SELECTED SAPIENCE PUBLIC OUTREACH EVENTS 2019
A DAY IN THE LIFE: HOMO SAPIENS 100 000 YEARS AGO What was life like for early modern humans in Africa 50 000- 100 000 years ago? When and how did early humans start to think and behave the way we do? How did climate and environmental changes contribute to this development? These issues are at the heart of our research and they are also the questions we often receive from the public. In September 2019, SapienCE organized a public panel discussion at the Bergen Library to address these questions. Visiting researcher Helga Vierich joined SapienCE researchers Francesco d’Errico and Simon Armitage on the panel, and the discussion was led by post-doc Silje Evjenth Bentsen. The event was very popular; indeed, there was not enough space for everyone who wanted to attend. The panel members gave inspiring introductions to their field and had a lively debate, before opening the floor for questions. The next 30 minutes were filled with interesting and thought-provoking questions from the audience and responses by the panel members. Look out for similar SapienCE events in 2020.
CHRISTOPHER HENSHILWOOD GAVE THE 2019 DARWIN LECTURE Every year the University of Bergen celebrates Darwin day, the 12th of February, with a lecture by a distinguished scholar. Christopher Henshilwood gave the 2019 lecture on early modern human behaviour and the work of the SapienCE Centre of Excellence. His talk, entitled “Mother Africa – Welcome home: The behavioural origins of Homo sapiens in southern Africa between 120,000-50,000 years ago” filled the Egget lecture theatre with students, professors and the general public.
