Department of Human Evolutionary Biology
Source: https://heb.fas.harvard.edu/ Parent: https://college.harvard.edu/academics/liberal-arts-sciences/concentrations
Welcome!
In both research and teaching, Harvard's Department of Human Evolutionary Biology focuses on a fundamental question: "How did humans evolve to be the way they are?" HEB students and faculty are also interested in the related question: “How are evolutionary perspectives on human biology relevant to contemporary human opportunities and challenges?”
Why do we use the lens of evolution for these questions? The simple answer is because humans weren't designed or engineered. We evolved. It follows that to understand why humans are the way we are in terms of every aspect of our biology, we need to consider that evolutionary history.
Research and teaching in HEB thus encompass a diversity of fields including human and non-human primate paleontology, anatomy, physiology, behavioral ecology, genetics, cultural evolution, developmental biology, and more. As a department, we continue to be committed to using the lens of evolution to further our understanding of the human condition using both experimental and observational methods. We are also committed to using those insights to address the challenges we face.
The Skeletal Biology & Biomechanics Lab
studies how and why the human body is the way it is, focusing on the musculoskeletal system.
The Developmental and Evolutionary Genetics Lab
focuses on identifying the DNA changes underlying human and non-human primate biological adaptations.
The Evolutionary Neuroscience Lab
studies brain adaptations resulting from selection pressure on behavior in humans and other species, including domestic dogs.
The Culture, Cognition, and Coevolution Lab
aims to construct an approach to culture and cultural evolution that synthesizes theory and methods from across the sciences.
The Nutritional and Microbial Ecology Lab
studies how humans and gut microbes interact to acquire and utilize energy.
The 'Pan' Lab
studies the behavioral ecology of non-human animals to understand selective forces shaping our own evolutionary past.
Hero Pagination
"Significant Neuroanatomical Variation Among Domestic Dog Breeds"
Hecht, et al. The Journal of Neuroscience, vol. 39, no. 39, 2019, pp. 7748–7758., doi:10.1523/jneurosci.0303-19.2019.
The Goodness Paradox: The Strange Relationship Between Virtue and Violence in Human Evolution
Wrangham, Richard. Pantheon Books, 2019.
Exercised: Why Something We Never Evolved to Do is Healthy and Rewarding
By Daniel Lieberman
"Rethinking the Evolution of the Human Foot: Insights from Experimental Research"
Holowka, Nicholas, and Lieberman, Daniel. Journal of Experimental Biology, vol. 221, no. 17, 2018. doi: 10.1242/jeb.174425.
The WEIRDest People in the World: How the West Became Psychologically Peculiar and Particularly Prosperous
By Joseph Henrich
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Employment opportunities in HEB
For more information regarding employment opportunities in the Department of Human Evolutionary Biology, .
DIB Call To Action
The Department of Human Evoluitonary Biology invites you to learn more about our enduring commitment to Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging.