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Social aging special issue! Following from an excellent workshop at the Royal Society, I had the priviledge of working with Josh Firth, Sandra Bowhuis, Greg Albery and Roberto Salguerdo-Gomez to guest edit a Special Issue of Phil Trans. Check out our introductory article here.
The old lady rhesus macaque on the cover highlights the role our social aging work on Cayo Santiago has played in this field, which includes the two papers that appear in the issue, one about social selectivity and its impact on disease risk, the other about early life adversity and later life survival. |
On the cover! Our paper Ecological disturbance alters the adaptive
benefits of social ties appeared as the cover image for the June
21, 2024 issue of Science (photo credit: Lauren Brent). Following
prolonged ecological damage caused by Hurricane Maria, rhesus
macaques altered their social structure to be one more characterised
by tolerance, where the individuals who spend the most time with
others have lower mortality risk. Tolerance did not predict survival
before Maria, suggesting the adaptive value of social ties has shifted
in response to new selective pressures.
benefits of social ties appeared as the cover image for the June
21, 2024 issue of Science (photo credit: Lauren Brent). Following
prolonged ecological damage caused by Hurricane Maria, rhesus
macaques altered their social structure to be one more characterised
by tolerance, where the individuals who spend the most time with
others have lower mortality risk. Tolerance did not predict survival
before Maria, suggesting the adaptive value of social ties has shifted
in response to new selective pressures.
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Delighted to appear in the opening chapter of Lee Dugatkin's latest book, The Well-Connected Animal, where research aimed at uncovering the intricacies of the social lives of animals other than humans is laid out in excellent yet accessible detail.
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I grew up watching The Nature of Things with David Suzuki and it was
an absolute honour to appear in an episode in the show's 60th year,
weeks before Dr. Suzuki's retirement. Stream The Secrets of
Friendship on CBC Gem (if you're in Canada. If not, watch out
for its release in other countries)
an absolute honour to appear in an episode in the show's 60th year,
weeks before Dr. Suzuki's retirement. Stream The Secrets of
Friendship on CBC Gem (if you're in Canada. If not, watch out
for its release in other countries)
On the cover! The latest chapter of Connie Allen's PhD thesis
Reduced older male presence linked to increased rates of
aggression to non-conspecific targets in male elephants was the
cover Proc B's final issue of 2021 (photo credit: C. Allen)
Reduced older male presence linked to increased rates of
aggression to non-conspecific targets in male elephants was the
cover Proc B's final issue of 2021 (photo credit: C. Allen)
On the cover! Our paper Rhesus macaques build new social
connections after a natural disaster was a featured article in
Current Biology and appeared on the cover of the June 7th 2021
issue (photo credit: Lauren Brent)
connections after a natural disaster was a featured article in
Current Biology and appeared on the cover of the June 7th 2021
issue (photo credit: Lauren Brent)
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My European Research Council (ERC) Consolidator grant, FriendOrigins is gearing up to start in November 2020. Over the next 5 years we'll be exploring the evolution and maintenance of friendly social relationships. I'll be hiring postdocs and research support staff soon, so watch this space! |
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Another science comedy dream come true! There is now a (hilarious) True Facts about macaques. And it's not much, but the very last clip with the macaque in the bush came from me (recorded by former research assistant Jackie Buhl). Eeeeeee!
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New book by Lydia Denworth is released. Friendship: The Evolution, Biology, and Extraordinary Power of Life's Fundamental Bond is a fascinating overview of the science behind friends. Pictured with the author in Philadelphia in May - one of our many meetings and chats about all things friends.
The New York Times coverage of Cayo Santiago after Hurricane Maria, our research on the impact of the storm on monkey behaviour, and excellent accounts of people coming together in the face of adversity
Read the summary in Evolutionary Anthropology of the workshop on Female Leadership in Mammalian and Human Societies that took place at the Wiko Institute in Berlin, Feb 2019
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Click here to watch my interview on Telemundo
highlighting research on Cayo Santiago and our recovery
efforts following Hurricane Maria
My New Scientist article on the biology of friendship appears in their new book, "How to be Human"
Source: 20th Century Fox
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Q&A in London about ape societies and behaviour with the cast of War for the Planet of the Apes.
Source: Monkey Business Images/Shutterstock
When do friends matter most? I chat with Lydia Denworth for her Psychology Today blog about the importance of social ties across the lifespan.
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Giving the plenary talk at ASAB's Spring Meeting in 2016
I was awarded the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour (ASAB)'s
Christopher Barnard Award for Outstanding Contributions by a New Investigator.
Christopher Barnard Award for Outstanding Contributions by a New Investigator.
My Leverhulme Early Career Fellowship was highlighted as the
1,000th ECF awarded by the Leverhulme Trust
1,000th ECF awarded by the Leverhulme Trust
I was interviewed by Michael Moore for his latest film, Where to Invade Next,
but was sadly left on the cutting room floor.
but was sadly left on the cutting room floor.
I wrote an article on the biology of friendship for New Scientist
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Comedy dreams acheived!
My research appeared on The Onion and was (indirectly) made fun of by Jon Stewart on the Daily Show
My research appeared on The Onion and was (indirectly) made fun of by Jon Stewart on the Daily Show
I gave a TED talk in NYC as part of their 2012 Talent Search