An introduction to archaeology as a method of inquiry, the course seeks to answer the question "How do archaeologists know what they know?" Topics include history of archaeology, field and laboratory methods, relationship between method and theory, and "scientific" and humanistic approaches to the interpretation of data.

This course explores trajectories of human experience through the lens of cultural anthropology, a cross-cultural view of the individual within society. It promotes global awareness as a learning outcome, learning to perceive how cultural differences influence the dynamics of human interactions upon the individual through psychological and social changes throughout a human lifespan.  Focus is upon the integration of anthropological knowledge across the holistic four subdisciplines, and integration of student personal experience with interdisciplinary knowledge, academic trajectories, and topical interests. Students will develop an appreciation of the duties and rights of a global citizen, and skills necessary to live in and comprehend our pluralistic world.

This course reviews the fossil evidence for human evolution in Africa, Asia, and Europe during the Pliocene-Pleistocene epochs. The fossil evidence is treated in temporal, geological, and geographic contexts. The primary focus is on the evolutionary implications of the fossil evidence for understanding the evolution of human morphology and behavior. Implications for the emergence of modern human races are also considered.

This course is an introduction to human behavioral ecology, the application of evolutionary and biological models to the study of human behavioral variation. Topics of discussion will include optimal foraging theory, kin selection, resource transfer, mate choice, and parental investment.