Research Areas
Ecological and Evolutionary Anthropology
I conduct research into human-environment interactions at all scales, from life history and demography, to population dynamics and biogeography. Much of my work focuses on hunter-gatherers and small-scale societies, but I am interested in the fundamental principles that underlie the evolutionary diversification of human ecology over time and space. Often this work involves comparative analyses among cultures and across species. I am particularly interested in how humans use energy and information to make inferences about their world and how these interactions underlie the ways humans modify their environments.
I conduct research into human-environment interactions at all scales, from life history and demography, to population dynamics and biogeography. Much of my work focuses on hunter-gatherers and small-scale societies, but I am interested in the fundamental principles that underlie the evolutionary diversification of human ecology over time and space. Often this work involves comparative analyses among cultures and across species. I am particularly interested in how humans use energy and information to make inferences about their world and how these interactions underlie the ways humans modify their environments.
Hunter-Gatherer Archaeology and Paleoecology
My archaeological research focuses on hunter-gatherer paleoecology, the colonization of the Americas, and Paleoindian North America. I am particularly interested in how humans adapted to North American landscapes in the late Pleistocene and later diversified across the continent. Currently, I am wrapping up a multi-year excavation program at Bonfire Shelter, Texas with colleagues from Texas State University and transitioning back into early Paleoindian in the Rio Grande Rift Valley, New Mexico.
My archaeological research focuses on hunter-gatherer paleoecology, the colonization of the Americas, and Paleoindian North America. I am particularly interested in how humans adapted to North American landscapes in the late Pleistocene and later diversified across the continent. Currently, I am wrapping up a multi-year excavation program at Bonfire Shelter, Texas with colleagues from Texas State University and transitioning back into early Paleoindian in the Rio Grande Rift Valley, New Mexico.
Data Analytics and Complexity Theory
Human societies are complex adaptive systems structured by nonlinear, hierarchical, modular interaction networks of correlations that evolve in time and space. I work with data sets from several disciplines, including ethnography, archaeology, ecology, economics, and environmental science. My approach to theory-building is primarily mathematical where I use theory to generate hypotheses that make predictions that can be tested statistically with data. I am also interested in Bayesian theory, information theory, and the potential of machine learning in anthropology to explore the evolution and ecology of complex adaptive human systems.
The artwork on the left created by Ettore Mazza (https://making-humanity.org/artist/ettore-mazza/). I strongly encourage you to explore his remarkable work.
Human societies are complex adaptive systems structured by nonlinear, hierarchical, modular interaction networks of correlations that evolve in time and space. I work with data sets from several disciplines, including ethnography, archaeology, ecology, economics, and environmental science. My approach to theory-building is primarily mathematical where I use theory to generate hypotheses that make predictions that can be tested statistically with data. I am also interested in Bayesian theory, information theory, and the potential of machine learning in anthropology to explore the evolution and ecology of complex adaptive human systems.
The artwork on the left created by Ettore Mazza (https://making-humanity.org/artist/ettore-mazza/). I strongly encourage you to explore his remarkable work.