Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
@dstibbardhawkes.bsky.social
Anthropologist interested in hunter-gatherer egalitarianism | Asst Prof @BaylorAnthro.bsky.social | Editor-in-Chief, Hunter-Gatherer Research | Spelling errors my own
Pinned
The 'I' in Egalitarianism: Hadza Hunter-Gatherers Averse to Inequality Primarily when Personally Unfavourable
Many anthropologists and economists contend that humans are characterized by strong, universal, other-regarding equality preferences with deep evolutionary root
papers.ssrn.com
🚨Preprint alert 🚨
Forager food-sharing is often portrayed as “a positive insistence on equality” (Woodburn) or an “instinct” to equalise inequalities (Fehr). A new paper with @kris-smith.bsky.social, exploring Hadza reallocation decisions, challenges this view. 1/10 papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Forager food-sharing is often portrayed as “a positive insistence on equality” (Woodburn) or an “instinct” to equalise inequalities (Fehr). A new paper with @kris-smith.bsky.social, exploring Hadza reallocation decisions, challenges this view. 1/10 papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
Actually I know, but I'll never tell.
it’s crazy because no one knows what the aim of science is
November 10, 2025 at 2:19 AM
Actually I know, but I'll never tell.
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
This is a really remarkable piece of writing and in its particulars it describes so, so many people
James Watson, dead at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers
James Watson, the co-discoverer of the structure of DNA who died Thursday at 97, was a scientific legend and a pariah among his peers.
www.statnews.com
November 9, 2025 at 1:31 AM
This is a really remarkable piece of writing and in its particulars it describes so, so many people
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
So, lots of people picking up Kevin's post to declare all Evolutionary Psychology/ists misogynistic pervs. And I get why but look:
I trained in Evo Psych. I trained in Behavioural Ecology too which maybe helps but I came into academia an enthusiastic researcher of sexual selection.
1/
I trained in Evo Psych. I trained in Behavioural Ecology too which maybe helps but I came into academia an enthusiastic researcher of sexual selection.
1/
Evolutionary psychology makes a big to-do about their finding that sexual selection favors a "feminine body type" that "signals fertility/reproductive potential", including some rather... silly research. Turns out, those traits don't seem to signal reproductive success. Oops! doi.org/10.1017/ehs....
November 9, 2025 at 10:32 PM
So, lots of people picking up Kevin's post to declare all Evolutionary Psychology/ists misogynistic pervs. And I get why but look:
I trained in Evo Psych. I trained in Behavioural Ecology too which maybe helps but I came into academia an enthusiastic researcher of sexual selection.
1/
I trained in Evo Psych. I trained in Behavioural Ecology too which maybe helps but I came into academia an enthusiastic researcher of sexual selection.
1/
Catching strays in the new Rosalia album...
November 7, 2025 at 7:33 AM
Catching strays in the new Rosalia album...
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
New article in collaboration with @chrisbuckley.bsky.social , @thomaspellard.bsky.social @robinryder.bsky.social on the phylogeny of Kra-Dai languages and of the looms used by their speakers:
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
Contrasting modes of cultural evolution: Kra-Dai languages and weaving technologies | Evolutionary Human Sciences | Cambridge Core
Contrasting modes of cultural evolution: Kra-Dai languages and weaving technologies - Volume 7
www.cambridge.org
November 5, 2025 at 1:08 PM
New article in collaboration with @chrisbuckley.bsky.social , @thomaspellard.bsky.social @robinryder.bsky.social on the phylogeny of Kra-Dai languages and of the looms used by their speakers:
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
www.cambridge.org/core/journal...
I periodically remember that this article, quantifying the abuse its author received uni-cycling through Newcastle, exists and was published in the BMJ.
www.bmj.com/content/bmj/...
www.bmj.com/content/bmj/...
www.bmj.com
November 4, 2025 at 9:04 PM
I periodically remember that this article, quantifying the abuse its author received uni-cycling through Newcastle, exists and was published in the BMJ.
www.bmj.com/content/bmj/...
www.bmj.com/content/bmj/...
