Luke Harmon
One leaf on the tree of life, taking the long view
Evolutionary biologist at the University of Idaho. I write essays and books about evolution, deep time, and the weird living world — including the forthcoming Leaf (Princeton University Press) and the weekly Substack Leaves from the Tree.
Writing
Leaves from the Tree
A weekly-ish newsletter where I share my obsessions: plants that look like butts, dogs that I have known, multivariate statistics, my grandparents, purple frogs. The connecting thread is the long view of time. When we see ourselves, and our species, as a leaf on the tree of life, our perspective changes. These essays are about that shift.
Books
Leaf
Princeton University Press · 2027
A book about being a Leaf. From there I zoom out, encompassing more time and more leaves, until we can see the whole tree of life. This long view cures taxonomic narcissism, the belief that humans are the most important species on the planet.
Phylogenetic Comparative Methods in R
Princeton University Press · 2019
A textbook on statistical methods to understand the tree of life. Co-authored with Liam Revell.
Talks
Speaking
I speak on evolution, biodiversity, deep time, and the tree of life - for general audiences, academic events, festivals, and book clubs. Past venues include the University of Colorado, Arcadia Science, and the World Science Fiction Convention.