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Anthropology Commons

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Western University

Biological and Physical Anthropology

Biomechanics

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Anthropology

A Comparative Ontogenetic Study Of Biomechanical Adaptations In The Long Bones Of South African Khoisan And Sadlermiut Inuit, Kaye-Lynn Boucher Dec 2012

A Comparative Ontogenetic Study Of Biomechanical Adaptations In The Long Bones Of South African Khoisan And Sadlermiut Inuit, Kaye-Lynn Boucher

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This research examines and compares the biomechanical adaptations of juveniles from two different climate-adapted populations: Khoisan foragers from South Africa and Sadlermiut Inuit from Nunavut, Canada. Cortical bone measurements were recorded at three diaphyseal locations on the Sadlermiut and Khoisan humeri, tibiae and femora using biplanar radiographs. Biomechanical strength properties were calculated using the Eccentric Ellipse Method (EEM). EEM calculations were interpreted with consideration to the known behavioural patterns of the two groups. Humeral AP and torsional bending strength were greater in the Sadlermiut compared to the Khoisan – most likely caused by kayak paddling among the Sadlermiut. Few differences …


Cross-Sectional Morphology And Mechanical Loading In Plio-Pleistocene Hominins: Implications For Locomotion And Taxonomy, Michele M. Bleuze Ms. Dec 2010

Cross-Sectional Morphology And Mechanical Loading In Plio-Pleistocene Hominins: Implications For Locomotion And Taxonomy, Michele M. Bleuze Ms.

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

This study explores locomotion and locomotor variability in Plio-Pleistocene hominins by examining cross-sectional properties and mechanical loading patterns in the proximal and midshaft femur of Paranthropus, fossil Homo sp. and H. erectus. Modern human and Pan models are used for comparative purposes. Cross-sectional properties in the proximal and midshaft femur of fossil hominins are examined to test the hypothesis that members of the same genus should exhibit similar locomotor behavior. In the proximal femur, fossil Homo sp. cluster with modern humans to the exclusion of Paranthropus, and East and South African Paranthropus cluster together. Group differences are primarily due to …