The Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) Members

Leslie QUADE

I am a bioarchaeologist and palaeopathologist, specialising in interdisciplinary analyses of stress and health from human skeletal remains. My research is focused on the ‘stress’ hormone cortisol in living and past populations, and the impact of cultural, sociopolitical and environmental disparities on child and adult health. I am further interested in trauma, health and living conditions in 18th-20th century military settings.

I have a BA from Columbia University, an MSc and PhD from Durham University, and I completed a postdoc at Masaryk University in 2023. I have also worked as a contract osteologist in Austria, Czechia, France, Italy, the UK and USA. I am currently a postdoctoral researcher at the department of Prehistory and WANA Archaeology in the Austrian Archaeological Institute, where I am investigating stress markers and cortisol in teeth. This research is supported by a FWF & OeAW “Disruptive Innovation – Early Career Seed Money” grant. In early 2025, I will begin a Marie Sklodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship also focusing on dental cortisol methods.