forensic anth exam 2

race

social construct in which meaning was given to clusters of phenotypes

(particularly skin color) and that were then linked to geographic regions and other

phenotypes; it is not biological; racial boxes are different across the globe based on the

region and history of that country, place, etc.

ethnicity

more specific and more often based upon self-identification, culture,

heritage, and group identity; People can identify with different racial groups but be of

the same ethnicity; like race though, ethnic categories and their;

definitions/descriptions, can vary depending on the region, country, etc.

nationality

legal category based upon location of birth and/or long-term residency

where some gains citizenship

ancestry

genetics and adaptations for environments; while it can be

tied to ethnicity, remember borders change, cultures change, countries develop and

disappear, etc.

American Association of Physical Anthropologists 2019

Racial categories do not provide an accurate picture of human biological variation but race as a social reality – as a way of structuring societies and experiencing the world – is very real

genetic variation

• All humans are more than 99.9% the same genetically

• There is more variation within a single ‘racial’ group than there is between ‘racial’

groups

• There are no traits or phenotypes that can only be found in one population but not in

  another

human diversity (variation)

due to climate/environmental factors - plasticity

why was the concept of race created + why does it persist?

• Shift from Indentured servitude to Enslavement (mid 1600s)

  • White and Black indentured servants could “work” to “earn” their freedom

  • After a revolt/rebellion by enslaved and indentured servants (Bacon’s

    Rebellion), Africans and individuals of African descent were designated as those

    who would be enslaved for life and would not gain freedom. This started as a

    way to prevent indentured servants and enslaved peoples from coming together

    to fight those in power

• rights to land

  • and ownership was limited to certain white people outside of lands still

    stewarded by Native and Indigenous peoples. Labeling the indigenous people as

    “Indian” created a distinction that separated them from the land owning whites.

    This allowed for the seizure of land from indigenous peoples

• explanation/support of social hierarchy

  • Entrenched classism cannot be fully separated from racism, and racism cannot

    be fully separated from classism

  • White supremacist societal ideals on top of religious privilege

foundation of scientific racism

• Linnaeus: ather of taxonomy developed 4 main “type” categories (later

  people referred to as race) that associated negative traits, including behaviors, with people of color and Black peoples and positive traits and behaviors with European; he

  based his descriptions on journals he read, drawings he saw, and the experiences of

  others who traveled; stereotypes continue today

• Morton: “measured” cranial capacity to associate intelligence with whiteness – bad

  science with no foundation in reality; did not do so blindly, he knew where skulls were

  from and removed those that did not support his claim —> eugenics

• Blumenbach: correctly believed that the environment impacted variation, but still

  associated negative traits with people of color and Black peoples and placed groups in a

  hierarchy

• Hrdlička: father of physical anthropology; propagated racial categories that became foundational to physical anthropology; physical anthropology started out of scientific racism and “othering”

important scientists who challenged racist ideals

• Anténor Firmin: wrote papers on the equality of races and that variation was due to the environments; “mixing” was a good thing for our species’ survival as a whole

• Franz Boas: father of the four field approach to anthropology, did research that showed a difference in cranial shape between Immigrants and their children, the environment showed a change in just one generation; there is much scientific racism in his work while he was still doing antiracist work, didn’t support racial discrimination, immigration exclusion, or Jim Crow Laws

• Caroline Bond Day: did studies on her own family to discredit anti-miscegenation propaganda that said that mixed individuals would be unhealthy, unintelligent, or “wrong”

• Montague Cobb: disproved the idea that Black and African-American individuals had lower intellect than White individuals; the impacts of race on communities of color

US Census codified race to categorize people

• Census started for delegating representatives and votes, as well as “property” meaning

  enslaved peoples

• First real document that forced these labels onto people and legal documents. started

  with just “white” and “black” and then expanded

• Up to 1950 the census worker (enumerator) would choose your racial category for you

  based one their knowledge and your appearance; 1960 first year you could self identify

• Up to 1990 you could only choose one racial category, 2000 you could pick two, 2010

  multiple and even write in.

• Census led to all of the documents that ask for race and ethnicity today- job

  applications, college, medical, licenses, etc.

why is race being used in forensic anthropology and biological anthropology?

• to compare to known populations + approx ancestry to serve descendent’s family & narrow down the search/identify them

common methods

• statistical analysis

• non metric traits + inherited dental anomalies

isotopes

• Stable isotope profiles found in body tissues

• Can predict: unknown’s region or geographic origin, possible region of

  birth, long-term residency, travel history, and diet

decedent approach

• Think about the community that you are serving and how best to

communicate with them and what terminology they will be familiar

with. Your ultimate goal is to get the individual home to their families.

