Biological and Physical Anthropology Commons^™

Embodied Injustices: Covid-19, Race, And Epigenetics, Maria Encinosa

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Digital Projects Showcase Exhibitor Award Although historical and even modern accounts of race assume significant biological differences between racial groups, race has little biological meaning. Nonetheless, the social construct of race has real consequences. Racial identity defines boundaries of community and impacts the experiences of individuals, including how people live and die during a pandemic. COVID-19 has disproportionately affected minority communities in the United States, triggering many explanations for racial disparities in health. Through an analysis of sources spanning from popular media to traditional academic journals, I analyze the potential for epigenetic research to serve as a missing link that …

Dental Disparities: A Quantitative & Regional Analysis Of Male Oral Health In The United States, Hannah Merritt, Gordon Rakita

Showcase of Osprey Advancements in Research and Scholarship (SOARS)

Project of Merit Winner

Multiple factors contribute to the oral health of male individuals in the United States, including economic, regional, and gender disparities. My study compares health care coverage and poverty rates to indicators of oral health status and dental care access such as percentage of tooth lost, number of dental visits, and oral health services at federally qualified health centers. This oral health data is drawn from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention across all fifty states in the year 2018 and from the United States Census. By examining this data, I will be able to answer …

"The Face Of The Agency": Interviews With Death Investigators In South Louisiana, Natalie H. King

LSU Master's Theses

According to the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators, “the role of the medicolegal death investigator is to investigate any death that falls under the jurisdiction of the medical examiner or coroner, including all suspicious, violent, unexplained and unexpected deaths” (American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators [ABMDI], n.d.). As such, a death investigator has a job that is highly intense and stressful at a level similar to that of doctors, nurses, emergency medical technicians (EMTs), and firefighters. The majority of the literature written about death investigators focuses on procedural issues, while there seemingly is a lack of literature focused on …

The Bioarchaeology Of The Lake St. Agnes Mound (16av26) Site: Exploring Diet From Fragmentary Remains, Kenneth Tremblay

LSU Master's Theses

The Lake St. Agnes Mound (16AV26) site, located in central Louisiana, is composed of two, temporally distinct burial components; one, a Coles Creek period component, at the base of the mound (~780-880 CE), and the other, a Plaquemine subperiod component, at its apex (~1400 CE). These burials, though heavily fragmented, commingled, and representing small sample sizes, are valuable for studying the transition to agriculture in the Lower Mississippi River Valley. It is now clear that for the Coles Creek period, maize was likely only a ceremonial crop rather than a staple food source (Kidder, 1993; Listi, 2011). The reliance on …

Assessing The Validity Of The Estimation Of Population Affinity From The Maxillary Hard Palate: An Empirical Approach Using A Modern Forensic Sample, Christopher M. Goden

LSU Master's Theses

In response to Beathard and DiGangi’s (2020) call to action for empirical assessment of population affinity estimation methodology, this study investigates the validity of maxillary palate shape as an indicator of ancestral population affinity for human skeletal remains through the use of Elliptical Fourier Analysis (EFA) and Linear Discriminant Function Analysis (DFA). Further, this study also places emphasis on the expressed variation of palate shape within and between population groups exemplified by Principal Component Analysis (PCA) of EFA data.

Computed tomography scans of 180 individuals of Black, White, and Hispanic population affinities were obtained from the New Mexico Decedent Imaging …

Using The Seventh Rib Length And Depth Measurements As A Method To Estimate Ancestry And Sex In Adults, Alexandria M. Amaki

LSU Master's Theses

This study tested the correlation of dimensions of the left seventh rib (L7) to ancestry and sex in adult humans. The first hypothesis, based on Bergmann’s theory, is that Black (African-American) individuals will have smaller L7 dimensions than White individuals (Americans of primarily European descent). The second hypothesis is that males, due to sexual dimorphism, will have larger ribs than females. 299 individuals from the Hamann-Todd Skeletal Collection were used in the study, approximately evenly distributed among sex and ancestry groups. Five variables were examined, including three measurements (length, width, and width point), and two calculations (area and ratio). A …

