Dr. Debra L. Martin Dean of the School of Natural Science, Hampshire College Thursday, 4 October 2001 7:00 pm Performing Arts Center Auditorium Monmouth Regional High School (click here for directions) 1 Norman J Field Way Tinton Falls, NJ Refreshments and informal discussion will follow the lecture Free and Open to the Public
Ancient peoples and cultures created surprisingly complex and efficient methods of treating disease. Many elements of modern medicine, in fact, grew out of pharmaceuticals, tools, techniques, and anatomical knowledge developed over thousands of years by hundreds of cultures. Using trial and error, preliminary theories were developed about how the body works. Shared knowledge and direct observations by early "doctors" resulted in numerous health care innovations. Our information on early health care comes from analyses of archaeological specimens, skeletons, artifacts, and floral and faunal remains. This presentation gives a broad overview, with many examples of ancient inventions in health care from around the world.
Debra Martin is Professor of biological anthropology, Director of the U.S. Southwest and Mexico Program, and Dean of the School of Natural Science at Hampshire College, Amherst, MA. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst in skeletal biology and physical anthropology. Her research interests include health in the ancient world, with a focus on indigenous women and arid environments. She is trained in the area of skeletal biology, bioarchaeology, paleopathology, paleonutrition, and women's biology, with regional specialization covering desert regions of the American Southwest and Northern Mexico, as well as Egypt and Arabia. Her research centers on identification of groups at risk, patterns of mortality of women and children, violence directed against subgroups, political-economic perspectives in the analysis of disease, native and Southwest Studies, and ethnic tourism and its effects on indigenous people. Dr. Martin has published and lectured widely. Among the books she has co-authored or co-edited are Harmony and Discord: Bioarchaeology of the La Plata Valley (in press) and Troubled Times: Evidence for Violence and Warfare in the Past.
The Norman J Field Lectures in Science were established in 1991 in memory of Dr. Norman J Field, and are cosponsored by the Monmouth County Section of the American Chemical Society, the Monmouth Junior Science Symposium, the Friends of the Monmouth County Library Association, the Monmouth County School Boards Association, and by the Rutgers University Chapter of Sigma Xi, an international scientific research society. Dr. Field was widely recognized for his contributions in the area of public education. He maintained a lifelong personal and professional interest in scientific issues. It is hoped that this lecture series will serve to promote similar interest in science and science education among both younger and older members of the community.
For additional information please contact: Ken Field fieldk@att.net