• racial and ancestry categories are a short-hand that aid in recognition;

  but remember the faults

characteristic used to determine ancestry

• skull

• teeth

• distal femur

• long bones

• pelvis

• foot bones

nose (whites, blacks, asians)

narrow, wide, medium

face/eye orbits (whites, blacks, asians)

angular, rectangular, rounded

vault/browridges (whites, blacks, asians)

heavy, small, small/projecting zygomatic bones/intermediate vault

jaws (whites, blacks, asians)

small, large, large

teeth (whites, blacks, asians)

spatulate, spatulate, shoveled

what is the ancestry of this skull?

black

what is the ancestry of this skull?

asian

what is the ancestry of this skull?

white

what is the ancestry of this skull?

asian

what is the ancestry of this skull?

white

what is the ancestry of this skull?

black

craniometrics

multiply each cranial measurment with/ corresponding coefficients. add all 8 final values together

• scientific measurement of the human skull, used to determine biological profiles including

  sex, ancestral background, and approximate age. It aids in understanding human evolution and population migration, as well as forensic identification

cline

gradual, continuous change in a specific genetic or physical trait (phenotype) of a species across a geographical area, usually driven by environmental pressures rather than abrupt differences. It illustrates how species show progressive, rather than discrete, variations

what was the 1921 Tulsa race massacre

two-day assault (May 31 – June 1) by a white mob on the prosperous Black Greenwood District in Tulsa, Oklahoma, often called "Black Wall Street". Deputized white citizens burned over 35 square blocks, leaving thousands homeless and killing an estimated 300 people, marking one of the worst incidents of racial violence in US history.

What is the project revolving around the massacre? Purpose of the

project?

find + identify bodies. Ultimate success of memorials “with names attached to the individuals, with a thorough record of, as bad as it is, what their last moments were like.

tulsa race massacre type of violence (weaponry/use of transport)

coordinated white mob attack characterized by arson, widespread gun violence, and the alleged use of aircraft to terrorize residents

who is dr stubblefield?

interim director of the C.A. Pound Human Identification Laboratory at the University of Florida in Gainesville, is also a descendant of survivors of Tulsa race massacre

attributions of sex: adults vs subadults

low rates of success; virtually no difference b/w male and female skeletons before puberty

interpopulation groups

• males of 1 population may resemble females of another

• seriation: lay out skeletal elements looking for range of variation + pattern w/in population

innominate/pelvic girdle (os coxae) male vs female

• greater sciatic notch

• sub-pubic angle

• ventral arc

• inlet/outlet shape

• preauricular sulcus

larger + heavier vs smaller + lighter

• narrower + deeper vs wider

• smaller + narrow vs wider

• not present vs present

• narrow vs wider

• diminished in size vs more pronounced

male or female?

male

male or female?

female

male or female?

male

male or female?

female

male skull morphology

• overall robusticity

• Slope of forehead (frontal)

▪ Supra orbital tours/ridge (brow ridge)

▪ Glabella

▪ Supra orbital margin

▪ Mastoid process

▪ Temporal Line

▪ Occipital tours (and the nuchal crest)

▪ Mandible

• Shape of chin (mental eminence)

• Ascending ramus

• more

• backward

• more

• more

• thick/blunt

• long

• squarer

• broader + prjected

• higher, broader, more robust

male or female?

male

male or female?

male

male or female?

female

how old?

2 months

how old?

1 year

how old?

2 years

how old?

4 years

how old?

6 years

how old?

8 years

how old?

10 years

how old?

12 years

how old?

15 years

how old?

21+

ossification centers

• 11th gestation week: 806 centers

• birth: 450 centers

• adult: 206 bones

epiphyseal fusion

• sequence of growth, termination and fusion of bones

  • stage 1: no union

  • stage 2: partial closure

  • stage 3: complete union

    • recent: line of demarcation

    • complete: no line

• timing may vary but sequence is more stable

which pubic symphyses is younger?

a

which auricular surface is older?

a

what is the score for the coronal and sagittal sutures sutures of this skull (0-3)?

0

what is the score for the coronal and sagittal sutures sutures of this skull (0-3)?

