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Thomas A. Püschel

Thomas A. Püschel

Wendy James Associate Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology
School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography
University of Oxford
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Biography

I am the Wendy James Associate Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology at the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford, as well as Tutorial Fellow at St. Hugh’s College. My research asks what makes humans unique, a question that I believe only makes sense in comparative context. By placing our species alongside other primates and mammals, I study which features of human anatomy, behaviour and evolution are genuinely distinctive, which are shared with our relatives, and which arose repeatedly across the tree of life. To do so, I combine phylogenetic comparative methods and statistical modelling with 3D morphometrics, virtual biomechanics, computational simulations and palaeontological fieldwork in the East African Rift, working with both living species and the fossil record. Recent work has addressed the evolution of brain and body size in hominins, the origins of human handedness, how primates radiated across past climates, and behaviour in our closest living relatives.

I lead the Comparative Evolutionary Anthropology (CEA) group at Oxford. If you are interested in joining the lab, downloading publications or discussing potential collaborations, please explore this website and the lab's. I am also a keen amateur wildlife photographer and a few of my pictures can be found in the gallery below.

Visit the CEA Lab Download CV

Interests

  • Evolutionary anthropology
  • Primate evolution
  • Palaeoanthropology
  • Vertebrate palaeontology
  • Phylogenetic comparative methods
  • Phylogenetics
  • Morphometrics
  • Biomechanics

Education

  • PhD in Adaptive Organismal Biology, 2018
    The University of Manchester
  • MSc in Anatomy and Evolution, 2013
    The University of York, Hull York Medical School
  • BSc in Biological Anthropology, 2011
    Universidad de Chile

Recent Publications

All publications →

Research

My research is carried out with the Comparative Evolutionary Anthropology (CEA) group at the University of Oxford.

Experience

Wendy James Associate Professor in Evolutionary Anthropology
Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford
Aug 2023 – Present · Oxford, UK

Head of the Comparative Evolutionary Anthropology (CEA) group.

Tutorial Fellow
St Hugh's College
Aug 2023 – Present · Oxford, UK
Postdoctoral Researcher – Leverhulme Research Leadership Project
Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Division, University of Reading
May 2021 – Jul 2023 · Reading, UK

Project: 'The evolutionary and biogeographical routes to hominin diversity.'

Postdoctoral Research Officer – Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship
School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford
Oct 2018 – May 2021 · Oxford, UK

Project: 'This study has teeth: exploring human origins and Climate Change through time.'

College advisor
St Antony's College
Oct 2018 – May 2021 · Oxford, UK

Pastoral duties at St Antony’s College where I advise students, both at the levels of MSc and DPhil.

Research Officer
The University of Manchester
Apr 2018 – Sep 2018 · Manchester, UK

Postdoctoral position within the NERC project: 'The co-evolution of human hands and tool using behaviour' led by Prof. William Sellers.

Recent Posts

All posts →

Talks and Media

Press coverage → All talks →

Contact

Email: thomas.puschel@anthro.ox.ac.uk

Address: Institute of Human Sciences, School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography, University of Oxford · The Pauling Centre, 58a Banbury Rd, Park Town, Oxford, OX2 6QS, UK

Lab: Comparative Evolutionary Anthropology (CEA) group · Opportunities to join