Professor Alan Cooper, the 2016 South Australian Scientist of the Year and prominent ancient DNA researcher, will give a plenary address to the students at our PhD Course in July. But rather than keep him all to ourselves, we will be opening the address to the public.
An ARC Laureate Fellow, Prof. Cooper’s work regularly features in the highest profile journals and global media – most recently for leading research that proved, through DNA analysis of hair samples, that indigenous Australians descended from one founding population, which arrived on the continent 50,000 years ago.
By creating detailed pictures of historical climate change, human evolutions, and disease, Prof. Cooper’s work is critical to Australia’s future.
He has led many large international multi-disciplinary studies, as well as detailing the first genome of an extinct species and reconstructing the genomic history of Europe. Specialising in human evolution, climate change, megafaunal extinctions, evolution of the human microbiome, molecular clocks, genomics, extinct species, mammal and avian evolution and bioinformatics, Prof. Cooper has pioneered new major areas of research. He is also the founder and director of the Australian Centre for Ancient DNA at the University of Adelaide, an internationally leading research centre that studies issues ranging from Aboriginal genetic heritage to the impacts of environmental change and the evolution of human diseases.
If you’re interested in attending the presentation by Prof. Cooper’s on his highly acclaimed research, register here for the free event on 12 July 2017 at 4pm at Monash University’s Clayton Campus.