PD Dr. Manuel Will

Akademischer Rat a. Z.

• Palaeolithic archaeology: Analyses of lithic assemblages, behavioral adaptations and cultural evolution
• Palaeoanthropology: Body size evolution in the genus Homo
• Theoretical archaeology and evolutionary biology  (e.g. niche construction, materiality)

• Tafelmaier, Y., Bataille, G., Schmid, V., Taller, A., Will, M., 2020. Methoden zur Analyse von Steinartefakten – Eine Übersicht. Springer, Wiesbaden. https://link.springer.com/book/10.1007/978-3-658-30570-3

• Will, M., Scerri, E. (editors) 2024. The generic MSA: Fact or fiction? Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa 59:1.
• Will., M., Villagran, X., Green, A., Jerardino, A., Erlandson, J., (editors) 2022, Living on the Edge - Interdisciplinary Perspectives on Coastal and Marine Ecosystems in Human Prehistory. Frontiers in Earth Science.
• Wragg-Sykes, R., Will, M., (editors). 2017. Silcrete as a lithic raw material in global context: geology, sourcing and prehistoric techno-economics. Special Issue Journal of Archaeological Sciences: Reports., Vol. 15

• Hallett, E., Leonardi, M., Cerasoni, J., Will, M., Beyer, R., Krapp, M., Kandel, A., Manica, A., Scerri, E. (2025). Major expansion in the human niche preceded out of Africa dispersal. Nature 644, 115–121 (2025)
• Riedesel, S., Guérin, G., Thomsen, K. J., Sontag-González, M., Blessing, M., Botha, G. A., Hellers, M., Möller, G., Peffeköver, A., Sommer, C., Zander, A., Will, M. (2025). A direct comparison of single-grain and multi-grain aliquot luminescence dating of feldspars from colluvial deposits in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Geochronology, 7, 59–81.
• Möller, G.H.D., Mazel, A.D., Sommer, C., Botha. G.A., Conard, N.J., Riedesel, S., Will, M. (2025). Revisited and revalorized: Technological and refitting studies at the Middle Stone Age open-air knapping site Jojosi 1 (KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa). Journal of Palaeolithic Archaeology 8, 5.
• Will, M., Rathmann, H. (2025). Exploring the utility of unretouched lithic flakes as markers of cultural change. Scientific Reports 15, 1571.
• Lombard, M., Bader, G. D., & Will, M. (2025). The Current Phyto-Scape and Foodplants of Holley Shelter, KwaZulu-Natal (South Africa) and Its Potential for Past Foragers. African Archaeological Review, 1-18.
• Will M., (2025). Archaeology retains a central role for studying the behavioral and cognitive evolution of our species and genus. Behavioral and Brain Sciences 48, e22. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X24000955
• Moos, E.T., Bader, G.D., & Will, M. (2024). Experimental investigation of knapping characteristics of dolerite and implications for the interpretation of Middle Stone Age technologies. Lithic Technology, 1–19. https://doi.org/10.1080/01977261.2024.2388964
• Will, M., Blessing, M., Möller, G.H., Msimanga, L., Pehnert, H., Riedesel, S., Botha, G.A., Sommer, C. (2024). The Jojosi Dongas: An interdisciplinary project to study the evolution of human behaviour and landscapes in open-air contexts. Southern African Field Archaeology 19, 3010.
• Bader, G.D., Val, A., Gevers, E., Rhodes, S.E., Stahl, N., Woodborne, S., Will, M. (2024). Behind the waterfall – Interdisciplinary results from Holley Shelter and their implications for understanding human behavioral patterns at the end of the Middle Stone Age in southern Africa Quaternary Science Reviews 331, 108633
• Will, M., Scerri, E. (2024). The generic MSA: Fact or fiction? Azania: Archaeological Research in Africa 59:1, 4-21.
• Stock, J., Will, M., Wells, J. (2023). The Extended Evolutionary Synthesis and distributed adaptation in the genus Homo: Phenotypic plasticity and behavioral adaptability. Pal PaleoAnthropology 2023:2, 205−223.
• Will, M., Jerardino, A., Villagran, X., Green, A., Erlandson, J. (2023). Living on the edge – interdisciplinary perspectives on coastal and marine ecosystems in human prehistory. Frontiers in Earth Science 11, 1209842.