2

antemortem

before death

• skeletal indications of healing

  • first 13-14 days

  • groove adjacent to fracture

  • woven bone deposited

  • rounding of fracture margins

• signs of amputation

  • osteophytic processes

  • resorptive pitting

perimortem

around the time of death

• bones retain moisture + resilience

• clean fractures w/ transmission of fractures rather than shattering

• fracture margins sharp, radiating/fracture lines evident, fracture lines straight, color of fractured edges same as rest of bone

postmortem

after death

• animal activity: eating, gnawing, chewing, crushing, diapering of remains

• natural actions: freezing, thawing, fluvial action, abrasion, sun bleaching, root damage

• mechanical activity

• marine exposure: bleaching, loss of bone cortex, algae or barnacles deposited

• human actions: excavation techniques, trophy or souvenir remains, attempts to remove identifying features by acid or other means, religious/cultural activity

• bones have loss of moisture + resilience, distinguished by differences in coloration, brittle nature of fracture

• fracture margins rough, no evidence of radiating fractures, fracture lines uneven + frequently discontinuous, color at fracture margin usually white

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

antemortem

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

perimortem

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

perimortem

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

postmortem

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

antemortem

is this injury antemortem, perimortem, or postmortem?

perimortem

blunt force trauma

• relatively low velocity impact over relatively broad area

• includes blows from objects (sticks, rocks, pipes, etc), fists/feet, motor vehicle accidents, trains, planes

• distinguished from gunshot trauma + sharp force trauma

sharp trauma

• stabbing vs cutting

• often torso/neck

• cannot measure cut to get dimensions of blade

• can distinguish single vs double bladed knives

projectile trauma

• gunshot injuries

• concentrated projectile w/ relatively high velocity

• extent of damage depends on force of impact (speed/weight of bullet)

blast trauma + strangulation

• no definable point of impact

• multiple splinters of bone

• decapitations + dismemberments

• fracture of hyoid

entry wounds

• cookie cutter appearance externally

• clean edge in most cases

• beveling as bullet leaves bone

exit wounds

• external beveling

• often more ragged appearance + may be larger

• may not occur due to loss of force suffice to carry bullet out of body

tension vs compression

• bone will pull apart leaving rough surface

• breaks first

• fracture first appears

• bone will break at approximately 30 degree angle (oblique) leaving shattered surface

torsion/shearing

twisting- fracture surfaces + concomitant lines to spiral down long axis of bones

immobilization of one segment of bones

direct vs indirect

• exact point of impact from concentrated, high energy force

• ex. hammer blow

• rough/jagged edges

• happen at a distance from impact caused by bending twisting or compression

• broken shoulder from falling on outstretched hand

• oblique/spiral patterns

rules

• linear fracture will to cross previously existing fracture (unhealed) or unfused suture

• fracture will take path of least resistance by releasing energy down previous fracture/suture line

• if fracture A reaches but does not cross fracture B, it more than likely happened after fracture B

radiating/linear fractures

• make up 70% of skull fractures

• initiated by stresses of outbidding the skull some distance from impact site

• will usually point to impact site but may not reach it

• usually extend to base of skull

• may involve 1 table more than the other

• will usually not cross earlier fracture

• result from explosive release of energy

• beat bullet to opposite side of skull

concentric (hoop) fractures

circular fracture lines that form around a central point of impact

high-velocity, blunt, or ballistic trauma, often indicating the point of impact. 

greenstick fractures

incomplete break where the bone bends and cracks on one side only,

occur from trauma, typically a fall where a child lands on an outstretched hand, bending the bone

butterfly fractures

comminuted, high-energy bone fracture where two oblique fracture lines create a large, triangular (wedge-shaped) fragment, resembling a butterfly, between the main proximal and distal bone segments

from bending

car accidents/falls

compression fractures

bone failure due to crushing forces, resulting in reduced bone height, cortical shell collapse, or vertebral wedging

falls, accidents, blunt force

tension fractures

tiny, hairline cracks

repetitive impact

torsion fractures

coiled, twisting line wrapped around a bone, similar to a corkscrew

caused by rotating forces

comminuted fractures

bone breaks, splinters, or is crushed into three or more pieces.

Caused by high-energy trauma like car accidents or falls

burnt bone/temperatures

• minimal heat: scorched/smoked appearance

• less than 800 degrees celsius: incomplete incineration + slight shrinkage

• greater than 800 degrees celsius: white to bluish fray in color + up to 25% shrinkage

what fracture?

butterfly

what trauma?

sharp

what trauma?

projectile

what trauma/fracture

sharp/radiating

what trauma?

blunt

what fractures?

radiating, concentric

what fractures?

transverse, complete, greenstick, comminuted