Lee R. Berger | |
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Lee R. Berger with reconstruction of Au. sediba
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Born |
Shawnee Mission, Kansas, US |
December 22, 1965
Fields | Paleoanthropologist and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence |
Institutions | University of the Witwatersrand |
Alma mater | |
Thesis | Functional morphology of the hominoid shoulder, past and present. (1994) |
Doctoral advisor | Phillip V. Tobias |
Notable awards | Time 100, 2016 - most influential people in the American world |
Spouse | Jacqueline Berger |
Children | Megan, Matthew |
Website www |
Lee Rogers Berger (born December 22, 1965) is an American-born South African paleoanthropologist and National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence. He is best known for his discovery of the Australopithecus sediba type site, Malapa; his leadership of Rising Star Expedition in the excavation of Homo naledi at Rising Star Cave; and the Taung Bird of Prey Hypothesis.
Berger is known not only for his discoveries, but also for his unusually public persona in paleoanthropology, and for making his most notable discoveries open-access projects. He makes hundreds of talks per year, and has had a close relationship with National Geographic for many years, appearing in several of their shows and documentaries.
Berger was born in Shawnee Mission, Kansas in 1965, but was raised outside of Sylvania, Georgia in the United States. As a youth, Berger was active in the Boy Scouts, Future Farmers of America, and president of Georgia 4-H. In 1984, Berger was named Georgia's Youth Conservationist of the Year for his work in conserving the threatened gopher tortoise. He is a Distinguished Eagle Scout, and received the Boy Scouts of America Honor Medal for saving a life in 1987.
He graduated from Georgia Southern University in 1989 with a degree in anthropology/archaeology and a minor in geology.