Daniel E Lieberman

The basic question I study and teach —why does the human body look and function the way it does— requires an evolutionary perspective because nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution. An evolutionary approach to human anatomy and physiology helps us understand better why humans are the way we are, and can provide key insights on how to prevent many kinds of illnesses and injuries. 

My primary research interest is the evolution of human physical activity and its relevance to health.  My lab and I mostly study running and walking, but also digging, throwing, carrying, sitting, and other activities. I am also very interested in the evolution of human diet, the unusual human head, and more generally in what happened in human evolution from our divergence with the apes until the present. 

If you want to know more about my research, check out my Google Scholar Page 

Also, I have written several books: 

Fed Up: What Evolution Reveals About Food, Diet and Health (2026) Knopf 

Exercised: Why Something We Never Evolved to Do is Healthy and Rewarding (2020) Pantheon 

The Story of The Human Body: Evolution, Health and Disease (2013) Pantheon 

The Evolution of the Human Head (2011) Harvard University Press