When Thomas Pearson’s newborn daughter was diagnosed with Down syndrome, it changed the course of his life forever. Pearson joins SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell to talk about his story, how his training in anthropology prepared him for his daughter’s diagnosis, and what he hopes other people can learn from his experience. Pearson is a professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Wisconsin, Stout.

Read more about Pearson’s story and his research into disability studies on SAPIENS: “A Daughter’s Disability and a Father’s Awakening.”

The book Chip recommends at the end of the episode is titled The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down.

SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

Music included in this episode are:

The Denisovans have long been one of the most elusive ancient human cousins, until now. In May 2019, scientists revealed the first fossil evidence of Denisovans outside of the Denisova Cave in Siberia. As the historical human family tree grows, what are we learning about why we're the only ones left? In this episode, we pose this question to science journalist Carl Zimmer, a columnist for The New York Times and the author of 13 books. Follow him on Twitter @carlzimmer. 

We also speak with archaeologist Anna Goldfield about Neanderthals, another close ancient cousin. Goldfield is a columnist at SAPIENS.org, co-host of The Dirt podcast, and the illustrator of The Neanderthal Child of Roc de Marsal: A Prehistoric Mystery. Follow her on Twitter @AnnaGoldfield.

Learn more about Denisovans and Neanderthals.

SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

Music in this episode is by:

How come some people think eating insects is disgusting? Join SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell as they dine on many-legged delicacies and delve into the world of entomophagy with anthropologist Julie Lesnik, author of the new book Edible Insects and Human Evolution.

Julie is a professor of anthropology at Wayne State University. She tweets @JulieLesnik and her website is at www.entomoanthro.org. Learn more about eating insects at Sapiens.org: [Why Don’t More Humans Eat Bugs?](%20https:/www.sapiens.org/culture/eat-bugs/) SAPIENS: A Podcast for Everything Human is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, and mixed, audio edited and sound designed by Jason Paton. It was hosted by Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell. Sapiens is produced by House of Pod, with contributions from executive producer Cat Jaffee and intern Freda Kreier. Meral Agish is our fact-checker. Matthew Simonson composed our theme. Giancarlos Hernandez performed the excerpt from the diary of Diego Alvarez Chanca. A special thanks this time to Beau and everyone else at Linger, as well as our guest this week, Julie Lesnick. This podcast is funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation, which has provided vital support through Danilyn Rutherford, Maugha Kenny, and its staff, board, and advisory council. Additional support was provided by the Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas. Thanks always to Amanda Mascarelli, Daniel Salas, Christine Weeber, Cay Leytham-Powell, and everyone at SAPIENS.org. Sapiens is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. For this episode, we used the compositions, "Hello World", "4", "Cerutti", "Metadata in one Lesson", "School Daze", and "In Transit" by Matthew Simonson; aand "Thinking Music," and  "Umbrella Pants," by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com) licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/.

Hello fellow sapiens!

We’re coming back with new episodes starting on July 30. This season is just a little different, though. SAPIENS hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell are still asking big questions about what it means to be human, but this time they’re jumping off from some of the best stories from Sapiens.org, and culminating in questions... from you!

If you have a query about what it means to be human, we want to hear it!

Send your questions to us on Facebook at Sapiens.org, tweet them at us @sapiens_org with the hashtag #sapienspodcast, or leave us a short voicemail at 970-368-9730. Make sure to include your name so we can thank you when we play your question on the show.

A fun side note: One of the songs in this trailer was composed by Joachim Neander himself. Our editor Matthew Simonson discovered it in the public domain.

How does an immigrant become an American? How does anyone join any group? SAPIENS host Esteban Gomez shares the story of Dr. Morwari Zafar, a researcher who has studied the changes in her own community of Afghan-Americans in Fremont, California, in the wake of 9-11. From the first major wave of immigration in the late 1980s and early 1990s, to 9-11 and the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan, the Afghan-American community has been in flux, exemplifying the mysteries of group identity, dynamics, and nationhood.    Morwari recently completed a PhD in anthropology at Oxford University. Her PhD dissertation is available online: COIN-operated anthropology: Cultural knowledge, American counterinsurgency and the rise of the Afghan diaspora. Zafar is now managing partner at Sentient Group, a consulting company focused on the national security, international development, and private sectors.

This episode of Sapiens was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Esteban Gómez.

Sapiens producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support.

Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

More from sapiens.org:

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

SAPIENS host Jen Shannon goes on a mission to find out how quinoa travels from farmers’ fields in Huanoquite, Peru, to markets in Lima and the U.S. She discovers quinoa’s complicated past and present: a bloody civil war that shook the nation, the chefs who tried to use food as a racial reconciliation project, and the current economic and social pressures small producers face when they take on huge risks to bring their product from field to market.

Linda Seligmann is a professor emeritus of sociocultural anthropology at George Mason University. She has worked in the Andean region of Latin America for over forty years. Her current project tracks production of quinoa and gender dynamics in the highlands of Peru.

