The UNM Department of Anthropology and the UNM Department of Biology invite you to attend a co-sponsored colloquia featuring Dr. Cynthia M Beall Distinguished University Professor & S. Idell Pyle Professor of Anthropology, Anthropology Department, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH on Thursday, April 5 at 3:30 pm in 100 Castetter Hall on the UNM Campus. She will present her talk: “Genes, Physiology, and Fertility of Tibetan Women at High Altitudes."

Abstract: High-altitude populations offer an informative natural labora-tory to tests hypotheses about ongoing human evolution and adaptation. This talk presents evidence that Andean and Tibetan highlanders differ in biological characteristics and gene pools. Narrowing the focus to Tibetans, it describes the relationships among genotypes, phenotypes, and reproductive success in a sample of post-reproductive Tibetan women residing at high altitudes in Nepal.

Dr. Beall is a physical anthropologist whose research focuses on human adaptation to high-altitude hypoxia, particularly the differ-ent patterns of adaptation exhibited by Andean, Tibetan and East African highlanders. Her current research deals with the genetics of adaptive traits and evidence for natural selection and with the role of nitric oxide in oxygen delivery at high altitude. Professor Beall is a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, American Philo-sophical Society, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.