Fun fact about Colossal: they did *not* resurrect the dire wolf!

The Canadian Archaeological Association Meeting in Canmore was a blast, and my session on 'Combating Anti-intellectualism and Pseudoarchaeology through Public Engagement' went very well. Though it was only 4 papers, each presentation was standing room only, with lots of follow-up discussions. 🏺

I'm at a loss for words. Both for the statement and for the underlying idea that citations are basically window dressing meant to give random statements an air of academic credibility. Pathetic.

The kids are alright. I'm so glad we're seeing multiple graduating classes reacting this way to AI shills who present it as a fait accompli with zero introspection. Why you would even bring up AI in a commencement speech to begin with is beyond me.

this graduation speech moment is notable, and her amazed shock at having failed to read the room feels instructive. when you're inside the bubble, you think everybody else is. but everybody isn't.

in case it is helpful, i have put together this list of resources for people who want to resist uncritical ai adoption in work or other aspects of life: docs.google.com/document/d/1...

Sheffield’s archaeology department was second to none, world leading and internationally significant. All the things that universities purport to value. It was also full of good colleagues (which universities seem to value less, but is no less significant.) I’m sorry it is no more.

Very sorry to see that the last undergrad archaeology class at Uni #Sheffield was taught yesterday. The wanton destruction happening now in academia on both sides of the Atlantic will be widely seen as the violence it is one day. #SaveSheffield #SaveSheffieldArchaeology

A great PhD with a great team, highly recommend!

Happy April 30 to all who celebrate, better known in QC academia as FRQ announcement day.

Go home fortune cookie, you're drunk...

Go home fortune cookie, you're drunk...

Oldest burial in Patagonia reveals early human settlement along South America's Atlantic coast. #Archaeology phys.org/news/2026-04...

More details on the firing of the National Science Board. The NSF now has no director, deputy director, or board. They have issued almost no new awards in 2026. The plan appears to be to completely destroyed the agency. The details are horrifying and have Russ Vought written all over them.

"The number of faculty over 60 skyrocketed to be a fourth or even third of the overall teaching staff at many leading institutions." It's much higher than that in many units, including mine. Lots of food for thought in this piece, though little in the way of actual solutions.

There are few sweeter words in academia than "Our decision is to: Accept Submission".

The United States now has the most government restrictions on academic freedom of any high-income country. www.chemistryworld.com/news/academi... Raw data from @vdeminstitute.bsky.social —> academic-freedom-index.net/research/Aca...

TFW when a student in your social complexity seminar tells you the class radicalized them! #archaeology #anthropology 🏺

Social Change and [Under] Development, Dept of Anthropology, U. of Auckland, 1997. Thats what did for me.

When power is built on disinformation, data become a threat.

TFW when a student in your social complexity seminar tells you the class radicalized them! #archaeology #anthropology 🏺

As an ASU PhD, this fills me with white hot rage! The New American University indeed...

The attack on education in the US is not new, but the slow fuse that arguably started with Reagan is now setting off detonations across K-12 and higher education that are going to be incredibly difficult to walk back if we don’t treat this like the urgent crisis it is.

In 1970, Regan’s education advisor famously said “We are in danger of producing an educated proletariat. That’s dynamite! We have to be selective on who we allow [to go through higher education].” They said the quiet part out loud over fifty years ago. An educated public is a threat to fascism.

For the past two years, the final project in my pseudoarchaeology class (ANT2290) was to craft a zine on an archaeological site, that presents both the actual evidence and a fanciful interpretation of it based on pseudoscientific practices covered in class. This year's crop was outstanding!

One has a 3D pop-up pyramid in it :) Last year, I had a pop-up Wall of Jericho, it was amazing!

This is sad. Lynne Goldstein was an amazing archaeologist and formidable mentor. RIP 🏺🧪

One has a 3D pop-up pyramid in it :) Last year, I had a pop-up Wall of Jericho, it was amazing!

In 1953, cartoonist and animator Paul Campani invented the iconic “Omino coi baffi” (little guy with a mustache) for the equally iconic Bialetti Moka pot. The character is a caricature of Renato Bialetti, son of founder Alfredo Bialetti

For the past two years, the final project in my pseudoarchaeology class (ANT2290) was to craft a zine on an archaeological site, that presents both the actual evidence and a fanciful interpretation of it based on pseudoscientific practices covered in class. This year's crop was outstanding!

In case anyone is still wondering why the social sciences and humanities have been systematically defunded and marginalized over the past generation. Seems like a basic knowledge of anthropology would be useful right about now. This 🔽 but read the entire thread.

basic knowledge of anthropology would be great, Julien, but you're asking that of people who lack basic knowledge of Lord of the Rings, a book they might have read

In case anyone is still wondering why the social sciences and humanities have been systematically defunded and marginalized over the past generation. Seems like a basic knowledge of anthropology would be useful right about now. This 🔽 but read the entire thread.

"...university bosses treat staff - especially academic staff - as a problem to be managed, rather than as colleagues in pursuit of a shared goal." Shared with no comment but 100% agreement. hannahforsyth.substack.com/p/uni-manage...

In 2024 The Conversation had 8.3M in revenue and 7.8M in expenses and paid $0 to writers. Is that really ok with you? projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/o...

Making tenure count, for MSNOW I wrote about my employer, The University of Iowa, creating a center for intellectual freedom. It's a reactionary project built on decades of conservative propaganda about higher ed.

I don't need a summary of what's available online, in biographies, or even in my own notes. I need to comb through and find the great details, decide what interests ME. No, it's not efficient. It's slow and painstaking. But I don't believe in efficiency as an ultimate good, especially in writing. /

me every single day

If you're thinking of attending the Canadian Archaeological Association 2026 in Canmore, and you've got something to say about pseudoarchaeology and anti-intellectualism, come join the conversation! 🏺 We've already got some interesting abstracts listed and more on the way! Deadline is tomorrow!

Aliens didn't build the fucking pyramids. C'mon.

Good HE is really simple: quality time spent with subject experts who know and care about their students. My university and many others are deliberately abandoning this truth in favour of financial and organisational efficiency.

Aliens didn't build the fucking pyramids. C'mon.

No governor, the children need access to tablets. Clay tablets, that is. We must teach the children cunieform if they want a chance to succeed in the modern world.

While I have yet to see a material benefit to myself or the information worlds I inhabit from these new technologies, I feel like every day I see three new stories like this one. The benefits remain ephemeral, but the harms very real.

Un article qui vaut la peine d’être lu tant cela résume le présent dystopique : comment les crétins aux ordres de Musk et Trump ont utilisé l’IA pour sabrer illégalement les programmes de recherche

🚩 #joboffer two-year #postdoctoral position available at @pacea.bsky.social @univbordeaux.bsky.social “Biology and #taphonomy of human #fossils from the Late #Paleolithic and #Mesolithic periods in southwestern France.” contact: Bruno Maureille

Major news: A @nytimes.com story today reports on developments in our lawsuit, filed with @modernlanguage.bsky.social and @acls1919.bsky.social, opposing the illegal dismantling of the NEH. The article covers newly released discovery in the case. Here’s what discovery confirmed: 🧵(1/7)

I will also say that it’s a bit wild to me that no press freedom organization or professional journalistic association has tried to contact me or even put out a statement here. I mean Jesus Christ. A little solidarity from institutions would be nice here!

I've been keeping an eye on reactions to retractions within the pseudoarchaeology realm for a little project-in-planning. Between the YDIH collective's now 3 (!) retracted papers and the retracted Gunung Padang paper, things aren't going well for the pseudoarch folks!