Jacob Harris

Jacob Harris is an Assistant Professor in the School of Interdisciplinary Forensics (SIF). His research examines human expertise, its evolution, implementation, and perception, through evolutionary and cultural anthropology, behavioral ecology, taphonomy, and archaeology. Dr. Harris is also advancing quantitative methods and experimental studies to assess and improve objectivity in the field of taphonomy, with applications in forensic science and archaeology. He and his students are currently making progress in the field of forensic taphonomy through the production of experimental cutmark data and the development of probability models using Bayesian inference and machine learning routines. His research is both field and lab based. He regularly conducts fieldwork in Tanzania and works with Hadza foragers, one of the last remaining hunter-gatherer groups to rely almost entirely on traditional technology and wild foods. Dr. Harris’ research has been published in leading journals, presented nationally and internationally at major conferences, and has been funded by multiple grants from the National Science Foundation and the National Institute of Justice.