Southwest Archaeology Today for July 25, 2007

Archaeology Making the News – A Service of the Center for Desert Archaeology]

– DNA points to Pre-Clovis Migrations into North and South America: After years of spirited debate over how and when people first reached the Americas, scientists finally seem poised to reach agreement. The emerging consensus: In contrast to what was long held as conventional wisdom, it now seems likely that the first Americans did not wait for ice sheets covering Canada to melt some 13,000 years ago, which would have allowed them to traipse south over solid ground. Instead, early nomads might well have traveled by boat or at least along the coast from Siberia to North America, perhaps navigating arctic waters near today’s Bering Strait. The telltale evidence: ancient DNA from those early people that’s been coaxed, by powerful analytical technology, into revealing its secret.
http://www.cdarc.org/page/fma0 – US News and World Report

– Mountain Bikers Ask You to Contact Your Representatives to Support our National Parks: The House of Representatives is preparing to vote on this bill and your voice is needed to make sure H.R. 3094 passes. At stake is a much-needed financial infusion in the National Park Service (NPS) that will enhance some of America’s most treasured landscapes in time for the agency’s 100th anniversary in 2016. H.R. 3094 is strongly supported by IMBA and a coalition of other conservation and recreation organizations. We urge you to take action! Time is running out. Ask your U.S. Representative to support H.R. 3094, the National Park Centennial Fund Act.
http://www.imba.com/news/news_releases/07_08/07_24_nps_support.html

– Reception for National Trust for Historic Preservation Representatives in Phoenix: On July 29, come meet Kathy Adams and Lori Feinman of the National Trust for Historic Preservation, from 5:30 to 7 p.m. at the historic Ellis-Shackelford House, 1242 N. Central Ave., Phoenix. Kathy and Lori will be in town on July 28-29 to tour convention facilities and representative historic sites and neighborhoods in the Valley. Phoenix is one of the two finalists to host the 2012 National Preservation Conference. Please RSVP to Jim McPherson: jmcphersoniii@cox.net

– First Lady Announces New Preserve America Program: At the Preserve America Presidential Awards ceremony today, Mrs. Laura Bush, First Lady and Honorary Chair of Preserve America, announced the initiation of a new program: Preserve America Stewards, which will honor exemplary volunteer efforts at historic resources around the country. In Mrs. Bush’s announcement, she noted the program will recognize programs at the state, tribal, local, or regional level that have demonstrated a successful use of volunteer time and commitment in order to help care for our cultural heritage. Potential Preserve America Stewards programs apply to be recognized at the national level using an application form and guidance materials made available through the Preserve America Web site (http://www.preserveamerica.gov).
http://www.preserveamerica.gov/docs/StewardsRelease.pdf

– Book Review: Thomas Sheridan’s “Landscapes of Fraud: Mission Tumac