How Natural Selection Shapes Contemporary Homo sapiens: Lessons from the Framingham Heart Study

Evolution Matters Lecture Series: Stephen C. Stearns, Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Yale University
Have modern sanitation and medicine stopped human evolution, as some claim? Does the pressure for sexual selection of males constrain the evolution of females, and vice versa? Does having children shorten or extend life? Analyzing the data from the renowned Framingham Heart Study, a long-term study initiated in 1948 that continues to this day, evolutionary biologist Stephen Stearns will explore how natural selection has shaped women’s bodies and physical health, and how reproduction has affected women’s average lifespan.
The Evolution Matters Lecture Series is supported by a generous gift from Drs. Herman and Joan Suit.