Herman Pontzer, Professor and Director of Graduate Studies

How did the human body evolve, and how does our species' deep past shape our health and physiology today? Through lab and field research, I investigate the physiology of humans and apes to understand how ecology, lifestyle, diet, and evolutionary history affect metabolism and health. I'm also interested in how ecology and evolution influence musculoskeletal design and physical activity. Field projects focus on small-scale societies, including hunter-gatherers and subsistence farmers, in Africa and South America. Lab research focuses on energetics and metabolism, including respirometry and doubly labeled water methods.

Contact Info:

Office Location:
Office Phone:	(919) 684-4124
Email Address:

Teaching (Spring 2026):

• EVANTH 101.01, INTRO EVOLUTIONARY ANTHRO Synopsis

  Bio Sci 111, TuTh 03:05 PM-04:20 PM

• EVANTH 101D.001, INTRO TO EVOLUTIONARY ANTHRO Synopsis

  Bio Sci 111, TuTh 03:05 PM-04:20 PM

• EVANTH 101D.01D, INTRO TO EVOLUTIONARY ANTHRO Synopsis

  Bio Sci 119, Th 10:20 AM-11:10 AM

• EVANTH 101D.02D, INTRO TO EVOLUTIONARY ANTHRO Synopsis

  Bio Sci 119, Th 12:00 PM-12:50 PM

• EVANTH 330.01, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

  FFSC 4233, TuTh 10:05 AM-11:20 AM

Education:

Ph.D.

Harvard University

2006

Keywords:

Exercise • Human evolution • Locomotion • Metabolism • Obesity • Public Health

Recent Publications   (More Publications)   (search)

1. Hinz, E; Miller, AA; Pontzer, H, A Competitive Immunoassay for Dehydroepiandrosterone Sulfate in Dried Blood Spots., American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council, vol. 37 no. 12 (December, 2025), pp. e70182 [doi]  [abs]
2. Hora, M; Dattatreya, R; Struška, M; Pontzer, H; Sládek, V, Human energy expenditure and thermoregulation during persistence hunting in the Namib., Journal of human evolution, vol. 209 (December, 2025), pp. 103773 [doi]  [abs]
3. Baker, L; Jacobson, H; McGrosky, A; Hinz, E; Wambua, F; Sherwood, A; Mbeng, T-C; Nzunza, R; Braun, DR; Ndiema, E; Pontzer, H; Rosinger, AY, Ambient temperature and wet bulb globe temperature outperform heat index in predicting hydration status and heat perception in a semi-arid environment., Annals of human biology, vol. 52 no. 1 (December, 2025), pp. 2456152 [doi]  [abs]
4. McGrosky, A; Luke, A; Rood, J; Sagayama, H; Westerterp, KR; Wong, WW; Yamada, Y; Speakman, JR; Pontzer, H, Reply to Uzoigwe: DLW is safe and validated., Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 122 no. 45 (November, 2025), pp. e2520874122 [doi]
5. Best, A; Sadhir, S; Hyatt, E; Pontzer, H, Ultra-endurance athletes and the metabolic ceiling., Current biology : CB, vol. 35 no. 20 (October, 2025), pp. 5106-5110.e2 [doi]  [abs]