta square drawn around the cube, along with a label in the upper left corner saying "Cube."

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Sam Porter @samscansstuff.bsky.social · Dec 31

Made some late holiday cookies. I was going for a cute Christmas tree sweater with this guy. Instead I ended up rib cage. The red sure isn't helping 🤣.

Gingerbread cookie on a cooling rack. It's torso is covered in red icing, with white swirls, resembling a rib cage.

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