Mapping Louisiana's Missing: Spatiotemporal Profiling Of Louisiana's Missing Persons- An Experimental Application Of Geographic Information Systems And Forensic Anthropology, Liam J. Johnson

LSU Master's Theses

The growing number of unresolved unidentified and missing persons cases in the United States is this nation’s ‘silent mass disaster’ (Ritters, 2007). In addition to contextualizing biocultural traits of these cases, forensic anthropologists are uniquely qualified to address this underrecognized humanitarian crisis due to their proven ability to bridge conflicting stakeholders in often complex sociopolitical environments and to create improved opportunities for community collaboration. This project explores local and state demographic trends of missing persons cases and how this information can be used to assist investigative agencies with their missing population, analyzes gaps in identification data, and selects optimal locations …

Was Facial Width-To-Height Ratio Subject To Sexual Selection Pressures? A Life Course Approach, Carolyn R. Hodges-Simeon, Graham Albert, George B. Richardson, Timothy S. Mchale, Seth M. Weinberg, Michael Gurven, Steven J.C. Gaulin

Anthropology and Museum Studies Faculty Scholarship

Sexual selection researchers have traditionally focused on adult sex differences; however, the schedule and pattern of sex-specific ontogeny can provide insights unobtainable from an exclusive focus on adults. Recently, it has been debated whether facial width-to-height ratio (fWHR; bi-zygomatic breadth divided by midface height) is a human secondary sexual characteristic (SSC). Here, we review current evidence, then address this debate using ontogenetic evidence, which has been under-explored in fWHR research. Facial measurements were collected from 3D surface images of males and females aged 3 to 40 (Study 1; US European-descent, n = 2449), and from 2D photographs of males and …

Health Disparities Between Women And Men In Medieval Europe: A Bioarcheological Study Of Gender Roles, Ella Uren

Conspectus Borealis

No abstract provided.

Zoonotic Diseases: New Directions In Human–Animal Pathology, Robin Bendrey, Debra Martin

Anthropology Faculty Research

Zoonotic diseases—human diseases of animal origin—represent one of the world's greatest health challenges, both today and in the past. Since the Neolithic, zoonotic diseases have been one of the major factors shaping and influencing human adaptation. Archaeology is ideally situated to provide the long view on human–animal–pathogen relationships through combining cultural, environmental and biological datasets, yet long-term studies of linked human and animal records have often been overlooked and undertheorized. The seven papers in this special issue “Zoonotic diseases: New directions in human–animal pathology” cover a range of diseases caused by bacterial, viral, and parasitic pathogens, from case studies drawn …

Very Low Prevalence And Incidence Of Atrial Fibrillation Among Bolivian Forager-Farmers, Christopher J. Rowan, Michael A. Eskander, Edmond Seabright, Daniel Eid Rodriguez, Edhitt Cortez Linares, Raul Quispe Gutierrez, Juan Copajira Adrian, Daniel Cummings, Bret Beheim, Kirsten Tolstrup, Abinash Achrekar, Thomas Kraft, David E. Michalik, Michael I. Miyamoto, Adel H. Allam, L. Samuel Wann, Jagat Narula, Benjamin C. Trumble, Jonathan Stieglitz, Randall C. Thompson, Gregory S. Thomas, Hillard S. Kaplan, Michael D. Gurven

ESI Publications

Background: Atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia in post-industrialized populations. Older age, hypertension, obesity, chronic inflammation, and diabetes are significant atrial fibrillation risk factors, suggesting that modern urban environments may promote atrial fibrillation.

Objective: Here we assess atrial fibrillation prevalence and incidence among tropical horticulturalists of the Bolivian Amazon with high levels of physical activity, a lean diet, and minimal coronary atherosclerosis, but also high infectious disease burden and associated inflammation.

Methods: Between 2005–2019, 1314 Tsimane aged 40–94 years (52% female) and 534 Moseten Amerindians aged 40–89 years (50% female) underwent resting 12-lead electrocardiograms to assess atrial fibrillation prevalence. …

Lessons From Rapa Nui (Easter Island, Chile) For Governance In Conditions Of Environmental Uncertainty, Carl P. Lipo, Pamela A. Mischen, Terry L. Hunt

Anthropology Datasets

No abstract provided.