• Scerri, E., Will, M. (2023). The revolution that still isn’t. The origins of behavioral complexity in Homo sapiens. Journal of Human Evolution 179, 103358
• Pargeter, J., Brooks, A., Douze, K., Eren, M., Groucutt, H., McNeil, J., Mackay, A., Ranhorn, K., Scerri, E., Shaw, M., Tryon, C., Will, M., Leplongeon, A. (2023) Replicability in lithic analysis. American Antiquity, 1-24.  https://doi.org/10.1017/aaq.2023.4
• Blessing, M. A., Conard, N. J., Will, M. (2023). Lithic standardization and behavioral complexity in the Middle Stone Age. A case study from Sibhudu, South Africa. Lithic Technology, 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1080/01977261.2022.2158591
• Bader, G. D., Will, M. (2022). 70 years later – New research at Holley Shelter, a Middle and Later Stone Age site in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. South African Journal of Science, 118 (11/12). https://doi.org/10.17159/sajs.2022/14069
• Will, M., Bader, G.D., Sommer, C., Cooper, A., Green, A. (2022). Coastal adaptations on the eastern seaboard of South Africa during the Pleistocene and Holocene? Current evidence and future perspectives from archaeology and marine geology. Frontiers in Earth Science 10, 964423.
• Conard, N.J., Brenner, M., Bretzke, K., Will, M. (2022). What do spatial data from Sibhudu tell us about life in the Middle Stone Age? Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 14, 148.
• Bader, G., Mabuza, A., Price Williams, D., Will, M. (2022). Rethinking the Middle to Later Stone Age transition in southern Africa. A perspective from the highveld of Eswatini. Quaternary Science Reviews 286, 107540.
• Tribolo, C., Mercier, N., Martin, L., Taffin, N., Miller, C. E., Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2022). Luminescence dating estimates for the coastal MSA sequence of Hoedjiespunt 1 (South Africa). Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 41, 103320.
• Will, M., Krapp, M., Stock, J.T., Manica, A. (2021) Different environmental variables predict body and brain size evolution in Homo. Nature Communications 12, 4116.
• Will, M. (2021) The Role of Different Raw Materials in Lithic Technology and Settlement Patterns During the Middle Stone Age of Southern Africa. African Archaeological Review. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10437-021-09446-6
• Hussain, S.T., Will, M. (2021). Materiality, agency and evolution of lithic technology: An integrated perspective for Palaeolithic archaeology. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 28, 617–670.
• Brennenstuhl, H., Will, M., Ries, E., Mechler, K., Garbade, S., Ries, M. (2021) Patterns of extreme temperature-related catastrophic events in Europe including the Russian Federation: a cross-sectional analysis of the Emergency Events Database. BMJ Open 11, e046359.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2020) Regional patterns of diachronic technological change in the Howiesons Poort of southern Africa. PLoS ONE 15(9): e0239195.
• Will M., Mackay A. (2020). A matter of space and time: How frequent is convergence in lithic technology in the African archaeological record over the last 300 kyr? In: Groucutt H. (ed.) Culture history and convergent evolution. Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology, pp. 103-125. Springer, Cham.
• Will, M. (2020). Neanderthal surf and turf. Science 367, 1422-1423.
• Conard, N.J., Schmid, V.C., Bolus, M., Will, M. (2019). Lithic assemblages from the Middle Paleolithic of Geißenklösterle Cave provide insights on Neanderthal behavior in the Swabian Jura. Quartär 66, 51-80.
• Will, M. (2019). Sibudan. In: Chirikure, S. (Ed.), Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Anthropology. New York: Oxford University, forthcoming.
