PRR Project

Summary

The ICArEHB Chair in Bioanthropology for Prehistory offers a unique opportunity to develop and implement a long-term research strategy at ICArEHB and UAlg focused on the analysis of hominin skeletal remains, while simultaneously expanding the technical expertise of the permanent staff of these institutions.ICArEHB is broadly interested in examining the cultural and biological evolution of humans. To that end, it fosters several research themes that focus on e.g., hominin evolution, prehistoric behavior and dispersals in Africa, dynamics of Paleolithic people in Europe, adaptations to coastal environments, and the emergence and evolution of food-producing societies. The morphological analysis of fossil and modern human skeletal remains offers critical insights into all these overarching themes. It also reveals chronological and geographic-related intra-specific differences across populations, in addition to inter-specific affinities and/or contrasts. In this context, virtual anthropology methods have been vital to improve the understanding of morphological variability and what drives it. Moreover, virtual analysis of human remains is pivotal not only in academic research but also in attracting funding and the attention of the general non-specialized public. This is because it provides visually very engaging and self-explanatory content. ICArEHB has several projects in which the bioanthropological analysis of the skeletal remains is crucial, including the flagship long-term research project of the Muge Mesolithic shell middens. Yet, ICArEHB, and UAlg, do not have a permanent bioanthropologist that may develop a properly sustained long-term research program. Thus, ICArEHB aims to create a Bioanthropology Chair in which the chairholder will:Foster leading research by undertaking joint conventional and virtual anthropology analysis of extinct hominin fossil species and modern humans, which should feed the various research themes of ICArEHB. The results will be presented in national and international meetings and will be published in national and international outlets (including articles in reference peer-reviewed journals).Partaking in the excavation of human skeletal remains, write and submit the resulting technical reports to the relevant institutions.Promote the expansion and sustainability of ICArEHB by proactively implementing its research program, collaborating with national and international researchers, and applying to national and international funding agencies.Progress the training function of ICArEHB via teaching and supervision of students at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.Contribute to knowledge transfer, extension, and dissemination strategy of the center to increase the impact of archaeology and academia on non-academic sectors. This will be achieved by collaborating with various archaeology stakeholders and taking part in public engagement activities in schools and with the general public.The profile of the chairholder will include:A solid track record on the morphological analysis of fossil and modern human skeletal remains, with research interests consistent with those of ICArEHB (i.e., chronologically from the middle Pleistocene up to recent prehistory and geographically including African and European regions). This should be expressed in previous publications in reference peer-reviewed journals and presentations in national and international meetings.Extensive experience in the excavation of burial sites and human skeletal remains, and in writing technical reports.Previous successful applications to national and international funding agencies as Principal Investigator.Teaching experience at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels in bioanthropology and human evolution courses.Previous supervision experience, both at the undergraduate and postgraduate levels.Experience in knowledge transfer extension and dissemination activities.At a broader institutional level, the chairholder is also expected to endeavor to network and collaborate with other strategic areas of UAlg, including potentially biomedical sciences and marine biology.