Pleistocene Archaeology, Human Evolution, & Zooarchaeology

My ongoing research and archaeological fieldwork explores the behavior and cognitive evolution of early humans and their contemporaries. I am particularly interested in understanding human social and technological adaptation in the context of ecological stress, and the ways this may or may not have differed from closely related groups, like Neanderthals. For humans, the underlying adaptations set us on the road unprecedented population growth, the ability to live in almost any terrestrial context on the planet, and increasingly intense resource requirements, all of which may expose us to new stresses on par with the severity of those of the late Pleistocene. Understanding origins of modern human behavior gives us useful insight into our capabilities and propensities.

Studying early modern humans as they become a global species requires a multiregional approach, and an inter-species comparison. As a result, my field and laboratory research includes human and Neanderthal-related projects in the Caucasus of Southern Russia, as well as field work in early human contexts of South Africa.

My training is in archaeology (with an emphasis in Old World Paleolithic studies and zooarchaeology) and biological anthropology (with an emphasis on human skeletal anatomy). I have field and research experience in Eurasia, Africa, and North America, in time periods ranging from the historic through the Miocene.