Biological and Physical Anthropology Commons^™

Blood Lipids, Infection, And Inflammatory Markers In The Tsimane Of Bolivia, Sarinnapha Vasunilashorn, Eileen M. Crimmins, Jung Ki Kim, Jeff Winking, Michael Gurven, Hillard Kaplan, Caleb Finch

ESI Publications

Objectives—Little is known about blood cholesterol (blood-C) levels under conditions of infection and limited diet. This study examines blood-C and markers of infection and inflammation in the Tsimane of the Bolivian Amazon, indigenous forager farmers living in conditions that model preindustrial European populations by their short life expectancy, high load of infections and inflammation, and limited diets.

Methods—We use multivariate models to determine the relationships between lipid levels and markers of infection and inflammation. Adult Tsimane (N = 418, age 20–84) were characterized for blood lipids, cells, and inflammatory markers in relation to individual loads of parasites and …

The Quantification Of Displacement Of The Anterior Teeth In The Human Dentition, Peggy Jean Van Scotter-Asbach

Dissertations (1934 -)

The credibility of bite mark analysis as a forensic science is under fire in our legal system. The basis of opinions regarding the probability of a dental pattern observed in bite mark evidence matching a suspect's dentition has not been objectively substantiated. Though guidelines and standards are in place, bite mark analyses have failed to provide basic scientific methods in order to be deemed of evidentiary value. Forensic scientists need to take a step back and develop valid and reliable methodologies that provide a statistical approach for defining dental characteristics in the human dentition.

For this study, three computer-generated, mathematically …

Tooth Chipping Can Reveal The Diet And Bite Forces Of Fossil Hominins, Paul J. Constantino, James Jin-Wu Lee, Herzl Chai, Bernhard Zipfel, Charles Ziscovici, Brian R. Lawn, Peter W. Lucas

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Mammalian tooth enamel is often chipped, providing clear evidence for localized contacts with large hard food objects. Here, we apply a simple fracture equation to estimate peak bite forces directly from chip size. Many fossil hominins exhibit antemortem chips on their posterior teeth, indicating their use of high bite forces. The inference that these species must have consumed large hard foods such as seeds is supported by the occurrence of similar chips among known modern-day seed predators such as orangutans and peccaries. The existence of tooth chip signatures also provides a way of identifying the consumption of rarely eaten foods …

The Effects Of Cellular Theta Breathing Meditation On Cell Mediated Immune Response: A Controlled, Randomized Investigation Of Altered Consciousness And Health, Marjorie D. Hardgrave

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Medical anthropology is well positioned to make contributions to consciousness research based on biocultural approaches that integrate methodologies from the biological, behavioral and social sciences to explore aspects of human health. The ubiquity and perseverance of health related activities involving altered states of consciousness (ASC) across cultures past and present suggest that these potentials are deeply rooted in human sociocultural evolution. Analyzing the relationship between immune function and meditative ASC represents an effort to empirically investigate the adaptive value of these human potentials.

A controlled, randomized investigation of two meditation practices was conducted at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas …

Use Of An Animal Model To Explore Prenatal Predictors Of Insulin And Glucose Metabolism In Southwestern Alaskan Yupiit, Julie Jo Kachinski

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Compared to other North American indigenous populations, Southwest Alaskan Yupiit exhibit very low rates of type 2 diabetes despite the occurrence of common risk factors. Contemporary Yupiit obtain a substantial portion of their calories from traditional foods, which contain high amounts of omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids. Epidemiological and experimental animal research has linked glucose and insulin homeostasis with a diet high in omega-3s. This study used an experimental animal model to explore potential diabetes protective effects (for adult offspring) of prenatal maternal nutrition modeled on traditional locally-obtained Yupiit diets. The results of this study showed that the adult offspring whose …

Health Status Of Infants And Children From The Bronze Age Tomb At Tell Abraq, United Arab Emirates, Kathryn Mary Baustian

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Tell Abraq is significant because it is the largest prehistoric site on the southern coast of the Arabian Gulf. It was strategically important as an ancient port, regionally surrounded by large political centers. Commingled remains were located in a small tomb (6 m) used for a 200 year period (2200-2000 BC). The site was continually occupied from the 3rd millennium BC up to the 1st century AD. In the tomb were minimally 286 adults and 127 subadults. What is extraordinary is the number of pre-term (3rd trimester) infants (n=28, 22%), neonates (n=12, 9%), and infants under 2 years (n=46, 36%). …

