Dr. Athreya’s research focuses on the evolution of Middle Pleistocene Homo and the role of these populations in modern human origins. Looking at morphological features of the skull, she asks questions of phylogeny and systematics--that is, who was related to whom in the Pleistocene? She is also interested in the use of quantitative methods in physical anthropology, including a critical examination of how different methodological approaches can lead to differing analytic conclusions. She has excavated at Lower and Upper Paleolithic sites in France, as well as a Harappan site in western India. She has also conducted research in museums throughout Europe, Asia and Africa looking at the original fossils of most Middle Pleistocene specimens. Dr. Athreya is currently organizing a field project to search for Pleistocene hominin remains in Central India.