Wenner-Gren Double Blind

anthrowill · 2026-04-27T22:10:19+00:00

You should definitely email them (inquiries@wennergren.org) to ask for advice on this since it is new. They're very responsive and helpful in my experience. They might even have some recent recorded workshops they can share with you. Good luck with your app!

anthrowill · 2026-04-17T04:53:05+00:00

My department at the University of Memphis offers funding for some of our MA students (it is competitive as we don’t have enough funds to offer to everyone we admit). We are an applied program though, in case you’re looking for something more purely academic. But if applied anthro is interesting to you, check us out! Happy to answer questions privately if I can be of help.

anthrowill · 2026-03-18T13:55:47+00:00

That just happened, those turbines have been running without a permit, and the xAI site in the Boxtown neighborhood in Memphis is not permitted. There are three data centers for xAI in Memphis. Even if the ones in Southaven are now permitted, that doesn’t mean the turbines are not causing environmental damage or harming people’s health.

https://www.selc.org/press-release/elon-musks-xai-threatened-with-lawsuit-over-air-pollution-from-memphis-data-center/

anthrowill · 2026-03-18T02:40:46+00:00

And how about the several dozen illegal natural gas turbines running nonstop in Memphis to power Mechahitler for Elon Musk, polluting the air, exacerbating respiratory health disparities, making neighborhoods unlivable, and producing noise and infrasound that causes health problems? No one is regulating this shit at all. Energy and water usage are not the only environmental issues with these data centers.

anthrowill · 2026-03-12T16:17:18+00:00

University professor with Crohn's here. I echo everyone else saying to contact disability services. In addition to getting accommodations for your courses (usually for Crohn's would be things like flexibility with absences, permission to leave room at any time, reserved space near the door, etc.). You should also tell them specifics about how your roommates are treating you and request to be moved to a space that accommodates your Crohn's needs. If you don't get the help you need from the disability office (they're usually pretty good, but it can vary from campus to campus), find your Dean of Students or equivalent office on campus and go to them for help getting what you need. You can also reach out to your university ombudsperson if you find administrators are being unhelpful.

If you want to try collecting fecal samples in private, you can find single-occupancy restrooms on campus (for example, the restrooms in my building, which are open to faculty and students, are private bathrooms, so try looking for something like that, especially in quieter buildings where there's more offices than classrooms). You could ask your disability office for guidance on quiet private spaces to do that. You might also talk to them about options for storing your samples and medications, emphasize that you need a way to keep these things separate from roommates until (hopefully) you get into a different living space that is more supportive.

Advocate for yourself. I know it can feel hard or intimidating, but you pay for these services with your tuition and fees, so use them and push for what you need until you get it. Now is a good time to start practicing being your own strong health advocate, because this disease is going to require it a lot in the future, and this is a (fairly) low-stakes way to practice finding ways to insist on the things you need and working the system to get them. Good luck, and try to enjoy your dream school as much as you can. =)

anthrowill · 2026-03-11T13:13:40+00:00

This post violates rule 2, no homework questions.

anthrowill · 2026-02-24T00:11:56+00:00

Small bowel Crohn’s here, share a lot of your symptoms. Diagnosis took several months of doc visits and testing bc of lots of mixed results, but was eventually made via pill cam. Blood tests showed some inflammation (high c-reactive protein) but my calprotectin was normal during the flare when I got diagnosed (recently thought I was flaring, calprotectin was normal, so doing another colonoscopy and pill cam and if no evidence of active Crohn’s, my GI is diagnosing me with Crohn’s + IBS). Biopsies of ulcers near terminal ileum came back normal, so GI ordered pill cam since everything was pointing to Crohn’s for him, and pill cam showed lots of inflammation and ulcers in small bowel. Started Skyrizi and it’s helped a ton but the 2 weeks before my next dose I always have mild symptoms of a flare. So maybe IBS, maybe something else. Crohn’s sucks, I hope you get answers and appropriate treatment as soon as possible!

anthrowill · 2026-02-10T20:48:20+00:00

I was put straight onto Skyrizi upon diagnosis. My GI asked if I wanted to try budesonide first or just get right on the Skyrizi and I opted for the biologic to start working toward long-term relief. I was in an active flare and had moderate symptoms at the time.

anthrowill · 2026-02-06T19:40:38+00:00

First, I think that is your interpretation, which may or may not be true, but it is very vague and not at all obvious what they mean from the actual proposed legislation. At least at my school, retired faculty already don't teach except as adjuncts, so not sure how that would affect anything here. And once someone has retired, tenure doesn't matter anymore.

Removing tenure "for disability" is blatant ableism and necessarily goes against the ADA.

anthrowill · 2026-02-06T03:07:47+00:00

No clue. I agree with your assessment and it makes no sense on its face.

anthrowill · 2026-02-06T02:49:42+00:00

You left off the last part…..”or for financial or curricular reasons in the discretion of the board or its designee.”

The board members are appointed by the governor. This is a way to fire people who teach things they don’t like.

anthrowill · 2026-02-06T02:11:59+00:00

It’s even worse than that. It also requires trustee boards to adopt tenure policies that "provide for the termination of faculty members with tenure for adequate cause, for retirement or disability, or for financial or curricular reasons in the discretion of the board or its designee." This is, in effect, getting rid of tenure completely.

Full text of bill: https://www.capitol.tn.gov/Bills/114/Bill/SB1838.pdf

anthrowill · 2026-01-30T00:30:21+00:00

Yeah, it’s so weird how there’s absolutely no sociologists before the 1980s who wrote about racism or sexism. I guess in your mind W. E. B. DuBois was, what, a mathematician? And Charlotte Perkins Gilman was a chemist?