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Milks and colleagues reassess the #Boxgrove horse #scapula which was interpreted as showing evidence of spear injury but looks more likely to be the result if hammerstone percussion to get at grease and #marrow
#archaeology #MiddlePleistocene […]
#archaeology #MiddlePleistocene […]
Original post on c.im
c.im
November 2, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Milks and colleagues reassess the #Boxgrove horse #scapula which was interpreted as showing evidence of spear injury but looks more likely to be the result if hammerstone percussion to get at grease and #marrow
#archaeology #MiddlePleistocene […]
#archaeology #MiddlePleistocene […]
I will never understand why BBC Royal Correspondents write like this.
October 31, 2025 at 12:17 AM
I will never understand why BBC Royal Correspondents write like this.
Oh my I in fact linked the wrong paper 🫢. Here's the correct one but Jay's is great to ofc!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
October 27, 2025 at 8:39 PM
Oh my I in fact linked the wrong paper 🫢. Here's the correct one but Jay's is great to ofc!
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
www.pnas.org/doi/10.1073/...
This is an extremely exciting paper, with a useful conclusion.
I believe the primary metric is house-size inequality which is, of course, not wholly a straightforward proxy for inequality sensu lato; but the findings & the data story seem eminently sensible.
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
I believe the primary metric is house-size inequality which is, of course, not wholly a straightforward proxy for inequality sensu lato; but the findings & the data story seem eminently sensible.
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
Long-term trends in human body size track regional variation in subsistence transitions and growth acceleration linked to dairying | PNAS
Evidence for a reduction in stature between Mesolithic foragers and Neolithic farmers
has been interpreted as reflective of declines in health, how...
www.pnas.org
October 27, 2025 at 7:50 PM
This is an extremely exciting paper, with a useful conclusion.
I believe the primary metric is house-size inequality which is, of course, not wholly a straightforward proxy for inequality sensu lato; but the findings & the data story seem eminently sensible.
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
I believe the primary metric is house-size inequality which is, of course, not wholly a straightforward proxy for inequality sensu lato; but the findings & the data story seem eminently sensible.
www.pnas.org/doi/abs/10.1...
I have often heard that school holiday schedules and daylight saving time are organized around farm labor. Apparently *both* of these received truisms are false.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dayligh...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dayligh...
Daylight saving time - Wikipedia
en.wikipedia.org
October 27, 2025 at 6:12 PM
I have often heard that school holiday schedules and daylight saving time are organized around farm labor. Apparently *both* of these received truisms are false.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dayligh...
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dayligh...
It's not just this. I think some LLMs have logic engines and other bits 'n' pieces loosely sellotaped to them.
But it really is mostly this.
But it really is mostly this.
Chatbots — LLMs — do not know facts and are not designed to be able to accurately answer factual questions. They are designed to find and mimic patterns of words, probabilistically. When they’re “right” it’s because correct things are often written down, so those patterns are frequent. That’s all.
October 27, 2025 at 4:38 PM
It's not just this. I think some LLMs have logic engines and other bits 'n' pieces loosely sellotaped to them.
But it really is mostly this.
But it really is mostly this.
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Most read in HGR:
'Looking Up for prehistoric hunter-gatherer archaeological sites in mountain landscapes in Europe' by @arctic-glacial.bsky.social, @diggermann.bsky.social, @graemewarren.bsky.social et al.
Read it #OpenAccess: bit.ly/HGR-EUR
@ucdarchaeology.bsky.social @dstibbardhawkes.bsky.social
'Looking Up for prehistoric hunter-gatherer archaeological sites in mountain landscapes in Europe' by @arctic-glacial.bsky.social, @diggermann.bsky.social, @graemewarren.bsky.social et al.
Read it #OpenAccess: bit.ly/HGR-EUR
@ucdarchaeology.bsky.social @dstibbardhawkes.bsky.social
October 22, 2025 at 7:07 PM
Most read in HGR:
'Looking Up for prehistoric hunter-gatherer archaeological sites in mountain landscapes in Europe' by @arctic-glacial.bsky.social, @diggermann.bsky.social, @graemewarren.bsky.social et al.
