Herbert Maschner, research professor of anthropology at Idaho State University, will present “Why Men Kill: The Evolution of Violence and the Origins of War” Tuesday, April 15, at 7 p.m. in Jonasson Hall, lower level of Melrose Hall at Linfield College.
Maschner is Linfield’s 10th annual anthropology lecturer in a series that showcases diverse perspectives from all four subfields of anthropology.
In this lecture, Maschner will discuss the ultimate foundations of group conflict in human history, taking an approach that integrates social anthropology, history, archaeology, primatology and evolutionary biology and psychology. Using historical, anthropological and archaeological examples, Maschner will look at the history of warfare at every scale of society and review the propensity of warfare and violence under different kinds of social structures.
Maschner also serves as the director of the Idaho Museum of Natural History. His research interests include human biocomplexity and the environment, resource and community sustainability, long-term human impact and interactions with marine ecosystems, fisheries, ocean modeling and human ecosystem engineering. He holds a bachelor’s in anthropology from the University of New Mexico, a master’s in archaeology from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, and a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of California, Santa Barbara.
This lecture is free and open to the public. It is sponsored by the Linfield College Department of Sociology/Anthropology and the Program for Liberal Arts and Civic Engagement (PLACE) at Linfield, designed to encourage the exchange of ideas across disciplines, promote civic engagement and pique intellectual curiosity through the exploration of thematic connections. This year’s PLACE theme is focused on “The Legacies of War.” For more information, call 503-883-2504 or email tlove@linfield.edu.
