Author Archives: Christopher Lynn

About Christopher Lynn

Christopher Dana Lynn is an associate professor of anthropology at the University of Alabama, where he founded the Evolutionary Studies program. Chris teaches undergraduate and graduate courses in biological anthropology, human sexuality, evolution, biocultural medical anthropology, and neuroanthropology. He received his Ph.D. in Biological Anthropology in 2009 from the University at Albany, SUNY, where his doctoral focus was on the influence of speaking in tongues on stress response among Pentecostals. Chris runs a human behavioral ecology research group where the objectives include studying fun gimmicky things like trance, religious behavior, tattooing, and sex as a way of introducing students to the rigors of evolutionary science. In all his “free” time, he breaks up fights among his triplet sons, enjoys marriage to the other Loretta Lynn, strokes his mustache, and has learned to be passionate about Alabama football (Roll Tide!). Follow Chris on Twitter: @Chris_Ly

The Endemicity & Pervasiveness of Sexual Harassment

Posted on April 15, 2015 by Christopher Lynn

I just came back from great presentation & networking conferences, as usual elated by the collaborative opportunities & feedback about my work & the performances of my students & rejuvenated to push envelopes. I also returned slightly less oblivious to … Continue reading →

Fire Up Your Hearth: Relax & Stay Warm (While Being Energetically Inefficient)

Posted on November 16, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

My lab & I have presented on & written about fireside relaxation so many times by this point that I’m running out of clever titles. However, now that our first paper has finally been published &, as it happens, at … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthropology | Tagged Coke Zero, Evolutionary Psychology, fire, fireside relaxation, fireside trance | 1 Comment

Is Cunnilingus an Adaptation to Increase Intercourse Length & Increase the Probability of Fertilization?

Posted on October 16, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

Several years ago a student of mine (Christy McGee) in my “Anthropology of Sex” class was studying highly promiscuous women with the hypothesis that they would be averse to cunnilingus. She suggested that cunnilingus was a male means of detecting infidelity. … Continue reading →

Posted in Adaptation, Anthropology, Biological Anthropology, Hypotheses, Mating and Sexuality | Tagged bats, bonobos, cunnilingus, Flying Fox, Gordon Gallup | 2 Comments

Tuscaloosa is BEST: Prosociality in Tuscaloosa

Posted on October 8, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

This past spring I started a study called the Belongingness Ecology Study Tuscaloosa (BEST). Like the Religious Ecology Study Tuscaloosa (REST) before it & over which I consider it an umbrella project, it grew out of the readings & activities … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthropology, Cultural Evolution | Tagged Belongingness Ecology Study, BEST, Dan Kruger, Daniel O'Brien, David Sloan Wilson, Developmental Assets Profile, Flint, group selection, lost-letter study, Madagascar, multi-level selection, Newcastle-on-Tyne, prosociality, Religious ecology study, REST, Search Institute, Tuscaloosa | Comments Off

Cognitive Evolution via Campfire Stories

Posted on October 7, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

A fantastic analysis of fireside conversations among Ju/’hoansi Bushmen collected over the course of four decades (1970s-2000s) was recently published by Polly Wiessner in PNAS Early Edition (“Embers of society: Firelight talk among the Ju/’hoansi Bushmen“—thanks to Daniel Lende & … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthropology | Tagged Bushmen, Catching Fire, fire, fireside relaxation, fireside trance, Ju/'hoansi, Polly Wiesner | Comments Off

Gettin’ Down & Dirty with Dr. Dana: Xiphactinus, Enchodus, & Other Cretaceous Chalk Critters

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

I’ve been wanting to go fossil-hunting since arriving in Alabama, as I keep hearing about the wonderful locations down here, & finally got to experience this particular cheap thrill thru evolution. Our friend & Alabama Museum of Natural History Paleontology … Continue reading →

Posted in Paleontology | Tagged Alabama Museum of Natural History, Chris Beard, Dana Ehret, Enchodus, Eosimias, Goblin shark, Harrell Station, Mosasaur, omomyids, Red Hot Truck Stop Locality, Selma Chalk, Teilhardina magnoliana, Xiphactinus audax | Comments Off

EvoS Will Lead to (Good) Transformative, Lifelong Experiences

Posted on March 4, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

Maybe that’s a stretch, but I don’t think so. I just had to share this tweet the president of the UA EvoS Club sent out last week during the Sarah Tishkoff lecture. She just turned 21 last week, so maybe … Continue reading →

Posted in Evolution in Higher Education, Evolution in the Classroom | Tagged Alabama, Sarah Tishkoff, Taylor Burbach, University of Alabama | Comments Off

We Need Neandertals or Some as Yet Unknown But Genetically Similar Population Within the Last 100 ky in Our Story

Posted on March 1, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

A couple years ago when I first started blogging here, my friend John Edvalson asked me right out of the gate my opinion on the Neandertal-sapiens interbreeding controversy. I think I skirted an answer because, though as a biological anthropologists … Continue reading →

Posted in Biological Anthropology, Genetics | Tagged ALLELE, Denisovans, John Hawks, Neandertals, Sarah Tishkoff | Comments Off

Modeling Recent Human Genetic Adaptation

Posted on February 27, 2014 by Christopher Lynn

Geneticist Dr. Sarah Tishkoff from the University of Pennsylvania is speaking as part of UA’s ALLELE series today, & EvoS students are reading a recently review she co-authored for Nature with Laura Scheinfeldt for the occasion. The piece, “Recent human … Continue reading →

Posted in Genetics | Tagged ALLELE, Laura Scheinfeldt, Nature, Sarah Tishkoff | Comments Off

Menstrual Huts Signal Paternal Certainty

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Christopher Lynn

An article from 2012 by Beverly Strassmann & colleagues is the first piece I think I’ve read that connects religious signaling to actual reproductive fitness, instead of merely group commitment (not that there’s anything wrong with that). They analyzed genetic … Continue reading →

Posted in Anthropology, Biological Anthropology, Cultural Evolution | Tagged Beverly Strassmann, cuckoldry, Dogon, menstrual huts, paternal certainty, religious signaling, Signaling theory | Comments Off