Does Mean Osteon Size Change With Age, Sex Or Handedness? Analysis Of The Second Metacarpal In A 19th Century Sample From Belleville, Ontario, Canada, Bridget Jennifer Denny

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Histological analysis of cortical bone can be used to provide information on age at death, health status, and the influence of biomechanical forces on bones. Specifically, a better understanding of the variation in mean osteon size can increase our knowledge about the influence of factors such as age and sex associated changes and their effects on bone metabolic functions. Previous studies suggest that these influences are bone specific and have produced varying results regarding the association between osteon size and the variables mentioned above. To date, no research has focused on mean osteon size in metacarpals. The purpose of this …

Impacts On Maternal Diet In A Transitional Community In Rural Costa Rica: Potential Implications For The Developmental Origins Of Obesity-Related Disorders, Allison Cantor

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

This thesis examines maternal diet in a rural, transitional community in Costa Rica. Using cross-cultural categories recognized in the ethnographic literature (i.e. dietary taboos, dietary prescriptions, food cravings and the acknowledgment of a special post-partum period diet), maternal dietary practices were identified in the local community through surveys (n=45) and participant-observation (n=5), and to reflect the actual consumption patterns of pregnant and nursing women in the area, 24-hour diet recalls were administered to 5 pregnant or nursing women. In light of the recent changes that increased tourism has brought to the Monteverde Zone, focus groups were employed to determine impacts …

The Social Strategy Game: Resource Competition Within Female Social Networks Among Small-Scale Forager-Horticulturalists, Stacey L. Rukas, Michael Gurven, Hillard Kaplan, Jeffrey Winking

ESI Publications

This paper examines social determinants of resource competition among Tsimane Amerindian women of Bolivia. We introduce a semi-anonymous experiment (the Social Strategy Game) designed to simulate resource competition among women. Information concerning dyadic social relationships and demographic data were collected to identify variables influencing resource competition intensity, as measured by the number of beads one woman took from another. Relationship variables are used to test how the affiliative or competitive aspects of dyads affect the extent of prosociality in the game. Using a mixed-modeling procedure, we find that women compete with those with whom they are quarreling over accusations of …

Laetoli Footprints Preserve Earliest Direct Evidence Of Human-Like Bipedalism, D. A. Raichlen, A. D. Gordon, W. E. H. Harcourt-Smith, A. D. Foster, W R. Haas

Osteopathic Medicine, Jerry M. Wallace School of

No abstract provided.

Primate Craniofacial Function And Biology, Paul J. Constantino

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Book review: Primate Craniofacial Function and Biology

Temporal And Spatial Variations In Freshwater 14C Reservoir Effects: Lake Mývatn, Northern Iceland, Philippa L. Ascough, G. T. Cook, M. J. Church, E. Dunbar, Á. Einarsson, Thomas H. Mcgovern, A. J. Dugmore, Sophia Perdikaris, H. Hastie, A. Friðriksson, H. Gestsdóttir

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

Lake Mývatn is an interior highland lake in northern Iceland that forms a unique ecosystem of international scientific importance and is surrounded by a landscape rich in archaeological and paleoenvironmental sites. A significant freshwater reservoir effect (FRE) has been identified in carbon from the lake at some Viking (about AD 870–1000) archaeological sites in the wider region (Mývatnssveit). Previous accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) measurements indicated this FRE was about 1500–1900 ¹⁴C yr. Here, we present the results of a study using stable isotope and ¹⁴C measurements to quantify the Mývatn FRE for both the Viking and modern periods. …

Three Decades In The Cold And Wet: A Career In Northern Archaeology, Sophia Perdikaris, George Hambrecht, Ramona Harrison

School of Global Integrative Studies: Faculty Publications

Thomas H. McGovern has been a pioneering researcher in the North Atlantic region for most of the past 40 years. He has taken his specialty in zooarchaeology beyond counting bones to actually addressing questions about human environment interactions and human response to extreme environmental events. A prolific writer and researcher with a multitude of publications and an impressive funding record, McGovern has always been a proponent of multidisciplinarity and international collaboration. His vision resulted in the creation of the North Atlantic Biocultural Organization (NABO) that currently has more than 400 scientific partners and has been leading projects throughout the Circum …

Book Review Of, Integrating Zooarchaeology And Paleoethnobotany: A Consideration Of Issues, Methods, And Cases, Virginia L. Butler

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Reviews the book "Book Review of, Integrating Zooarchaeology and Paleoethnobotany: A Consideration of Issues, Methods, and Cases" by Amber M. VanDerwarker and Tanya M. Peres.

