Ancient diet evolution will be the focus of the UAB Department of Biology’s 8th annual Darwin Day.  Briana Pobiner, Ph.D., a research scientist and museum educator at the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History, will present “Ancient diets and the evolution of human meat-eating” as the keynote lecturer Thursday, Feb. 6, at 7 p.m. in the Alys Stephens Center Reynolds-Kirschbaum Recital Hall. Prior to her presentation, research from the UAB Department of Biology will be highlighted at the poster session and reception.  This event is free and open to the public.

Pobiner is a paleoanthropologist whose research centers on the evolution of the human diet, with a focus on meat-eating, but has included topics as diverse as human cannibalism and chimpanzee carnivory. Since joining the Smithsonian in 2005 to help curate the Hall of Human Origins, she leads the program’s education and outreach efforts, which include managing public programs, website content, social media and exhibition volunteer training. In addition to her appointment at the Smithsonian, Pobiner serves as an associate research professor of anthropology at George Washington University. She has an active field, laboratory and experimental research program.