Biological and Physical Anthropology Commons^™

Gestation Length, Mode Of Delivery And Neonatal Line Thickness Variation, CléMent Zanolli, Luca Bondioli, Franz Manni, Paola Rossi, Roberto Macchiarelli

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

The transition from an intra- to extra-uterine environment leaves its mark in deciduous teeth (and first permanent molars) as an accentuated enamel incremental ring called the neonatal line (NL). This prominent microfeature separates the enamel formed during intrauterine life from that formed after leaving the womb. However, while the physical structure of this scar is well known, the bases of its formation are still a matter of investigation. In particular, besides the influence of the birth-related abrupt environmental and dietary changes and the role played by physiological factors such as hypocalcaemia, it has been suggested a direct relationship between NL …

Afghan Genetic Mysteries, Bernard Dupaigne

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Letter To The Editor

Afro-Derived Amazonian Populations: Inferring Continental Ancestry And Population Substructure, Luana Gomes Lopes Maciel, Elzemar Martins Ribeiro-Rodrigues, Ney Pereira Cameiro Dos Santos, Ândrea K. C. Ribeiro Dos Santos, João Farias Guerreiro, Sidney Emanuel Batista Dos Santos

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

A panel of Ancestry Informative Markers (AIMs) was used to identify population substructure and estimate individual and overall interethnic admixture in 294 individuals from seven African-derived communities of the Brazilian Amazon. A panel of 48 biallelic markers, representing the insertion (IN) or the deletion (DEL) of small DNA fragments, was employed for this purpose. Overall interethnic admixture estimates showed high miscegenation with other ethnic groups in all populations (between 46% and 64%). The proportion of ancestral genes varied significantly among individuals of the sample: the contribution of African genes varied between 12% and 75%; of European genes between 10% and …

Review Of Arch Lake Woman: Physical Anthropology And Geoarchaeology. By Douglas W. Owsley, Margaret A. Jodry, Thomas W. Stafford, Jr., C. Vance Haynes, Jr., And Dennis J. Stanford., Daniel J. Wescott

Great Plains Research: A Journal of Natural and Social Sciences

Approximately 10,000 radiocarbon years before present, the body ofa 17- to 19-year-old female, probably associated with the Plainview Culture, was buried on the south side of Arch Lake, located near the present-day border of New Mexico and Texas. The young woman was interred in an extended supine position with a necklace of talc beads low on her neck, a bag containing red pigment and a unifacial stone tool on her left hip, and a bone tool placed on her chest. Her grave remained relatively undisturbed until 1967 when it was exposed, discovered, and carefully excavated by archaeologists. The Arch Lake …

Human Alu Insertion Polymorphisms In North African Populations, Lotfi Cherni, Sabeh Frigi, Hajer Ennafaa, Nabil Mtiraoui, Touhami Mahjoub, Amel Benammar-Elgaaied

Human Biology Open Access Pre-Prints

Several features make Alu insertions a powerful tool used in population genetic studies: the polymorphic nature of many Alu insertions, the stability of an Alu insertion event and, furthermore, the ancestral state of an Alu insertion is known to be the absence of the Alu element at a particular locus and the presence of an Alu insertion at the site that forward mutational change. This study analyses seven Alu insertion polymorphisms in a sample of 297 individuals from the autochthonous population of Tunisia (Thala, Smar, Zarzis and Bou Salem) and Libya with the aim of studying their genetic structure with …

Evidence For A Peak Shift In A Humoral Response To Helminths: Age Profiles Of Ige In The Shuar Of Ecuador, The Tsimane Of Bolivia, And The U.S. Nhanes, Aaron D. Blackwell, Michael D. Gurven, Lawrence S. Sugiyama, Felicia C. Madimenos, Melissa A. Liebert, Melanie A. Martin, Hillard Kaplan, J. Josh Snodgrass

ESI Publications

Background: The peak shift model predicts that the age-profile of a pathogen’s prevalence depends upon its transmission rate, peaking earlier in populations with higher transmission and declining as partial immunity is acquired. Helminth infections are associated with increased immunoglobulin E (IgE), which may convey partial immunity and influence the peak shift. Although studies have noted peak shifts in helminths, corresponding peak shifts in total IgE have not been investigated, nor has the age-patterning been carefully examined across populations. We test for differences in the agepatterning of IgE between two South American forager-horticulturalist populations and the United States: the Tsimane …

A Three-Step Method For Teaching The Principles Of Evolution To Non-Biology Major Undergraduates, Cameron M. Smith

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

A method for teaching the principles of evolution in a 50-minute lecture for undergraduate non-biology majors is described. The method “unpacks” evolution into three observable, factual occurrences: replication (R, reproduction), variation (V, differences between parent and offspring and siblings), and selection (S, nonrandom differential survival of offspring). This method has been particularly effective in demonstrating to students that evolution is the factual, unintended consequence of three independent phenomena (R, V, S).

