Sidney Wilfred Mintz born November 16, 1922 in Dover, New Jersey. Sidney W. Mintz is a renowned cultural anthropologist with a long history of socially relevant ethnographic research and literature. He received his bachelor's degree in psychology in 1943 from Brooklyn College and his doctorate in anthropology from Columbia University in 1951; both prestigious institutions are located in New York. Mintz began teaching as an undergraduate and has since served as a professional faculty member at several highly regarded universities and institutions in the United States, France, Germany, China, Puerto Rico, and Australia. He is currently a professor of anthropological research at John Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland. Sidney Mintz's research focuses on the history of the diverse Caribbean region. He has published a multitude of articles, editorials and books regarding the culturally relevant effects that the sugar industry has had on the social populations of Caribbean island nations. Mintz has received several awards throughout his career, including: The Caribbean Review Medalist, 1983; Smithsonian Council, 1985-91; Speaker and Huxley Memorial Medalist, 1994; and Distinguished Lecturer, The American Anthropological Associated, 1996 (Mintz). Sidney Mintz's first fieldwork experience took place in Puerto Rico in 1948, while he was studying at Columbia University. Two of his mentors are renowned anthropologists, Ruth Benedict and Julian Steward. This experience must have greatly influenced Mintz, as he has since focused his academic career around Caribbean and South American cultures (Kuever). Mintz quotes on his personal website: "The global area of ​​major interest...... middle of article... Mintz tries to discern in his work is the existence of a peasant class within Caribbean society in a historical context. His sociocultural ethnographies have contributed greatly to the anthropology and history of Caribbean populations and cultures. Works Cited Kuever, Erika. “Sidney Mintz.” Indiana University, 2006. Web. March 1, 2011. Mintz, Sidney. Caribbean transformations. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Company, 1974. Print. Mintz, Sidney. Softness and power. New York: Viking, 1985. Print. Mintz, Sidney. The birth of African-American culture. Massachusetts: Beacon Press, 1992. Print. Mintz, Sidney. Three former colonies. Massachusetts: Harvard University Press, 2010. Print. Mintz, Sidney. Worker in La Canne. New York: Yale University Press, 1960. Print. Mintz, Sidney. “Sidney Mintz.” Sidney Mintz, 2010. The web. February 22. 2010.