Attend the Kirkwood Community College Liberal Arts Faculty Lecture on Thursday, Oct. 8, featuring Dr. Bill Stephens, Professor of Anthropology at Kirkwood! His lecture is: "The Nexus of Mind and Nature in Mayan Worldview, Cosmology and Myth: Exploring Solar and Venus Cycles in the Design of Public Spaces." Join us at 11:15 a.m. in 2082 Cedar Hall on Kirkwood's main campus in Cedar Rapids.
Abstract: Drawing on the field of archaeoastronomy (the study of ancient people’s understanding of the processes of the sky) as well as the presenter’s own experiences as a cultural anthropologist in the Mayan region, this talk will explore the deep connections that Mayan people have had and still maintain with the “natural world.” In particular, the presentation will focus on solar and Venus cycles as guidelines in the design of public buildings in both contemporary Mayan towns and pre-Hispanic ones such as the Late Classic city of Uxmal in the Yucatán Peninsula of Mexico.
Bio: Dr. Bill Stephens is a cultural anthropologist, having received his Ph.D. in 1998 for fieldwork he conducted among Tsotsil-speaking Mayan people in the highlands of Chiapas, Mexico. That work centered on the ways in which traditional healers interpret causes of illness, the meaning of dreams and what constitutes a “good life.” After living in Mexico, he worked at the New Mexico Department of Health for two years before returning to teaching at the University of Colorado, Mesa, then at Kirkwood Community College, where he has taught anthropology and humanities courses for twenty-five years.
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