Dr. Mark Seeman, Professor Emeritus of Anthropology at Kent State will present “Portage County’s Time Machine to Ancient Climate Change” at Tap Talks on October 21 at 7 PM, at North Water Brewing.

Dr. Seeman explains, “Climates change and people adapt, one way or another. We will begin by examining what early land surveys of the Western Reserve tell us about Ohio’s forests in the late 1700s. We’ll then proceed to see how these forests are the result of climate change over the previous 12,000 years. Portage County’s East Twin Lake, Triangle Bog, and Battaglia Bog all contain excellent records of earlier forests and help to show the speed and direction of past climate change. These wetlands are a unique kind of time machine and are rapidly disappearing in Ohio. They help to give us perspective on the larger issues of sustainability and resilience.”

Dr. Seeman adds, “My various projects and research have by now carried me up and down the Ohio Valley, with some additional work in the Lake Erie Basin to the north. It has proven to be a rich context for student training and for investigating a variety of interesting human problems.”

In addition to Dr. Seeman’s work with prehistoric Woodland Settlements in the Mid-Ohio Valley, he is also co-author of This We Know: A Chronology of the Shootings at Kent State, May 1970 with Carole Barbato and Laura Davis. A person of wide-ranging interests, he notes, “We can’t prepare for the future unless we know the past.”

Tap Talks was initiated by Don Schjeldahl, the creator of North Water Brewing, as a way to bring the community together for conversation about life in Kent, Kent’s history, and issues of the day that impact us all. It’s also a chance to enjoy an array of locally-brewed artisan ales and beers. Tap Talks are sponsored by Kent Historical Society and scheduled monthly at 7 pm at North Water Brewing, 101 Crain Avenue in Kent.