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Advantages of Macroscopic Analysis
Quicker, no special equipment, don’t need a complete skeleton/bone
Advantages of Osteometric Analysis
Osteometric is less observer error and less prone to bias
Purpose of Histology
Figuring out if a material is bone using analysis of the microscopic structure of tissues
Purpose of Radiography
Comparing antemortem and postmortem x-rays or CT scans using dental records, skeletal trauma, anomalies, pathologies, and variation in typical skeletal anatomy (trabecular bone patterns, morphology of bones, sinuses, sutures)
Distinguishing Human and Non-Human Bone
Morphology, including articular surfaces, features, landmarks, etc. and histology, which is the analysis of the microscopic structure of tissues
Distinguishing Contemporary and Non-Contemporary Bone
Taphonomic indicators [bone quality (light or heavy, greasy or dry, eroded, etc.), postmortem treatment [autopsy cuts, drill holes, etc.)], contextual clues (grave or surface scatter, personal effects, etc.), and biocultural factors (dental wear, surgical implantations, etc.)
Contributions of Forensic Archaeology
The death scene as an archaeological site; locating burials, sampling, mapping, excavation, recovery, and interpretation
Detecting Human Remains
Line search/pedestrian survey, look for surface irregularities (vegetation or soil changes), use a soil probe
Mapping Human Remains
Spatial distribution of evidence must be recorded, use a grid for sub-surface burials or concentrated surface deposits, map an object between two points of another object [triangulation (using angles) and trilateration (using distances)], baseline mapping is good for surface scatters because you can create your own datum
Recovering Human Remains
Assign tasks (recorder, mapper, photographer, excavators), establish a datum, establish a grid, begin with careful shovel-skimming, screen all soil, switch to trowels and other hand tools when the grave pit is clear, then expose, photograph, and map before removing the evidence
Forensic Taphonomy
the laws of burial and the study of the processes that affect organisms between death and discovery
Why is forensic taphonomy studied?
To estimate the postmortem interval (PMI), interpret postmortem events and/or treatment of remains, and distinguish between taphonomic alteration and perimortem trauma
What factors influence the decomposition of human remains?
Temperature, moisture/aridity, open-air vs. protected environments, soil chemistry, perimortem trauma, and scavenging
Autolysis
Cell destruction
Putrefaction
Bacteria in the digestive system proliferate, break down tissues
What is mummification and when can it occur?
A low-moisture environment resulting in the preservation of soft tissue
What is saponification and when can it occur?
When fat is converted into adipocere in areas with lower oxygen and lots of moisture
What is skeletonization?
The state where the majority of the soft tissues have decomposed
Diagenesis
Physical, chemical, or biological changes to bone after deposition
Entomological Processes
Rendezvous (flies appear, lay eggs), feast (eggs hatch and larvae feed), and exodus (at the end of 3rd instar, they leave the body and bury themselves in the soil)
Signs of Carnivore Scavenging
Pits, punctures, scoring, furrows
Signs of Bird Scavenging
Damage varies; often shallow scratches and targeting facial bones, but larger species can break ribs
Signs of Rodent Scavenging
Parallel striations
Sexual Dimorphism
Phenotypic differences between males and females of the same species
Morphology of the Pubic Bone
In the anterior view, females have a broader, wider pubic bone (rectangular rather than V-shaped) and a wider subpubic angle
Morphoscopic Methods of Estimating Biological Sex in the Os Pubis
Bottom of the ventral arc, sub-pubic concavity (sub-pubic angle), subpubic contour, medial aspect of the ischiopubic ramus, sciatic notch morphology, and preauricular sulcus
Morphoscopic Methods of Estimating Biological Sex in the Skull
Nuchal crest, mastoid process, supraorbital margin, supraorbital ridge/glabella, and the mental eminence
Osteometric Methods of Estimating Biological Sex
Long bone dimensions, using sectioning points (univariate) and discriminant functions (multivariate)
Morphoscopic Methods of Estimating Population Affinity in the Skull
Anterior nasal spine, inferior nasal aperture, interorbital breadth, nasal aperture width, nasal bone contour, and post-bregmatic depression
Formative Changes
Modifications that occur during growth and development, most commonly used for determining the age of subadults
Degenerative Changes
Modifications that occur as a result of age-related changes, wear and tear, and diseases
Methods for Estimating Age at Death with Formative Changes: Dental Development
The sequence of tooth formation, including the cusps, crown, root, and closing of the root apex, and the sequence of tooth eruption
Methods for Estimating Age at Death with Formative Changes: Diaphyseal Lengths
