Herman Pontzer, Jerry G. and Patricia Crawford Hubbard Professor

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 (Fall 2026):

• EVANTH 102CC.01, THE HUMAN SPECIES Synopsis

  Gross Hall 107, TuTh 10:05 AM-11:20 AM

• EVANTH 330.01, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

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

• EVANTH 330L.001, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

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

• EVANTH 330L.01L, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

  Bio Sci 073, M 12:00 PM-02:00 PM

• EVANTH 330L.02L, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

  Bio Sci 073, Tu 09:00 AM-11:00 AM

• EVANTH 330L.03L, HUMAN EVOLUTIONARY PHYSIOLOGY Synopsis

  Bio Sci 073, Tu 12:00 PM-02:00 PM

Education:

Ph.D.

Harvard University

2006

Keywords:

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

Recent Publications   (More Publications)   (search)

1. Rosinger, AY; Douglass, M; McGrosky, A; Roba, KT; Davies, B; Meriwether, N; Rojas, AJ; Ford, L; Jacobson, H; Wambua, F; Hinz, E; Sadhir, S; Tavormina, A; Baker, L; Sherwood, A; Arshad, S; Bobbie, N; Musumeci, C; Papa, K; Farrar, Z; Todd, M; Kitts, N; Bossert, M; Braun, DR; Nzunza, R; Ndiema, E; Pontzer, H, Historic drought in northern Kenya shifts diet and mobility away from traditional pastoralism as resource security and nutrition falter, Global Environmental Change, vol. 100 (October, 2026) [doi]  [abs]
2. Arshad, S; Roba, KT; Meriwether, N; Jacobson, H; McGrosky, A; Tavormina, A; Bobbie, N; Khosi, G; Douglass, M; Braun, DR; Nzunza, R; Ndiema, E; Pontzer, H; Rosinger, AY, Increased Vulnerability to Dehydration Due to Heat Stress and Drought Across Reproductive States for Pastoralist Women in Northern Kenya., American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council, vol. 38 no. 7 (July, 2026), pp. e70303 [doi]  [abs]
3. Aslan, DH; Sayre, K; Lai, M; Pontzer, H; Luong, DM; Markarian, T; Seshadri, A; Wood, B; Alexander, GE; Raichlen, D, Cognitive demands of bipedal locomotion during human foraging., Proceedings. Biological sciences, vol. 293 no. 2074 (July, 2026), pp. 20252615 [doi]  [abs]
4. Zhang, K; Hinz, E; Sadhir, S; Ford, L; McGrosky, A; Nzunza, R; Braun, D; Ndiema, E; Rosinger, A; Pontzer, H, Birth Weight in the Daasanach Community of Northern Kenya and the Effect of Multiparity., American journal of human biology : the official journal of the Human Biology Council, vol. 38 no. 7 (July, 2026), pp. e70313 [doi]  [abs]
5. Person, ES; Andreadis, CR; Beaton, AG; Namunyak, AN; Kariuki, E; Solheim, P; Taylor, A; Leimgruber, P; Moraes, RN; Iaizzo, PA; Tung, J; Pontzer, H; Akinyi, MY; Alberts, SC; van Dam, TJ; Laske, TG; Archie, EA, Real-time heart rate in the wild: remote collection of cardiac data in baboons using a low-power Bluetooth and LoRaWAN system., bioRxiv (June, 2026) [doi]  [abs]