THE CURL LECTURE 2017

will be given by

Dr Andrea Migliano, University College of London, Department of Anthropology

Hunter-gatherers social structure: a window into the evolution of human cumulative culture

Friday 15 September 2017, at 5pm (approximately) in the Stevenson Lecture Theatre, Clore Education Centre, the British Museum, Great Russell Street, London WC1B 3DG.

The lecture will be preceded by the RAI’s AGM. All are welcome to the AGM; only RAI Fellows may vote.

This event is free, but tickets must be booked. To book tickets please go to https://raiagm2017.eventbrite.co.uk

Abstract:

What is the relationship between human cumulative culture and our unique social structure including cooperative breeding, pair-bonding, in-laws and cooperation with co-residing unrelated families? Contemporary hunter- gatherers provide a privileged window into the conditions for the emergence of human unmatched cultural abilities. Here I propose that the complex social networks of ancestral hunter-gatherers were a fundamental requirement for the evolution of human cumulative culture. The understanding of hunter-gatherers unique social structure provides new insights into cultural evolution and a new framework for comparative studies of humans and other primates.