Evolutionary medicine is a rapidly growing field that uses knowledge from modern evolutionary biology to better understand, prevent, and treat disease. It examines why our bodies are what they are, which allows us to have a better understanding of factors that make us particularly vulnerable to certain diseases or types of injuries. Evolutionary medicine factors prominently in discussions of antibiotics, viruses, vaccines, obesity, and the recent growth in auto-immune diseases.
Rui Diogo, associate professor of anatomy at Howard University’s College of Medicine and resource faculty member at George Washington University’s Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, offers a fascinating discussion of the medical and societal implications of evolutionary medicine, drawing on examples ranging from the historical origin of pandemics to Covid, from the history of the first vaccines to state-of-the-art studies on cancer and social networks, and what the study of other primates and non-Western humans can tell us about the future of medicine and our well-being in general.
Patron Information
- If you register multiple individuals, you will be asked to supply individual names and email addresses so they can receive a Zoom link email. Please note that if there is a change in program schedule or a cancellation, we will notify you via email, and it will be your responsibility to notify other registrants in your group.
- Unless otherwise noted, registration for online programs typically closes two hours prior to the start time on the date of the program.
- Once registered, patrons should receive an automatic email confirmation from CustomerService@SmithsonianAssociates.org.
- Separate Zoom link information will be emailed closer to the date of the program. If you do not receive your Zoom link information 24 hours prior to the start of the program, please email Customer Service for assistance.
- View Common FAQs about our online programs presented on Zoom.
