Southwest Archaeology Today for March 13, 2007

Archaeology Making the News – A Service of the Center For Desert Archaeology

– Appeals Court Blocks Use of Treated Effluent on San Francisco Peaks: The operators of a Flagstaff-area ski resort cannot use recycled sewage to make snow, the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled Monday. In a unanimous decision, the judges said there is no evidence that denying Snowbowl operators the ability to use sewage for artificial snow would force the facility, on U.S. Forest Service land, to shut down. They said there is no “compelling governmental interest” in having artificial snow on the San Francisco Peaks. More to the point, the judges said the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act requires government agencies to use the “least restrictive” means of interfering with any religious practice.
http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/related/173305.php

– Free Rock Art Tour in Tempe: Learn about Hohokam rock art with Dr. Amy Douglass, Tempe Historical Museum Administrator and archaeologist, during a free tour from 10-11 a.m., on March 15 at Hayden Butte, downtown Tempe (call 480-350-5100 for directions). Learn about the more than 500 individual petroglyphs, or rock art images, that exist on Hayden Butte. The images were created by the Hohokam, prehistoric inhabitants of the Salt River Valley, between 600 and 800 years ago. Wear comfortable shoes; bring water and binoculars. Moderate hike required.

– New Exhibit of the Americas Opens at Chicago’s Field Museum: Aztec. Incan. Mayan. They’re the most widely recognized ancient cultures of North, South and Central America, according to visitors surveyed by The Field Museum. But a new exhibit called “The Ancient Americas” shows that the Western Hemisphere was home to hundreds of diverse societies established long before European explorers arrived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. The permanent exhibit, which opened last week, encompassed five years of work, including the public surveys that helped guide its developers. It represents a major overhaul of the museum’s old exhibit, which dated to the 1950s and focused on the archaeology of the Americas.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070312/ap_on_sc/ancient_americas_1

– Digital Archaeological Guides Debut in Greece: If you have ever wandered around a dusty Greek archaeological site in midsummer, clueless about what you are seeing or where you are going, help is finally at hand. Greece’s Culture Ministry on Thursday unveiled a hand-held gadget for visitors that offers high-resolution video, detailed diagrams of sites such as ancient temples, position indicators, and imagery along with stereo sound.
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20070308/ap_on_sc/greece_tourist_gadgets_1