Five questions with honours anthropology student Laurel Sampson
2012-04-16 12:40:29

Honours anthropology student and tutorial leader Laurel Sampson is from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

1- Why did you choose to study anthropology?

Originally I wanted to get a Master's in criminology and I would have needed a social sciences or criminology undergraduate degree. I've always enjoyed learning about different peoples and their different cultures and so I decided on anthropology. In the end, it worked out really well, even though I no longer plan to go into criminology, because I have really enjoyed studying anthropology. It taught me a lot about the world, but also about myself.

2- You are a comic book fan so tell me who is the best comic book hero?

Straight up, no questions asked, my favourite hero is Wonder Woman. She is a positive female role model in an overwhelmingly male dominated genre, which is why I love her. She is a total powerhouse. She is strong and independent. She fights for justice and to make the world a better place, which is essentially what I want to do with my life, just not in a bustier and booty shorts.

3- Mount Allison offers an archaeological field school in Belize every May. What did you take away from the field school experience?

The field school is fantastic and I encourage everybody, even if they are not in anthropology to take part in it. Because, in class you can learn about archaeology, you can study the theory, you can talk about it, but getting hands-on experience is also really important.

If you decide archaeology is what you want to do, it is good to know what you are getting into. It is hard work and it is not always in the best conditions, but at the same time when you find anything, even a small pot sherd, you get so excited. In my case, the field school confirmed that I am really passionate about archaeology and it reassures me that even if I am spending eight hours in a hole covered in dirt, I still like it.

4- What do you plan to do next year?

My main area of interest is forensic or biological anthropology. But, I love archaeology also. I am really lucky because I am going to get to do both of them in my graduate program.

I have applied to graduate schools in England on the advice of my forensics professor and have already been accepted to one to do a program in forensic archaeology and crime scene investigation. So, come September I will be in England doing some form of forensic archaeology. Right now, these programs are the best ones for what I want to do. I will be getting real life skills and hands-on experience in the field. After this, I plan to come back to Canada and hopefully work for the police, the RCMP, or the military. I am very excited.

5- How accurate is Bones, the TV show?

I really like the show and one of its benefits is that it gets the idea of forensic anthropology out there. Not many people know what anthropology and forensic anthropology are, partly because it is such a vast field. However, forensic anthropologists don’t give you information on who has committed a crime, they give you straight unbiased facts about a body. I was watching an episode after my first forensics’ lab and it completely destroyed the episode for me. The character had a skeleton in front of her and within three seconds she said that it is a man in his mid-forties. She hadn’t looked at anything you should have examined. She was looking straight at the skull and to make that decision the best place to look is the pelvis. That would never happen!