Emma McDonell is a PhD candidate in cultural anthropology at Indiana University, where she works on food politics, political ecology, and quinoa in the Andes. Follow her on Twitter @EmMcDonell.

María Elena García is an associate professor in the Comparative History of Ideas Program at the University of Washington. She is currently working on a book project about Peru’s food boom and return to democracy after civil war.

Learn more about food at SAPIENS:

This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Jen Shannon.

SAPIENS producer Paul Karolyi, along with executive producer Cat Jaffee, House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek, and SAPIENS host Esteban Gómez, provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Scientists have thought about burial—the act of interring a dead body—as a distinctly human behavior. So what happened when a group of paleoanthropologists discovered a primitive hominid that may have entombed its dead?    And how do people respond when they are unable to find and care for the remains of their loved ones? SAPIENS host Jen Shannon talks to Mercedes Doretti, co-founder of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team, about the 38,000 people who have disappeared in Mexico since 2006. They discuss forensic scientists’ strategies in cases in which missing migrants cannot be found and others in which remains have not yet been identified.    Paige Madison is a Ph.D. candidate at Arizona State University, where she studies the history of paleoanthropology. Her dissertation research examines the history of research on Neanderthals, Australopithecines, and Homo floresiensis. She blogs and tweets about fossils and the history of science. Follow her on Twitter @FossilHistory.  

Mercedes Doretti is a forensic anthropologist who investigates human rights violations. She is a co-founder of the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF), where she directs the Central America, North America section. Doretti was awarded a MacArthur Fellowship in 2007 for her work with the EAAF. She completed an advanced degree (Licenciatura) in 1987 from the University of Buenos Aires  in Argentina, and she took courses in biological anthropology at Hunter College, City University of New York.

Learn more about caring for and honoring the dead at SAPIENS:

Who First Buried the Dead? by Paige Madison

Gathering the Genetic Testimony of Spain’s Civil War Dead by Lucas Laursen

Grief Can Make Us Wise by Richard Wilshusen

This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Arielle Milkman, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, Jen Shannon, and Esteban Gómez.

SAPIENS producer Paul Karolyi, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support. Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library. This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Surprise!

As a special holiday treat, the SAPIENS team is presenting this unedited conversation between SAPIENS host Chip Colwell and acclaimed science journalist Carl Zimmer about DNA, identity, and heredity.

This conversation was previously excerpted in our episode “Is Your DNA You?” It took place in front of a live audience at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science on June 20, 2018.

Carl Zimmer’s new book is She Has Her Mother's Laugh: The Powers, Perversions, and Potential of Heredity. Learn more about Zimmer’s work at carlzimmer.com.

This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Chip Colwell, with support from SAPIENS co-hosts Esteban Gómez and Jen Shannon.

SAPIENS producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support.

Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod. Additional funding for this episode was provided by our friends at Imago Mundi Fund at Foundation for the Carolinas.

From space junk and the International Space Station to Elon Musk and SpaceX, space is becoming a more human place. What will it mean for us to live among the stars? SAPIENS host Jen Shannon probes the nascent field of space archaeology and looks to the mystery of exoplanets for answers.  

Learn more about space at sapiens.org:

This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Paul Karolyi, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Jen Shannon, with support from Sapiens co-hosts Esteban Gomez and Chip Colwell.

SAPIENS producer Arielle Milkman, executive producer Cat Jaffee, and House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek provided additional support.

Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.

Some athletes seem larger than life. They are revered and imitated—and they seemingly hold a lot of power. But whether they feel empowered in their lives and choices off the field depends on a variety of complex factors. We explore the experiences of black college football players in the U.S. and Fijian rugby players who migrate to play on teams in France to learn more.

Tracie Canada is a graduate student in the anthropology department at the University of Virginia. In 2017, her research project Tackling the Everyday: Race, Family, and Nation in Big-Time College Football was awarded a dissertation fieldwork grant from the Wenner-Gren Foundation.

Niko Besnier is a professor of cultural anthropology at the University of Amsterdam and has a research professorship at La Trobe University, Melbourne (Australia). He is also a fellow at Stanford University's Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences. Besnier is a co-author of The Anthropology of Sport: Bodies, Borders, Biopolitics.

This episode of SAPIENS was produced by Cat Jaffee, edited by Matthew Simonson, and hosted by Esteban Gómez, with support from SAPIENS co-hosts Jen Shannon and Chip Colwell.

SAPIENS producers Paul Karolyi and Arielle Milkman, along with House of Pod intern Lucy Soucek, provided additional support. Cat Jaffee is our executive producer.

Fact-checking is by Christine Weeber, illustration is by David Williams, and all music is composed and produced by Matthew Simonson.

SAPIENS is part of the American Anthropological Association Podcast Library.

This is an editorially independent podcast funded by the Wenner-Gren Foundation and produced by House of Pod.