Morning class - Archaeology, starting up

[Alaine Kensington]

Alaine Kensington was a bit giddy. She got to start with the fun class, the one she was teaching because she loved the subject. Archaeology was her pet project, and she hoped she could find a site in the vicinity to work with. She had several photographs from around the world ready on a powerpoint display, to show her starting students what the world was like for an archaeologist.

The first lessen was going to be simple - she was going to tell them about the use of archaeology, the different aspects of it and how they were divided into the course. Also on schedule was mentioning the possible excursion in summer, if she could find an accessible location to go to.

Now all she had to wait for was for students to come in.

[Aurora Lumina Robinson]

Aurora wandered in wearing her regular silver dress. She had been experimenting with her look, having added blue and red LED 'frills' to the hems and around her waist. The blinked in alternating colors like christmas lights.

"This is the digging class, right?" She asked the professor with a delightful smile. She'd had to look up what 'archaeology' meant when she saw it on the bulletin board.

[Kent of Korbania]

Kent walked in. This was his first class of the day, or at least the first one he was attending. He wasn't really interested in the subject, but he didn't want to skip every class.

He was used to being up this early, anyway. He stretched a little as he walked in, causing his shirt to come untucked a little. He sat down next to Aurora. He thought she looked a little familiar, but he had met so many new people in the dining hall that day, it was impossible to tell.

Kent looked at her and smiled. "I'm Kent and I have absolutely no idea if we've met before."

[Farran Jernigan]

Archaeology was something Farran had known immediately that he actually wanted to take, something he thought might hold his interest. He spotted one of his suite-mates and a girl who seemed more tech than human, and settled nearby, resting his chin in his hands and waiting more or less patiently for class to start.

[Aurora Lumina Robinson]

"No, I don't think we've met," Aurora began, turning to the newcomer. She'd met few people since she started going to classes, besides Malakai. A quick glance confirmed that she didn't recognize him, after which she turned back to the front of the class. Or at least she tried to - a glance suddenly didn't seem to be enough. She turned back to Kent, this time exhaustively examining his features, suddenly entranced.

"No, I'm very sure we haven't met before."

[Kent of Korbania]

"Well that's good then! It means I didn't forget you!" Kent smiled and laughed a little.

He gave a quick nod to his roommate who sat a little bit away. He seemed to be thinking about something else. Kent knew he would be seeing him later, back at the room.

"So, since we don't know eachother, why don't we get aquainted?" Kent leaned a little to the girl.

"I'm Prince Kent of Korbania. Don't worry about my full title. No one else does." Kent laughed again, still similing. He had recently learned that no one cared about his numerous names, and which name came from whom. He didn't think the dead Dukes and Countesses he was named after really cared much, either.

[Aurora Lumina Robinson]

"I'm very pleased to meet you, Kent," she replied. She instinctively tried to curtsy, but she was sitting down, and was suddenly struck by some confusion as to the proper course of introduction while sitting next to someone. Thoughts of bowing or even offering a hand to be shaken flitted through her head, but each seemed a worse idea than the last.

She finally managed to swallow her confusion and merely smiled an exceptionally cute smile. "My name is Aurora," she started, deciding that he probably didn't want to hear her full name either. "And I don't think I've ever met a prince before."

[Alaine Kensington]

Alaine surveyed the class - three so far. Oh well, it wasn't like she expected the entire group to show up. Might as well start, it was time anyway.
"Good morning everyone. I am proferror Alaine Kensington, and I will be teaching you Archaeology this semester. Let me say this in advance - I will only allow students to the exam who have attended at least seventy percent of the classes, because we'll be covering quite a lot of ground, and I don't want you to miss too much."

She turned to the computer, and fired up her powerpoint. "Before I start class, which will be a short introduction , I might warn you that you will end up getting dirty in the progress of this course. Anybody who absolutely cannot stand this should take heed. Do you have any questions beforehand?"

[Ada Turing]

Ada ducked into the classroom just as the teacher - Professor Kensington, wasn't it? - started talking. She quietly took a seat in the back, hoping to avoid attention.

[Aurora Lumina Robinson]

Aurora raised her hand, but didn't wait to be called on before she blurted out, "There's going to be an exam?"

[Kent of Korbania]

Kent sat quietly and twiddled his thumbs. It all seemed very straightforward at this point. He thought Aurora's question was a little strange, but he assumed he didn't hear the professor properly. He knew that he often missed things when people said them.

