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How would you compare the processes of ancient tribal tattooing to modern tattoos such as the ones we see in Miami Ink, London Ink, those kinds of shows? Do modern tattoos still interest you?

I do not feel that there is any kind of spiritual connection that is made when you are tattooed with an electric machine. It is not a natural tool, it's manufactured and far removed from the traditional tools that have tied countless generations of tribal people to their ancestors.

I do, however, certainly appreciate the work of any tattooist no matter what instrument they wield, because I myself do not possess the skill or ability to create tattoos - machined or otherwise. I also count several tattooists as some of my closest friends and professional colleagues and we are always sharing our research to help document the complete range of history behind tattooing so that it can be preserved for future generations.
If you hadn’t become a tattoo anthropologist, what would you be doing right now?

Before I moved to Alaska to study the tattooing customs of the St. Lawrence Island Yupik people, I worked in a leading art gallery in San Francisco. Leaving that job was one of the hardest decisions I have ever made, so I suppose that if I wasn't a tattoo anthropologist I'd be studying and selling fine art in California.

Finally: Chicks with tattoos, hot or not?

I really don't have an opinion on this. My wife has one small tattoo and even if she didn't have one I would still think that she was "hot."