Biography
I studied 91探花视频 and Anthropology at the University of Southampton (2019). During that time, I was a Visiting Researcher at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa (2018), and worked predominantly on the faunal collection from Sterkfontein and the hominid collections from across the Cradle of Humankind. I completed an MSc in Quaternary Science at Royal Holloway University of London (2020) and was a 2019-20 Bedford scholar. My PhD (Environmental Science, 2025) research was in the field of evolutionary biology, and was joint-hosted by the Natural History Museum, London and UCL and funded by the London NERC DTP.听
I currently work as a Research Assistant in the AHRC-funded project 鈥溾�楽mall Performances鈥�: investigating the typographic punches of John Baskerville (1707-75) through heritage science and practice-based research鈥�. This project brings together a multidisciplinary team of researchers and professionals from the 91探花视频, Birmingham City University, and the Cambridge University Library.
Research
I am interested in quantifying shape variation and evolution, both in biological and cultural settings. I use a variety of morphological techniques to capture shape, including traditional linear measurements, geometric morphometrics, and semi-automated landmark-free approaches. I have worked on the shape of micromammalian postcranial bones and the lower jaw of limbed vertebrates, and have had Masters students work on carnivoran lower jaws, salamander pelves, and Cycladic figurines.
My current research focusses on an exceptional collection of punches and printed material from John Baskerville, an eminent 18th century printer and typeface designer. This project seeks to better understand the process of this form of historical printing, which at the time was specialised and carefully guarded knowledge, and as a result is little-known today.
Broadly, I am interested in morphological evolution, heritage science, vertebrate anatomy (across palaeoanthropology, archaeology, palaeontology, and biology), evolutionary morphology, Palaeolithic archaeology, palaeoenvironmental science, and digital archaeology.
Key Publications
Y. He*; J. M. Mulqueeney*, and E. C. Watt*, et al. 2024. Opportunities and Challenges in Applying AI to Evolutionary Morphology. Integrative Organismal Biology. doi: 10.1093/iob/obae036 (*co-first authors)
V. Louppe, 鈥� E. C. Watt, et al. In press. 2025. Complete metamorphosis promotes morphological and functional diversity in Caudata. Functional Ecology.
Preprints
E. C. Watt, R. N. Felice, and A. Goswami. 2023. Neither Williston nor Dollo: Mandibular Complexity from Stem Tetrapods to Modern Amphibians. BioRxiv. [preprint] doi: 10.1101/2023.10.05.561006
E. C. Watt, R. N. Felice, and A. Goswami. 2025. Rapid Canalisation of Mandible Structure in Tetrapoda. BioRxiv. [preprint] doi: 10.1101/2025.03.17.643812
Teaching and Supervisions
Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2025)
Associate Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (2022)
2021 鈥� 2024 鈥� Postgraduate Teaching Assistant for ten modules across eight departments (archaeology, anthropology, cultural heritage, biology, biosciences, geography, geology, and surgery and interventional medicine)
2016 鈥� 2019 鈥� Demonstrator for two modules (experimental archaeology and fieldwork methods) and mentor for three undergraduate student projects in experimental archaeology
MSc supervision
2023 鈥� MSc Taxonomy, Biodiversity and Evolution, Imperial College London 鈥� 鈥淎utomated analysis of shape variation in carnivoran jaws鈥� (primary supervisor)
2023 鈥� MRes Biosystematics, Imperial College London 鈥� 鈥淗ips don鈥檛 lie: an investigation into the disparity of the Urodele pelvic girdle鈥� (co-supervisor)
2023 鈥� MSc Built Environment: Sustainable Heritage (Data Science), University College London 鈥� 鈥淎ncient memes: using machine learning to understand the
evolution of culture: A case study of Cycladic figurines鈥� (advisor)
Other Professional Activities
Postgraduate Representative for the Quaternary Research Association (2020-2022)
