Ryan Robinson likes digging dirt. He’ll dig for hours when the dirt holds clues to the past, as it does at Ҫadır Höyük, an archaeological site in central Turkey. Robinson (BA, Near Eastern Languages & Civilization, Anthropology, 2019), who graduates this month, spent two summers excavating at Ҫadır Höyük, uncovering bones and stone tools dating back 4500 years — all because of a conversation during transfer student orientation.
The conversation took place two months before the start of autumn quarter 2016. Robinson, transferring to the UW from Olympic College in Bremerton, told an adviser about his fascination with the ancient world, particularly the ancient Middle East. The adviser suggested he chat with a professor who happened to be just down the hall....