Considerations For Post-Processing Parameters In Mixed-Method 3d Analyses: A Mesolithic Mandibular Case Study, Robert Z. Selden Jr., Lauren N. Butaric, Kersten Bergstrom, Dennis Van Gerven

CRHR: Archaeology

The production of three-dimensional (3D) digital meshes of surface and computed tomographic (CT) data has become widespread in morphometric analyses of anthropological and archaeological data. Given that processing methods are not standardized, this leaves questions regarding the comparability of processed and digitally curated 3D datasets. The goal of this study was to identify those processing parameters that result in the most consistent fit between CT-derived meshes and a 3D surface model of the same human mandible. Eight meshes, each using unique thresholding and smoothing parameters, were compared to assess whole-object deviations, deviations along curves, and deviations between specific anatomical features …

An Examination Of Sex Distributions In Umm An-Nar Tombs From Bronze Age Arabia Using The Distal Humerus, Charles Downey, Silvio Ernesto Mirabal Torres, Lesley A. Gregoricka, Jaime M. Ullinger

Year 1: AAPA 2021 – virtual

Background: Umm an-Nar (2700-2000 BCE) communal tombs from southeastern Arabia contain human skeletal remains characterized by extensive commingling and variable degrees of burning. Because of this, few bioarchaeological studies have been conducted examining the proportions of males to females in these monumental tombs. We hypothesized that increased social stratification in the late Umm an-Nar period would lead to a higher number of males interred in Umm an-Nar tombs over time.

Methods: To estimate sex, we measured four features of the distal humeri from tombs Unar 1 (2400-2200 BCE) and Unar 2 (2300-2100 BCE). Heat-induced changes to bone from cremation were …

Mni And Sex Estimation In Two Umm An-Nar Tombs From The Uae, Jaime M. Ullinger, Lesley A. Gregoricka, Chaylee Arellano, Quentin Burke, Victoria Calvin, Charlie Downey, Rachel Heil, Alyssa Mcgrath, Silvio Ernesto Mirabal Torres, Jeremy Simmons

Year 1: AAPA 2021 – virtual

Commingled tombs are often overlooked in bioarchaeological studies because of the difficult nature of analysis, despite their prevalence across the ancient world. Tombs Unar 1 (U1) and Unar 2 (U2), located in the United Arab Emirates, date to the Umm an-Nar period (2700-2000 BCE), when people witnessed shifts in mortuary practices likely reflective of broader changes in subsistence and social organization. A collaborative project that trains undergraduates in anthropological research has examined tomb membership for U1 and U2 by estimating MNI and sex. Despite early descriptions of U1 and U2 holding similar numbers of individuals, this project found that MNI …

A Tali Of Two Tombs: Calculating Mni And Bone Calcination In Commingled Remains From Two Bronze Age Tombs In The Uae, Alyssa Mcgrath, Rachel Heil, Lesley A. Gregoricka, Jaime M. Ullinger

Year 1: AAPA 2021 – virtual

Background: The Umm an-Nar period (2700-2000 BCE) is known for its dichotomy between the rise in social hierarchy during life, seen in the construction of monumental towers and emergence of oasis agriculture, and equal treatment in death, seen in the commingling of all community members within monumental tombs. Umm an-Nar tombs Unar 1 (2400-2200 BCE) and Unar 2 (2300-2100 BCE) were part of the Shimal Necropolis in the United Arab Emirates. Archaeologists initially hypothesized that these tombs each contained 400+ people, but these estimates were not based on bioarchaeological methods.

Methods: Using the talus, the landmark and zonation methods were …

Sex Estimation For Early Bronze Age Arabian Tombs Using The Temporal Bone, Victoria Calvin, Jeremy Simmons, Lesley A. Gregoricka, Jaime M. Ullinger

Year 1: AAPA 2021 – virtual

Background: The Umm an-Nar period (2700-2000 BCE) in the United Arab Emirates was marked by the appearance of settlements, oasis agriculture, and fortification towers, suggesting increasing stratification. Conversely, mortuary practices indicate equality based on commingling of community members. Based on other tombs in the region, it was hypothesized that sex ratios would not differ between tombs Unar 1 (U1; 2400-2200 BCE) and Unar 2 (U2; 2300-2100 BCE).

