She is joint editor of the Journal of Human Evolution. Her field research concerns the evolution of genus Homo in Indonesia and human impact on island ecosystems in the South Pacific. She is best known for her work on H. erectus in Kenya and Indonesia. She received awards for teaching as a graduate student instructor of introductory physical anthropology and anatomy at the University of California and was Teacher of the Year while at the University of Florida. She has been twice elected to Who’s Who Among America’s Teachers. Susan and her husband, Carl Swisher, a geochronologist, raise Anatolian shepherd dogs. Resources