Biography
I am a researcher and educator in human evolutionary biology. Currently, I am developing machine learning and AI applications for human evolutionary studies with the University of Cambridge Leverhulme Centre for Human Evolutionary Studies and the Alan Turing Institute. As an advocate of open, fair, and reproducible science, I have served as associate editor of the Public Library of Online Science (PLOS ONE) and as a University of Cambridge Data Champion. I also run the Paleo-Osteo Resource Guide and am the department coordinator for the University of Cambridge Science Festival.
Research
For my PhD I developed a novel dental phenotyping system for tracking human biogeography. This work uses tooth roots a proxy for genomic material, which is often damaged or destroyed in fossil materials. Currently I am a post-doctoral researcher for the Palaeoanalytics project with The Alan Turing Institute and The University of Cambridge. This project uses computer vision and machine learning for lithic artefact analysis.
Key Publications
Teaching and Supervisions
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Over the past four years I have held supervisions for 150 undergraduate students on all course materials from Humans in a Biological Perspective (B1), Human Evolution (and Palaeolithic Archaeology (B3/G03)), and Major Topics in Human Evolution (B5). I was also and invited lecturer for the B5 systematics lecture, for which I also designed and led a lab practical on cladistics. This lecture and practical were further developed for an invited seminar and practical series for Core Archaeology (G02). I have also designed and led multiple graduate seminars (MPhil. and MSc) in South East Asian archaeology and anthropology (B3); archaic human/hominin admixture from a genetic perspective (B3 and B9); roles of phenotypic change, behaviour, and allopatric cladogenesis in evolutionary novelty; and early hominin dispersals and range expansions in the context of morphology, diet, life-history, and social behaviour (B9). For the Lent 2020 term I wrote and gave 8 lectures (B3) on South East Asian archaeology and anthropology, hominin dietary ecology and adaptation, life history theory, and Neanderthal behaviour, morphology, adaptation, and population structure. From 2016 - 2020, I taught the B3 hominin cast material laboratory, which I expanded to include anatomy, statistics, and dental anthropology components.
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B1, B3, B5, B9
Other Professional Activities
University of Cambridge Data Champion
Department Science Festival Coordinator