Measurement of immature long bones without epiphyses; age can be estimated until epiphyses unite
Methods for Estimating Age at Death with Formative Changes: Appearance and Fusion of Ossification Centers
Primary and secondary centers appear roughly according to a schedule (example: femur)
Methods for Estimating Age at Death with Formative Changes: Epiphyseal Union
The process by which primary and secondary ossification centers unite is normally correlated with chronological age. Most fusion occurs between 15-23 with the first being the elbow region and the last being the medial clavicle, which has a dimpled look before it is fused
Pubic Symphyseal Face in Younger Age Ranges
Prominent ridges and furrows, and the upper and lower extremities become delimited
Pubic Symphyseal Face in Middle Age Ranges
Lower rim complete dorsally; gap ventrally and the oval outline complete with remnants of billowing
Pubic Symphyseal Face in Older Age Ranges
The face becomes depressed and porous with ongoing depression, rim breakdown, and irregularity in shape
Features that Change on Sternal Rib Ends Over Time
Bone quality (dense & smooth to light & porous), pit shape (flat with billowing, then indentation, V-shaped, U-shaped), and rim edge (thick & rounded to thin & sharp)
Secondary Age Estimation Methods
Auricular surface, cranial suture closure, and dental wear
Biological Stature
Measured living stature, changes from the morning to the night
Reported Stature
Reported on legal documents or by family members, over- and under-estimates are common
Cadaveric Stature
Measured stature of deceased individual, soft tissues can loosen or tighten, used in research
Anatomical Stature Estimation Methods
Measure all bones that contribute to stature. Advantages are greater accuracy, not population/sex-specific, and control for anomalies. Disadvantage is you need a nearly complete skeleton
Fully Technique for Estimating Stature
First, measure the skull (basion-bregma), C2-S1 (max body height), femur, tibia, talus, and calcaneus, then sum for “skeletal height”
Regression Methods for Estimating Stature
First, take standard osteometric measurements, then, apply the population-specific regression formula, finally, report point estimate and prediction interval (95%)
Skeletal Anomolies
Deviations from typical skeletal anatomy (supernumerary bones or teeth, supernumerary vertebrae, accessory foramina or facets, septal aperture, sternal foramen, non-fusion anomalies, vertebral shifts, spondylolysis)
Skeletal Pathologies
Abnormal skeletal anomaly that results in functional or structural impairment (metastatic bone lesions, lytic lesions caused by brucellosis, porotic hyperostosis, cribra orbitalia, periosteal reactions)
Changes Related to Mechanical Stress
Osteoarthritis, osteoarthritis with eburnation, schmorl’s nodes, enthesophytes at achilles tendon insertion site
Compression
Squeezing force; object becomes shorter in the direction of the applied force
Tension
Stretching force; object becomes longer in the direction of the applied force
Bending
Compression on one side, tension on the other
Shear
Slides portions of an object relative to one another, parallel to the direction of force
Torsion
Combination of shear and twisting/rotation
Antemortem
Before death; requires evidence of an osteogenic reaction
Perimortem
Around the time of death; no osteogenic reaction, bone fractures as it would when fresh
Postmortem
After death; bone fractures as dried material (more brittle, small and more regular fragments, jagged appearance, recently broken edges are lighter in color)
Blunt Force Trauma
Relatively slow loading, relatively large area, the bone may permanently deform and preserve impressions of implements
Cranium: Radiating and Concentric Fractures
In blunt trauma, concentric features are created when bone collapses inward
Long Bones: “Butterfly” Fractures
The direction of the force goes towards the “body” of the butterfly
Sharp Force Trauma
Relatively slow loading, small surface area, beveled edge instrument. Bone is an excellent material for preserving SFT, and edged weapons can produce a mixture of blunt fractures and sharp-force injuries
Cut marks and stab wounds produced by knives
Narrow, v-shaped in cross-section, usually smooth, minimal wastage
Features of Saws
Tooth size and shape (teeth-per-inch), tooth set (alternate, wavy, raker), cutting action (push vs. pull as power stroke), and saw power (hand vs. mechanical)
Kerf
Groove created by a saw, wider, rectangular or w-shaped cross-section, visible striations, moderate wastage, “breakaway spurs”
High-Velocity Projectile Trauma
Rapid loading, small surface area, bone acts as a brittle material, shatters rather than deforms
Fracture Patterns
Plug and spall, radiating (propagating away from the impact site), concentric (curved or circular, surrounding the impact site)
Beveling
Bullet punches out the bone in a funnel-shape
Positive ID/Scientific ID
Linking unknown remains to an individual of known identity
Methods of Finding a Positive ID
DNA (nuclear, not mitochondrial), fingerprints, comparative radiography