David R. Samson, Ph.D.
Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology
University of Toronto
About David
David Samson is an Associate Professor of Evolutionary Anthropology at the University of Toronto Mississauga and Director of the Sleep and Human Evolution Lab (SHEL). His work explores one of the most intimate and overlooked parts of human life: sleep. Drawing on evolutionary anthropology, primate behavior, cognition, health, and human ecology, David studies how sleep shaped the human lineage, how it differs across societies and species, and why modern environments often place our ancient biology under strain.
He is the author of The Sleepless Ape: The Story of Sleep in Human Evolution and Our Tribal Future: How to channel our foundational human instincts into a force for good. Compelled by the research question of "what makes humans unique?" his research and public writing bring evolutionary science to questions that matter far beyond the lab: rest, wellbeing, social connection, consciousness, and the deep history of what makes us human.
Prior to joining the University of Toronto, David completed his PhD at Indiana University and a Postdoctoral Fellowship at Duke University.
Books
THE SLEEPLESS APE: THE STORY OF SLEEP IN HUMAN EVOLUTION
Despite sleep’s critical role in health and cognition, humans sleep less than any other primate. David Samson reveals how our unique sleep patterns evolved when early humans left the trees, forming social sleeping groups that fueled survival, innovation, and deeper cognition. A groundbreaking look at how our evolutionary sleep legacy can solve modern sleep challenges.
OUR TRIBAL FUTURE
In an age of polarization, David Samson shows how understanding our tribal nature — rooted in deep evolutionary history — can help us build stronger communities and navigate division. Blending anthropology, psychology, and real-world insight, this book offers a hopeful path toward cooperation in a fractured world.
Media
David has been an invited guest speaker at organizations around the world, including National Geographic Society and The World Sleep Society. He has made guest appearances on CBC's The Nature of Things, narrated by David Suzuki. CBC Radio-Quirks & Quarks. BBC's Chris Packham's Animal Einsteins and TVOL's The Agenda with Steve Paikin. He's given talk at Anthropology and Psychology departments throughout North America and Europe.
New Scientist
The Wide Awake Ape
How a drastic change to the way we sleep propelled our species to success
Read Article
Time: Humans sleep less than closely-ralated mammals ~ By Victor Luckerson
BBC News: Lark or night owl? Blame your ancestors ~ By Helen Briggs
New York Times: Down from the trees, humans finally got a decent night's sleep ~ By Carl Zimmer
Featured Publications
2025 Samson, D.R. & McKinnon, L. Are humans undergoing a sleep epidemic or enlightenment? Sleepers in the Global North exhibit long and efficient sleep yet weaker circadian function. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 292: 20242319.
2021 Samson, D.R. The human sleep paradox: the unexpected sleeping habits of Homo sapiens. Annual Review of Anthropology.
2017 Samson, D.R., A.N. Crittenden, I.A. Mabulla, A.Z.P. Mabulla, and C.L. Nunn. Evidence that humans evolved to be natural, nighttime sleep sentinels. Proceedings of the Royal Society B. 284: 20170967.
2017 Samson, D.R., et al. The evolution of human sleep: technological and cultural innovation with sleep-wake regulation among Hadza hunter-gatherers. Journal of Human Evolution.
2015 Samson, D.R. & Nunn, C.L. Sleep intensity and the evolution of human cognition. Evolutionary Anthropology. 24(6): 225-237.
2014 Samson, D.R. & Hunt, K.D. Chimpanzees preferentially select sleeping platform construction tree species with biomechanical properties that yield stable, firm but compliant nests. PLOS ONE. 9: e103769.
Speaking
Featured Talk: The Sleepless Ape
Teaching
Applied evolutionary science exists, but just barely….part of that problem emerges out of mechanistic assumptions that can lull scientists into believing that once a system or domain is adequately modeled, it will be obvious how to create change – just pull the right levers!
My teaching philosophy centers on Applied Evolutionary Anthropology: using our evolutionary history as a practical guide for improving human wellbeing today. I teach students to see bodies, minds, sleep, social bonds, and culture as products of deep time, shaped for environments that often differ sharply from modern life. This perspective helps students identify evolutionary mismatches, where contemporary conditions undermine health, connection, and flourishing. In the classroom, I emphasize evidence, humility, and application: understanding human nature without reducing it, and translating anthropological insight into better choices, communities, and institutions that work with, rather than against, our evolved capacities.
Speaking Inquiries & Media
Canada
Speakers Spotlight
request@speakers.ca
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US Talks
Princeton University Press
pupspeaks@press.princeton.edu
(For speaking engagements)
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