SoS 280: The Measure of Motion with Dr. Christine Harper

SoS 282: Interrogating Human Exceptionalism in Primate Research with Dr. Christine Webb

In this episode, host Chris speaks with Dr. Christine Webb about primate behavior, cognition and consciousness, and dismantling the myth of human exceptionalism. Dr. Christine Webb is an assistant professor in the department of Environmental Studies at NYU, where she is part of the animal studies program. Her work seeks to elucidate the complex dynamics of animal social life and to apply this knowledge to foundational questions in animal ethics and conservation. Specifically, she investigates how animals manage and mitigate social disruptions, and the emotional, motivational , and cultural influences shaping these processes, with a focus on non-human primates. Dr. Webb is interested in how prevailing social norms, values, and institutions shape contemporary knowledge of other animals and the environment more generally. In her new book, The Arrogant Ape, Dr. Webb engages critically with human exceptionalism, and how this pervasive ideology biases scientific exploration of the more-than-human world. ------------------------------ Find the book discussed in this episode: Webb, C. E. (2025). The arrogant ape: the myth of human exceptionalism and why it matters. New York, NY: Avery. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/717436/the-arrogant-ape-by-christine-webb/# ------------------------------ Contact Dr. Christine Webb: christinewebb@nyu.edu Bluesky: @christinewebb.bsky.social/ Website: https://www.cewebb.com/ ------------------------------ Contact the Sausage of Science Podcast and the Human Biology Association: Facebook: facebook.com/groups/humanbiologyassociation/, Website: humbio.org Chris Lynn, Host Website: cdlynn.people.ua.edu/, E-mail: cdlynn@ua.edu, Twitter:@Chris_Ly

SoS 281: Industrialization and the Environmental Mismatch: The Case for Returning to Nature with Dr. Danny Longman and Dr. Colin Shaw

In this episode, hosts Chris and Mecca speak with Dr. Danny Longman and Dr. Colin Shaw about the mismatch between humans and modern built environments, exploring both the negative biological impacts of living in industrialized cities and the positive effects of spending time in nature. Dr Danny Longman graduated from the University of Cambridge with a BA (Hons) in Natural Sciences (2005–08), followed by an MPhil (2008–09) and PhD (2011–14) in Human Evolution. He remained at Cambridge as a Postdoctoral Researcher (2015–19) before joining Loughborough University as a Lecturer. He has since been promoted to Senior Lecturer. Outside of work, Danny is a keen sportsman with a passion for ultra-endurance sport, nature, and travel. Dr. Colin Shaw graduated from the University of Western Ontario (Canada) with a BA (Hons) in Anthropology and Kinesiology (2000) and an MSc in Exercise Physiology (2000-02), then moved to the University of Cambridge, where he obtained an MPhil (2003-04) and a PhD (2004–08) in Biological Anthropology. He was a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Wisconsin-Madison (2008-2009), Penn State (2010-2011), and the University of Cambridge (2011-2015). He is now a Senior Lecturer at the University of Zurich. ------------------------------ Find the paper discussed in this episode: Longman, D.P. and Shaw, C.N. (2026), Homo sapiens, industrialisation and the environmental mismatch hypothesis. Biol Rev, 101: 580-601. https://doi.org/10.1111/brv.70094 ------------------------------ Contact the Sausage of Science Podcast and the Human Biology Association: Facebook: facebook.com/groups/humanbiologyassociation/, Website: humbio.org Chris Lynn, Co-Host, Website: cdlynn.people.ua.edu/, E-mail: cdlynn@ua.edu Mecca E. Howe, Co-Host, E-mail: howemecca@gmail.com, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mecca-howe/

SoS 280: The Measure of Motion with Dr. Christine Harper

Chris and Cristina sit down with Dr. Christine Harper, a biological anthropologist and Assistant Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Washington, whose research focuses on the functional morphology and biomechanics of the human and nonhuman primate postcranial skeleton, with the goal of understanding how musculoskeletal form relates to locomotor behavior. She uses these patterns to place early hominins in context and reconstruct how they may have moved. Her work takes a quantitative, data-driven approach, using tools such as 3D geometric morphometrics, high-density semilandmarks, spherical harmonic analyses (SPHARM), whole-bone trabecular analyses, musculoskeletal modeling, and advanced statistical methods for high-dimensional data. She also develops and tests novel methods to address challenges in analyzing complex, multi-dimensional data. ------------------------------ Find the paper discussed in this episode: Harper, C. M., & Patel, B. A. Functional morphology of trabecular bone in the calcaneus of African apes. Journal of Anatomy. https://doi.org/10.1111/joa.70141 ------------------------------ Contact Dr. Harper: cmharper@uw.edu ------------------------------ Contact the Sausage of Science Podcast and Human Biology Association: Facebook: facebook.com/groups/humanbiologyassociation/, Website: humbio.org, Twitter: @HumBioAssoc Chris Lynn, Host Website: cdlynn.people.ua.edu, E-mail: cdlynn@ua.edu, Twitter:@Chris_Ly Cristina Gildee, Co-Host & Co-Producer Website: cristinagildee.com, E-mail: cgildee@uw.edu

