Remembering Jane Goodall with Primatologist Carson Black | Ethno #25

Remembering Jane Goodall with Primatologist Carson Black

In this deeply heartfelt episode, David speaks with Primatologist, Biological Anthropologist, and Conservationist, Carson Black, who has spent her academic career studying chimpanzees in Senegal and howler monkeys in Costa Rica.

Together, they reflect on the life and legacy of Jane Goodall, the “living Darwin of the modern era,” and how her groundbreaking work continues to shape the way we understand both chimpanzees and ourselves.

Carson shares vivid stories from the field—bucket showers under the Milky Way, mischievous chimps throwing rocks, and the humbling power of seeing the world from their perspective. The two also discuss the history of primatology, the pioneering “Trimates” (Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas), and the role of indigenous knowledge in modern science.

This episode serves as both a tribute to Jane Goodall and a reminder that anthropology isn’t just about the past—it’s about the relationships that continue to define what it means to be human.

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Horses (Part 2) | Horses in Early Contact North America with Cassidee Thornhill - Ep 24

In this episode of Ethnocynology with David Ian Howe, I sit down with my good friend and former graduate school cohort member Cassidee Thornhill, Collections Manager at the University of Wyoming Archaeological Repository.

Cassidee’s research dives into the early contact era in Wyoming, focusing on the arrival and spread of horses before and during European colonization. We discuss her fascinating thesis work on the Black’s Fork River site, where a young foal was found buried alongside three coyote skulls—an extraordinary archaeological discovery that sheds light on early human–horse relationships on the Plains.

Topics we cover include:

• The Black’s Fork horse burial and its cultural significance

• Early radiocarbon dates showing horses in Wyoming decades before the Pueblo Revolt

• Evidence of early veterinary care and human–horse bonds

• How horses transformed Native economies, sovereignty, and resistance

• Genetic research linking early horses in the Americas to Spanish (and later British) stock

• The broader story of how horses reshaped Indigenous life across the Plains

Cassidee also shares her perspective on whether horses or dogs have been more influential in human history—a big question we love to ask on this show.

This episode is the extended interview version you won’t find on YouTube—perfect for listeners who want the full deep dive into Cassidee’s groundbreaking work.

Transcripts

• For a rough transcript head over to: https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/ethnocynology/24

• Transcript

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Horses (Part 1) | Hoof Beats with Dr. William Taylor | Ethno #23

In this episode of Ethnocynology, host David Ian Howe sits down with archaeologist and anthropologist Dr. William Taylor (University of Colorado Boulder), author of Hoofbeats: How Horses Shaped Human History.

While this show usually focuses on dogs, today we shift to the other animal that transformed humanity: the horse. Dr. Taylor walks us through the evolutionary history of horses, their domestication on the Eurasian steppe, and their reintroduction to the Americas after the Ice Age. Together we explore how humans first interacted with horses—as prey, symbols in cave art, sources of milk and meat, and eventually as partners in transport, warfare, and belief systems.

Topics include:

• The origins of domestic horses around 2000 BC in the Caucasus steppes

• Horses evolving in North America, going extinct, and being reintroduced by the Spanish

• Hunting evidence from sites like Schöningen in Germany and Bluefish Caves in the Yukon

• Horses in Paleolithic cave art (Lascaux, Chauvet) and the Vogelherd ivory carving

• Evidence for early horse riding and chariot use in Egypt, Assyria, and beyond

• The role of horses in indigenous North and South American societies before widespread European contact

• Ethno-equine parallels in Mongolia, Australia, and Patagonia, where horses shaped cultural, spiritual, and economic life

This is Part 1 of a two-part series: next time, David speaks with Cassidy Thornhill of the University of Wyoming, who researches the protohistoric introduction of horses into the Americas.

If you enjoy the episode, please rate and review Ethnocynology on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. It helps more people discover the show and supports the entire Archaeology Podcast Network.

Links:

• Hoofbeats: How Horses Shaped Human History by Dr. William Taylor — available on Amazon and other retailers.

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The Old Copper Culture with North02 | Ethno #22

In this episode of Ethnocynology, host David Ian Howe sits down with friend and creator North02 to dive into one of North America’s most fascinating and overlooked archaeological stories—the Old Copper Culture.

Together, they explore how Native communities in the Great Lakes region began shaping some of the world’s earliest metal tools and weapons, thousands of years before metallurgy took hold in Europe. From massive copper swords and fishing hooks to spear throwers and intricate ornaments, this culture reveals a technological world far beyond the usual “stone tool” narrative.