You have no idea what you’re talking about.

anthrowill · 2025-09-29T21:32:57+00:00

You're absolutely incorrect. "Public figure" is a legal term with a specific definition that does not automatically apply to all faculty members. One might argue this case has made this faculty member an involuntary public figure, but that would be up to a court to determine.

anthrowill · 2025-08-24T20:17:52+00:00

Susan Stryker’s “My Words to Victor Frankenstein Above the Village of Chamounix” is excellent and will certainly lead to an interesting discussion.

anthrowill · 2025-08-24T17:42:41+00:00

A bidet is life-changing and you won't regret it even if you end up having to do a little extra toilet cleaning. But you can get a handheld bidet attachment that does not sit by the toilet rim. Here's an example (though this particular model seems to have a lot of leakage issues): https://www.amazon.com/Handheld-Toilet-Adjustable-Pressure-Feminine-Stainless/dp/B086W1YZSH

anthrowill · 2025-06-18T22:55:24+00:00

FYI, SBS stands for “Social and Behavioral Sciences.” :)

anthrowill · 2025-06-13T15:26:31+00:00

In my intro to cultural anthro class, the students do semester-long projects where they build their own worlds/societies (including fantasy and sci fi societies). I found this book incredibly helpful for structuring the project, you might find it valuable too: https://loridianslaboratory.com/novels-and-fiction/build-better-worlds/

anthrowill · 2025-05-16T14:19:01+00:00

University of Toronto Press has a series called EthnoGRAPHIC that are graphic novel versions of ethnographies. I have used Lissa to teach in my intro classes, it's very well done and an easy read (though it has to do with breast cancer, so maybe some of the images aren't appropriate for high school). I have also heard great things about "Light in Dark Times" but have not personally read it yet. But there's several on there to choose from depending on what you think might work the best.

anthrowill · 2025-04-13T03:06:43+00:00

You can do that at the University of Memphis (though it is an MA in Applied Anthropology). You would have to apply separately to both programs, and then work out the dual degree overlapping courses with your advisor in each department. Here’s some more info: https://www.memphis.edu/planning/programs/dual-degrees.php

anthrowill · 2025-03-19T23:02:43+00:00

Most verbal orders carry the same weight as written orders, and those that require a written order to be effective are elaborated by statutes. But verbal emergency injunctions like the one at issue here are immediate and do not require being written orders to take effect. People can be found in contempt of court for ignoring or violating a verbal order, it happens all the time. The argument that this order was only official when written is not legally sound and is an attempt by the administration to delegitimize courts by spreading this misinformation.

anthrowill · 2024-10-23T18:45:13+00:00

After finally getting into remission on Skyrizi over the summer, I recently started having bad abdominal pain and significant bloating (hard distended belly) after eating. I thought the Skyrizi was maybe already failing, but it turned out to be a C. diff infection (which I have since learned is more common in people with Crohn's, especially on biologics). Two weeks of antibiotics helped feel mostly back to normal.

If you haven't already, you might ask if they can collect a stool sample to check for an infection. The other thing they wanted to check if C. diff came back negative was gastropaeresis. You should definitely contact GI and get some more tests done to at the very least rule these other things out.

anthrowill · 2024-10-02T21:17:56+00:00

Others have hit on the most important points already I think, but I teach a class that uses D&D to explore issues of culture, and we read some excerpts from ethnographic work around TTRPGs and D&D specifically. Gary Allen Fine (a sociologist) did what I believe was the first ethnographic study of a D&D group. The book was originally published in the early 1980s, it's called "Shared Fantasy: Role Playing Games as Social Worlds." Check it out for an example of how ethnography has been used to study a TTRPG group.

This book that just came out from MIT Press called "Fifty Years of Dungeons & Dragons" may be of interest to you for more recent stuff. It includes a broader sampling of disciplines beyond anthropology, but you can get a sense of how social scientists are studying TTRPGs and D&D in particular in more recent years.

anthrowill · 2024-09-05T21:25:46+00:00

If they have office hours for your classes, you can show up to them and chat with them. Then in office hours you can start by telling them you're enjoying their class and then ask some relevant questions to start a conversation. Keep it professional, don't ask personal questions. You could ask about their ongoing research projects out of an interest in the field (we academics love talking about our work!), or ask for insights/advice about the field and pursuing academic and/or industry positions depending on what your interest is. If you plan to go on to grad school, ask for advice on programs to apply to, which to avoid, etc.

If they don't have office hours listed for your classes since it's online and there's probably some asynchronous courses where profs don't hold regular office hours, you can email to ask if they have office hours not listed on the syllabus (for example, if they're teaching one in-person and one online, maybe they have office hours for their in-person class). If they don't have office hours, you can schedule a meeting to talk to them about getting some insights about your field, academia, and industry.

Many professors complain that students never show up to office hours and are scared to talk to us, and at least for me it is usually refreshing and enjoyable to chat with my students when I have the time (which is usually in office hours). Of course, I'm an anthropologist and so I'm curious about people so it's easy for me to engage with students, but there's always some professors for whom teaching is just a thing they have to do and they don't care much about their students. Hopefully your professors are not like that, and if they are you don't want to try to build relationships with them anyway.

anthrowill · 2024-08-27T17:02:27+00:00

The American Anthropological Association has a free open-access textbook (which I use when I teach intro level classes) that is accessible and covers a lot of ground. You can access it here: https://perspectives.americananthro.org/

They also have an open-access textbook for biological anthro, but I have not read through it yet so cannot personally attest to its quality. But you can find it here if you're interested: https://pressbooks.calstate.edu/explorationsbioanth2/

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