Read it #OpenAccess: bit.ly/HGR-EUR
@ucdarchaeology.bsky.social @dstibbardhawkes.bsky.social
'Looking Up for prehistoric hunter-gatherer archaeological sites in mountain landscapes in Europe' by @arctic-glacial.bsky.social, @diggermann.bsky.social, @graemewarren.bsky.social et al.
Read it #OpenAccess: bit.ly/HGR-EUR
@ucdarchaeology.bsky.social @dstibbardhawkes.bsky.social
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
We're pleased and proud to congratulate Baylor Ph.D. candidate Marcela Pfaff Nash, who is the recipient of a Graduate Women in NSF Fellowship and an NSF DDRIG, for her research on how changing ecological & economic conditions affect children’s energy absorption among the Ecuadorian Shuar.
October 21, 2025 at 9:52 PM
We're pleased and proud to congratulate Baylor Ph.D. candidate Marcela Pfaff Nash, who is the recipient of a Graduate Women in NSF Fellowship and an NSF DDRIG, for her research on how changing ecological & economic conditions affect children’s energy absorption among the Ecuadorian Shuar.
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Critique is not automatically criticism
It should be an essential part of democratic debate (and academic debate for that matter)
It should be an essential part of democratic debate (and academic debate for that matter)
October 19, 2025 at 9:59 AM
Critique is not automatically criticism
It should be an essential part of democratic debate (and academic debate for that matter)
It should be an essential part of democratic debate (and academic debate for that matter)
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
An interesting article on the representation of Ainu in the Pokemon game Arceus, set in a history inspired version of Hokkaidō. Lots of interesting thoughts about colonization and representation of indigenaity in video games.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
As Pokémon Legends: Z-A launches, we return to Pokémon Legends: Arceus' rose-tinted take on the past, and the hard questions it raises about Japanese history
Pokémon Legends: Arceus, relevent again upon the release of Legends: Z-A, makes an awkward job of engaging with history - but Game Freak should continue to try.
www.eurogamer.net
October 19, 2025 at 2:21 PM
An interesting article on the representation of Ainu in the Pokemon game Arceus, set in a history inspired version of Hokkaidō. Lots of interesting thoughts about colonization and representation of indigenaity in video games.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
Hunter-gatherer communities like the Ainu often suffered severe consequences from settler colonialism.
I wrote about how Pokémon, the world's biggest media franchise, tackles this painful topic.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
I wrote about how Pokémon, the world's biggest media franchise, tackles this painful topic.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
As Pokémon Legends: Z-A launches, we return to Pokémon Legends: Arceus' rose-tinted take on the past, and the hard questions it raises about Japanese history
Pokémon Legends: Arceus, relevent again upon the release of Legends: Z-A, makes an awkward job of engaging with history - but Game Freak should continue to try.
www.eurogamer.net
October 19, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Hunter-gatherer communities like the Ainu often suffered severe consequences from settler colonialism.
I wrote about how Pokémon, the world's biggest media franchise, tackles this painful topic.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
I wrote about how Pokémon, the world's biggest media franchise, tackles this painful topic.
www.eurogamer.net/as-pokemon-l...
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
New fossils reveal the hand of Paranthropus boisei🏺🧪
C. Mongle, Meave Leakey, @louiseleakey.bsky.social et al
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Suggests P. boisei capable of tool making and use in some capacity while also supports proposed dichotomy of dietary adaptations between Paranthropus and Homo
C. Mongle, Meave Leakey, @louiseleakey.bsky.social et al
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Suggests P. boisei capable of tool making and use in some capacity while also supports proposed dichotomy of dietary adaptations between Paranthropus and Homo
October 17, 2025 at 3:31 PM
New fossils reveal the hand of Paranthropus boisei🏺🧪
C. Mongle, Meave Leakey, @louiseleakey.bsky.social et al
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Suggests P. boisei capable of tool making and use in some capacity while also supports proposed dichotomy of dietary adaptations between Paranthropus and Homo
C. Mongle, Meave Leakey, @louiseleakey.bsky.social et al
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Suggests P. boisei capable of tool making and use in some capacity while also supports proposed dichotomy of dietary adaptations between Paranthropus and Homo
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Happy mushroom day to all who celebrate! 🍄🟫🍄
If you're interested in how people around the world have used and abused mushrooms—the strange world of ethnomycology—check it out:
If you're interested in how people around the world have used and abused mushrooms—the strange world of ethnomycology—check it out:
In honor of National Mushroom Day (Oct. 15), don't miss @roopekaaronen.net 's "Living in the Mycelial World: A global cross-cultural ethnomycological review", featured in the HRAF Academic Quarterly 2025(2): hraf.yale.edu/hraf-academi...
