Hi! I’m Sam Passmore

I use quantitative methods to explore the cultural diversity observed around the globe.

Currently, I’m a Research Fellow in the Evolution of Cultural Diversity Initiative, at the Australian National University, led by Nick Evans. Previously, I was a postdoctoral researcher with Pat Savage’s CompMusic Lab at Keio University in Japan (CompMusic is for comparative and computational approaches to the study of music). I finished my PhD in 2021 at the University of Bristol as a member of Fiona Jordan’s VariKin project studying the evolution of kinship and kinship terminology (Varikin is for Variance in Kinship). Earlier in my career, I studied and worked for Quentin Atkinson at the University of Auckland - the city where I grew up. Outside of academia, I have worked as a Data Scientist at Pingar International.

I have published articles in journals such as: Current Biology, Cognition, Biological Theory, and Religion, Brain, and Behaviour. I have written reviews for journals such as: American Anthropologist, Diachronica, Evolution and Human Behaviour, CogSci, and Frontiers Psychology.

I am a keen R programmer, with an interest in data management.

If there’s something I can help with - don’t hesitate to contact me!