[Alaine Kensington]

"Yes, there will be an exam at the end of this course. It won't be a very difficult exam, I daresay, but if I can get an option to also have a small expedition at the end of this school year, say early summer, that might be part of the grade. Please don't worry too much about it - the first year course will be a very broad and superficial one."

Kensington nodded as Ada entered the room. A fourth student! Things might actually get lively. "Anyway, if I may start the class now - I'll start with a short introduction: What is archaeology? You, miss," she sad, looking at Aurora again, "noted that this was the 'digging' class. That's partially right, but it's not the digging that archaeology is about. 'Then what is it?' you may ask. It is the study of the remains that many peoples have left behind in the course of milennia of development, starting from the first evolution of sentience up till what you buried in the backyard when you left home." Her eyes survey the class, with a glitter of joy in them. This was what she loved.

"So, we not only work on excavations - or digs, if you prefer - but we also catalogue finds, analyse them for material, age, use and many more aspects, and we also write. A lot of archaeology is writing, theorising and thinking, generally done at home, at a desk, and not in the field at all.

"Also, aside from what one would suspect, achaeology is a very diverse study. It not only includes a form of history, but also chemistry, biology, linguistics, geology and also mathematics. This sounds very complicated, bu I assure you I will not try to stuff your heads so full of information that they'll explode." Alaine smiled, and viewed the class. It was a long speech, but she wanted this covered.

(( OOC: I'll treat anyone who comes in as doing so in the very first part of Alaine's speech, unless you really want to be late ))

[Aurora Lumina Robinson]

Aurora sat back in her chair, pouting a bit. She had thought this was going to be another fun outdoor class, but from the looks of it, they'd be staying inside reading books and other boring things.

Hoping maybe she just misunderstood, she raised her hand again. "But we'll be going out sooner than the summer dig, right?"

[Alaine Kensington]

"I'm sorry to disappoint but the class consists of a lot of theory. We will have to go outside for some of the classes, for example the one where I'll teach you how to use a level, and possibly a total station if I can get a few. They're very expensive though, and I don't know if I can apply for funding for them." She smiled at the girl, hoping to make it clear she was sorry about it.

"However, if you can get a large enough group of people, we can always go out to visit a local site earlier, or perhaps make a trip to the town's museum. And if everybody agrees we can always have classes outside when the weather's good." This seemed like a happy prospect for professor Kensington, she was practically beaming at the mention of having class outside.
"Then, if anybody has other questions? I'd like to continue with an overview of what we'll be starting with."

[Kent of Korbania]

More questions? Kent wondered how inquisitive he was supposed to be. How inquisitive was any student supposed to be? He sat there quietly, staring in the direction of the projection screen, but not at it.

He had let his mind wander again. If it didn't decide to finish soon, he would be missing the entire introduction lesson.

[Ada Turing]

Ada payed attention to the overview, but without taking much in the way of notes. Classes tended to follow the same structure, so nothing seemed terribly surprising.

[Alaine Kensington]

Professor Kensington had started on a short history of Archaeology, from the 1800's when all there was were travellers who would write journals, collectors of 'fine art' in the 1850-1900's, the first true archaeologists in 1900 and onwards, short developments in the following period. She also briefly touched upon the arrival of more modern ways of thinking and analyss since the 1950's and later, like radiocarbon dating, and the emergence of New Archaeology - a particular way of thoght - and later the current Postprocessual Archaeologists. It was a lot of ground in a relatively short class, but she covered most of the general history of the subject. It was a lo of years and several names, like Flinders Petrie, the inventor of the Sequence Dating system, a way to classify pottery in chronological order.

"Now, I know this is a lot, and a bit dusty material, but it is the base of all we have accomplished in the field. It is the base of current Archaeology and the techology and techniques as we know and practice today.
"I will stop at this for today, and next class we will cover different methods of excavating a site. For next time, I would like you all to pick an Archaeoogist, doesn't matter who, who worked in the field between nw and the year 1900. What I wold like you to do is make a list of their full name, when they lived or still live, which region of the world they operated in and if they made any important advancements for the study. It doesn't have to be very long, no more tha a page of text.

"Also, I have made sure that a book is available for you from the store, Arhaeological Theory and Practice, which I'll assig you pieces of reading work from. I will also deposit a folder in the library with copied articles from various journals and compilations, which you can copy. That way you don't have to get the entire book or journal the articles are in. Please check that one out after class every time for new things."

She smiled and nodded at the class. "I hope this hasn't been too disappointing, and I hope to see you all again in two days."