The 2017 Conference

January 24–26, 2017, in Paris (National Institute for Art History)

Theme 1: Biological anthropology of the African continent: from the first hominins to current populations

Guest speaker: R. FOLEY, Evolutionary geography: the dynamic role of the African environment in becoming human

The objective of this theme is to provide as comprehensive an overview as possible of current research on the African continent. This may include paleoanthropology from the earliest hominins to the Pleistocene/Holocene transition, the study of funerary practices or lifestyles across all periods, or any aspect of the anthropology of current populations (genetics, variability, growth, diet, aging, etc.).

Theme 2: Fossils, from morphology to potential functions

Guest speaker: I. De GROOTE: One million years of humans in Britain

The increasing technicality of paleoanthropological work sometimes makes us forget that beyond the extreme quantification of fossil forms and phylogenetic questions, it is often possible to explore a function (motor, cognitive, nutritional, etc.), its disorders, or a specific activity. This session is intended for paleoanthropological studies that (on this occasion) place a function at the heart of their inquiries, comparative works serving as the basis for functional inferences, and those that question the limits of such approaches.

Theme 3: Current Research Updates

This theme will bring together recent findings in the discipline, whether they are new discoveries or methodological advances.