About Barbara

Bio

New Jersey native, near Asbury Park. PhD University of Oklahoma, Norman. Lived in Gabon and Kenya for primate observation fieldwork. Professor Emerita of Anthropology at the College of William and Mary in Virginia. Freelance science writer. Books Personalities on the Plate: The Lives and Minds of Animals We Eat, 2017, How Animals Grieve, 2013, Evolving God, 2017, see website for more! My work has appeared at NPR where I blogged for six years, at Scientific American, Aeon, Undark, Washington Post, TLS Enjoys science outreach, Science + Entertainment Exchange 'science speed dating', 92nd St Y, many campus visits, World Science Festival and more.

I'm passionate about

Octopus, frogs, warthogs, goats, monkeys, cats, spiders, and all kinds of animal advocacy.

An idea worth spreading

Animals (many animals from chimpanzees to chickens) express profound emotions as they go about their lives. When we let ourselves see animal minds and emotions for what they are, new paths open up to transform the world.

Things you might not know

Learning how to walk again on feet benumbed by chemo-induced neuropathy! And being grateful for science.