By way of introduction....

Hello all! And welcome to my first real foray into the wide world that is blogging. This first post will act as more of an introduction rather than be an actual reflection of what is to come (though obviously the tone and temper of what is to come can be reflected in how I am writing now…). I do intend for this blog to be more academic than whimsy, but this being a blog, and a personal blog, there will obviously be more pointed pieces, opinions, and the occasional bouts of whimsy because to quote the great Sheldon Cooper “what’s life without a little whimsy?”^1,2

Thus, with this being an introduction, I shall begin by briefly introducing myself.

My name is Martin Walker and, not unlike many others, I have spent much of my life in school, obviously starting like all others around the age of 5 and working my way through two undergraduate degrees³ (I had a change of heart but didn’t have the courage to change until after I had graduated), and am currently working on a masters degree.

After the long and arduous journey that has been my academic life, I have finally settled upon studying what I have always found to be the most interesting of topic of all, the study of human interactions. The way in which I have chosen to study human interactions is through the field of anthropology, and more specifically through archaeology (thus where the first part of the title for this blog originates).

While I would love to spill some ink here properly defining archaeology (spoiler alert: this will be the next post) I will refrain and simply say that archaeology is not, I repeat NOT, digging up dinosaurs. Now, to be clear, like all those children who grew up in the generation of Jurassic Park⁴ and The Land Before Time⁵, I love dinosaurs. I do. Really. However, I cannot count the number of times where I have a conversation that goes something like this:

                 

                         Anyoneotherthananarchaeologist: “So what do you do/study?”

                                                                 

                                                                 Me:         “Archaeology”

                

                          Anyoneotherthananarchaeologist: “Cool! So you dig up dinosaurs?”

These conversations have left a slight chip on my shoulder when it comes to dinosaurs and how the public defines archaeology, which is part of what I hope to rectify with this blog.

The other lens with which I hope to study human interactions is through the practices and theories that have been developed within anarchism (thus the origins of the second portion of this blog’s title). Again, I will not spend much time here defining anarchism (spoiler: the post after the upcoming archaeology post), but I do wish to say that despite the recent fad that is developing around anarchy, it is my opinion that many do not really know what the term actually means or represents. The public definitely has their opinions, as we shall see (so stay tuned!) but these opinions are a lot farther off the mark than they should be. Fixing this is another main goal of this blog.

So, what should you, the reader of this blog, be expecting to see in the future of this blog? In short, this blog will hope to highlight advances in both the topics of archaeology and anarchism as well as correcting the misconceptions surrounding both of these topics, AND attempting to make both of these topics more accessible to the general public. There will be parts of this blog that will be shameless self-promotion of my own research and the research of friends and colleagues. I hope to balance this, however, with updates and reviews of each of these topics in the more broad sense as well as hopefully developing discussions within and between these topics.

So without further ado! I bid you Welcome to my blog and I hope you stick around to read, learn, and discuss (INTERACT) with me in Archaeology, Anarchism, and other Articles!

Endnotes

1 - “What is this?” you ask! Well my friends, this is an endnote citation. Get used to seeing these because I will be properly citing people, sources, etc. as much as I can to ensure that: 1) I am not making stuff up, 2) I give credit where credit is due, and 3) to illustrate that the web can be a place of reference and discussion above and beyond pictures of cute kittens or daily reports of personal lives.

I will also use these notes to further illustrate points (as I am doing now) or to add additional information or opinions that are either not necessary to piece I am writing or are more my personal opinions, or both. So make sure to read this if you want to fully experience my blog in all of it’s glory.

2 – For those not in the know, Sheldon Cooper is a character on the popular sitcom The Big Bang Theory that is currently being aired on CBS. This quote is from the episode “The Lunar Excitation” that originally aired in the Unites States on May 24, 2010.

3 – For those that might be interested in my credentials, or for those that like to e-stalk people, I have a Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from Manhattan College (www.manhattan.edu) where I also received two minors, mathematics and English literature. I also have a Bachelor of Arts in Anthropology from Herbert H. Lehman College, CUNY (www.lehman.cuny.edu) where I concentrated in archaeology. I am currently, as of this post, working towards my Masters in Anthropology at the University of Tennesse, Knoxville (www.utk.edu).

4 – Jurassic Park, major motion picture, released in the Unites States in 1993. Directed by Steven Spielberg and released by Universal Pictures… a classic.

5 – The Land Before Time, major animated motion picture, released in the Unites States in 1988. Directed by Don Bluth and released by Universal Studios…also a classic AND a must see…with tissues.