Science – Anthropology

5th Unhopped Iron Brewer Challenge: Unhopped and Unplugged Brews

pjgeraci@uwm.edu — Sat, 25 Apr 2026 22:00:00 +0000

Try your hand at producing a prehistoric/early historic fermented beverage from any time period/geographic area using archaeologically/historically attested plants as hops substitutes!

On Saturday April 25, 2026 from 5:00-7:00pm in the Honors College (HON 196), 3363 N Maryland Ave, Milwaukee, WI 53211 the Hortus Academicus/Brew Garden initiative at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee will hold a tasting competition with three judges choosing the top three brews, all of whom are professionals associated with local businesses involved in brewing, dispensing, and/or reporting on fermented beverages.

The judges for 2026 are: Jerry Janiszewksi (Wisconsin Historical Foundation Board of Directors, Old World Wisconsin Historic Brewhouse Consultant), Daniel Kern (Head Brewer at Water Street Brewery), Rob Novak (Director, Old World Wisconsin Brewing Experience). There will also be a People’s Choice award with non-contestants casting their votes via ballot for their favorite brew. Joe Yeado has generously agreed to offer the winner the opportunity to brew their beer using the pilot brewing system at Gathering Place in River West with a launch party at GP to follow.

Any brews with archaeological/historical pedigrees are welcome (i.e., based on specific finds or documentary evidence for a particular Nordic grog, medieval gruit, or other beer) but feel free to experiment. We’ll also be asking all entrants to provide a grain bill/recipe as well as a few images presenting the story of their entry in the form of a short PowerPoint. Check out past entries at and

Instructions on how to submit can be found here: /anthropology/calling-all-brewers-uwms-5th-unhopped-iron-brewer-challenge-is-now-accepting-submissions/

The post 5th Unhopped Iron Brewer Challenge: Unhopped and Unplugged Brews appeared first on Anthropology.

Professor Ashley Lemke Featured in History Channel Show

pjgeraci@uwm.edu — Wed, 15 Jan 2025 21:43:44 +0000

51�� Anthropology Professor Ashley Lemke, an expert in underwater archaeology, appears on The History Channel’s new show, “Mysteries Unearthed,” hosted by actor Danny Trejo.

Professor Lemke was interviewed to provide a scientific point of view about various underwater mysteries around the world.

Click on the link below to access the 51�� Report article about Professor Lemke’s contributions to the show.

51�� underwater archaeologist appears on History Channel show

The post Professor Ashley Lemke Featured in History Channel Show appeared first on Anthropology.

Join us at our next Department Colloquium, “Deciphering Diets”, presented by Dr. Margaret Bryer – Dec. 4th 4:00 PM

pjgeraci@uwm.edu — Tue, 03 Dec 2024 17:03:32 +0000

The post Join us at our next Department Colloquium, “Deciphering Diets”, presented by Dr. Margaret Bryer – Dec. 4th 4:00 PM appeared first on Anthropology.

51�� Anthropology SURF Students Present at Annual MAC Conference

pjgeraci@uwm.edu — Mon, 04 Nov 2024 18:27:26 +0000

Elsie Touchstone, Dr. Shannon Freire, and Rachel Stewart show off their speed dating cards at the MAC Conference

A new open-access archaeology lab has just dropped! 51�� Support for Undergraduate Research (SURF) students Elsie Touchstone and Rachel Stewart along with their research mentor, Dr. Shannon Freire, presented their co-created Archaeological Dating Lab at the 2024 Midwest Archeological Conference (MAC) meeting. Use the QR code to access all relevant materials. The materials are published under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International license. Stay tuned for additional posts about 51�� Department of Anthropology students at the MAC!