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Café Scientifique: Urban Archaeology
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The Café Scientifique Twin Ports community and Dr. Emma Verstraete dig into the topic of urban archaeology during this event at the Dovetail Café.
Human civilizations leave hints about their past in many different forms, from writing and art to the things they leave behind. In urban environments, these records can be anything from extraordinary infrastructure to regular ol’ refuse, and urban archaeologists use this information to study a wide range of human history and trends.
As an example, Dr. Verstraete has previously studied how the rise of advertising and “the death of expertise” led to the booming patent medicine market during the Gilded Age and what type of impact culture and tradition had on consumer choice. By using information from multiple archaeological sites in Springfield, Illinois, she closely examined how members of that community kept pace with national and global trends in medicine and advertising.
Café Scientifique Twin Ports events are free to attend and open to all, regardless of background in the topic.
