Wesley Niewoehner
Contact
Office Hours
Education
B.A. Anthropology, The Colorado College M.A. Anthropology, Colorado State University-Fort Collins Ph.D. Biological anthropology, University of New Mexico
Courses/Teaching
100 Introduction to Human Evolution
140 World Civilizations I
200 Biological Anthropology Lab
322 Human Osteology and Functional Anatomy
325 Human Biological Variation and the Concept of Race
326 Human Origins
328 Forensic Anthropology and Crime
410 Late Pleistocene Human Evolution
Research and Teaching Interests
Dr. Niewoehner’s primary field of interest is the biological and behavioral transition from premodern to modern humans in Europe. To that end Dr. Niewoehner specializes in the functional anatomy of Neandertal and early modern human hands. He incorporates his research on hand functional anatomy with behavioral inferences from the archaeological record in order to better understand biocultural evolution with reference to shifts in habitual upper-limb behaviors associated with the advent of Upper Paleolithic tools.
Dr. Niewoehner is often asked by the popular press to provide insights into the demise of the Neandertals. He has been interviewed by CNN and NPR, and has served as technical advisor for several documentaries on Neandertals.
Research: Hominin biocultural evolution and functional anatomy of the hominid hand, three-dimensional morphometrics and biological shape
Teaching: Paleoanthropology, skeletal biology and osteology, functional anatomy, forensic anthropology