Dr. Aikens is an emeritus professor at UO, originally hired in 1968, who entered full-time retirement in 2005. His research focuses on the archaeology of the Great Basin of North America and of Japan, with collateral interests in the archaeology of their encompassing regions. Recently published articles are “Environment,  Adaptation,  and Interaction in Japan, Korea, and the Russian Far East: the Millennial History of a Japan Sea Oikumene,” co-authored with Irina S. Zhushchikhovskaya and Song Nai Rhee (2009); “Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene Cultural Connections between Asia and America,” co-authored with  Irina Zhushchikhovskaya (2009), and “Walking and Running in the Sierra Tarahumara: A Reflection on Pedestrian Mobility and the “Known World” in Desert West Culture History (2009). He is author or editor of 15 books and many book chapters and journal articles.