CHRIS CARBONE- T. rex Sex, Life and Death: Inferences from the fossil record 2011

‘T. rex Sex, Life and Death: Inferences from the fossil record‘ Dr Chris Carbone, (Institute of Zoology, ZSL) Chris Carbone has diverse research interests, but in particular he has explored ecological and evolutionary processes influencing predator-prey relationships. This work has explored how body size influences selection of prey and hunting energetic and population dynamics across carnivore…

PETER J. RICHERSON- The Case for Cultural Group Selection 2011

‘The Case for Cultural Group Selection‘ By Professor Peter J. Richerson, (Department of Environmental Science and Policy, University of California Davis) Abstract: Robert Boyd and I have long argued that group selection on culturally transmitted variation has been an important force in gene-cultural coevolution, particularly in the evolution of human “social instincts.” This argument remains…

HANNO WUERBEL- Developmental plasticity of brain and behaviour in rodents and its implications for the 3Rs 2011

‘Developmental plasticity of brain and behaviour in rodents and its implications for the 3Rs’ Professor Prof. Hanno Wuerbel, University of Giessen, Germany This event is supported by the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare, UFAW (www.ufaw.org.uk), and hosted by Dr. Alan McElligott (lecturer at Queen Mary University, School of Biological and Chemical Sciences) Date: March…

RAGHAVENDRA GADAGKAR- Inclusive Fitness Theory and its Discontents 2011

‘Inclusive Fitness Theory and its Discontents’ Professor Raghavendra Gadagkar, In this talk I will address the recent ongoing controversy concerning the validity and utility of inclusive fitness theory, also commonly referred to as kin selection or Hamilton’s rule. In the first part of the talk I will describe my work which, using the South Indian paper wasp Ropalidia matginata as…