The Time I met Dr. Ubelaker and ate Thai Food at a Pub

Hi everyone! Today's post will be short and sweet, because it's late and tomorrow is about to be a BIG day. More on that tomorrow. Here's the nerdy part of my post: Dr. Ubelaker lectured at Regents today!!!!!!!! <--- (This many exclamation points are necessary to convey how exciting this was to me.) Dr. Ubelaker, a forensic anthropologist at the Smithsonian and a consultant to the FBI, spent a good three hours talking to us about past (adjudicated) cases. The lecture was fascinating, and each case demonstrated various key element of forensic anthropology. We learned how x-rays and dental records can be used toidentify unknown remains, how to differentiate between blunt force, sharp force, gunsot and other trauma, about the characteristics of antemortem vs. postmortem vs. perimortem trauma, how forensic anthropology can be applied to living subjects, and much more. I've never seen an entire class so alert or so many pages and pages of notes scribbled in one sitting. After lunch, Dr. Sauer continued his lecture on the properties of bone and talked about differentiating human from animal bone, and modern remains vs. historical. Here's the fun touristy part of my post: After a long day of lectures, we decided to explore Oxford Circus one more time. It's way too fun to people watch and window shop; we just can't help ourselves. Oxford Street is really really really crowded, so unlike our previous accidental trip, we came armed with only small purses instead of giant backpacks. I was glad to have my camera when I stumbled upon some of Selfridge department store's Jubilee-themed window displays. The mannequins were dressed in crazy clothes and positioned into funny scenes satirizing various elements of British culture. For dinner, we decided to try a pub close to home: Windsor Castle. It's a very cute, medium sized pub covered in pictures of famous British celebrities, various teapots and knick knacks, and that serves - wait for it - Thai food. Delicious. I even tricked my not-so-adventurous roommate Holly into trying some of my red curry. She loved it! Tomorrow, we'll be doing big things, starting with the London Zoo. Stay tuned for more updates! Links of the day Selfridge's Jubilee window displays: http://www.vogue.co.uk/spy/street-chic/2012/jubilee-windows/gallery Windsor Castle Pub http://fancyapint.com/Pub/london/windsor-castle/3176