Robert Patalano
I am an archaeologist and biological anthropologist who specializes in early human paleoecology. I am currently a Lecturer in the Department of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, School of Health & Behavioral Sciences, Bryant University and a Research Affiliate in the isoTROPIC Research Group at the Max Planck Institute of Geoanthropology.
My research lies at the intersection of paleoanthropology, paleoecology, and geochemistry and combines traditional archaeological field methods with lipidomics and isotope studies to cast new, detailed light on relationships between environmental processes, cultural change, and human evolution. I have an extensive research portfolio and network which geographically spans eastern, southern, and western Africa, the Middle East, east and southeast Asia, and western Europe, and temporally covers the past two million years.
Much of my work investigates the role climatic and environmental variability had in shaping human origins and diversification. To do so, I use a suite of archaeological biomarkers to reconstruct past plant ecology and water availability (plant waxes), anthropogenic fire history (aromatic hydrocarbons), and population dynamics (faecal stanols and sterols). I am also an expert in multiple gas chromatography and mass spectrometry analytical techniques, including compound specific stable isotope ratio mass spectrometry.
Ph D, University of Calgary
MS, University of New Haven
BA, Bryant University