Michael Gurven

Dr. Michael Gurven earned BAs in Anthropology and Mathematics from Penn State in 1996 before continuing for his masters and PhD in Anthropology at the University of New Mexico. He is currently a Professor of Anthropology and Chair of the Integrative Anthropological Sciences Unit at the University of California-Santa Barbara, where received the Harold J. Plous Award for exceptional achievement in research, teaching, and service to the university. Michael also received the Early Career Award for Distinguished Scientific Contribution from the Human Behavior and Evolution Society in 2010. He studies how ecological and social factors shape design features of behavior, physiology and psychology. His work has been funded by the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, and has been published in top journals, including Behavioral and Brain Sciences, The Lancet, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and Science.