Archived News 2007

DNA can now be extracted from wads of chewed fiber, or quids, left by the ancient people who chewed them.

Following are In the News items from 2007. For items dating from January to July 2008, please visit Archived News 2008. For the most recent items, please visit In the News.

• 12/16/07 Showcase Examines Art that Commodified Japan, Gatehouse News Service. An exhibit of early souvenir photos depicting Japanese ”types” of people examines Western demand for Eastern stereotypes.
• 11/22/07 Tribe Celebrates Federal Recognition on Eve of Annual Holiday Protest, Boston Globe. Mashpee Wampanoags perform a special ceremony at the Peabody Museum.
• 11/15/07 Digging History in Harvard Yard, Harvard Gazette. Student archaeologists digging in Harvard Yard discuss their finds as the dig continues.
• 11/2/07 Family: A Lively Tribute, Boston Globe. The Boston Globe recommends the Museum’s Day of the Dead Family event.
• 9/28/07 American Indians Bless Search for Harvard Roots, Harvard Gazette. A group of American Indian leaders bless the start of an archaeological dig in Harvard Yard for Harvard’s Indian College.
• 8/31/07 Scientists Have Something to Chew On, Harvard Gazette. Harvard researchers use the remains of yucca leaves chewed by ancient people to extract DNA.
• 8/27/07 At Harvard, it's CSI: The Early Years, Boston Globe. For the first time anywhere, Harvard researchers extract DNA from ancient artifacts.
• 8/24/07 DNA from Spit Helps Decode Lives of Early Settlers, “All Things Considered,” NPR. A Peabody Museum researcher describes the benefits of getting DNA from ancient chewed leaves.
• 8/22/07 Ancient Chewing Gum Yields DNA, Science Now [requires subscription]. A vanished tribe of Native Americans left their DNA traces for Harvard researchers to discover.
• 4/27/07 Photographing Distant Lands and Vanished Kingdoms, Harvard Crimson. The Peabody features an exhibit of photos taken by National Geographic explorers in the 1920s.
• 4/18/07 Archaeological Bookends in Copán Valley, Harvard Gazette. Peabody Museum researchers begin making 3D scans of ancient hieroglyphs and prepare to dig at two Maya sites.
• 4/12/07–5/3/07 Scanning History, Yaxchilan, Mexico, Harvard Gazette Multimedia. A series of multimedia presentations about Peabody Museum 3D scans of archaeological finds.