Inflammatory Gene Variants In The Tsimane, An Indigenous Bolivian Population With A High Infectious Load, Sarinnapha Vasunilashorn, Caleb E. Finch, Eileen M. Crimmins, Suvi A. Vikman, Jonathan Stieglitz, Michael Gurven, Hillard Kaplan, Hooman Allayee

ESI Publications

The Tsimane of lowland Bolivia are an indigenous forager-farmer population living under conditions resembling pre-industrial European populations, with high infectious morbidity, high infection and inflammation, and shortened life expectancy. Analysis of 917 persons ages 5 to 60+ showed that allele frequencies of 9 SNPs examined in the apolipoprotein E (apoE), C-reactive protein (CRP), and interleukin-6 (IL-6) genes differed from some European, African, and north Asian-derived populations. The apoE2 allele was absent, whereas four SNPs related to CRP and IL-6 were monomorphic: CRP (rs1800947, rs3093061, and rs3093062) and IL-6 (rs1800795). No significant differences in apoE, CRP, and IL-6 variants across age …

Analysis Of Human Remains Recovered From James Anderson’S Public Armoury, Colonial Williamsburg, Michael L. Blakey, Christopher Crain

Institute for Historical Biology Articles & Book Chapters

In November of 2010, Dr. Michael Blakey, director of the Institute for Historical Biology, was contacted by archaeologist Andrew Edwards of the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation notifying him of the discovery of human remains during an excavation of the James Anderson’s Public Armoury, located near Francis Street in Colonial Williamsburg. After consultation, it was decided that the remains of the two individuals would be transferred to the Institute for Historical Biology for inventory and analysis. The first individual was transferred on January 5th, 2011 from the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation’s collections facility, where it had been cleaned by conservator, Emily Williams, and …

Upper Pleistocene Human Dispersals Out Of Africa: A Review Of The Current State Of The Debate, Amanuel Beyin

Faculty Scholarship

Although there is a general consensus on African origin of early modern humans, there is disagreement about how and when they dispersed to Eurasia. This paper reviews genetic and Middle Stone Age/Middle Paleolithic archaeological literature from northeast Africa, Arabia, and the Levant to assess the timing and geographic backgrounds of Upper Pleistocene human colonization of Eurasia. At the center of the discussion lies the question of whether eastern Africa alone was the source of Upper Pleistocene human dispersals into Eurasia or were there other loci of human expansions outside of Africa? The reviewed literature hints at two modes of early …

The Implications Of Merleau-Ponty For The Human Sciences, Ryan Marcotte

Senior Honors Projects

The Implications of Merleau-Ponty for the Human Sciences Ryan Marcotte Cobb Faculty Sponsor: Galen Johnson, Philosophy The American Anthropology Association (AAA) made headlines in November 2010 due to a controversial change in their 'Long-Range Plan.' The revised AAA mission statement omits all mention of the word 'science' and this omission has sparked a fierce debate within the anthropology community. The debate reveals that the study of social phenomena can be approached from two competing points of view – a scientific and a non-scientific perspective. This project is concerned with the historical and intellectual developments that led to this competition between …

Understanding Bioprospecting: Can Indigenous Populations Benefit From The Search For Pharmaceuticals In Areas Of High Biodiversity, Emily Schwindt

Department of Environmental Studies: Undergraduate Student Theses

Bioprospecting is a controversial issue, and anthropologists and other scientists are quick to take sides. The idea of large corporations pumping money into conservation and development programs, while developing what could be the latest life-saving drug simply sounds too good to be true, and often times is. However, if all parties work together and proceed with caution, these benefits could become more than a fantasy. Looking at case studies from Costa Rica, India, South Africa and Panama this paper attempts to find patterns among successful bioprospecting agreements and note shortcomings and identify risks. This information will be used to suggest …

Debrazza’S Monkeys (Cercopithecus Neglectus) In A Mixed-Taxa Zoo Exhibit: Effects On The Behavior Of A Breeding Group Of Debrazza’S Monkeys After The Birth Of An Infant, Rachel Diamond

Psychology Honors Projects

Historically, zoos rarely feature mixed taxa exhibits including multiple primate species; the Minnesota Zoo opened such a unique four-species exhibit featuring Rock hyraxes, Red River hogs, Colobus monkeys, and DeBrazza’s monkeys in May, 2010. Because of potential problems associated with territoriality and aggression, primates in mixed-taxa exhibits are generally non-breeding. However, the DeBrazza’s monkeys at the MN Zoo are a breeding pair with a juvenile offspring. The intent of this study was to design an ethogram with the purpose of calculating the effects of a mixed taxa exhibit on the behavior of this breeding group, and to compare their behavior …

Depicting Simultaneously Similarity, Diversity, Ancestry, And Admixture?, Peter J. Taylor

Working Papers on Science in a Changing World

Can any depiction of genetic relationships among humans allow simultaneously for similarity, diversity, ancestry, and admixture (i.e., groups that had split mixing again)? I asked this question while puzzling over the messages conveyed by diagrams from the work of Tishkoff and collaborators on genetic variation among humans in and out of Africa. In this talk I present explorations of alternative depictions of human genetic variation keeping my initial question in mind. By the end I will have prepared the ground for an assertion that the very methodology of generating and depicting human ancestry privileges a racialized view of human diversity.

