AnthroBiology Podcast
The AnthroBiology Podcast sits down with biological anthropologists once or twice a month to learn about what they do and why it's rad. Want to know more about our evolutionary past? Or what your bones say about you? Maybe chimps are more your speed? If it's anthropology and it's about humans, we'll cover it. Learn more at anthrobiology.com
Episodes
Dr. Eric Shattuck of Florida State University joins the show to discuss his research on sickness behavior. He wants to know how humans tend to act when they get sick and why they act that way.
Recommendations
- Read more
Summary
Dr. Erin Blankenship-Sefczek of Creighton University joins the show to discuss her research examining the connection between developmental stress and accessory cusps in teeth. Her work focuses on the placement and appearance of extra cusps that occur with greater frequency among individuals who have suffered stress during key dev...
Dr. Samantha Yaussy of James Madison University joins the show to discuss her research on the how sex, socioeconomic status, and developmental stress and the intersectionality therein might interact to affect health outcomes in the past via the lens of frailty in skeletal remains primarily from medieval London.
In this episode, we talked about the skeletal markers o...
Dr. Habiba Chirchir of the Ohio State University joins the show to discuss her research into the skeletal gracilization of modern humans. She's trying to understand when and why our skeletons became less robust, and whether self-domestication may have played a role.
------------------
Note: Apparently I got Dmitry Belyaye...
Dr. David Orton of the University of York joins the show to discuss how he uses zooarchaeology (the study of animal remains in archaeological contexts) to understand the how rat and human populations interacted and affected each other over time in Europe. He gets into the spread of rats, the plague, using ancient DNA and isotopic analysis to analyze rats, and what rats can tell us about historic events.
Dr. Henry Erlich, Researcher Emeritus at Benioff UCSF Children's Hospital, joins the show to discuss his book, Genetic Reconstruction of the Past: DNA Analysis in Forensics and Human Evolution. We chatted about what it was like to pioneer PCR tests along with how PCR testing works, its applications (including medicine, understanding human evolution, and forensics), and some of the ethical dilemmas around DNA testing more generally.
...Dr. Christopher Schmitt of Boston University joins the show to talk about how he uses life history theory and epigenetics as a lens for his work with vervets and woolly monkeys. We also chatted about the highs of fieldwork, along with understanding how identity can affect an individual's experience of the field.
Books, articles, and media mentioned in t...
Dr. Kate Clancy of Illinois State University Urbana-Champaign joins the show to talk about her book, Period: The Real Story of Menstruation. We touch on what periods are, why humans might menstruate, factors that affect menstruation, the study of women's health in general, and a few things to keep in when doing research.
Read more
Dr. Rebecca Gilmour of Mount Royal University talks about bones, their mechanics, and how we can use both to understand humans' lives in the past -- especially around her main focus of disability and care in ancient Rome.
Books, articles, and media mentioned in this episode + helpful sites and articles:
Dr. Jesse Goliath of Mississippi State University joins the show to talk about forensic anthropology, including how he ended up in forensic anthropology and how he developed the Mississippi Repository for Missing and Unidentified Persons. We also talk about the complicated relationship between race and forensic anthropology, along with the importance of bringing diverse perspectives to the field.
Books,...
Dr. Christine Drea of Duke University joined the show to talk about mechanisms of female dominance, which is when females of a species are more dominant in groups than males. Dr. Drea looks at how genetics, hormones, and social dynamics interact with each other to result in female dominance in hyenas, meerkats, and lemurs.
Content warning: We talk about animal genit...
Dr. Lauren Butaric of University of Florida joined the show to talk about sinuses - what they are, why we have them, how they can be used in forensic contexts, and what they can tell us about people.
I personally love these anatomy-based discussions. It's just so exciting to do a deep dive into these dark cavities.
Here are some of the articles I found helpful while...
Dr. Gwen Robbins Schug from the University of North Carolina - Greebsboro discusses some of the projects her lab is working on, including skeletal and dental pathology in past populations and istopic analysis of human remains. She also touches on the importance of integrating biological anthropology into climate change and global health policies.
These two articles are great examples of how bio anthro could inform policymaking:
Dr. Sholts of the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History joins the show to discuss her new book, The Human Disease: How We Create Pandemics, from Our Bodies to Our Beliefs. Dr. Sholts uses an anthropological lens to understand epidemics. She touches on One Health, historical and current epidemics, the role misinformation plays in the spread of disease, and science communication.
Books, articles, and media mentio...
Dr. Griffin of San Francisco State University joins the show to discuss dental caries and toothwear in pre-contact Native American groups.
Books, articles, and media mentioned in this episode:
- Griffin, MC. (2014). Biocultural implication of oral pathology in an ancient central California population. Am J Phys Anthropol, 154(2), 171-188.
- Griffin, MC. (2018). The End of Prehistor...
Dr. Wescott of Texas State University joins the show to discuss the Texas State body farm (Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State - FACTS) and the forensic research carried out there.
Books, articles, and selected people mentioned in this episode:
Dr. Goodson (Cambridge University) and Dr. Trombley (Augustana University) join forces on the show to discuss their bioarchaeological-historical collaboration to understand the Medieval mouth.
Books, articles, and selected people mentioned in this episode:
Dr. Trent Trombley of Augustana University joins the show to talk about his research at Villamagna, a medieval settlement outside of Rome. He uses macroscopic analysis of teeth along with a few other methods to understand life in the past.
Links mentioned in the show:
Dr. Clark Spencer Larsen of Ohio State joins the show to discuss his history in the field, bioarchaeology, and how we can use biological anthropology to understand human health in the past.
Links mentioned in the show:
- Dr. Larsen's faculty page
- The past 12,000 years of behavior, adaptation, population and evolution shaped who we are today (2023 PNAS article - opens as a website)
- Paleosyndemics: A bioarchaeological and bi...
Dr. Daniel Benyshek of UNLV joins the show to discuss plancentophagy. Check out his lab page for more info on placentophagy.
Note: There is a special addition at the end of this episode.
Find links to articles, books, and pics at AnthroBiology.com. Find the show on Instagram and Twitter @AnthroBiology. Email the host at gaby.lapera@anthrobiology.com.
Popular Podcasts
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com