Archeologist visits Science Center of Iowa
Opportunities for the public to interact with Ana Tavares, hear about her experience excavating in Egypt and learn about a career in the field of archaeology include:
Cafe Scientifique, Feb. 17: In “Excavating for Information: Uncovering Egypt,” she will discuss the latest findings at the Giza Plateau site. Cafe Scientifque, presented by Pioneer Hi-Bred International, is free and open to the public. 5:30 p.m., Feb. 17.
Following the presentation, Tavares will lead behind-the-scenes tours of “Lost Egypt: Ancient Secrets, Modern Science.” Space is limited for the tours, which cost $10 for members and $20 for nonmembers. Reservations can be made via email at cafesci@sciowa.org or by calling (515) 274-6868, ext. 234.
Girls in Science event, Feb. 18: SCI’s new Girls in Science Initiative aims to empower and equip girls in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM). The initiative promotes girls’ early engagement in STEM, to encourage pursuit of careers in those areas and develop a diverse workforce for the 21st century. The Girls in Science event will allow girls the chance to explore the many careers and opportunities for them in science, technology, engineering and math, and celebrate the many women scientists in the community. Tavares will provide the keynote presentation at this event and will educate attendees about careers in archeology. The Girls in Science event and Tavares’ presentation are free with SCI admission. 1 p.m., Feb. 18.
She remembers thumbing through an encyclopedia as a little girl in Portugal.
“I was 8 years old and I saw this black-and-white picture of a man on his hands and knees, scraping at dirt inside these string squares,” Ana Tavares said last week in a Skype interview from London.
“It looked so interesting to me. I asked my father what he was doing and he told me he was an archeologist and explained what that meant.”
From that moment on, she was “very obsessed,” as she put it. Today, at the age of 47, Tavares is co-field research director for Ancient Egypt Research Associates and regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts on ancient Egypt.
An adviser for the “Lost Egypt: Ancient Secrets, Modern Science” exhibit now on display at the Science Center of Iowa, 401 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway in Des Moines, she will participate later this month in the center’s new scientist in residence program.
Tavares will spend four days in Iowa. She is scheduled to host a special tour of the exhibit, visit local schools and deliver the keynote address at the center’s Girls in Science event, spokeswoman Christina Zink said.
“There will be opportunities for adults and families to experience this exhibit with Ana, which we think will be very exciting,” Zink said.
Over the past two decades Tavares and her colleagues have completed some of the most important work ever done at the ancient sites of Egypt. Her home away from home has been in Egypt at the Lost City of the Pyramid Builders site.
“Much of what we have done has debunked a lot of myths,” Tavares said.
In particular, students have been taught for decades that slaves — men, women and children, built the pyramids of Egypt.
“That is not the case,” she said.
Tavares and her team have unearthed evidence that shows the pyramids were built by a rotating workforce made up of young men drafted by their village leaders to serve tours of duty.
“They got to work on a divine project, and because of their service they would be rewarded in the afterlife,” Tavares said.
While she is looking forward to sharing stories of her research in Des Moines, Tavares is also enthusiastic about meeting younger students, in particular teenage girls.
She is saddened by reports that “girls who are 14 and 15 are shying away from science… maybe they’re afraid that it is going to be boring and they are going to end up having to work every day in a white lab coat.”
She hopes to convince the younger students she meets that science is a field that provides many options.
“It’s like if you go into archeology, you don’t have to be a digger,” she said.
Originally from Lisbon, Portugal, Tavares studied Egyptology at University College in London. She began excavating in Egypt in 1987 and looks forward to many more years of working in archeology.
“My worst enemy word would be ‘retirement,’ ” she said.
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