Unit 2_ Forensic Anthropology & Bioarcheology

UNIT 2: MODERN HUMAN VARIATION

Overview

Understanding forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology, crucial fields that enhance our knowledge of human remains and their historical significance.

Page 2: Crime as Entertainment

Popular Crime Drama Shows

• Law & Order: Special Victims Unit: Follows a special team handling sexually based offenses in New York City. It emphasizes investigative procedures and legal processes.

• NCIS: Centers on a team of special agents from the Naval Criminal Investigative Service. The show combines personal relationships with investigative work.

• Major Crimes: Focuses on the Major Crimes division of the LAPD, showcasing high-profile cases and the challenges of criminal investigations.

• Prison Break: A dramatic narrative about a man's intricate plan to break his wrongfully imprisoned brother out of prison, touching on themes of justice.

• The Mentalist: Features a former psychic medium who uses his observational skills to solve crimes, blending psychology with investigative techniques.

Page 3: Forensic Anthropology

Definition

Forensic anthropology is a sub-field of biological anthropology focusing on the identification of skeletal, badly decomposed, or otherwise unidentified human remains.

Main Responsibilities

• Locating and recovering human remains in the field: Involves careful excavation techniques to ensure the preservation of remains.

• Analyzing human remains to build a biological profile for identification: This includes assessing skeletal structure for age, sex, ancestry, and identifying trauma marks.

• Determining circumstances surrounding death: Forensic anthropologists may determine whether a death was due to natural causes or foul play by examining bones.

• Providing expert testimony in legal settings: Their analyses are often vital in court to provide evidence and expert opinions.

Page 4: Application of Forensic Anthropology

Key Functions

Forensic anthropologists contribute to:

• Medicolegal death investigations: They analyze human remains within a legal context, often assisting law enforcement agencies.

• Interpreting hard tissue in various states of remains: They assess remains that are decomposed, burned, or otherwise altered, which helps piece together the circumstances of death.

Additional Roles

• Frequently assist in the search and recovery of human remains, utilizing techniques involving archaeological methods and biological knowledge.

Page 5: Biological Profile

Key Components

• Identifying age and biological sex based on skeletal parts: By analyzing the pelvis and skull, forensic anthropologists can make educated estimates about the biological profile of remains, crucial for identification purposes.

Page 7: Analyzing Human Skeletal Remains

Questions to Assess

• Is the matter bone and is it human?: Initial validation of the remains.

• Is it modern or archaeological?: Important for determining the context of the remains.

• What is the minimum number of individuals present?: This helps in establishing demographic distributions.

• Individual vs. mass death circumstances?: Distinguishing between isolated incidents and potential mass graves.

Forensic Inquiries

• Investigators look for signs of trauma and conduct analyses that may reveal events surrounding the death.

Page 8: Characteristics of Biological Profile

Determining Factors

• Sex: Identified through pelvic shape and cranial features.

• Age at death: Determined through skeletal measurements and development.

• Stature (build): Estimated based on long bone lengths.

• Skeletal variation: Recognition of individual differences in skeletal features.

• Pathology or trauma: Identifying diseases or injuries that affected the remains.

• Ancestry or population affinity: Linking skeletal characteristics to specific geographical backgrounds.

Page 9: Estimation Goals

Main Goals in Bioarchaeology

• Estimating age at death: Techniques like analyzing dental eruption and pelvic morphology are vital.

• Estimating sex: By examining pelvic and cranial traits particularly.

• Estimating stature: Derived from measurements of long bones, providing insights into the height of individuals at death.

Page 10: Estimating Age at Death

Techniques

• For juvenile remains, methods include observing dental eruption and epiphyseal union.

• For adult remains, dental attrition and cranial suture closure are key indicators.

Age Classes

• Divided into several categories: Fetal, Infant, Child, Adolescent, Young adult, Middle adult, Old adult.

Page 11: Age Estimation via Dentition

Key Points

• Deciduous (baby) teeth are temporary and lost; adult teeth erupt in a specific sequence, which correlates to age estimates.

Page 12: Age Estimation via Sutures

Fontanelles and Their Role

• Fontanelles, or soft spots, in infant skulls allow for brain growth. Sutures fuse at specific ages, aiding in estimating age; the anterior suture fuses by 18 months to 2 years.

Page 13: Age Estimation - Epiphyseal Fusion

Importance of Fusion

• Observing whether growth plates have fused can indicate if an individual has reached maturity (fused = growth completed).

Page 15: Estimating Biological Sex from the Pelvis

Key Indicators

• Characteristics of the pelvic inlet can indicate biological sex: heart-shaped inlet for males vs. oval inlet for females.

• Measurements of the pubis and angles of the sciatic notch also provide information.

Page 19: Pubic Symphysis and Aging

Characteristics

• Young adults display rugged surfaces on the pubic symphysis, while surfaces begin to wear by age 35, aiding in age estimations.

Page 20: Biological Profile - Sex (Cranium)

Cranium Characteristics for Sex Estimation

• Males generally have larger mastoid processes and more robust features, while females have a smoother cranial appearance.

Page 22: Trauma and Injuries

Identifying Trauma

• Forensic anthropologists note the nature of trauma: fractures, blunt trauma, gunshot or knife wounds, and signs of strangulation.

Page 25: Timing of Trauma

Types

• Antemortem: Evidence of healing suggests the injury occurred before death.

• Perimortem: Sharp injuries that happened around the time of death indicate immediate violence.

Page 32: Sharp Force Trauma

Characteristics

• Sharp force trauma is characterized by injuries created by pointed objects; generally, these have smooth edges, indicating cutting tools were used.

Page 34: Pathologies

Definition

• Diseases can manifest in skeletal structures, aiding in identifying historical health conditions.

Example Pathologies

• Congenital disorders: Such as cleft palate.

• Infectious diseases: Evidence of tuberculosis or treponemal diseases seen in bones.

• Nutritional deficiencies: Signs of scurvy associated with vitamin C deficiency.

Page 36: Pathology - Achondroplasia

Description

Achondroplasia is a common form of dwarfism, where cartilage does not convert to bone effectively. Individuals with it are usually shorter with normal trunk lengths, but shortened limbs.

Page 41: Bioarchaeology

Definition

Bioarchaeology is the study of human skeletal remains derived from archaeological contexts, aimed at understanding past populations.

Goals

• Reconstructing past human behaviors, diets, and health conditions using skeletal remains to inform about lifestyle and culture.

Page 47: Cultural Modifications

Impact of Cultural Practices

Cultural practices, such as trephination or foot-binding, can lead to observable changes in skeletal remains, indicating social or medical practices used in past societies.

Page 51: Trephination

Definition

Trephination involves drilling a circular hole in the skull, often performed for medical reasons throughout history. Rates of survival have improved significantly over time, demonstrating advancements in medical practices.

Page 54: Foot-binding

Overview

Originating in China, foot-binding was a practice where young girls' feet were bound tightly to alter their shape, intended to signify beauty and status. This led to severe lifelong complications and disabilities.

Page 56: Hyenas' Impact on Archaeological Sites

Overview

Hyenas possess extremely strong jaws, capable of consuming and damaging skeletal remains, consequently disrupting archaeological sites and complicating interpretations of past human behavior.