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Ep. 069: Dr. Dan Flores

Published: 2017-06-22 17:30:00
Description Show ▼

Steven talks with historian and author Dan Flores, along with Janis Putelis of the MeatEater Crew.

Subjects Discussed: Clovis hunters; North America's oldest mine; the religious underpinnings of Chaco Canyon's mysterious road network; Steve as The Inconsiderate Mountain Goat Hiker; macaw feathers, turquoise, and other luxury goods; Steve's wife and the 4-degree human comfort zone; the spread of human hunters around the globe; the eyed needle; boating around glaciers; wanderlust; ice-free corridors; the Blitzkrieg and Solutrean hypotheses; Liebig's principle of ecology; Keepers of the Game: Indian-Animal Relationships and the Fur Trade; did the Indians reach equilibrium with the buffalo?, and more.

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Referenced Books

Custer Died for Your Sins
by Vine Deloria Jr.
Dan Flores mentions Vine Deloria Jr. as 'one of the most outspoken Native writers' who 'wrote books like God Has Read and Customer Died for Your Sins' (likely 'Custer Died for Your Sins' based on context). Discussed in relation to Native perspectives on wildlife and bison ecology.
Referenced at 00:00:08
God is Red
by Vine Deloria Jr.
Mentioned alongside 'Custer Died for Your Sins' as one of Vine Deloria Jr.'s books. The transcript appears to have a transcription error ('God Has Read') but context suggests this is 'God is Red,' Deloria's famous work on Native American spirituality.
Referenced at 00:00:08
Keepers of the Game
by Calvin Martin
Steve asks Dan if he's 'through with the book Keepers of the Game' and discusses how Martin 'does a good job in there with the impacts of the beaver trade on native populations.' The book presented a controversial theory about why Indians participated in the fur trade, arguing it was for spiritual rather than economic reasons.
Referenced at 00:00:08
Hole in the Sky
by Bill Kittridge
Referenced in discussion of the Buffalo Commons controversy. Steve mentions 'the writer Bill Kittridge in his book Hole in the Sky' pointing out that 'going to Jordan, Montana and mentioning the Buffalo Commons was a sure fire way to get your ask[kicked].'
Referenced at 00:00:08
Roughing It
by Mark Twain
Dan Flores mentions that 'by the time Mark Twain writes Roughing It in eighteen seventy three, coyote has become at least among people who read his books...the accepted form of pronunciation' when discussing the etymology of the word 'coyote.'
Referenced at 00:00:08
The Extermination of the American Bison
by William T. Hornaday
Dan Flores describes William T. Hornaday, director of the Bronx Zoo, who 'had written the first great book about what had happened to bison extermination of the American bison' in the context of discussing bison conservation efforts.
Referenced at 00:00:08
Twilight of the Mammoths
by Paul Martin
Dan Flores explicitly recommends this book about Pleistocene extinctions: 'Paul Martin...the book that if people want to read about this, I think I would encourage them to read, is called The Twilight of the Mammoths.' Martin was the major advocate of the Pleistocene overkill hypothesis.
Referenced at 00:00:08
Coyote America
by Dan Flores
Dan Flores' book about the biography of the coyote 'from its evolution in North America...through its long roller coaster like history' including its relationship with Native Americans and its spread across the continent. Described as a New York Times bestseller and finalist for the E.O. Wilson Literary Science Writing Prize.
Referenced at 00:00:08
American Serengetti
by Dan Flores
Dan Flores' book about the American Great Plains as 'the analog of East Africa' with its 'marvelous aggregate of large grazing animals' including bison, wild horses, pronghorn antelope, gray wolves, and grizzly bears. Discusses the ecological history and the American Prairie Reserve Project.
Referenced at 00:00:08