I’m not sure where to post this properly, but I want to bring some attention to an online article I read this morning about some college students doing remarkable things in the realm of anthropological research.

First off, here’s a shocker: the LARGEST COLLECTION OF MAYA SKELETONS IN THE WORLD IS HOUSED IN THE SMALL TOWN OF PLATTSBURGH, NY. A story in Cardinal Points, the newspaper of the college in that town, ran a feature today revealing that their college has played host to a remarkable collection of 588 complete Maya skeletons since the 1980s, although few people knew this collection was there. A distinguished anthropology professor apparently came into contact with these specimens on a research trip to Belize and has since categorized the entire collection.

But wait…there’s more. Students from Plattsburgh State University are currently in the midst of an incredible project: extracting ancient DNA from these Maya skeletons and analyzing it under very tight parameters. Their results are fascinating, and they’ve just begun their research. The students involved won medals at a national academic competition in Orlando for their work, and I would not be surprised if more awards follow. What a fascinating look into a world we know little about–and, based on the results of some of this student research, a world we may know even less than we thought we knew.

I recommend that all of you go to cardinalpointsonline.com at once to read this incredible story. It will make you want to go to Plattsburgh at once to examine these specimens for yourself.

Congratulations to the Plattsburgh State University science department on their well-deserved awards, and to the student author of the story for his thorough coverage of a topic rarely seen in student media. Well done all!