Adult Programs
The Center’s Speaker Bureau offers presentations to community groups at the Center or your location. Each 45-minute lecture includes a slide show and a question and answer period. Learn about the history under your feet and the recent research conducted at the Center.
Topics include the following:
12,000 Years: The Prehistory of San Diego
People have lived in San Diego for over 12,000 years. Over 40,000 recorded archaeological sites have been discovered in San Diego County. These sites contain artifacts that provide a window to the past, including what people ate, how they hunted and how they lived. This presentation reveals what we know about the lifestyles of the ancient people who called San Diego home.
The Science of Archaeology: How We Know What We Know
Archaeology is more than just digging stuff up. Understanding what occurred at a site requires the application of several sciences, even that math that you said you would never use. Archaeology is a branch of Anthropology, the study of human culture. Archaeology focuses on artifacts and sites to learn how people lived in the past. Archaeology reinforces the concept of a shared human heritage and provides modern people with perspectives on their own place and time in history. Archaeology has been going on in San Diego since the early 1900s. People who lived in the past weren’t “primitive” or less smart than we are today; they simply made tools using the materials and technology that were available to them at the time. This presentation discusses the scientific principles and techniques archaeologists use to learn more about ancient cultures.
For questions regarding the Center’s Adult Education Programs, or to book a presentation, please contact Public Archaeology Director at aniesley@sandiegoarchaeology.org.