The Hmong are a people spread across the world with a rich culture. Today, Alan talks to Pakou Yang and her Hmong family and ancestry. They discuss culture, religion, and celebrations.

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On today’s episode we interview Kari Crutcher executive director of the Ridgecrest Convention and Visitors Bureau. They are the developers and hosts of the worlds only petroglyph festival. The festival brings between 5000 and 15,000 people for a weekend of celebration. This is a remarkable gathering and one that pays homage to the Native American heritage of the area. Tune in and find out all about it.

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Albert Knight traces his associations with rock art studies throughout his lengthy career and focuses on the nature of discovery and the most remarkable sites he has had the joy of working on. Burro Flats in the Simi Valley of southern California in Los Angeles County is akin to the Chumash rock art painted pictograph traditions. The site exhibits polychrome paintings within a rock shelter that some believe are documentation of the oral traditions and ritual activities associated with the movements and timing of the sun. There is a sun dagger that appears at the solstice and pierces a concentric circle element. The elements have been interpreted as representing the various deities and their interactions as represented in the Native sacred narrative.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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Today, Dr. Garfinkel takes to Stephen O'Neil. He is a cultural and social anthropologist and archaeologist. He has been working with the Juaneno, the Native people in Orange County and around Mission San Juan Capistrano for 50 years. His efforts have preserved priceless oral histories and made discoveries through his meticulous analysis of the sacramental registries of the mission. Further, he has used this information to help deconstruct the native rock art of the region. You don't want to miss his reflections on his life, research, and discoveries.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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Alan brings on a guest to talk about a different sort of art today - objects that are commonly known as Venus Figurines. Were they early pronographic objects used to arouse men as the first archaeologists that discovered them thought or were they symbols of fertility and used as talismen to bring forth a good birth? Stephanie Haro has been studying these and she talks about them on this episode.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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Sandy Rogers has master's degrees in both physics and archaeology. He's used this mix of talents in the development and use of obsidian dating techniques.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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Dr. Richard Chacon, a professor at Winthrop University in Rock Hill, South Carolina, has spent a lot of time living with and studying pre-contact societies. In this sense, pre-contact simply means they do not interact with modern societies on a regular basis. Dr. Chacon has some great stories and insights from his adventures.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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Dr. Garfinkel was invited by the History Channel to fly out to Skinwalker Ranch in northeastern Utah to talk about the features there. On this episode we get a behind-the-scenes look at filming a TV show and we learn something about the area.

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On today’s episode Dr. Garfinkel interviews an icon of North American archaeology, Dr. David Hurst Thomas. He has been a curator of prehistory at the American Museum of Natural History, New York City for nearly 50 years. Dr. Thomas discusses how he got into archaeology and some of the big discoveries that he is known for.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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On today’s episode we talk about the ideas behind Dr. Garfinkel’s dissertation. He used linguistics to determine some interesting things about the early peopling of the Americans.

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• California Rock Art Foundation

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