How does anthropology address contemporary issues of concern to students?
I teach a seminar for first-year students that explores human biological diversity. We cover topics relevant to living with others in a modern global community, such as human adaptation to extreme conditions (e.g., high altitude, low sunlight), aspects of race, sex and gender, the perils of sociobiology, and the nature of human equality. Many people have the idea that the categories we recognize are somehow real, that is, real in the sense that they are rooted in our biology rather than our culture. In class, we look at these issues very carefully through readings and in class discussions, and we try to take a fresh look at some of our old ideas. What is the importance of the service-learning component of the seminar? Students are required to do their service learning with people unlike themselves, either by gender, age, socio-economic level or ethnicity. They are required to keep a journal that relates their experiences in the community to topics we discuss in class. A student might d
