C2ST Speakeasy: “Thinking outside the WEIRD: Variability in Human Biology” with Dr. Aaron Miller

February 3, 2015

Geek Bar Beta
1941 West North Avenue, Chicago, IL, USA

Program Series:
Life Science

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Most of the research done on human biology comes from WEIRD populations – Western, Educated, Industrialized, Rich, and Democratic – but these populations do not always represent the full diversity of human variation. WEIRD populations live in environments that protect them from most of the disturbances that affected our ancestors, including starvation, disease, and the elements. Some of the characteristics of WEIRD environments, such as an abundance of high calorie food, may result in unusual biological outcomes, such as higher hormone levels. Dr. Miller will present some of the causes of variation in human traits, and discuss the consequences of ignoring this variability.

Event Details

C2ST Speakeasy will be held on the first Tuesday of each month at Geek Bar Chicago for the forseeable future

Speaker

Dr. Aaron Miller

Dr. Miller has a PhD in biological anthropology and currently manages the Laboratory for Human Biology research at Northwestern University. His research examines the plasticity of human biology and investigates how aspects of biology respond to the environment in adaptive ways. He has done field work in Bolivia, Indonesia, and the United States. These projects have focused on a variety of topics including broad health and nutrition surveys, the impact of living a hunter and gatherer lifestyle, and the health consequences of stress. Dr. Miller teaches Anthropology courses that focus on human origins, human biological variation, and field-based methodologies. In his spare time he enjoys pub trivia and movie-related podcasts.