HRAF Academic Quarterly, Vol 2025-02
HRAF Academic Quarterly, Vol 2025-02 By Francine Barone This summary features some of the exciting research accomplished using HRAF data from the eHRAF World Cultures and eHRAF Archaeology databases as well as Explaining Human Culture (EHC), ...
hraf.yale.edu
October 15, 2025 at 4:40 PM
Happy mushroom day to all who celebrate! 🍄🟫🍄
If you're interested in how people around the world have used and abused mushrooms—the strange world of ethnomycology—check it out:
If you're interested in how people around the world have used and abused mushrooms—the strange world of ethnomycology—check it out:
I feel like I've lost about 150 friends simply by complaining about Dumbar's number.
It is wrong theoretically, statistically, and also emprically.
It is wrong theoretically, statistically, and also emprically.
"Dunbar's Number" is a zombie that lives forever in the science press it seems. Estimates of Dunbar's Number with 95% intervals, for a range of model specifications (from doi.org/10.1098/rsbl... ):
October 15, 2025 at 2:28 AM
I feel like I've lost about 150 friends simply by complaining about Dumbar's number.
It is wrong theoretically, statistically, and also emprically.
It is wrong theoretically, statistically, and also emprically.
The speed at which my head nod about Sapiens turned into a head shake about the Dawn of Everything almost gave me whiplash.
Just be aware that according to actually knowledgeable experts, he gets a lot about the first 70 000 years wrong. Must recommend Dawn of Everything as a much better sourced story about early humans
October 14, 2025 at 5:04 PM
The speed at which my head nod about Sapiens turned into a head shake about the Dawn of Everything almost gave me whiplash.
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Australian king parrot in the backyard over the weekend.
#Australia #Canberra #spring #october #birds #photography #BirdPhotography #WildlifePhotography #NatureLovers #BirdingAdventures #Ornithology #parrot #bird
#Australia #Canberra #spring #october #birds #photography #BirdPhotography #WildlifePhotography #NatureLovers #BirdingAdventures #Ornithology #parrot #bird
October 6, 2025 at 4:32 AM
Australian king parrot in the backyard over the weekend.
#Australia #Canberra #spring #october #birds #photography #BirdPhotography #WildlifePhotography #NatureLovers #BirdingAdventures #Ornithology #parrot #bird
#Australia #Canberra #spring #october #birds #photography #BirdPhotography #WildlifePhotography #NatureLovers #BirdingAdventures #Ornithology #parrot #bird
The Durham police once detained me in one of these cars for half an hour because they thought I had stolen my own bike.
Toronto could learn something from police cars in Durham, UK. Many are small and economical instead of big SUVs. Toronto police tell pedestrians to dress up like Durham police dress up their cars- bright and easy to see. Oh, and the yellow stripe? It designates a parking area labelled ”police.”
October 6, 2025 at 5:33 PM
The Durham police once detained me in one of these cars for half an hour because they thought I had stolen my own bike.
Reposted by Duncan Stibbard Hawkes
Time to flock to the polls for Australia's biggest beak-off 🐦
Cast your vote for Bird of the Year 2025:
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
#BirdOfTheYear
Cast your vote for Bird of the Year 2025:
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
#BirdOfTheYear
Australian bird of the year 2025: vote for your favourite #birdoftheyear in the Guardian / BirdLife Australia poll
From little penguins to (very big) cassowaries, every bird has its fans. Vote for your favourite in the 2025 Guardian/BirdLife Australia poll
www.theguardian.com
October 6, 2025 at 12:47 AM
Time to flock to the polls for Australia's biggest beak-off 🐦
Cast your vote for Bird of the Year 2025:
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
#BirdOfTheYear
Cast your vote for Bird of the Year 2025:
www.theguardian.com/environment/...
#BirdOfTheYear