• Will, M., El-Zaatari, S., Harvati, K., & Conard, N. J. (2019). Human teeth from securely stratified Middle Stone Age contexts at Sibudu, South Africa. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 11, 3491-3501.
• Will, M., Tryon, C., Shaw, M., Scerri, E.M.L., Ranhorn, K., Pargeter, J., McNeil, J., Mackay, A., Leplongeon, A., Groucutt, H.S., Douze, K., Brooks, A. (2019). Comparative analysis of Middle Stone Age artefacts in Africa (CoMSAfrica). Evolutionary Anthropology 28, 57-59.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J., Tryon, C.A. (2019). Timing and trajectory of cultural evolution on the African continent 200,000-30,000 years ago. In: Sahle, Y., Reyes-Centeno, H., Bentz, C. (Eds.) Modern Human Origins and Dispersal, pp. 25-72. Tübingen: Kerns Verlag.
• Will, M., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2019). Midden or molehill: the role of coastal adaptations for human evolution and dispersal. Journal of World Prehistory 32, 33-72..
• Will, M., Conard, N. J. (2018). Assemblage variability and bifacial points in the lowermost Sibudan layers at Sibudu, South Africa. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 10, 389-414.
• Will, M., Pablos, A., Stock, J.T. (2017). Long-term patterns of body mass and stature evolution within the hominin lineage. Royal Society Open Science 4(11), 171339.
• Bader, G.D., Will, M. (2017). Recent Research on the MSA in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Urgeschichte 23, 79-108.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. (2017). What factors govern the procurement and use of silcrete during the Stone Age of South Africa? Journal of Archaeological Sciences: Reports, 15, 630-645.
• Wragg-Sykes, R., Will, M., (2017). Silcrete as a lithic raw material in global context: geology, sourcing and prehistoric techno-economics. Journal of Archaeological Sciences: Reports, 15, 422-499.
• Will, M., Kandel, A.W., Kyriakou, K., Conard, N.J. (2016). An evolutionary perspective on coastal adaptations by modern humans during the Middle Stone Age of Africa. Quaternary International 404, 68-86.
• Will, M., Mackay, A., Phillips, N. (2015) Implications of Nubian-Like core reduction systems in southern Africa for the identification of early modern human dispersals. PLoS ONE 10(6): e0131824.
• Will, M., Stock, J.T. (2015). Spatial and temporal variation of body size among early Homo. Journal of Human Evolution 82, 15-33.
• Conard, N.J., Will, M. (2015). Examining the Causes and Consequences of Short-Term Behavioral Change during the Middle Stone Age at Sibudu, South Africa. PLoS ONE 10(6): e0130001.
• Kyriakou, K., Parkington, J.E., Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2015). Middle and Later Stone Age shellfish exploitation strategies and coastal foraging at Hoedjiespunt, Saldanha Bay, South Africa. Journal of Archaeological Science 57, 197-206.
• Will, M., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2015). Coastal adaptations and settlement systems on the Cape and Horn of Africa during the Middle Stone Age. In: N.J. Conard & A. Delagnes (Eds.) Settlement Dynamics of the Middle Paleolithic and Middle Stone Age, Vol. IV, pp. 61-89. Tübingen: Kerns Verlag.
• Conard, N.J., Schmid, V., Will, M. (2015). Sibudu und die kulturelle Evolution des modernen Menschen. Archäologie in Deutschland 31 (2), 12-17
• Conard, N.J., Bader, G.D., Schmid, V., Will, M. (2014). Bringing the Middle Stone Age into clearer focus. Mitteilungen der Gesellschaft für Urgeschichte 23, 121-128.
• Will, M., Bader, G.D., Conard, N.J. (2014). Characterizing the Late Pleistocene MSA Lithic Technology of Sibudu, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. PLOS ONE, e98359.
• Will, M., Parkington, J.E., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2013). Coastal adaptations and the Middle Stone Age lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 in the Western Cape, South Africa. Journal of Human Evolution 64, 518-537.

