I transferred out of my commuter state school in South Florida (and if you know anything about Gov. Rick Scott’s opinion toward anthropologists, then you’re well aware that the anthro departments are in grave danger) but an adjunct professor from there, of all people, once told me that anthropologists help their colleagues from other fields understand the implication of their work. These are wise words and I only wish public institutions valued their importance.

And Dover1952 is right: the convergence of time and space under the sweeping wing of economic globalization and major technological advances is bringing people closer together than ever before, and all I can think is, what an exciting time for anthropologists to explore this previously unfathomed phenomenon. It allows for the birth of new ideas spawned from new patterns, new methodologies to apply, fieldwork as we’ve never imagined it before, etc. Communication has never been more of the essence, so linguists, cultural anthropologists and the rest of our ilk, rejoice.