Department of Anthropology

Jim Ahern
Professor and Vice Provost and Dean of the School of Graduate Education
Biological Anthropology


B.A. 1991, Beloit College
M.A. 1993, Northern Illinois University
Ph.D. 1998, University of Michigan

jahern@uwyo.edu • (307) 766-4286 • Anthropology Bldg 217 (office) & Old Main 403


The main question that drives Dr. Ahern's research and teaching is: "What do we really know?" In other words, he is interested in tackling long-held assumptions and narrowing the possible explanations that we can derive from the limited dataset that represents the past. Influenced by this philosophy, Jim's research has covered many aspects of human biological and biocultural evolution, ranging from work on the origin of the hominin lineage to the peopling of the Americas. Much of Jim's current research focuses on the complex biocultural dynamics that coincided with the Neandertal modern human transition in Central Europe. Jim teaches a variety of courses in biological anthropology. He structures his teaching methods within a larger set of educational goals drawn from a student-centered core philosophy. Dr. Ahern has won many awards for his teaching including the Beatrice Gallatin Beuf Golden Apple of the Hesperides Award for Outstanding Freshman Teaching and the College of Arts and Sciences Extraordinary Merit Award for Teaching.

 

Courses Taught:


ANTH 1100          Introduction to Biological Anthropology pdf

ANTH 4215/5215  Evolution and Hominid Fossils pdf

ANTH 4220          Human Variation

ANTH 4020          Seminar: Neandertals

ANTH 5890         Teaching in Anthropology

 

Recent/ Selected Publications:

Recent Publications:

Books:

Janković I, Komšo D, Mihelić S, and Ahern JCM (eds.).  2017.  ARCHAEOLIM: Archaeological Investigations into the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Lim Channel. Archaeological Museum of Zagreb. Refereed.

Smith FH and Ahern JCM (editors).  2013. The Origins of Modern Humans: Biology Reconsidered.  ISBN 9780470894095.  Wiley-Blackwell.  Refereed.

Articles & Chapters

Janković I, Balen J, Potrebica H, Ahern JCM, and Novak M.  2021.  Mass violence in Copper Age Europe: the massacre burial site from Potočani, Croatia.  American Journal of Physical Anthropology. 2021:1-12.  DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.24396

Novak M, Olalde I, Ringbauer H, Rohland N, Ahern JCM, Balen H, Janković I, Potrebica H, Pinhasi R, and Reich D.  2021.  Genome-wide analysis of nearly all the victims of a 6200 year old massacre.  PlosOne 16(3):e0247332. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0247332

 

Percan T, Ahern JCM, Komšo D, Radović S, Novak M, Gerometta K, Vidas L, Janković I.  2020.  Istraživanja u Ljubićevoj pećini kraj Marčane u sezoni 2020/Excavations in Ljubićeva cave near Marčana in the 2020 season.  Annales Instituti Archaeologici XVI/2020: 219-228.

 

Eppenberger P, Čavka M, Janković I, Paar D, Buzjak N, Ahern J, Biedermann P, Novak M.  2020.  Application of radiographic analysis and virtual cleaning of bioarcheological remains enclosed in mineral deposits from limestone caves. European Radiology Experimental 4:41-48. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41747-020-00166-1

 

Janković I, Ahern JCM, Becker R, Percan T, and Komšo D.  2019.  Ljubićeva pećina: laser scanning and geophysical work in the 2019 season (Ljubićeva pećina: lasersko skeniranje i geofizikalna mjerenja u sezoni 2019).  Histria Archaeologica. 49/2018:5-11.

Becker RJ, Janković I, Ahern JCM, and Komšo D.  2019. Earth resistance tomography for sediment depth modeling at the Romuald’s Cave site in the Lim Channel, Croatia.  Archaeological Prospection. 2019:1-7.  DOI: 10.1002/arp.1749

Ahern JCM.  2018.  Sahelanthropus.  In: Trevathan W (ed.).  The International Encyclopedia of Biological Anthropology.  Wiley-Blackwell.  ISBN: 9781118584422.

