Welcome to AAPA http://physanth.org Physical anthropology is a biological science that deals with the adaptations, variability, and evolution of human beings and their living and fossil relatives. Because it studies human biology in the context of human culture and behavior, physical anthropology is also a social science. The AAPA is the world's leading professional organization for physical anthropologists. Formed by 83 charter members in 1930, the AAPA now has an international membership of over 1,700. The Association's annual meetings draw more than a thousand scientists and students from all over the world. daily 1 2009-06-02T14:40:23Z Call for papers for 2014 AAPA meeting now available http://physanth.org/news/call-for-papers-2014-now-available  

Click here for the Call for papers 2014 (PDF)

 

 

]]> No publisher Ed Hagen 2013-06-18T16:13:51Z News Item Primate Behavior and Ecology Field Course - La Suerte Biological Field Station http://physanth.org/news/primate-behavior-and-ecology-field-course-la-suerte-biological-field-station This field course, hosted by the La Suerte Biological Field Station, Costa Rica, will run from July 1st to July 27th, 2013. It will be taught by Dr. Christopher Schmitt (Postdoctoral Scholar with the Center for Neurobehavioral Genetics, UCLA).
The course will cover the behavior and ecology of primates from an evolutionary perspective. Emphasis will be given to New World primates, especially the three species present at La Suerte: Central American spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi), white-faced capuchins (Cebus capucinus) and mantled howling monkeys (Alouatta palliata). The course at La Suerte offers a wonderful opportunity to gain hands-on field experience in a truly extraordinary setting, surrounded by tropical forest with remarkable diversity of fauna and flora.

This is an intensive field course in primate behavior, and is equivalent to an upper- level undergraduate course. An enjoyment of highly physical outdoor adventures is a must! Many days are spent rising before dawn to hike to the field to begin observations of monkeys or other field activities, eating lunch in the field, and returning mid-afternoon for a couple of hours to study/rest before dinner. Evenings are spent in classroom lectures and discussion. After the first week of the course, students will work with the instructor to develop an independent research project. After the project is approved, students collect a minimum of 25 hours data for their project.

You will be exposed to a broad spectrum of primate behavior, fieldwork in general, as well as field Primatology, and have the opportunity to interact with local people that live with these primates every day. Our goal is for you to come away with a more integrated and comprehensive perspective of primate behavioral research and conservation.

Qualifications/Experience:

This field experience is designed to expose undergraduate students to the theory behind and the methods of field primatology. The course will be broken up into two main sections: “primate behavioral ecology/field techniques” and “independent research project”. Because students will develop and carry out their own field research project, many students decide to pursue independent study credit through their respective colleges/universities.

Salary/funding:

The cost for the 4-week program is $2495 and does not include the flight, the cost of a hotel room in San Jose after completion of the course, or any souvenirs. For more information please visithttp://www.maderasrfc.org/Maderas_Rainforest_Conservancy/Request_Information.html. Meals and lodging while at the La Suerte field station are included in the tuition for the course. Travel to San Jose is not included but a travel agent is put in touch with the students to help them find the best deals on flights. Lodging and meals in San Jose and Tortuguero are not included.

Application Deadline:

Priority will be given to students on a first-come, first-served basis

Comments:

For any questions regarding this experience please contact Dr. Schmitt at cschmitt@mednet.ucla.edu or Tegan Gaetano at gaetano@uwm.edu

Website:


http://www.evopropinquitous.net/primate-behavior-and-ecology-field-course.html

]]> No publisher Ed Hagen 2013-06-10T23:12:48Z News Item AAPA Professional Development Grant leads to NSF award for Professor Sharon DeWitte http://physanth.org/news/aapa-professional-development-grant-leads-to-nsf-award-for-professor-sharon-dewitte The Black Death was one of the most destructive epidemics in history. Assistant Professor Sharon DeWitte at the University of South Carolina has been examining temporal changes in plague mortality patterns and the effects of the Black Death on the demographic and health conditions of surviving populations as a model for understanding the human response to emerging diseases. Funded by a 2012 AAPA Professional Development Grant, DeWitte collected paleodemographic data from several medieval London cemeteries. Among a number of interesting findings, DeWitte reports greater longevity combined with an increased frequency of periosteal lesions in the post-Black Death sample. DeWitte suggests that enhanced survival but relatively poor skeletal health at later adult ages might account for the post-Black Death pattern, a trend observed in living populations where improvements in mortality and longevity are often associated with declines in health status later in life. DeWitte is continuing her work on the health and demographic effects of the Black Death, having successfully turned her AAPA Professional Development Grant into a National Science Foundation award funded jointly by Biological Anthropology and Cultural Anthropology. Congratulations Professor DeWitte!

For more on how to apply for an AAPA Professional Development Grant, please click here.  Or contact Dr. Andrea B. Taylor, Chair, AAPA Professional Development Grants Committee, at andrea.taylor@duke.edu.

 

]]> No publisher Ed Hagen 2013-05-13T16:22:53Z News Item W. W. Norton Booth Party at AAPA http://physanth.org/news/w.-w.-norton-booth-party-at-aapa When: Today, Fri Apr 12, 4:30 pm to 6:00 pm. Where: Norton Booth, Knoxville Convention Center. What: Local Craft Beer, Finely Crafted Books, Pretzels  

Please stop by and have a beer with Norton authors and the Norton Anthropology team.  All are invited!

John Kresse

Norton Anthropology

]]> No publisher Ed Hagen 2013-04-12T12:22:31Z News Item The Rohlf Medal 2013 CALL FOR NOMINATIONS http://physanth.org/news/the-rohlf-medal-2013-call-for-nominations The Rohlf Medal was established in 2006 by his family and friends to mark the 70th birthday of F. James Rohlf, Distinguished Professor of Ecology and Evolution and longtime Stony Brook University faculty member. Recipients of the Rohlf Medal will be recognized for excellence in their body of work on the development of new morphometric methods or for their applications in the biomedical sciences, including evolutionary biology, population biology, physical anthropology, and medicine. The term “morphometrics” is intended to include high-dimensional pattern analyses of biological shape, especially those that analyze shape in a comprehensive way, or of covariation of shape patterns with other variables. The award can recognize advances in the mathematical or statistical theory underlying morphometric methods, new software that implements or visualizes new methods, or specific new biological findings that rely crucially on contemporary morphometric methods and represent major advances.
Candidates for the Rohlf Medal may be self-nominated or nominated by others. They must have attained the postdoctoral level or its equivalent. Nomination packages should include (1) a description of the body of work (not to exceed two pages) on which the candidacy is based, (2) reprints of no more than three relevant papers and/or software products, (3) a curriculum vitae, and (4) the names and addresses of three referees. Nominating packages should be uploaded to the Rohlf Medal website (http://life.bio.sunysb.edu/ee/rohlf_medal/apply.html) and received by 15 August 2013 to be assured of full consideration.

The successful candidate will receive the Rohlf Medal and a cash prize at Stony Brook University in mid-Fall 2013 (final date to be determined). She or he will deliver a lecture that is appropriate for an educated general audience concerning the morphometric research for which the Rohlf Medal was awarded.

]]> No publisher Ed Hagen 2013-04-10T11:33:23Z News Item