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Piers Mitchell

Affiliated Lecturer in Biological Anthropology, University of Cambridge
BACKGROUND
Trained as a paleopathologist, palaeoparasitologist, physical anthropologist, medical historian, and children's orthopaedic surgeon.
President of the Paleopathology Association 2015-2017 (worldwide organisation for the study of ancient diseases).
Editorial Board Member of the International Journal of Paleopathology. International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, and PostMedieval: a Journal of Medieval Cultural Studies.
Founding Editor of the Cambridge Studies in Human Bioarchaeology and Osteoarchaeology book series, to be published by Cambridge University Press.

TEACHING
I teach a course on Human Evolution and Health. This explores how disease has shaped the way humans have evolved, and also how diseases have evolved to exploit humans. After considering the different techniques available to investigate health in past populations, we discuss the biological and genetic impact of disease upon natural selection. The cultural consequences of ill health will also be explored, including the social and religious interpretation of why people became ill, coping strategies by past civilizations to live with diseases significant in their societies, and attempts to heal the sick.

RESEARCH INTEREST
The interaction between humans and parasites throughout evolution.
Disease and health in the crusades to the medieval Middle East.

CURRENT PROJECTS
Parasites in Past Civilizations and their Impact Upon Health.
Health in the Crusades: Epidemics, Malnutrition, and the Medieval Physician.
Anatomical Dissection, Autopsy, and Pathology Museums in Britain from 1700.
The Health of King Richard III of England.

Filthy habits: medieval monks were more likely to have worms than ordinary people

Aug 21, 2022 17:29 pm UTC| Insights & Views

In the middle ages, monks, nuns, and friars had it relatively easy. They lived quiet lives within friaries and monastic complexes, reading manuscripts, praying, and tending to gardens in which they grew their own food....

Fashion for pointy shoes unleashed a wave of bunions in medieval England

Jun 14, 2021 04:36 am UTC| Life

The 14th century saw the arrival of an abundance of new styles of dress and footwear in Europe, coming in a wide range of fabrics and colours. Among these new fashion trends were poulaines rather eccentric-looking...

Economy

Vietnam’s November Trade Sees Monthly Decline but Strong Year-on-Year Growth

Vietnam recorded a notable month-on-month decline in trade activity in November, according to new data from the National Statistics Office (NSO). Exports fell 7.1% from October, reaching $39.07 billion, while imports...

Austria’s AA Credit Rating Affirmed as Fitch Highlights Stable Outlook

Fitch Ratings has reaffirmed Austrias Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating at AA with a Stable Outlook, underscoring the countrys strong economic fundamentals despite rising fiscal pressures. According to the...

Fed Meeting Sparks Division as Markets Brace for Possible Rate Cut

The upcoming Federal Reserve meeting is shaping up to be one of the most closely watched and contentious in years, with investors focused on how divided policymakers are over a potential interest-rate cut and the signals...

U.S. Stocks Rise as Cooler Inflation Boosts Hopes for Fed Rate Cut

U.S. stocks ended higher on Friday as a softer inflation reading strengthened expectations that the Federal Reserve could move forward with an interest-rate cut next week. The SP 500 climbed 0.2%, the Dow Jones Industrial...

U.S. Stocks End Week Higher as Markets Anticipate Fed Rate Cut

U.S. stocks closed the week with modest gains on Friday, as investors weighed a wave of delayed economic data and maintained strong expectations for a Federal Reserve interest rate cut at next weeks policy meeting. Despite...

Politics

CFPB to Review Anti-Discrimination Policies and Fair Lending Rules Amid Policy Shift

The U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) is preparing to convene its Consumer Advisory Board next week to review major policy changes, including a controversial proposal to scale back long-standing...

Supreme Court to Review Legality of Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Restrictions

The U.S. Supreme Court has agreed to examine the legality of President Donald Trumps directive aimed at restricting birthright citizenship, a move that could redefine a long-standing interpretation of the 14th Amendment....

Australia Imposes Sanctions on Taliban Officials Over Human Rights Abuses

Australia has announced new financial sanctions and travel bans against four senior officials of Afghanistans Taliban government, citing the worsening human rights situation in the country, particularly the escalating...

U.S. Appeals Court Rules Trump Can Remove Members of Key Federal Labor Boards

A U.S. appeals court has ruled that President Donald Trump had the authority to dismiss Democratic members of two major federal labor boards, marking a significant win for efforts to expand presidential control over...

Trump Backs Review of U.S. Childhood Vaccine Schedule After Hepatitis B Policy Change

President Donald Trump on Friday expressed support for a major shift in U.S. vaccine policy after government advisers voted to eliminate the long-standing recommendation that all newborns receive the hepatitis B vaccine at...

Science

Senate Sets December 8 Vote on Trump’s NASA Nominee Jared Isaacman

The U.S. Senate Commerce Committee announced it will vote on December 8 on President Donald Trumps renewed nomination of private astronaut and tech entrepreneur Jared Isaacman to lead NASA. Isaacman, known for his...

NASA Cuts Boeing Starliner Missions as SpaceX Pulls Ahead

NASA has significantly scaled back Boeings Starliner program after years of technical issues and delays, announcing that the next Starliner mission to the International Space Station (ISS) will fly without astronauts. The...

Blue Origin’s New Glenn Achieves Breakthrough Success With First NASA Mission

Blue Origins massive New Glenn rocket marked a major milestone as it completed its first mission for paying customers, sending two NASA satellites toward Mars and successfully landing its reusable booster at sea. The...

Cogent Biosciences Soars 120% on Breakthrough Phase 3 Results for Bezuclastinib in GIST Treatment

Cogent Biosciences (NASDAQ: COGT) shares skyrocketed over 120% after the biotech company announced groundbreaking results from its Phase 3 PEAK trial evaluating bezuclastinib in combination with sunitinib for patients with...

Trump and Merck KGaA Partner to Slash IVF Drug Costs and Expand Fertility Coverage

U.S. President Donald Trump and German pharmaceutical company Merck KGaA have announced a groundbreaking deal aimed at lowering the cost of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) treatments while boosting access to fertility care in...

Technology

Taiwan Opposition Criticizes Plan to Block Chinese App Rednote Over Security Concerns

Taiwans political landscape heated up after the government announced a plan to suspend access to the Chinese social media platform Rednoteknown as Xiaohongshufor one year. The interior ministry said the proposed ban stems...

EU Prepares Antitrust Probe Into Meta’s AI Integration on WhatsApp

The European Commission is reportedly preparing to launch a new antitrust investigation into Meta Platforms Inc. (NASDAQ: META) over the companys recent rollout of artificial intelligence features within WhatsApp....

Sam Altman Reportedly Explored Funding for Rocket Venture in Potential Challenge to SpaceX

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman reportedly explored raising significant capital to acquire or partner with a rocket company, a move that could have created direct competition with Elon Musks SpaceX. According to a report from the...

Wikipedia Pushes for AI Licensing Deals as Jimmy Wales Calls for Fair Compensation

Wikipedia is seeking additional licensing deals with major technology companies to address the growing financial burden caused by artificial intelligence firms heavily scraping its platform, according to co-founder Jimmy...

Firelight Launches as First XRP Staking Platform on Flare, Introduces DeFi Cover Feature

Firelight reaches 25M XRP deposit cap within hours of launch; ushers in a new era for decentralized XRP staking. A new XRP staking platform, Firelight, has officially launched on the Flare blockchain, marking the first...