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Proven Features• The text presents examples of fantastic findings and carefully, logically, and entertainingly describes the flaws in the purported evidence for each fantastic claim; readers can hone their own evaluative skills by example. As one user said, “One of the greatest challenges a teacher faces is getting students to critically evaluate information. This text provides readable and critical discussion of some of the more bizarre, nonsensical, and entertaining interpretations of archaeological data …All students would benefit by reading this book.” A checklist on the inside cover gives students prompts to use in thinking critically when evaluating claims.
•Well-chosen examples of cases popularized by the media invite student interest. Students are eager to read about ancient astronauts, the power of pyramids and crystals, the Atlantis legend, and so on. As another user said, “It’s a real eye-opener and slate-cleaner for them to learn how slanted much of the popular media has been. After they read this book, students are much better prepared … to understand archaeology coursework.”
• A section called “Current Perspectives” appears in the majority of chapters. In these sections, the author provides a current scientific look at the chapter topic (or a closely related issue), thereby reinforcing the general issue of how real science works.
• The final chapter presents genuine archaeological mysteries. Having debunked some of the more spectacular claims about the past in the previous chapters, the author leaves readers with some genuine unsolved mysteries to ponder: e.g., Stonehenge and crop circles, the collapse of Maya civilization, and the origin of Kennewick Man.
• Numerous photographs and illustrations support the text examples. Especially useful are the side-by-side comparisons of “mysterious” phenomena with similar looking elements that are scientifically documented.
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2002 McGraw-Hill Higher Education