Evolution, lactose intolerance and Neanderthal DNA were just a few topics explained at Eastern’s third day of the annual Darwin Day series.

The Doudna Fine Arts Lecture Hall housed each event, which went more in depth about the importance of DNA, as well as the role paleogenomics plays when it comes to anthropology.

This last night of the Darwin Day events made anthropology, biology and many other majors alike grow a curiosity towards Darwin’s theories as well as how his ideas galvanized future research for scientists.

The lecture Tuesday night solely focused on what a person can learn by studying ancient DNA and the history of people in the region of Europe.

“I talked about the sort of three ancestral populations of Europe; going back thousands of years and making it more clear, you know, that there are more layers beyond that,” said Iain Mathieson, assistant professor of genetics at the University of Pennsylvania and leader of the lecture.

Mathieson told the story of how certain ethnic groups have come to Europe and how they amalgamated with one another.

Mathieson said a lot of the differences that existed in humans thousands of years ago can explain why we are the way we are today. He said they could explain characteristics humans have today like food tolerances, eye color and muscle build. For instance, if a person has blue eyes, they are descendants of European hunter-gatherers, he said.

While Mathieson talked about Europe and its human populations’ evolution, he said that it is certainly not the most interesting region to study.

“I don’t think Europe is the most interesting place in the world, but it’s just the place where we have a lot of data,” he said.

When it comes to the study of other parts of the world, Mathieson said that he has only studied their DNA briefly.

“(Ancient DNA) is like the big question in the field, and that’s what we really want to do,” he said.

Mathieson said that since there has been so much research done in Europe, other regions have not really been studied to the lengths European archaeology has.

Not only is there a lack of diversity in the places of research, Mathieson also said people of color working in scientific fields is in high demand.

“I think (the idea that we need more people of color working in scientific fields) is true broadly within science, and that’s something that we all feel very uncomfortable about, and that’s something that we are trying to change,” he said.

With future endeavors, Mathieson said that he wants to use his knowledge to explore what ancient DNA research can tell people about a person’s health.

“Well, I think I want to understand more about how these things relate to disease risk today,” he said.

Many students were in the audience to hear the lecture, including Grace Osborn, a junior biological sciences major.

“This (lecture) is what I really want to get focused into,” Osborn said.

She said she has attended all three of the Darwin Day events, and this one was by far the most interesting.

Dara McGee can be reached at 581-2812 or at dmmcgee2@eiu.edu.