Samuel Wilson
Department of Anthropology
University of Texas Austin, TX 78712
off (512)471-4206 fax (512)471-6535
email: S.Wilson@mail.utexas.edu
I'm an archaeologist and historical anthropologist interested in processes of cultural interactions in "contact situations", some of the most difficult and consequential moments in human experience. I am interested in the origins complex forms of social and political organization and the development of governing institutions. I have also studied the relationship of different kinds of information technologies and information flows to social and political structures, from the beginning of writing systems to the impact of information technologies over the last 40 years. My most focused area of specialization is the prehistory, history, and culture of the indigenous people of the Caribbean and the events that took place after the arrival of Europeans. I carried out archaeological research on the small Caribbean island of Nevis for several years.
The expanding impact of the latest revolution in information technology is being felt nearly everywhere, and I have occasionally been surprised at how little attention social scientists have paid to this civilization-changing process. I am a past Director of the University of Texas's program in Technology, Literacy, and Culture, which under Elizabeth Keating's leadership has become the program in Science, Technology, and Society. This program addresses the social impacts of digital technology and aims to enrich higher education and equip students to be thoughtful, broadly educated, and humane citizens and leaders of a world of increasing technological and socio-political complexity.
Brief CVRecent publications: The Archaeology of the Caribbean (07), The Prehistory of Nevis, a Small Island in the Lesser Antilles (06), Anthropology of online communities (02), Legacy of Indigenous People (01), Nevis Report (IACA 2001) (01) Caribbean overview (01), Emperor's Giraffe (99), Cultural pluralism and complex societies (99), Uncertainty and complex societies (98), The Aboriginal People of the Caribbean (97)
Courses
- Quantitative Methods in Archaeology (1997) (2000) (2003)
- Archaeology, Anthropology, and History
- Cultures in Contact, 1996 Section. 04 Honors, 05
- Archaeology and Ethhistory of the Caribbean, (98)
- The Archaeology of Complex Societies (98)
- Ethnohistory and Archaeology (2001)
- Technology, Literacy, and Culture (Fall 2000)
- TLC intership program (summer 2000, fall 2000, spring 2001, summer 2001)
- Introduction to Technology, Literacy, and Culture
- Innovative Applications of Information Technology in Anthropology, poster
- Anthropology on the Screen, Tube, Web, and Front Page
- Doctoral Forum
- Supervised Teaching in Anthropology
- Native American - White Relations, 1492-2000 (see Cultures in Contact)
- Ethnohistory and Archaeology 1997
- Introduction to Archaeology, 1997 Section. Archaeology Archive.
Anthro Home Page
s.wilson@mail.utexas.edu
