Southwestern Archaeology, Inc. (SWA) " Got CALICHE ? " Newsletter Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of the Greater Southwest! Thursday April 03, 2003 ***************************************** TEXAS From: Lou Sloat Taking Community Service One Step Further! Several months ago SWA ran an article on how I was utilizing juvenile offenders to work in the field of natural resources to complete community service hours. To date the program has been a GREAT success and the program is now called, "Natural Resources Community Service Restitution Program". I am trying to take this program one step farther because of my love for archeology. Anyone within a two hours drive from Port Lavaca, Texas, who is running a dig and who needs workers to help with some of manual labor job plus would not mind integrating some education into this for the juvenile, I can offer some very enthusiastic kids that have already put in over 1,000 man hours of work in the natural resources field. Please contact me by email at . Our kids can work any Saturday and this summer may be able to rearrange our schedule to coordinate with your activities. I believe that our young people need to learn and well as work, and be exposed to other opportunities that may change the life or a career goal of just one young person that might have ended up on the wrong side of the law. I accompany these kids on all their projects, so supervision would not be a problem for you and they work under a VERY strict set of rules. Let me know if any archeologists in our area are interested. Thanks. Lou Sloat, Natural Resource CSR Program Coordinator, Calhoun County Juvenile Probation Department, Port Lavaca, Texas. COLORADO http://www.denverpost.com/Stories/0,1413,36%257E150%257E1275884%257E,00.html Capt. Zebulon Montgomery Pike ended up in our San Luis Valley, which was then part of the Empire of Spain. He and his men, suspected of being spies rather than explorers, were taken into custody by Spanish soldiers and escorted to Chihuahua before they were returned to the United States. NEW MEXICO From: forwarding for Cheryl Ford Petroglyph National Monument Programs Celebrate New Mexico State Heritage Preservation Month: Petroglyph National Monument will help New Mexico celebrate State Heritage Preservation Month by offering free public programs each weekend during the month of May. These programs will provide information relevant to the cultural and natural resources found within the monument. Please join us for one or more of these very special events. Some events require pre-registration. For more details contact Cheryl Ford at 899-0205 ext. 337, or log on to and check our events calendar. ARIZONA http://www.tucsoncitizen.com/history_culture/4_2_03corral.html Tucson Corral of the Westerners, dedicated to preserving and celebrating the history of the American West, will celebrate its 50th anniversary Tuesday. Keynote speaker Bernard L. Fontana's presentation is titled "Adventures of a Field Historian." http://www.arizonahistory.org/2003program.html http://www.arizonahistory.org/2003registration.html http://www.fiestainnresort.com/location.html http://www.arizonahistory.org/2003sponsors.html Forty-Fourth Annual Arizona History Convention, Fiesta Inn Resort Tempe, Arizona April 24-26, 2003. NEVADA http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2003/04/01/38398.php?sp1=rgj&sp2=News&sp3=Local+News A 94-year-old barn in the heart of Minden was reduced to a large splintered woodpile Tuesday by work crews from A & A Construction. Some people in the area had expressed hope the building could be restored, but others said it was an eyesore that needed to be removed. The barn was built in 1909. http://www.rgj.com/news/stories/html/2003/04/01/38371.php?sp1=rgj&sp2=News&sp3=Local+News Sludge from the bottom of Reno's oldest manmade irrigation ditch has yielded about a dozen artifacts for archaeologists documenting the latest historical find by crews working on the train trench project. The ditch, built before the railroad was laid or the township was plotted, offers historians an important glimpse into what the Reno area was like in its earliest days. ETHNOGRAPHERS http://www.inc.com/magazine/20030401/25306.html Consumers in the Mist: For real insights into your clients, hire an anthropologist. Today, unknown primitive cultures are pretty scarce, and academic jobs are even scarcer. So more ethnographers are heading into boardrooms, bedrooms, and bathrooms, bringing new insights to a less exotic, but just as complex, tribe: consumers. ANTHROPOLOGISTS http://www.californiaaggie.com/_articles/6061.taf Suzana Sawyer, who taught the 300-student winter quarter Anthropology 2 class, decided that the outbreak of war between the United States and Iraq and the ensuing political turmoil was sufficient cause for giving her students a reprieve from her anthropology test. http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/comment-continetti040203.asp Representative Hayworth (R-AZ) is out to deny tenure to Columbia University assistant professor Nicholas DeGenova. According to Hayworth, members of Congress are "lining up" to sign the letter. The teach-in where DeGenova gave his fiery speech was taped by several video cameras. Keeping the