KU anthropologist featured on National Geographic special


Fri, 11/30/2012

author

Jill Jess Phythyon

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LAWRENCE – John Hoopes, University of Kansas anthropologist and Maya scholar, will be featured in a National Geographic Channel special, "Maya Underworld: The Real Doomsday," premiering at 9 p.m. Monday, Dec. 3.

Hoopes is regarded as one of the major go-to guys to separate fact from fiction about the Maya calendar and a prediction that the world would end Dec. 21, 2012.

He has written scholarly articles debunking the 2012 myth, including a chapter in "2012: Decoding the Counterculture Apocalypse," edited by Joseph Gelfer and published by Equinox Publishing. In addition, Hoopes contributes to Wikipedia as a 2012 skeptic and is featured in at least three documentaries on the topic.

Hoopes' interest in the 2012 phenomenon began as an academic hobby and has evolved into an anthropological study of contemporary American culture. At the very least, he says, the 2012 phenomenon "has made a huge audience aware of Maya calendrics and the winter solstice."

Fri, 11/30/2012

author

Jill Jess Phythyon

Media Contacts

Jill Jess

KU News Service

785-864-8858