Southwest Archaeology Today for Jan. 8, 2008

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

– The Possibility that Meteorite Impacts may have Affected Northern Paleolithic Populations is the Topic of Lecture Series in Santa Fe: Truly revolutionary ideas are not very common these days, but one is peeking up above the horizon of North American prehistory. Dr. Richard Firestone, an isotope physicist from the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory, has uncovered evidence for cosmic collisions at times that would have influenced humans and their environment. Impacts at 39,000 and 12,900 years ago devastated portions of the northern hemisphere, treating the ice-age megafauna to smaller versions of the type of shock that contributed to the extinction of the dinosaurs. The 12,900 BP impact may have changed the course of the cultural as well as natural history of North America, and the possibility is challenging accepted views of Paleoindian archaeology.
http://www.cdarc.org/sat/sky_is_falling.pdf

– Unlicensed Vendor who Impersonated NPS Rangers Banned From Mesa Verde: A Durango man has been banned from entering Mesa Verde Park after he posed as a ranger and took money from tourists for guided tours. Scott Raymond Sorenson, 44, was the sole operator of a company named Ranger Led Tours through which he made bookings on the Internet. Sorenson would meet potential clients, collect money from them and give them tours of the Cliff Palace, Spruce Tree House and Chapin Mesa without the proper permits, according to reports from Mesa Verde National Park.
http://www.cdarc.org/page/23dv – Cortez Journal

– Historic Preservationists in Albuquerque Try to Save El Vado Motel: The Albuquerque City Council enters Round 2 on Monday in the fight to preserve the historic El Vado Motel, despite the owner’s plans to demolish the building. Councilor Isaac Benton said he expects the council to pass his legislation – as they did two years ago – that would brand the motel a city landmark. “I think there’s a sense citywide amongst our constituents that we’ve allowed too much of the city’s history to be torn down,” Benton said.
http://www.cdarc.org/page/ioao – The Albuquerque Tribune

– Delivery Notice: The mail service at the Center for Desert Archaeology’s Internet service provider was upgraded at the start of the New Year, which (of course) means that a few hundred subscriptions were not able to be delivered. The problem is that the new mail server is not on the email “white-lists” at Yahoo and Comcast. We have taken steps to correct this problem, but in the mean time archives of Southwestern Archaeology Today are available at the Center’s Website, or the Southwestern Archaeology Today Blog.
http://www.cdarc.org/pages/articles.php?req=category&cat_id=28 – Website Archive
http://www.southwesternarchaeology.blogspot.com/ – SAT newsletter in Blog/ RSS format.