Dr. Harriet Ottenheimer of Kansas State University helped debunk the myth that those responsible for the “Nigerian 419″ scam were actually from Nigeria, according to this article.

Peter Wood, president of the National Association of Scholars and a  former professor of anthropology at Boston University was recently featured on NPR’s “On Point” in an episode about anger in America.

Finally, Michael Tomasello of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology is one recipient of the 750,000 EUR Max Planck Research Award.

If you know of any notable awards received or of colleagues in the news, please be sure to let us know!

Order the totes in groups of 5, 10 or 20 and just pay the cost of shipping.  (International groups should inquire about international shipping rates.) Click Here for the order form.  For more information, visit the AAA Membership page or contact Richard Thomas at rthomas [at] aaanet [dot] org.

Session proposals must include:

1. Session title
2. 500 word session abstract
3. List of panel participants and
4. List of paper titles. 

Additional supporting information such as individual paper abstracts will also be accepted, but is not required.

Submissions for all other Annual Meeting programs will begin in February.  Please refer to the Call for Papers for additional information.

To purchase a gift membership, call or email our Membership Assistant, Sean Kois at 703/528-1902 ext 1179 or skois[at]aaanet[dot]org.  Pricing for Students starts at $69 and Professional Members at $132.  Must also include a special interest section membership, a listing of which is found here.  For a complete price and publications list please refer to our enrolment form. (Not to be used for the gift membership program!)

The conference, the first since President Clinton held one in 1994, some 15 years ago, is being well received.  This will be the second campaign promise to the Native American community that the President has followed up on, after naming Kimberly Teehee as senior policy adviser for Native American affairs and a member of his Domestic Policy Council in July.

For more information, please see these articles:

• The New York Times
• ABC News
• SFGate
• The Washington Post

According to the press release, the first hour examines the fossil known as “Selam,” or affectionately as “Lucy’s Child,” shedding light on the early development of our ancestors.  The second hour visits the first “human-like” fossilized skeleton found, a specimen of Homo erectus known as “Turkana Boy”.  The third and final installment delves into the roots of our own species, Homo sapiens, hoping to pinpoint where and when we diverged from our common ancestors. 

Producer Graham Townsley says of the production:

It is truly unique to have artists and scientists collaborating at this level in order to create the most accurate images of early humans based on fossil evidence.

Register NOW!

Both ‘Ardi’ and ‘Lucy’ are findings that shed much-needed light on a somewhat mysterious time period in human evolution.  An article in yesterday’s New York Times explains the significance of the findings and reports.

• Over 10,000 anthropologists
• Almost 500 academic programs
• A listing of PhD dissertations in anthropology
• Over 70 Museums, Government Agencies and Research Firms
• Statistical data

The AAA Guide is also available online to AAA members, with the most up-to-date information year around!  Join now to access the E-Guide! Or order your copy today!

Also, all AAA Career Center job postings can now be shared amongst colleagues via many social networking sites!  These include Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and more!  Sign-up today to apply for any of the positions or post a job for your department or organization!

The Discovery, Times Square Exposition is currently featuring the archaeological exhibit “Lucy’s Legacy: The Hidden Treasures of Ethiopia”.  One of the latest breakthrough archaeological discoveries, Ida (Plate B), has recently joined Lucy at the Times Square Exposition in New York.  The exhibit will remain on display until October 25, 2009. 

Lucy was discovered by Donald Johanson and Tom Gray in November of 1974.  Ida was unearthed by amateur fossil hunters in a crater located near Frankfurt in 1983, the fossil was then taken to the Univerity of Oslo, where it was studied extensivly by John Hurum and Jens Franzen.