Barbara J. King
Barbara J. King is a contributor to the NPR blog 13.7: Cosmos & Culture. She is a Chancellor Professor of Anthropology at the College of William and Mary. With a long-standing research interest in primate behavior and human evolution, King has studied baboon foraging in Kenya and gorilla and bonobo communication at captive facilities in the United States.
Recently, she has taken up writing about animal emotion and cognition more broadly, including in bison, farm animals, elephants and domestic pets, as well as primates.
King's most recent book is How Animals Grieve (University of Chicago Press, 2013). Her article "When Animals Mourn" in the July 2013 Scientific American has been chosen for inclusion in the 2014 anthology The Best American Science and Nature Writing. King reviews non-fiction for the Times Literary Supplement (London) and is at work on a new book about the choices we make in eating other animals. She was awarded a Guggenheim Fellowship for her work in 2002.
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Anthropologist Barbara J. King says Hurricane Florence should lead us to look beyond the agriculture industry's loss of "inventory" and view animals as thinking, feeling — and suffering — beings.
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Author Paige Williams brings the discussion to life by recounting the exploits of commercial fossil hunter Eric Prokopi, highlighting one find — a 24-ft.-long Tarbosaurus fossil, the book's star.
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The severity of the enormous reduction in bee numbers over the past decade is at the heart of a new book by conservation biologist Thor Hanson, whose appreciation for the pollinators shines through.
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Meat and veggie burgers evolved together in the 20th century, but when it comes to associations with gender, their histories diverge. Anthropologist Barbara J. King explores a new book on the topic.
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Are playgrounds in the U.S. too sterile and risk-averse to help our kids thrive? Anthropologist Barbara J. King considers play and child development in evolutionary perspective.
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New evidence suggests Neanderthals made cave art — and they may also have created religious rituals. It's time to let go of Neanderthal-human "border policing," says anthropologist Barbara J. King.
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In step with Matthew Engelke's book published Tuesday, Barbara J. King says thinking anthropologically has never been more critical than in today's world, where assumptions are made and shared widely.
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Polynesia was colonized by the French and, even today, Polynesians are taught more about French history than their own. A new archaeological project aims to help change that, says Barbara J. King.
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Tiny filler words in human rapid-fire conversation hold the key to understanding how language is unique, according to a new book. But anthropologist Barbara J. King raises some questions.
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We may all tear up watching this elderly chimpanzee reunite with a friend at the end of her life — a testament to the complexity of animal thinking and feeling, says anthropologist Barbara J. King.