Janković I, Vukosavljević N, Ahern JCM, Karavanić I, Mihelić S and Smith FH.  2018.  Bukovac cave revisited.  Recent excavations of an early Upper Paleolithic site in the Gorski kotar region of Croatia. Arch Korrespondezblatt.

Janković I, Komšo D, Ahern JCM, Becker R, Gerometta K, Weinstock J, Barbir A, Vukosavljević N, Cvitkušić B, Zubčić K, Mihelić S, Karavanić I, and Smith FH.  2017. New research on the Late Pleistocene in the Lim Channel, Istria. Antiquity Project Gallery. 91(359).

Janković I, Komšo D, Ahern JCM, Becker R, Barbir A, Gerometta K, Cvitkušić B, and Mihelić S.  2017.  ARHEOLOŠKA ISTRAŽIVANJA U LIMSKOM KANALU 2016. Lokaliteti: Romualdova pećina, Abri Kontija 002, Lim 001, Pećina kod Rovinjskog Sela/ARCHAEOLOGICAL EXCAVATION IN THE LIM CHANNEL IN 2016
Sites: Romuald’s Cave, Abri Kontija 002, Lim 001, Pećina Cave Near Rovinjsko Selo.  Histria Archaeologica. 47/2016: 75-97.

Janković I, Komšo D, and Ahern JCM. 2017.  Introduction: The ARCHAEOLIM Project.  In: Janković I, Komšo D, Mihelić S, and Ahern JCM (eds.).  ARCHAEOLIM: Archaeological Investigations into the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Lim Channel. Archaeological Museum of Zagreb.

Janković I, Komšo D, and Ahern JCM.  2017.  Nalazi ljudskih kosturni ostataka/Human skeletal remains.  In: Janković I, Komšo D, Mihelić S, and Ahern JCM (eds.).  ARCHAEOLIM: Archaeological Investigations into the Late Pleistocene and Early Holocene of the Lim Channel. Archaeological Museum of Zagreb.

Karavanić I, Šošić-Klindžić R, Ahern JCM, Čondić N, Janković I, Zubčić K, and Smith FH. 2017.  Recent research on the Middle/Upper Paleolithic interface in Croatia, in the context of Central and SE Europe. In Harvati K and Roksandic M (eds.): Human Evolution in the Southern Balkans. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology book series (Delson E & Sargis E, Series Eds.).  Springer-Verlag.

Janković I, Ahern JCM, Karavanić I, and Smith FH.  2017. The importance of Croatian Pleistocene hominin finds in the study of human evolution. In Harvati K and Roksandic M (eds.): Human Evolution in the Southern Balkans. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology book series (Delson E & Sargis E, Series Eds.).  Springer-Verlag. 

Karavanić I, Vukosavljević N, Janković I, Ahern JCM, and Smith FH.  2017.  Paleolithic hominins and settlement in Croatia from MIS 6 to MIS 3: research history and current interpretations.  Quaternary International. Doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2017.09.034.

Becker R, Janković I, Komšo D, Ahern JCM, Gerometta K, and Weinstock J.  2017. Earth Resistance Tomography for Detecting Previous Excavation Trenches in Cave and Rock Shelter Sites in the Lim Channel, Croatia. Collegium Antropologicum. 41:173-179.

Smith FH, Ahern JCM, Janković I and Karavanić I.  2017.  Ancient genomics and the Assimilation Model for modern human origins.  Quaternary International. 450:126-136.

Janković I, Balen J, Ahern JCM, Premužić Z, Čavka M, Potrebica H, and Novak M.  2017.  Prehistoric massacre revealed.  Four cases of perimortem cranial trauma from Potočani, Croatia.  Anthropologischer Anzeiger. 74(2):131-141.