• Will, M., Bader, G.D. (2022). Rethinking the Middle to Later Stone Age transition in southern Africa - New data and perspectives from Eswatini. Paleoanthropology 2022:2, 608.
• Stock, J. T., Will, M., Wells, J. C. (2020). Phenotypic plasticity and adaptability in the genus Homo: implications from studies of modern human diversity. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 171, 274.
• Will, M., Schmid, V., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2019). New insights on technological behavior of Late Pleistocene Neanderthals from Middle Paleolithic assemblages of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany. Abstracts of the 61st Annual Meeting of the Hugo Obermaier-Society, 76.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Conard, N.J. (2017). Surf and turf? A comparison of coastal adaptations by modern humans vs. Neanderthals and their evolutionary implications. Abstracts of the 7th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 214.
• Schmid, V., Will, M., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2017). Lithic assemblages from the Middle Paleolithic of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany: New insights on Neanderthal technology and behaviour from the Swabian Jura. Abstracts of the 7th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 172.
• Will, M., Pablos, A., Stock, J.T. (2016). The evolution of body size within the genus Homo: new empirical data and theoretical perspectives. Abstracts of the 6th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 249.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Kyriakou, K., Conard, N.J. (2016) Modeling coastal adaptations in the MSA of southern Africa. Quaternary International 404, 185.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. (2015). Convergence in derived elements of lithic technologies complicates identification of early modern human dispersals. Abstracts of the 5th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 235.
• Porraz, G., Will, M. Bader, G., Conard, N.J. (2013). Characterizing the later part of the MSA sequence at Sibudu, Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. Abstracts of the 3rd Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 147
• Will, M., Stock, J. (2013). Spatial and temporal variation in the body size of early Homo. Abstracts of the 3rd Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, 211.
• Will, M., Parkington, J.E., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2012). MSA lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 and the evolution of coastal adaptations in the Western Cape of Southern Africa. Abstracts of the Paleoanthropology Society 2012 Meeting. Paleoanthropology A38.
• Conard, N.J., Kandel, A.W., Kyriacou, K., Will, M., Parkington, J.E. (2011). Excavations at the MSA shell midden of Hoedjiespunt, South Africa: testing models for early coastal adaptations. Abstracts of the 1st Annual meeting of the European Society for the study of Human Evolution, 22.

