Building the Human Body
HEB 118
Subject & Catalog Number
Course Information
Description
Humans and our primate relatives are incredibly variable. This variation results from natural selection operating on the developmental mechanisms that control anatomy and physiology. While these mechanisms remain mostly undiscovered, we are beginning to understand these complex processes due to major advances in technology that have pushed the fields of genetics, genomics and developmental biology rapidly forward. This research-centered course explores these relationships in the context of the human paleontological record. We focus on the evolution and development of the musculoskeletal system, which includes the cranium, axial skeleton and limbs, and present studies that cast light on the developmental genetic mechanisms that underlie major transitions in human evolution.
Course Notes
This course fulfills the research seminar requirement for Human Evolutionary Biology and includes a mandatory laboratory section.
Recommended Prep
LS1b (Genetics, Genomics, and Evolution). Introductory courses in paleoanthropology, anatomy helpful but not required.
Available for Harvard Cross Registration
NOTE: This course requires additional sections; you will be prompted to choose secondary components during the Add to Cart process
