Selected Events

In this talk we present the multiple tree topologies approach. In the multiple topologies approach, regular MCMC phylogenetic inference is extended using a mixture models approach (Pagel & Meade 2004) in order to estimate two topologies at the same time (Pagel & Meade 2006). This method can identify different evolutionary histories that may be found in subsets of the dataset. We present the model in mathematical detail, as well as applications in biology and linguistics. [more]

[more]

The origins of the Japanese language are among the most disputed issues of historical linguistics. In this talk, Prof Robbeets presents evidence for Transeurasian affiliation, relating Japanese to Korean, Tungusic, Mongolic and Turkic languages. This classification gives rise to new questions with regard to the location of the original homeland, the dating and the early dispersals of Transeurasian languages. She addresses these through ‘triangulating’ genetics, archaeology and linguistics in a unified perspective, among others presenting the first whole-genome analyses of ancient DNA for the Korean Peninsula and the Southern Ryukyus. By combining evidence from the three disciplines, Prof Robbeets shows that the spread of Japanese to the Japanese Islands was driven by agriculture. [more]