Surovell TA, Toohey JL, Myers AD, LaBelle JM, Ahern JCM, Reisig B.  2017.  The end of archaeological discovery.  American Antiquity. 33(2): 288-300.

Karavanić I, Vukosavljević N, Čondić N, Miko S, Razum I, Ilijanić N, Zubčić K, Šošić Klindžić R, Ahern JCM, and Barbir A.  2016.  Projekt “Kasni musterijen na istočnom Jadranu – temelj za razumijevanje identiteta kasnih neandertalaca i nihovog nestanka”: sažetak 2. I 3. godine istraživanja/Project Late Mousterian in the eastern Adriatic – towards understanding of the late Neanderthals’ identity and their demise: summary of the 2nd and 3rd years of research.  Prilozi Instituta za arheologiju u Zagrebu. 33:135-150.

Janković I, Ahern JCM, Becker R, Komšo D, Gerometta K, Mihelić S, Zubčić K. 2016. Arheološka istraživanja u Limskom kanalu 2014. i 2015. Lokaliteti Romualdova pećina i Abri Kontija 002, Pećina kod Rovinjskog Sela, Lim 001 i podvodni pregled Limskog kanala. Histria Archaeologica. 46: 5-23.

Šošić-Klindžić R, Radović S, Težak-Gregl T, Šlaus M, Perhoč Z, Hulina M, Gerometta K, Boschian G, Vukosavljević N, Karavanić I, Richards M, Ahern JCM, Janković I.  2015.  Late Upper Paleolithic, Early Mesolithic and Early Neolithic  from the cave site Zemunica, Bisko (Croatia).  Eurasian Prehistory. 12:3-46.

Janković I, Ahern JCM, Mihelić S, and Premužić Z.  2015.  Bronze Age finds from Romualdova Cave, Istria: 2014 excavation season.  Collegium Antropologicum.  39(4):943-946.

Šošić-Klindžić R, Karavanić I, Vukosavljević N, Ahern JCM. Smještaj, stratigrafija, kronologia i tijek iskopavanja špilje Zale (Occupation, stratigraphy, chronology and the course of excavations at Zala Cave).  2015.  In Karavanić I and Vukosavljević N (eds).  Arheologija Špilje Zale: Od Paleolitičkih Lovaca Skupljača do Rimskih Osvajača. Katedra Čakavskog sabora Modruše.

Karavanić I, Vukosavljević N, Šošić-Klindžić R, Ahern JCM, and Smith FH. Špila Zala u dijakronijskoj perspektivi: sažetak rezultata.  2015.  In Karavanić I and Vukosavljević N (eds). Arheologija Špilje Zale: Od Paleolitičkih Lovaca Skupljača do Rimskih Osvajača. Katedra Čakavskog sabora Modruše.

Ahern JCM.  2015.  Archaic Homo. In M. Muehlenbein (ed.): Basics in Human Evolution.  Elsevier. 

Janković I, Ahern JCM, and Smith FH.  2015.  On some aspects of Neandertal zygomatic morphology with consideration of other archaic and early modern humans.  HOMO: The Journal of Comparative Human Biology. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jchb.2015.12.001

 

Jim on Academia.edu http://uwyo.academia.edu/JamesAhern 

Jim on ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Jim-Ahern

Research Interests:

Biological Anthropology, Human Paleontology, Paleolithic Archaeology, Biocultural Evolution, Europe, Africa, Neandertals and Modern Human Origins, Hominin Origins and Australopithecines, Systematics, Species Concepts

OTHER LINKS:


    * UW School of Graduate Education

    * Web course content (WyoWeb)

 

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Anthropology Department

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Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-5136

Email: anthro@uwyo.edu

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James Ahern

 



Contact Us

Anthropology Department

12th and Lewis Streets

Laramie, WY 82071

Phone: (307) 766-5136

Email: anthro@uwyo.edu

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