Jana Muschinski

jana muschinski

 

DPhil Student

St John's College

Thesis: Could it be culture? An Inter-Troop Comparison of Baboon Behavior at Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique 

Research interests: I am interested in social transmission and tool use in primates, particularly how these areas can inform us about human evolution and adaptability. I will be studying the presence/absence of cultural behaviors among baboons in Gorongosa National Park, Mozambique. My observations will focus on social grooming, greeting behaviors, sleeping site preparation, and food processing/preparation, with particular emphasis on the latter two categories as those behaviors are most likely to leave physical traces that could be preserved in the archaeological record. I hope that this research will improve our understanding of the evolutionary origin and age of the cognitive processes necessary for cultural behaviors to arise.

Other research interests: Paleolithic and neolithic archaeology, domestication 

Email: jana.muschinski@anthro.ox.ac.uk

 

Supervisor