Archaeological Evidence For Resilience Of Pacific Northwest Salmon Populations And The Socioecological System Over The Last ~7,500 Years, Sarah K. Campbell, Virginia L. Butler

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Archaeological data on the long history of interaction between indigenous people and salmon have rarely been applied to conservation management. When joined with ethnohistoric records, archaeology provides an alternative conceptual view of the potential for sustainable harvests and can suggest possible social mechanisms for managing human behavior. Review of the ~7,500-year-long fish bone record from two subregions of the Pacific Northwest shows remarkable stability in salmon use. As major changes in the ecological and social system occurred over this lengthy period, persistence in the fishery is not due simply to a lack of perturbation, but rather indicates resilience in the …

Sticks And Stones: Fracture Analysis Of The University Of Iowa-Stanford Collection, Diane Eddie

Honors Program Theses

Bones are an integral part to the human body. They support the entire system, help produce blood, and serve as places for muscles to attach. The condition of bones can say something about the conditions a person lived in. When and how bones warp and fail can also reflect upon the living conditions of a person. Fractures in bones prior to death can show the types of stressors the person had to put up with in life or if there was a particular type of stressor for a certain population. The number of individuals in the University of Iowa-Stanford Collection …

Histomorphometry Of The Human Rib Cortex In Methamphetamine Users, Robert Chancey Karinen

Boise State University Theses and Dissertations

Studies have demonstrated lifestyle choices such as poor diet, insufficient exercise and substance abuse can negatively affect bone health. The purpose of this research is to determine if the tissue pathology associated with long term methamphetamine use is a localized response to poor dental hygiene or an indication of a more systemic response that is discernable in the bone microstructure. A comparison of the rib cortical bone microstructure between males that were known to be methamphetamine abusers (N=18) and individuals who did not abuse the drug was undertaken (N=19). Histomorphometric variables calculated in this analysis included mean osteon size, osteon …

A Tri-Disciplinary Analysis Of Religion, Alicia Wallace

Social Sciences

This paper analyzes religion using a multi-disciplinary approach. Studying the Social Sciences exposes one to an opportunity not just to learn a single discipline, but three, and this unique learning experience can teach one to look at the world’s phenomena with a multi-perspective view. Using a tri-disciplinary approach when exploring topics can broaden ones outlook on how there are many ways to explore and investigate a topic in greater detail. By using Anthropological, Sociological and Geographical theoretical perspectives one can understand a topic more fully by using a multi-perspective approach when exploring this diverse world culturally, socially and physically.

Counting Girls In - Gender Issues In Science And Mathematics: An Examination Of The Research Concerning Innate And Socio-Cultural Gender Differences In The Fields Of Science And Mathematics In An Effort To Promote More Female Participation, Valerie R. Mackin

Pell Scholars and Senior Theses

In today's world, there is an increasing demand for people in the technological fields. Fewer females than males pursue careers in physical sciences, engineering, and computer science in the United States presenting a loss of needed mathematicians and scientists. Gender differences related to mathematics and science is a complex arena of study, involving both innate biological differences combined with socially constructed ideas about gender in society. Through an in-depth investigation from educational, cognitive, and social psychology perspectives one will be able to determine how innate and socio-cultural factors contribute to the shortage of needed mathematicians and scientists in the United …

The Importance Of Fallback Foods In Primate Ecology And Evolution, Paul J. Constantino, Barth W. Wright

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

The role of fallback foods in shaping primate ranging, socioecology, and morphology has recently become a topic of particular interest to biological anthropologists. Although the use of fallback resources has been noted in the ecological and primatological literature for a number of decades, few attempts have been made to define fallback foods or to explore the utility of this concept for primate evolutionary biologists and ecologists. As a preface to this special issue of the American Journal of Physical Anthropology devoted to the topic of fallback foods in primate ecology and evolution, we discuss the development and use of the …

