Human Adaptation in the Extremes
Schedule: Thursdays; Aug. 20, 27, Sept. 3, 2009; 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Location: Everett, Downtown (see maps)
Reg. # 105243

Course Description
The focus of this course is human adaptation in various parts of the world. We will examine biological human adaptation in general (homeostasis, acclimation/acclimatization) and then go to various environments (hot, cold, and high altitude) to explore various systems of adaptation. We will then concentrate on the hypoxic environment of 4000m in the Andes and see strategies used by the Aymara people, who live in an environment where the pressure of oxygen is especially low. In such an environment, modern technology is useless and specific strategies are needed. We will highlight how, on the Altiplano of Bolivia, biology and culture are intertwined in order to survive in such a stressful environment. Photos and personal anecdotes will bring you to the heart of the Andes.

Instructor

Isabelle Sarton Miller
Dr. Isabelle Sarton Miller has a Masters in Biochemistry from the University of Paris (France) and a Ph.D. in Bio-cultural Anthropology from the University of Washington. She is a research associate at the University of Washington and has worked on the Altiplano (4000 meters) of La Paz, Bolivia looking at cultural and physical adaptations in a life at high altitude in the Aymara children. She has explored ways to assess energy expenditure (EE) in subsistence labor in Aymara children using HR monitoring and focal sampling. She is now establishing a new study on the Altiplano to assess the different cultural strategies used to survive in that high altitude environment.