• Will, M. (2025). A new interdisciplinary project on the MSA open-air landscape of the Jojosi Dongas (South Africa). 27th Biennial Meeting of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, Faro (Portugal)
• Will, M., Shaw, M., Scerri, E.M.L., Ranhorn, K., Pargeter, J., McNeil, J., Mackay, A., Leplongeon, A., Groucutt, H.S., Douze, K., Brooks, A., Tryon, C. (2025). Is there a reproducibility crisis in lithic analysis? Lessons learned by the CoMSAfrica network. 27th Biennial Meeting of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, Faro (Portugal)
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2022) Generic MSA assemblages at the bottom of the Sibhudu sequence? New technological data within the context of the early MSA in southern Africa. 16th Congress of the Panafrican Archaeological Association, Zanzibar (TZ).
• Will, M., Bader, G. (2022) Rethinking the Middle to Later Stone Age transition in southern Africa - New data and perspectives from Eswatini. 12th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Tübingen (D), 22.-24. September.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2021) Diachronic changes in the Howiesons Poort of Sibhudu and southern Africa. XIXth world UISPP Congress, Meknes (online), 2.-7. September 2021
• Will, M., Krapp, M., Stock, J., Manica, A (2020). Combining paleoenvironmental and paleoanthropological datasets to understand human brain and body size evolution. Human Origins – Digital Future, ROCEEH Online Conference, 27.-31. Juli.
• Will, M., Krapp, M., Stock, J., Manica, A. (2019) The role of climate in the evolution of body and brain size of Homo in the last 2 million years.  9th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Liège (BEL), 19.-22. September.
• Will, M., Schmid, V., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2019). New insights on technological behavior of Late Pleistocene Neanderthals from Middle Paleolithic assemblages of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany. 61st Annual Meeting of the Hugo Obermaier-Society, Erkrath (D), 23.-27. April.
• Will, M., Williams, M., Jacobs, Z., Mackay, A. (2018). No one’s home? New evidence for mid to late MIS 3 occupations in the Western Cape (South Africa) from Mertenhof Rockshelter. Rencontres d’Air Moderne et de Préhistoire Africaine, Paris (FR), 17.-18. December.
• Will, M. (2018). Midden or molehill: the role of coastal adaptations for human evolution and dispersal. Prehistoric Society Europa Conference, York (UK), 29-30. June.
• Will, M., Schmid, V., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2018). Lithic assemblages from the Middle Paleolithic of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany: New insights on Late Pleistocene Neanderthal technology and behavior from the Swabian Jura. 18th UISPP Congress, Paris (FR), 4.-9. June.
• Will, M., Mackay, A., Bader, G., Conard, N.J. (2018). Regional variability during the Middle Stone Age of MIS 3 in southern Africa –  Patterns and mechanisms. 18th UISPP Congress, Paris (FR), 4.-9. June.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Conard, N.J. (2017). Surf and turf? A comparison of coastal adaptations by modern humans vs. Neanderthals and their evolutionary implications. 7^th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Leiden (NL), 21.-24. September.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2017). Potentials and problems in explaining cultural change during the Paleolithic: a test case from the Middle Stone Age of Sibudu. Inaugural Cultural Evolution Society Conference. Jena (GER) 12-15. September.
• Conard, N.J., Will, M., Schmid, V., Tafelmaier, Y., Bolus, M. (2017). Middle Paleolithic variability as seen from the caves of the Swabian Jura. Conference: The Rhine during the Middle Paleolithic: boundary or corridor? Sélestat (FR), 15.-16. May.
• Will, M., (2017). Old Questions, New Data: The MSA of southern Africa and the evolution of modern humans. Keynote Speech, ^rd Meeting of African Prehistory, Tarragona (ESP), March 29^th-30^th.
• Will, M., Pablos, A., Stock, J.T. (2016). The evolution of body size within the genus Homo: new empirical data and theoretical perspectives. 6^th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Madrid (ESP), 14.-18. September.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. Bader, G.D., Conard. N.J. (2016) Lithic technology and behavioral variability during MIS3 in southern Africa. 23rd Biennal meeting of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, Toulouse (FRA), 26. June – 2. July.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. (2015). What factors govern the procurement and use of silcrete during the Middle Stone Age of the Western Cape in South Africa? 10th International Symposium on Knappable Material, Barcelona (ESP), 8.-10. September.
• Will, M., Stock, J. (2015). New body size estimates for early Homo and their implications for the first dispersals out of Africa. ROCEEH Conference EXPANSIONS 2015, Frankfurt (GER), 13.-17. July.
• Will, M. Conard. N.J. (2015). What drives cultural change in the Middle Stone Age of Sibudu, KwaZulu-Natal? 1st international conference on the African Quaternary (AfQUA), Cape Town (ZA), 30. January – 5. February.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Kyriakou, K., Conard, N.J. (2015) Modeling coastal adaptations in the MSA of southern Africa. 1st international conference on the African Quaternary (AfQUA), Cape Town (ZA), 30. January – 5. February.
• Will, M., Bader, G.D., Conard, N.J. (2014) The Late Pleistocene MSA lithic technology of Sibudu. 17th UISPP World Congress, Burgos (ES), 1.-7. September
• Will, M., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2014) The nature and importance of coastal adaptations during the Middle Stone Age of sub-Saharan Africa. 17th UISPP World Congress, Burgos (ES), 1.-7. September.
• Will, M., Porraz, G., Bader, G.D., Conard, N.J. (2014) Characterizing the Sibudan at the type locality. Paper given at the 14th Congress of the Pan African Archaeological Association for Prehistory and Related Studies, Johannesburg (ZA), 14.-18. July.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2013). Coastal adaptations and the MSA lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 in the Western Cape, South Africa. Paper given at the workshop “Mapping the origins of modern behavior”, organized by J.E. Parkington, Cederberg (ZA), 1-4. November.
• Will, M., Parkington, J.E., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2012). MSA lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 and the evolution of coastal adaptations in the Western Cape of Southern Africa. Paper given at the 21st Annual Meeting of the Paleoanthropological Society, Memphis, 17.-18. April.

