Aloha! This is the website of Alex Golub. I’m an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa.
I have three different research interests. First, I am a Melanesianist with an interest in the history and anthropology of Papua New Guinea. Secondly, I am a political anthropologist with a focus on mining, extractive industry, and the corporation. Finally, I am interested in the history of anthropology. I am an advocate of open access publishing and have done ‘public anthropology’, writing blogs and non-academic pieces for a large audience. Finally, I have a side interest in digital culture and video games
Over the years I have pursued a number of scholarly projects. My main focus is a long-term study of the Porgera gold mine and Ipili-speaking people in Papua New Guinea. I have also studied the on-line video game World of Warcraft and how players bring the culture of their actual lives into virtual worlds. I have done collaborative research on the history of Judaism in Hawai‘i, and am currently working on a long book manuscript on the history of anthropology in England, France, and the United States.
A prolific blogger with over a decade worth of experience online, I’m one of the co-founders of Savage Minds, formerly the most popular cultural anthropology blog on the Internet. I’m also a long-time advocate for open access publishing and I’ve examined its effect on scholarly communication. I’ve written popular pieces on mana in video games and being kosher for passover in Hawai‘i.
In addition to articles and popular pieces, my book on the mining industry in Papua New Guinea, Leviathans at the Gold Mine, was published by Duke University Press and won the 2015 book prize of the Association for Political and Legal Anthropology. I also edited a volume of essays in honor of my teacher Marshall Sahlins.
You can count my citations at my Google Scholar site.
I have a CV I (try) to keep updated as well.
I am the fiendish mind behind the Highly Accurate Pictures of Anthropologists Tumblr.
You can find me on twitter as @r3x0r.
I have a page on ResearchGate but I do a lousy job of keeping it updated.
I am a member of the New Books Network, where I interview people for the podcast New Books in Anthropology.
Alex Golub 
Alex: A minor & friendly editorial comment: Something doesn’t read right in the following phrase of yours in “About” Alex Golub: “I study the politics of small group interaction are shaped by the cultural expectations of political actors.” Should the “are” be “as”?
Alex,
I enjoyed Leviathans — especially the Melanesian Way section. I work with the Hewa and am now working with Ipili, Enga and Wake speakers to conserve the Kaijende Highlands (the grasslands around Wiley Creek). Here’s some more info on the projects: newguineaconservation.org
If you have a minute and any interest, drop me a line and I will be happy to reciprocate.
Cheers,
Bill
Hi Alex – came across your reviews of Diamond’s works – good fun!! I have some personal anecdotes about him and about the USA academics who tried to rope me into various court cases etc etc. Unfortunately having met him and talked somewhat at length about PNG it was difficult to don the executioner’s mask despite his transgressions! Absolutely the ‘coffee’ between pages of TND accurate – maybe the ‘otherwise boring’ judgement does not follow inferentially otherwise I’d like to be at the party of those anthers who read Einstein”s theory of relativity!! Hope all well with you.