Description
Our largest organ system, human skin, remains one of the least understood and most controversial parts of the body. Speculation abounds about the evolution, biology, and meaning of our skin. After a review of biological functions of our skin, we’ll look at likely (and unlikely) scenarios for the evolution and biological and social meaning of skin variation in extinct and modern human beings.
Dave Weaver received his doctorate in physical anthropology from UNM. After 25 years at Wake Forest University, he returned to New Mexico. He has worked in North and Central America, Europe, and Africa on human skeletal analysis, forensic anthropology, bone microstructure, human evolution, and osteoporosis. In retirement, he volunteers for the US Forest Service, the Sandia Mountain Natural History Center, and Animal Humane New Mexico, and travels as much as possible.