Current projects undertaken by Anthropology staff include:

  • Comparative and metric approaches to ontogeny in early hominins
  • CT analysis of  Au. afarensis remains and early hominin evolution
  • Early hominin pelvis and locomotion in Australopithecus afarensis
  • Variation and dimorphism in early hominin crania
  • Synthesis of early hominin paleoenvironment and paleoecology
  • Comparative study of cercopithecids and implication for hominin evolution

The Dikika Research Project

The DRP is a multidisciplinary endeavor that seeks to address key evolutionary questions pertaining to various aspects of the paleobiology of early hominins (early human ancestors) – as well as their culture and environments over the past ca. 4.0 million years. The project, led by Zeresenay (Zeray) Alemseged, was initiated in 1999, and focuses on a research area located in North Eastern Ethiopia, ca. 500 km from the capital of Addis Ababa.