Methods: Sex was estimated using robusticity of the mastoid process and the lateral angle of the internal auditory meatus for the temporal bone. As cremation was part of the mortuary ritual and could …

West Mesa Murders Informational Website, Olivia Jackman, Lauren Hunter

Spectrum

No abstract provided.

Dietary Variation Of Social Elites Within A Late Horizon Cemetery (A.D. 1470-1532) At Túcume, Peru: Stable Carbon And Nitrogen Isotopic Analysis Of Huaca Las Abejas., Dylan Smith

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Food choices can create and maintain group membership, also distinguishing groups based on dietary preferences and the perceived social value of foods. The food behaviors of social elites within complex societies are often governed by differential access and cultural factors determining the menu within a regional ecology. This study employs bioarchaeological and stable isotopic analyses to investigate the evidence for dietary variation of social elites within the Late Horizon (A.D. 1470–1532) cemetery of Huaca Las Abejas at Túcume using stable nitrogen and carbon isotopes. Paired teeth (early life diet) and bones (later life diet) were sampled from 23 individuals to …

Oil And Canvas Art: Recovery And Analysis Of Unidentified Remains Recovered 2004, Dan Magelinski

Spectrum

No abstract provided.

Materializing And Embodying Sex And Gender: Interpreting Gender And Sex Variance In Iron Age Pre-Roman And Roman Britain Mortuary Contexts, Morgan Martin

Spectrum

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Forensic Anthropological Techniques In Identifying America's War Dead From Past Conflicts, William Belcher, Calvin Y. Shiroma, Lesley A. Chesson, Gregory E. Berg, Miranda Jans

Department of Anthropology: Faculty Publications

The Scientific Analysis Directorate of the U.S. Department of Defense's (DoD) Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency (DPAA) is a unique entity within the U.S. Government. This agency currently houses the world's largest, accredited skeletal identification laboratory in the world, in terms of the size of the scientific staff, global mission, and number of annual identifications. Traditional forensic anthropology is used for the formation of a biological profile (biological sex, stature, population affinity/ancestry, and age) as well as trauma and pathologies that may be compared with historical records and personnel files. Since World War II, various scientists associated with DoD have conducted …

Counting Chins To Count People: Determining Mni For Umm An-Nar Tombs From Mandibular Fragments, Chaylee Arellano, Quentin Burke, Lesley A. Gregoricka, Jaime M. Ullinger

Year 1: AAPA 2021 – virtual

Background: The Umm an-Nar period (2700-2000 BCE) was a time of rapid transformation within the Oman Peninsula, characterized by changes in mortuary practices, agriculture, and settlement. Located in the United Arab Emirates, Unar 1 (2400-2200 BCE) and Unar 2 (2300-2100 BCE) are two large Umm an-Nar tombs that held commingled, fragmented remains, posing a challenge in determining the minimum number of individuals (MNI). Based on the larger size of Unar 2, we hypothesized that the number of interred individuals would increase over time.

Methods: MNI was calculated using the zonation and landmark methods for the mandible. MNI and tomb size …

Understanding The Dietary Behavior Of A 7th - 8th Century Avar Community From Jagodnjak, Croatia Using Stable Isotope Analysis Of Bone Collagen, Marlon Koci

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

The dietary behavior of past communities is influenced by several factors such as environmental sources, social and economic organization, individual preferences, and physiological needs. Every society has its characteristics and understanding the dietary choices of its individuals expands the knowledge about its lifestyle. Applying biochemical tracers, we can explore the food choices of an Early Medieval Avar community. The Jagodnjak cemetery (n=35) in Croatia is dated to the 7–8th century. Historical and archaeological records are currently limited for Avar populations. Jagodnjak is a transitory community from a period where different historical events shaped the community's way of life. The research …

