By William Taylor Last month, archaeology made headlines in the United States in the form of comments by Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Texas), the chairman of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee. In an editorial in USA Today, Smith highlighted instances of what he perceived to be wasteful spending on “frivolous” research, funded by the…

By William Taylor In the high subarctic steppes of Mongolia, extreme climate conditions sometimes produce strikingly well-preserved archaeological discoveries. These finds are responsible for much of our knowledge of early nomadic societies Central Asia. In particular, the mummified remains of horses and horse equipment—preserved over the centuries in a dry cave, or protected by permafrost…

By William Taylor From the steppes of Central Asia to the Great Plains of North America, domestic horses have had an incredible impact on human societies—changing the way we eat, organize, and interact on a nearly unprecedented scale. In no place is this significance more apparent than in modern Mongolia. In the still nomadic countryside, horses…