video of the event under wraps helps DeGenova, as a review of the tape would show that not only did DeGenova call for "a million Mogadishus," but he also praised Asan Akbar, the army sergeant who rolled several grenades into an officers' tent in Kuwait two weeks ago in the first "fragging" incident since Vietnam. ARCHAEOLOGISTS http://www.napa.ufl.edu/2003news/womentoolmakers.htm Stone tool working is not just a male activity. Women probably had an active part in creating stone tools, one of the most ubiquitous materials found on prehistoric sites. Stone tools are important because they were the first recognizable object people made, marking the beginning of the archaeological record dating back as early as 2.6 million years ago. Not until 5,000 to 10,000 years ago were pottery and metal tools introduced. GEOLOGISTS http://www.gsajournals.org/gsaonline/?request=get-current-toc&issn=1052-5173 http://www.gsajournals.org/gsaonline/?request=get-document&issn=1052-5173&volume=013&issue=03&page=0028 Earth scientists have generally been involved in resource extraction, principally uranium, coal, and oil and gas reserves, and they have not traditionally been interested in equity and stability. Thus there has been widespread mistrust of geologists in the Native American community. The situation is changing, but there is still resistance to the geosciences, and there are concerns about data confidentiality, consequences of geological work, and the need for better environmental protection. Recognition of the need for geoscience expertise is increasing, particularly in issues related to water, pollution, and hazards. FORENSIC ANIMALS http://www.gmtoday.com/news/local_stories/March_03/topstory170.asp Emergency service personnel can look into the mind of a leader in canine forensics in May. Adela Morris tends to downplay the steps she has taken to bring canine forensics to the public. Morris has several historical grave projects in the works. She is also working with a forensic anthropologist with hopes of publishing a paper in the near future. http://www.sunspot.net/news/sns-othernews-wardogs,0,6672199.story?coll=bal-features-specials Chickens defy death in cages atop military Humvees to detect a possible Iraqi chemical attack. Well, some don't exactly defy death. Most expired after a short stint in the Iraqi desert -- flu is suspected -- and pigeons have taken their place. Editor's Note: Sometime ago, I suggested that Jack in the Box restaurants might introduce a 'Humvee Chicken Sandwich' about 18 months after the war... I guess the humvee chickens are not coming home... Jack gonna hafta sell humvee pigeon sandwiches... EVOLUTION http://www.hindustantimes.com/news/181_226173,00050004.htm Chinese scientists believe new finds support a theory that man ultimately descended from worms, state media reported on Wednesday. Editor's Note: You are what you eat... TOOLS AND TECHNOLOGY http://www.keyghost.com KeyGhost Pro SE stores 2,000,000 keystrokes (approx. 9-12 months worth of typing activity). The KeyGhost has a number of uses. Being a college student I am often writing papers or a news updates for my website when good old Windows crashes on me. Using the KeyGhost I loose nothing and I am able to completely recover whatever I was working on... http://www.marketingprofs.com/3/weil5.asp 7 Nitty-Gritty Tips To Publish A Monthly E-newsletter. http://www.nature.com/nsu/030331/030331-5.html Roasting ancient building materials might help archaeologists to date them. Bricks swell very slowly as they age, because they absorb moisture. Heating dries them out. How much they shrink indicates how old they are because it is proportional to how long they have been wicking up water. GOT CALICHE REDUX From: David Schaller, Sustainable Development Coordinator, Sustainable Practices and State Partnerships Program, US Environmental Protection Agency, Region 8, 999 18th Street; Ste. 300 (8P-R) Denver CO 80202; 303.312.6146 (voice); 303.312.6741 (fax); Hello, I am trying to locate more information on an item I saw referenced in a web search on salt-eating bacteria. Your Tools and Technology section (January 2002, I believe) carried an item about such a bacteria. The story mentioned work at Wismar University in Germany. The internet links don't let me gather any more information at this point. Is there any help or advice you can provide. Gratefully, David. Editor's Reply: http://www.thenewsmexico.com/noticia.asp?id=17910 Salt-gobbling bacteria save historic masonry, Grit Buettner, DPA - 1/28/2002 WISMAR, Germany - Scientists at Wismar University have discovered that salt-eating bacteria can save old walls. The one-year laboratory research project revealed that certain microorganisms can eliminate salt and dampness from buildings without causing any structural damage. The musty smells of an underground crypt can be banished for good, says Professor Helmuth Venzmer, the university's resident structural physicist and director of Wismar's Dahlberg Institute for the Analysis and Restoration of Historic Buildings. Venzmer's research group latched onto the source of the damp brickwork in the course of their work finding salt to be the culprit. It accumulates in high concentration on the surface of buildings as water