Macquarie University

Post-Doc, Anthropology

Thesis Title: Music, Movement, Martial Arts: Sound and gesture in West Sumatran, West Javanese, and Afro-Bahian combat-dancing

About

Paul was awarded his PhD through the Department of Anthropology, Macquarie University. He wrote his dissertation on practices of combat-dancing from West Sumatra, West Java and Bahia. From 2007-2009, he completed ethnographic fieldwork in Indonesia and Brazil as well as archival research in Holland. His passion is the study of the reiterative causality between brains, culture and the environment. From choreomusicology through combat-dancing to cultural evolution, Paul has a variety of interests that span across the brain sciences, the history and philosophy of science, ethnomusicology and dance anthropology.

During the first half of 2011, Paul taught "Keeping the Body in Mind" with Dr Tamara Kohn at Melbourne University. He is currently the Head Tutor for 'Human Evolution and Diversity'  in the Department of Anthropology at Macquarie University (2008, 2010 & 2011).

At the University of Western Sydney, he was a guest lecturer for a unit on 'Biology for Psychology' (2006). At La Trobe University, Paul was a guest lecturer on the subject of 'embodiment' for a course on 'Body, Mind and Culture' (2011). At Macquarie University, he has been the Convenor of 'Choreography' in the Department of Media, Music, Communication and Cultural Studies where he has also tutored 'Dance, Screen and Media' and guest lectured 'Contemporary Dance' (2010). In the Department of Anthropology, Macquarie University, Paul has also tutored 'Globalisation and Culture' (2010) and guest lectured for 'Ethnicity, Migration and Nationalism' (2010 & 2011) as well as 'Migration and Transnationalism' (2011).

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