Gattaca, a film that debuted in 1997, explores genetic manipulation in a dystopian society. The movie was years ahead of its time. Technologies that enable gene editing, such as Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR), now exist. If parents … Continue reading Ableism and Modern Eugenics: A Result of CRISPR and Gene Editing
If you were one of those kids in class always trying to get a laugh with a quick one-liner, you were probably one of the forerunners of the cultural artefact now known as an internet meme. A meme is an … Continue reading The Anthropological Significance of Internet Memes as Digital Artefacts
Pests are unwanted organisms (plants or insects) that may cause damage to other organisms or property. Pesticides aim to eliminate these pests and protect target areas from further damage. For plants, pests include microorganisms, fungi, insects, and larger herbivores. In … Continue reading Examining Natural Plant Defense Mechanisms and Pesticide Use
The accumulation of environmental pollutants results from Anthropocene activities that expelled solvents and other harmful and hydrophobic molecules into the environment. Bioremediation utilizes microorganisms, either naturally occurring or genetically engineered, to break down environmental pollutants. Genetically engineered microorganisms, or GEMs, … Continue reading Can GEM Bioremediation Mend the Effects of the Anthropocene?
The state of Israel was created in 1948 after a military attack and a mass deportation of Palestinian Arabs from the area. The Jewish state was and is the end goal of the Zionist movement. Facing growing anti-Semitism in Europe, … Continue reading Zionist Law in Palestine: The Laws that Allow Israel to Ignore Laws
The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill is the debut solo album by an American recording artist. The album miseducates and relates. On why we love The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill Lauryn Hill was born on 26 May 1975 in East Orange, … Continue reading Anthropology: Significance of ‘The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill’ in Cultural Exchange
Hannah Arendt coined the term “totalitarianism” with the meaning it has today: a government that uses terror in order to impose its law. In the 20th century, due to political alliances, it was taboo in Europe to group the Nazis … Continue reading Totalitarianism: The Political Ideology that Uses Terror to Control
During the spring semester, my term paper assignment for one of my anthropology classes was an auto-ethnographic fieldwork essay, but I was limited to online resources to consolidate data due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In this blog post, I aim … Continue reading Examining Social Issues Present in the Metal Music Subculture of America
Gumboot dancing is rooted in the dark gold mine tunnels of South Africa’s past. Unbeknownst to many, every step carries the anti-colonial beat of defiance. This uniquely South African dance form originated in the 1890s amongst migrant workers in South … Continue reading Anthropology: Gumboot Dancing as Visual Historical Representation of Defiance