evaporates. The nitrates in turn draw moisture from the air - just like a household saltcellar - and keep the walls permanently wet. So before any restoration work can begin, the walls are rid of dampness by the microscopic "salt-eaters," explains Venzmer. The research team he heads and the new biological method to desalinate masonry it has presented was funded by the German Center for Crafts and Preservation of Historic Buildings and Monuments in Fulda (Hesse state), Hamburg University, a textile research company in Rudolstadt (Thuringia state) and the German Federal Foundation for the Environment in Osnabrueck. The process involves moistening lengths of materials in which a special kind of anaerobic bacteria (one that does not require oxygen) is implanted. The prepared material is then draped over walls or columns suffering from excess salt content as a kind of biological compress. The bacteria require several weeks to consume all the salt from the masonry, turning the nitrates first into nitrite and then finally into nitrogen. This escapes as a gas, leaving behind the desalinated structure and dying bacteria with nothing to eat. The new method is especially suited for ancient buildings and monuments because it maintains the original brickwork, unlike chemical methods or, if the worst comes to the worst, demolition. "This methods means that masonry surfaces can actually be saved," says Ewa Prync-Pommerencke, head of building preservation for the state government in Schwerin. "However, the wet compresses are not suitable for walls covered by plaster or paint." The scientists contend that half of all historic buildings in Germany needing renovation suffers from dampness and surface saline concentrations. From Lynne Cole Judgment Taken Against Jeff Leach re Egypt Revealed & Other Magazine Subscription Scams: I have received word from James Daross at the State of Texas Attorney General's office that on March 20th he appeared before the District Court of El Paso County, Texas and took a Final Default Judgment against Jeffrey D. Leach. Mr. Daross reported: [ "I'm please to report that we took a default judgment today against Mr. Leach. The Judgment was for $110,977.32 in restitution, $!0,000.00 in civil penalties, and $8,573 in attorneys fees and investigative costs. The form of the Judgment is attached. You'll note that the victims list for the magazine subscriptions is much smaller than the list you sent to me -- I had to leave off the people who didn't respond to either your email or mine. The Judgment will become final and non-appealable in 30 days, if Leach doesn't file a Motion for New Trial or an appeal. I would think that is unlikely, so once it becomes final, I will contact a friend of mine in the office of the New Mexico Attorney General to enlist his help in trying to collect this judgment. The process of domesticating the Judgment in New Mexico takes a couple of months, but I will get it done." ] It took some time but, I'm sure that Mr. Leach never in a million years would have suspected that a few magazine subscribers would ask for action from the government officials regarding this type of fraudulent behavior. Best wishes, Lynne A. Cole, Ancient Egypt Studies Association, Portland, Oregon/Seattle, Washington; . Editor's Note: Contact Ms. Cole for an e-mail copy of the judgement document from the District Court of El Paso County Texas (Cause No. 2002-3195). The judgement amount is $110,977.32 CYBERIA http://www.emagazine.com/march-april_2003/0303curr_nepa.html NEPA has served for more than three decades as the "Magna Carta" of environmental protection in the U.S. A number of recent government proposals and actions that circumvent NEPA suggest that such guarantees may soon no longer exist. ***************************************** Contact the Newsletter Editor: archaeologist@rocketmail.com dogyears@dogyears.com www.swanet.org (url) 602.697.5754 (cellular) 602.372.8539 (digital fax) 603.457.7957 (digital fax) Post letter mail and other media to: Southwestern Archaeology, Inc. P.O. Box 61203 Phoenix AZ, USA 85082-1203 SWA invites you to redistribute SWA's "Got CALICHE?" Newsletter. We also request your timely news articles, organizational activities and events, technical and scientific writings, and opinion pieces, to be shared with our digital community. SWA's daily newsletter deals with quotidian issues of anthropology and archaeology -- cultural survival, time and space, material culture, social organization, and commerce, to name just a few. Our electronic potlatch and digital totemic increase rites focus and multiply historic preservation activities in the Greater Southwest. SWA's newsletters are "txt" format only, contain no attachments, and are virus free. Newsletter archives and free subscription . For information archived on SWA's server, please search . Thanks for reading today's edition! Southwestern Archaeology, Inc. (SWA) - A 501(c)(3) customer-centric corporation dedicated to the ethnographic study of the scientific practices of the American Southwest and the Mexican Northwest. Our goal is to create and promote diverse micro-environments and open systems in which archaeologists can develop their talents and take the risks from which innovation and productivity arise.