Reading The Bones: A Taphonomic Investigation Of Archaeofaunal Remains Recovered From Site 48pa551, Northwest Wyoming, Morgan H. Thurman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This is a preliminary taphonomy study of archaeofaunal remains found at site 48PA551, more commonly known as the Dead Indian Creek Site. 48PA551 is a well-known and commonly cited example of a McKean Complex occupation dating to between 3,800 and 4,800 B.P. The University of Montana held a field school at the site conducting small test excavations under the supervision of Dr. Anna Marie Prentiss in 2018. In the course of this testing a highly fragmentary bone bed consisting mostly of mammalian bone, cervids largely, was discovered eroding into the nearby creek. Ten 50 x 50 cm quadrants were excavated …

Forensic Implications For The Diagenetic Alteration Of The Stable Isotopic Composition Of Pig Ribs Following Exposure To Aqueous Conditions., Erin Martin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

This research involves the examination of the contribution of stable isotope analysis to the forensic anthropological objective of human identification. Oxygen isotopes, which vary in water in a predictable manner according to climatological and geographical factors, can be used to determine the region of origin of an unidentified individual following isotopic analysis of human skeletal remains. However, stable oxygen isotopes from human remains recovered from various aqueous environments may be altered by diagenetic processes that occur following deposition. The focus of this research is to determine potential diagenetic changes in the oxygen isotopic value (d18O) of Sus scrofa (domestic pig) …

Identifying Biomarkers Of Alzheimer's Disease From The Dakhleh Oasis Kellis 2 Cemetery Using Icp-Ms, Emily Barron

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Alzheimer's disease is a prevalent disease that affects roughly 5.4 million individuals each year (Fisher et al., 2018). Understanding the prevalence of Alzheimer's disease within the bioarchaeological record can help anthropologists gain an understanding of a population's health while also understanding the potential social ramifications. Trace element analysis is a valuable tool that allows bioarchaeologists to gain insight into individuals' health and development within the context of the past. In bioarchaeological studies, hair analysis has been used to map the nutritional status and migration patterns of individuals of past peoples, with recent studies focusing on disease prevalence. Analysis of hair …

Bioarchaeological And Mortuary Patterns At Holtun, Guatemala: Integrating A Comparative Osteobiographic Approach, Horvey Palacios

Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2020-2023

Bioarchaeological analysis can help identify patterns of mortuary ritual and social experience of ancient Maya peoples. However, there is limited bioarchaeological and mortuary evidence for the relationship between the development of social complexity and social experience. Particularly, how is social organization reflected in patterns of burial practice and skeletal markers of stress. This thesis uses osteobiographies to contextualize the mortuary and biological profiles of 20 individuals interred at the Maya site of Holtun, Guatemala to examine bioarchaeological variation during the Preclassic (800 B.C. – 250 A.D.) and Late Classic (550 A.D. – 900 A.D.) periods. This work highlights the integration …

Ant-3700 - Introduction To Anthropology, Igor Pashkovskiy

Open Educational Resources

Movement away from the textbook model has potential to foster equitable access to course materials as well as reduce textbook costs for students. As such, transition to a zero cost/OER classroom included the curation of open access scholarly literature to cover the four-field approach presently taught in introductory anthropology courses.

Biocultural Evidence Of Precise Manual Activities In An Early Holocene Individual Of The High-Altitude Peruvian Andes, Fotios Alexandros Karakostis, Hugo Reyes-Centeno, Michael Franken, Gerhard Hotz, Kurt Rademaker, Katerina Harvati

Anthropology Faculty Publications

OBJECTIVES: Cuncaicha, a rockshelter site in the southern Peruvian Andes, has yielded archaeological evidence for human occupation at high elevation (4,480 masl) during the Terminal Pleistocene (12,500–11,200 cal BP), Early Holocene (9,500–9,000 cal BP), and later periods. One of the excavated human burials (Feature 15‐06), corresponding to a middle‐aged female dated to ~8,500 cal BP, exhibits skeletal osteoarthritic lesions previously proposed to reflect habitual loading and specialized crafting labor. Three small tools found in association with this burial are hypothesized to be associated with precise manual dexterity.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Here, we tested this functional hypothesis through the application of …