• Will, M., Krapp, M., Stock, J., Manica, A. (2019) The role of climate in the evolution of body and brain size of Homo in the last 2 million years.  9th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Liège (BEL), 19.-22. September.
• Will, M., Schmid, V., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2019). New insights on technological behavior of Late Pleistocene Neanderthals from Middle Paleolithic assemblages of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany. 61st Annual Meeting of the Hugo Obermaier-Society, Erkrath (D), 23.-27. April.
• Will, M., Williams, M., Jacobs, Z., Mackay, A. (2018). No one’s home? New evidence for mid to late MIS 3 occupations in the Western Cape (South Africa) from Mertenhof Rockshelter. Rencontres d’Air Moderne et de Préhistoire Africaine, Paris (FR), 17.-18. December.
• Will, M. (2018). Midden or molehill: the role of coastal adaptations for human evolution and dispersal. Prehistoric Society Europa Conference, York (UK), 29-30. June.
• Will, M., Schmid, V., Bolus, M., Conard, N.J. (2018). Lithic assemblages from the Middle Paleolithic of Geißenklösterle Cave, Germany: New insights on Late Pleistocene Neanderthal technology and behavior from the Swabian Jura. 18th UISPP Congress, Paris (FR), 4.-9. June.
• Will, M., Mackay, A., Bader, G., Conard, N.J. (2018). Regional variability during the Middle Stone Age of MIS 3 in southern Africa –  Patterns and mechanisms. 18th UISPP Congress, Paris (FR), 4.-9. June.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Conard, N.J. (2017). Surf and turf? A comparison of coastal adaptations by modern humans vs. Neanderthals and their evolutionary implications. 7^th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Leiden (NL), 21.-24. September.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2017). Potentials and problems in explaining cultural change during the Paleolithic: a test case from the Middle Stone Age of Sibudu. Inaugural Cultural Evolution Society Conference. Jena (GER) 12-15. September.
• Conard, N.J., Will, M., Schmid, V., Tafelmaier, Y., Bolus, M. (2017). Middle Paleolithic variability as seen from the caves of the Swabian Jura. Conference: The Rhine during the Middle Paleolithic: boundary or corridor? Sélestat (FR), 15.-16. May.
• Will, M., (2017). Old Questions, New Data: The MSA of southern Africa and the evolution of modern humans. Keynote Speech, ^rd Meeting of African Prehistory, Tarragona (ESP), March 29^th-30^th.
• Will, M., Pablos, A., Stock, J.T. (2016). The evolution of body size within the genus Homo: new empirical data and theoretical perspectives. 6^th Annual Meeting of the European Society for Human Evolution, Madrid (ESP), 14.-18. September.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. Bader, G.D., Conard. N.J. (2016) Lithic technology and behavioral variability during MIS3 in southern Africa. 23rd Biennal meeting of the Society of Africanist Archaeologists, Toulouse (FRA), 26. June – 2. July.
• Will, M., Mackay, A. (2015). What factors govern the procurement and use of silcrete during the Middle Stone Age of the Western Cape in South Africa? 10th International Symposium on Knappable Material, Barcelona (ESP), 8.-10. September.
• Will, M., Stock, J. (2015). New body size estimates for early Homo and their implications for the first dispersals out of Africa. ROCEEH Conference EXPANSIONS 2015, Frankfurt (GER), 13.-17. July.
• Will, M. Conard. N.J. (2015). What drives cultural change in the Middle Stone Age of Sibudu, KwaZulu-Natal? 1st international conference on the African Quaternary (AfQUA), Cape Town (ZA), 30. January – 5. February.
• Will, M., Kandel, A., Kyriakou, K., Conard, N.J. (2015) Modeling coastal adaptations in the MSA of southern Africa. 1st international conference on the African Quaternary (AfQUA), Cape Town (ZA), 30. January – 5. February.
• Will, M., Bader, G.D., Conard, N.J. (2014) The Late Pleistocene MSA lithic technology of Sibudu. 17th UISPP World Congress, Burgos (ES), 1.-7. September
• Will, M., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2014) The nature and importance of coastal adaptations during the Middle Stone Age of sub-Saharan Africa. 17th UISPP World Congress, Burgos (ES), 1.-7. September.
• Will, M., Porraz, G., Bader, G.D., Conard, N.J. (2014) Characterizing the Sibudan at the type locality. Paper given at the 14th Congress of the Pan African Archaeological Association for Prehistory and Related Studies, Johannesburg (ZA), 14.-18. July.
• Will, M., Conard, N.J. (2013). Coastal adaptations and the MSA lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 in the Western Cape, South Africa. Paper given at the workshop “Mapping the origins of modern behavior”, organized by J.E. Parkington, Cederberg (ZA), 1-4. November.
• Will, M., Parkington, J.E., Kandel, A.W., Conard, N.J. (2012). MSA lithic assemblages from Hoedjiespunt 1 and the evolution of coastal adaptations in the Western Cape of Southern Africa. Paper given at the 21st Annual Meeting of the Paleoanthropological Society, Memphis, 17.-18. April.

