Suds & Science at the Norwich Inn

Late in 2013, six women scientists squeezed through the twisting passages of Rising Star cave, South Africa, descended to a depth of 100 feet, and there excavated over 1,600 fossils from a previously unknown human ancestor. This unprecedented collection of ancient human bones-the largest ever discovered on the continent of Africa-represents at least 15 individuals from a new species of early human named Homo naledi. Dartmouth College Anthropology Professor Jeremy DeSilva has been working on these fossils and will present what we know about these early humans and how we know it.
Dr, Jeremy "Jerry" DeSilva is an Associate Professor of Anthropology at Dartmouth College. He is a paleoanthropologist, specializing in the locomotion of the first apes (hominoids) and early human ancestors (hominins). His particular anatomical expertise-- the human foot and ankle-- has contributed to our understanding of the origins and evolution of upright walking in the human lineage. He has studied wild chimpanzees in Western Uganda and early human fossils in Museums throughout Eastern and South Africa. From 1998-2003, Jeremy worked as an educator at the Boston Museum of Science and continues to be passionate about science education. When he is not studying fossil foot bones, or lecturing on human evolution, Jeremy and his wife, Erin, are quite busy with their 5 year-old twins, Benjamin and Josephine.