We discuss:

• Why Michigan and the Great Lakes hold the purest copper deposits in the world

• How hunter-gatherers mined and hammered copper into tools as early as 9,500 years ago

• The mysterious rise and fall of copper mining, and why production suddenly stopped

• Connections to Paleoindian cultures like Clovis and Agate Basin

• The difference between copper use in the Americas and the Old World’s Bronze Age

• How copper shifted from practical tools to symbols of power and status

Along the way, North shares insights from his upcoming documentary on the Old Copper Culture, his hands-on experiments with copper tools, and why this forgotten chapter of prehistory deserves a place in public imagination.

If you’ve ever wondered whether North America had its own “Copper Age”, this episode will change the way you think about early technology, innovation, and the ingenuity of ancient peoples.

Transcripts

• Full Transcript

Links:

• Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior by David P. Pompeani

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Anthro Chat with Stefan Milo | Ethno #21

In this episode of ethnic psychology, David sits down with good friend Stefan Milo, archaeologist, YouTuber, and overall outstanding chap.

David and Steve catch up on recent anthropology news and discussed the recent archaeological findings at White Sands national Park, as well as the recent genetic findings surrounding Dragon Man, the Denisovans, and the peopling of the Americas.

David and Stefan also discuss the growing concern among content creators regarding automated intelligence and whether or not the recent advancements with AI video generation will put people like David and Stefan out of work.

Stefan is a brilliant guy, and this conversation is as educational as it is pretty funny. So be sure to give it a listen!

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Meme Archaeology with Gaius Flavius | Ethno #20

In this episode of ethnic psychology, David sits down with a friend of the pod, Artur Hulu. But you may know him by his Instagram pseudonym Gaius Flavius.

Arthur is a prolific memes it is pretty tapped into the cultural Zeitgeist of the Internet. Well, most of his memes have to do with ancient Rome and classical history, they are successful because he understands the complex history of memes and modern internet culture.

David and Arthur discuss different memes that have done well, their strategies for posting, and why this is important for science and history.

Transcripts

• Full Transcript

Links:

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• Gaius Flavius on Youtube

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Jonny Devaney Returns…from Italy! Pompeii, the Vatican, and Roman dogs! | Ethno #19

In this episode of Ethnocynology with David and Howe, David sits down with good friend Jonny Devaney! Jonny recently got back from an extended trip to Italy with his family, where he went to Pompeii, Naples, Venice, Rome, and got to see a mass run by the new Pope Leo.

They first start by catching up with each other and then quickly get into the trip.

Jonny spent the most time in Rome and Naples, but also got to see lots of Venice and was given a personal tour of Pompeii by an archaeologist.

David and Jonny then start talking about their experiences in Rome, the Vatican, the tourist stuff, and of course dogs.

Jonny is currently obsessed with Cane Corso’s and they spend a good deal of time talking about that.

Transcripts

• Full Transcript

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Audience questions answered! | Ethno #18

In this episode, David answers questions he received from a Q&A on Instagram. While some are archaeological, most are on dogs. The questions range from dogs in the Americas, to dog burials in Europe, why are some wolves black? Why are there so many arrowheads in Wyoming? And were dogs really eaten?

David answers these questions, and does his usual rant and tirades in between questions about current anthropology, the Colombian exchange, and people that annoy him on Instagram.

Transcripts

• Full Transcript

Links:

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• Aztec pantheon video

• The Social Dog

• Dr. Alyce Canon - Episodes 5 and Episode 6

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ALPHA: a prehistoric movie about the first dog | Ethno #17

In this episode, David finally discusses the 2018 film “Alpha.” Alpha is a movie that takes place 20,000 years ago in France, in which a boy is separated from his hunting party, and has to survive on his own to get home. That is until he meets a wolf, and the two of them then have to survive together to make it home. It is a story of survival, but also the first domestic dog.

David reviews the movie scene by scene and adds anthropological context and discusses the accuracies and inaccuracies using examples from real archeology.

Transcripts

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Ancient Anthologies: David reads some of his writings | Ethno #16

In this episode, David reads some selected short stories and posts from his Instagram that helped build his account.  If you've been following him for a while, you'll recognize some of these posts, and more importantly you'll recognize the illustrations done by Ettore Mazza.

Many of these posts have to do with dogs, wolves, and anthropology but the final one has to do with tattoos and the Lord of the Rings.

David stresses that these posts were originally a lot longer pieces of work, but had to be cut down to only 2,200 characters to fit within the limits of Instagram's rules. But that also helped make him a better writer than reader.

In a sense, these are the posts that originally went viral when he was just starting Instagram,  and serve as the foundation for how David communicates science in an artistic yet educational way.

Transcripts

• Full Transcript

Links:

• PDF to follow along

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