University of Tübingen (Germany)

• Attribute analysis and quantitative study of lithic artefacts, Lecture & Exercise, MA and BA level (SS14, SS15, SS17, SS18, SS19, SS21, WS22/23, WS 24/25)
• Practical and methodological approaches to the analysis of stone tool assemblages, Lecture & Exercise, MA and BA level (WS15/16, WS16/17, WS18/19, WS20/21)
• Selected topics in lithic analysis with case studies from the Paleolithic cave sites Hohle Fels and Vogelherd, Lecture & Exercise, BA level (WS13/14, WS14/15)
• Archaeological theory, Seminar, BA level (SS15, SS16, SS19, SS20, SS21, WS21/22, WS22/23, WS 23/24, WS 24/25)
  Theories and methods in archaeology, Seminar, MSc level (WS15/16, WS17/18, WS21/22)
  Stone Age archaeology and human evolution in Africa, Seminar, MA level (WS14/15, WS16/17, WS19/20, WS 23/24)
• Introduction to Paleolithic archaeology, Lecture, BA level (WS17/18)
• Introduction to Stone Age archaeology, Lecture, MSc level (WS21/22, WS22/23, WS 23/24, WS 24/25)
• Introduction to evolutionary theory, Lecture, BA level (WS17/18, WS 23/24)
• Introduction to theory and methods in archaeology, Lecture, MA level (WS 23/24)
• Introduction to Pre- and Protohistoric archaeology, Lecture, BA level (WS17/18, WS 23/24)
• Paleolithic and Mesolithic, Seminar, BA level (WS20/21, SS23, SS25)
• The Middle Stone Age of Africa, Seminar, BA and MA Level (WS15/16)
• Practical course: Excavations at Sibudu, South Africa (WS16/17, 17/18, 18/19, 19/20, 21/22)

Supervision:

• Supervision of 3x B.A. (SS22; SS25), and 2 x M.Sc. dissertations (SS23; SS25)
• 1x PhD student (starting 1/2024)

University of Cambridge (UK)

• BAN3/ARC10: Human Evolution and Palaeolithic Archaeology (Supervision; 1 term; Part IIa undergraduate tripos, 2016/17)

Reviewer for the following journals and book series (33x journals, 76x reviews)
African Archaeological Review, Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, BMC Ecology and Evolution, Cambridge Archaeological Journal, Current Anthropology, Evolutionary Anthropology, Evolution and Human Behavior, Humanities and Social Sciences Communications, Journal of African Archaeology, Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory, Journal of Archaeological Science, Journal of Human Evolution, Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology, Journal of Paleolithic Archaeology, Journal of Quaternary Science, Lithic Technology, Nature, Nature Communications, PaleoAnthropology, Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B, PLOS One, Proceedings of the Seminar of Arabian Studies, Quaternary International, Quaternary Science Reviews, Quaternary Science Advances, Science, Science Advances, Scientific Reports, Science China: Earth Sciences, South African Archaeological Bulletin, South African Journal of Science, Springer Vertebrate Paleobiology and Paleoanthropology Series, The Anatomical Record.

Grant reviews (12x reviews)
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG); National Science Foundation (NSF; USA), National Research Foundation (NRF; South Africa), Israel Science Foundation (ISF), Leakey Foundation (USA), National Science Centre (NCN; Poland), Czech Science Foundation (GACR), Italian Ministry for universities and research (MUR; Italy), Swiss National Science Foundation (SNF; Switzerland)

Committees & Panels

Workshop attendance and organization

• “Comparative Analysis of Middle Stone Age Artefacts in Africa II (CoMSAfrica)” organized by K. Douze and M. Will, University of Geneva, Geneva (CH), 4.-6. November 2019 (organization)
• “Comparative Analysis of Middle Stone Age Artefacts in Africa (CoMSAfrica)” organized by M. Will and C. Tryon, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University, Cambridge MA (USA), 6.-7. November 2018 (organization)
• “Current approaches and new directions in lithic analyses: defining, identifying and interpreting variability” organized by A. Leplongeon, Cambridge (UK), 29. Sept. – 1. Oct 2016 (attendance)
• “Current research in the MSA – New perspectives on the archaeology of Halibee (Ethiopia)”, organized by N. Conard and M. Will, Tübingen (D), 16-17. May 2016 (organization)
• “Contextualizing technological change and cultural evolution in the MSA of southern Africa”, organized by N. Conard, Tübingen (D), 8-10. September 2014. (organization)
• “The archaeology of modern human evolution in Africa”, organized by M. Mirazon Lahr, Cambridge (UK), 16.-17. May 2014. (attendance)
• “Mapping the origins of modern behavior”, organized by J.E. Parkington, Cederberg (ZA), 1-4. November 2013. (attendance)
   

• German – native
• English – fluent (in speech, writing and reading)
• French – basic
• Spanish – basic

• PC knowledge: Microsoft Office (PowerPoint, Word, Excel, Access); statistics software (IBM SPSS for Windows), image editing software (GIMP; Photoshop)