Archaeologist João Zilhão, director of antiquities in Portugal and a professor at the University of Lisbon will talk about the period before modern man during a lecture at 4 p.m. in Sierra Hall, room 451 on the west side of campus at 18111 Nordhoff St. in Northridge.

"The general idea is for the campus community to be updated with current information by an important figure," said CSUN anthropology professor Bruce Gelvin, the coordinator of the talk.

Among the topics to be discussed is the Lagar Velho child, the hypothesis of Neanderthal-Modern admixture at the time of contact in Iberia, about the pitfalls in Neanderthal mtDNA research and why available genetic evidence support the interpretation that Neanderthals are not a different species.

For more information for the free event, contact the Department of Anthropology at (818) 677-3331.

California State University, Northridge has more than 31,000 full- and part-time students and offers 59 bachelor's and 41 master's degrees. Founded in 1958, it is the only four-year university in the San Fernando Valley and the third largest in the 23-campus CSU system. The Western Association of Schools and Colleges recently said CSUN "stands as a model to other public urban institutions of higher education."