Fracture In Teeth—A Diagnostic For Inferring Bite Force And Tooth Function, Paul J. Constantino, Brian R. Lawn, James J.-W. Lee, Peter W. Lucas

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Teeth are brittle and highly susceptible to cracking. We propose that observations of such cracking can be used as a diagnostic tool for predicting bite force and inferring tooth function in living and fossil mammals. Laboratory tests on model tooth structures and extracted human teeth in simulated biting identify the principal fracture modes in enamel. Examination of museum specimens reveals the presence of similar fractures in a wide range of vertebrates, suggesting that cracks extended during ingestion or mastication. The use of ‘fracture mechanics’ from materials engineering provides elegant relations for quantifying critical bite forces in terms of characteristic tooth …

Father Death And Adult Success Among The Tsimane: Implications For Marriage And Divorce, Jeffrey Winking, Michael Gurven, Hillard Kaplan

ESI Publications

Human fathers are heavily involved in the rearing of children around the world. While there is great cross-cultural variation, the father is a recognizable role in all populations. This deviates from the standard mammalian pattern of little paternal investment. A logical explanation offered early by evolutionary theorists is that human fathers evolved the capacity for paternal concern because human children are remarkably needy and impose a great encumbrance on the mother (Lancaster & Lancaster, 1983; Lovejoy, 1981). Thus, fathers have greater opportunity to enhance the wellbeing of child and mother, as there is a deeper well of need to fill. …

Coping With Forest Fragmentation: A Comparison Of Colobus Angolensis Palliatus Dietary Diversity And Behavioral Plasticity In The East Sagara Forest, Tanzania., Noah T. Dunham

Honors Projects

Habitat destruction and forest fragmentation are perhaps the largest threats to primate species around the world. While national parks, games reserves, and primate sanctuaries are instrumental in primate conservation, research suggests that some non-governmentally protected forest fragments may also serve as viable habitats for primates. Of course not all primates respond to fragmentation in the same way, but a species’ ability to survive in a fragment relates to 1) home range size 2) degree of frugivory 3) dietary flexibility and behavioral plasticity and 4) ability to utilize matrix habitats. Here I describe these variables in relation to black and white …

Tanning Predicts Bone Mass But Not Structure In Adolescent Females Living In Hawaii, Daniel L. Osborne, Connie M. Weaver, Linda D. Mccabe, George P. Mccabe, Rachel Novotny, Carol Boushey, Dennis A. Savaiano

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

Objectives: To evaluate the relationship between facultative skin pigmentation, which predicts circulating levels of plasma 25-hydroxymitamin D, and several measures of bone mass and structure in a cross sectional sample of adolescent females living in Hawaii.

Methods: Our sample was composed of adolescent females (n = 94) living in Hawaii where seasonal sun exposure is minimal, and who self-identified as either white (n = 16) or Asian (n = 78). Bone mineral content (BMC) of the total body, the lumbar spine and the hip, and cross sectional area (CSA) and section modulus (Z) at the …

What Anthropologists Should Know About The New Evolutionary Synthesis, Cameron M. Smith, Julia Cleverly Ruppell

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Discoveries of modern biology are forcing a re-evaluation of even the central pillars of neo- Darwinian evolution. Anthropologists study the processes and results of biological and biocultural evolution, so they must be aware of the scope and nature of these changes in biology. We introduce these changes, comment briefly on how will influence anthropology, and suggest numerous readings to introduce anthropologists to the significance and substance of the new evolutionary synthesis.

A History Of Resilience Is A History Of Resistance, Melissa Ooten

Women, Gender and Sexuality Studies Faculty Publications

As an historian, I’m struck by the emphasis this documentary places on non-humans – be it animals, plants, soil, or mountains – although as a native of Appalachia, that doesn’t surprise me. The film is billed as “America’s first environmental history series: and as such, it gives us a bold, unique template of how to talk holistically about the concept of place and the specific place of Appalachia. While it may be particularly prescient to talk about the broader concept of place through ecology and other facets when analyzing the history of Appalachia, surely it is no less important when …

Can Salmonids (Oncorhynchus Spp.) Be Identified To Species Using Vertebral Morphometrics?, Harriet R. Huber, Jeffery C. Jorgensen, Virginia L. Butler, Greg Baker, Rebecca Stevens

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Remains of anadromous Pacific salmon and trout (genus Oncorhynchus) are common in archaeological sites from California to Alaska; however, morphological similarity generally precludes species identification, limiting the range of questions that salmonid remains can address in relation to past human use and ongoing efforts in conservation biology. We developed a relatively simple, rapid, and non-destructive way to classify salmon and trout vertebrae from archaeological contexts to species using length, height and the ratio of length to height. Modern reference material was obtained from all seven anadromous Oncorhynchus species native to the west coast of North America. A minimum of ten …