society

  • The Story of a Mass Shooting Survivor and Anthropologist

    On April 30, my Liberal Studies class, framed as Anthropology and Philosophy of Science (Syllabus), was the site of a horrific event. Two of my students were killed, while four more were injured. I will not share their names as to protect them, although that information is available elsewhere. I will use broad terms or

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  • Admissions Fraud and the SAT: Hidden Implications

    As you are likely aware, there is a huge college admissions scandal that has been brought to life. Forbes calls it “The Worst Crime In College Admissions History Exemplifies The Worst Parenting“. Affluent parents are bribing their children’s way into prestigious universities, falsifying records and SAT scores, faking athletic performance, etc. Much of the light

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  • Book Review: “How to Think Like an Anthropologist”

    After each semester, I evaluate what did and didn’t work in my classes. I didn’t teach Introduction to Anthropology for Fall 2018, so I had an extra semester to think about what I wanted to do with the course moving forward. I have decided to move on from using a textbook (despite the fact that

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  • Spring 2019 Introduction to Anthropology Syllabus

    Intro to Anthropology (ANTH 1101-001) UNC Charlotte, Spring 2019 Mon/Wed/Fri (10:10-11:00am) in Rowe 161 Instructor: Adam Johnson Office Hours: M/W 12:30-1:30pm ajohn344@uncc.edu by appointment in Barnard 244A This syllabus contains policies and expectations I have established for this course. Please read the entire syllabus carefully and refer to it regularly throughout the semester. Course Description

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  • Revisiting Geno-colonization: Senator Warren and “Native DNA”

    I woke up this morning to the news that Senator Elizabeth Warren has released a DNA test “providing strong evidence” that she has a Native American ancestor 6-10 generations ago (I’ll unpack that later). While I appreciate Senator Warren’s take-down of banking executives and much of her politics, this is a misguided tug-of-war with Trump.

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  • Biology, Race, and “Orientalism”

    Edward Said published Orientalism in 1978 and is highly influential in postcolonial studies and social theory. Said argues that through the construction of the ‘Orient’ (the East) and the other, the ‘Occident’ (the West) defines itself. Western representations of the Orient are merely a pseudo-intellectual endeavor of justifying and exalting its own existence instead of a sincere

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  • Populations, Race, and The Sorites Paradox

    The sorites paradox (also called the paradox of the heap) refers to a particular logical contradiction that arises from the analysis of vague terms (Sainsbury, 2009). Terms like ‘heap’, ‘bald’, and ‘tall’ all fall into this category. We know a tall or bald person when we see one, but what are the necessary and sufficient

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  • Fall Semester, 2018 Courses

    I am very excited to have three new preps for Fall, 2018. Course overviews are below. LBST 2213: Now this is not a new prep as I have been teaching it for two years now. In the catalog it is listed as Science, Technology, and Society. I teach the course as an anthropology of science

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  • A Brief History of Race in the Western Thought

    Race, as a concept, has an important ontology in American society. In order to understand the relationship between race, genetic research, and the American class structure, it is necessary to first understand the historical production of race. The following section does not intend to be a comprehensive history of race but merely highlights trends in

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  • The Paradox of Hyper-connectedness and Solipsism in Contemporary America

    Try walking around the mall, on a crowded sidewalk, or through a university campus, and there is one thing that stands out: people are engulfed in their phones. Whether they are moving from point A to B or simply hanging out, many people rarely ever look up from their screens. Parents of teenagers know this

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