SoS 279: The AABA Task Force Recommendations for the Ethical Study of Human Remains with Dr. Fatimah Jackson and Dr. Ben Auerbach

In this episode, hosts Cara and Chris speak with Dr. Fatimah Jackson and Dr. Ben Auerbach about the American Association of Biological Anthropologists Task Force on the ethical study of human remains and their recommendations for the management and oversight of community partnership and ethical stewardship of human remains. Dr. Fatimah Jackson is a professor Emeritus of the Biology Department at Howard University. She has conducted research on (and is particularly interested in): 1.) Human-plant coevolution, particularly the influence of phytochemicals on human metabolic effects and evolutionary processes and 2.) Population substructure in peoples of African descent, developing Ethnogenetic Layering as a computational tool to identify human microethnic groups and differential expressions of health disparities. You can learn more about her work here: https://profiles.howard.edu/fatimah-jackson Dr. Auerbach is a Professor in the Departments of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology and Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His research examines variation and evolution through the skeletons of primates and other mammals, applying quantitative genetics and functional anatomy to understand how traits evolve, especially in primates and Australian marsupials. He also studies variation in global human samples from archaeological and medical contexts, as well as the history and ethics of the biological and social sciences. You can find more about his work here: https://web.utk.edu/~auerbach/index.htm ------------------------------ Find the paper discussed in this episode: Who Speaks for the Dead? Of Communities and Stewardship in Legacy Collections of Human Remains: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajpa.70216 AABA Task Force on the Ethical Study of Human Remains Recommendations: Proposal for the Management and Oversight of Community Partnership and Ethical Stewardship of Human Remains: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajpa.70213 ------------------------------ Contact the Sausage of Science Podcast and the Human Biology Association: Facebook: facebook.com/groups/humanbiologyassociation/, Website: humbio.org Cara Ocobock, Co-Host, Website: sites.nd.edu/cara-ocobock/, Email:cocobock@nd.edu, Twitter:@CaraOcobock Chris Lynn, Co-Host, Website: cdlynn.people.ua.edu/, E-mail: cdlynn@ua.edu, Twitter:@Chris_Ly

SoS 278: Using a biocultural approach to understand food allergies, consumption patterns, and guidelines with Erin Maxwell (Hosein)

In this episode, Mecca chats with Erin Maxwell (Hosein) about her research on food allergen consumption patterns in the U.S. using NHANES data, gaps in current research, and the value of anthropological approaches for contributing to a more holistic understanding and informing policy/guidelines. They also discuss the evolutionary dual-allergen exposure hypothesis and new, exciting methods for testing the theory. Erin Maxwell (Hosein) is a registered dietitian and human-biology PhD student in Anthropology at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill whose work centers on the rising prevalence of food allergies in the United States. Drawing on training in nutrition, food studies, and evolutionary perspectives on health, she studies how early-life feeding practices may shape the development of allergic disease. Her research focuses on maternal and infant nutrition and the early-life origins of allergic conditions using biosocial and nutritional epidemiology approaches. More broadly, she examines how food policy and shifting public health recommendations influence not only nutritional status but also everyday food practices, customs, and beliefs. Contact Erin at hosein@email.unc.edu, https://www.linkedin.com/in/erinhoseinnutrition/ ------------------------------ Find the papers discussed in this episode: Hosein, E. A., Virkud, Y. V., Kim, E. H., Hoke, M. K., Thompson, A. L., & Keet, C. A. (2025). Temporal, Age, and Racial and Ethnic Trends in Allergen Consumption from 2-Day 24-Hour Recalls, NHANES 2003-2023. The journal of allergy and clinical immunology. In practice, 13(10), 2795–2805. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaip.2025.07.028 Comment on Stanislaw J. Gabryszewski, Jesse Dudley, Jennifer A. Faerber, Robert W. Grundmeier, Alexander G. Fiks, Jonathan M. Spergel, David A. Hill; Guidelines for Early Food Introduction and Patterns of Food Allergy. Pediatrics November 2025; 156 (5): e2024070516. 10.1542/peds.2024-070516 ------------------------------ Contact the Sausage of Science Podcast and the Human Biology Association: Facebook: facebook.com/groups/humanbiologyassociation/, Website: humbio.org Mecca E. Howe, Host, E-mail: howemecca@gmail.com, LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mecca-howe/