Indentation As A Technique To Assess The Mechanical Properties Of Fallback Foods, Peter W. Lucas, Paul J. Constantino, Janine Chalk, Charles Ziscovici, Barth W. Wright, Dorothy M. Fragaszy, David A. Hill, James Jin-Wu Lee, Herzl Chai, Brian W. Darvell, Tony D.B. Yuen

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

A number of living primates feed partyear on seemingly hard food objects as a fallback. We ask here how hardness can be quantified and how this can help understand primate feeding ecology. We report a simple indentation methodology for quantifying hardness, elastic modulus, and toughness in the sense that materials scientists would define them. Suggested categories of fallback foods—nuts, seeds, and root vegetables— were tested, with accuracy checked on standard materials with known properties by the same means. Results were generally consistent, but the moduli of root vegetables were overestimated here. All these properties are important components of what fieldworkers …

Inflammation And Infection Do Not Promote Arterial Aging And Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors Among Lean Horticulturalists, Michael Gurven, Hillard Kaplan, Jeffrey Winking, Daniel Eid Rodriguez, Sarinnapha Vasunilashorn, Jung Ki Kim, Caleb Finch, Eileen M. Crimmins

ESI Publications

Background: Arterial aging is well characterized in industrial populations, but scantly described in populations with little access to modern medicine. Here we characterize health and aging among the Tsimane, Amazonian forager-horticulturalists with short life expectancy, high infectious loads and inflammation, but low adiposity and robust physical fitness. Inflammation has been implicated in all stages of arterial aging, atherogenesis and hypertension, and so we test whether greater inflammation associates with atherosclerosis and CVD risk. In contrast, moderate to vigorous daily activity, minimal obesity, and low fat intake predict minimal CVD risk among older Tsimane.

Methods and Findings: Peripheral arterial …

Arid Climate Decomposition And Decay: A Taphonomic Study Using Swine, James William Munkres

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

The present project analyzes the taphonomic processes and variables involved in the decomposition and desiccation of animal remains in an arid/hyper-arid environment. The study and the derived data will assist in determining postmortem intervals for remains in modern contexts, inform judgments made regarding mortuary habits and techniques in archaeological contexts, and will improve our knowledge regarding taphonomic processes. Manner of deposition, the depositional surface/medium and arid-climate specific variables (temperature, water, insect activity, weathering, pH levels, and soil characteristics) were examined in this study. Reported observations are limited to the first ten months following death from early December through early October …

A Bioeconomic Approach To Marriage And The Sexual Division Of Labor, Michael Gurven, Jeffrey Winking, Hillard Kaplan, Christopher Von Rueden, Lisa Mcallister

ESI Publications

Children may be viewed as public goods whereby both parents receive equal genetic benefits yet one parent often invests more heavily than the other.We introduce a microeconomic framework for understanding household investment decisions to address questions concerning conflicts of interest over types and amount of work effort among married men and women. Although gains and costs of marriage may not be spread equally among marriage partners, marriage is still a favorable, efficient outcome under a wide range of conditions. This bioeconomic framework subsumes both cooperative and conflictive views on the sexual division of labor. We test hypotheses concerning marriage markets, …

A Biocultural Analysis Of Nubian Fetal Pot Burials From Askut, Sudan, Lauren Britton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The skeletal remains in this study were excavated from the Nubian archaeological island fortress site of Askut (ca. 1850 BC - 1070 BC, New Kingdom/Third Intermediate period), located at the 2nd Cataract of the Nile river in Sudan. These remains were recovered as part of an archaeological expedition from 1962-1964, which was an effort to learn as much as possible about this site before the building of the High Dam in Aswan. Seven fetal skeletons (dated ca. 1260-770 BC) were examined for their biocultural significance. Biological analysis of these individuals indicates a range in developmental age from 36 to 40 …

Glossolalia Influences On Stress Response Among Apostolic Pentecostals, Christopher Dana Lynn

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

This study tests the hypothesis that long–term experience of Apostolic Pentecostal glossolalia or “speaking in tongues” reduces the reactivity of biological stress response to normal or "daily" stressors. Glossolalia is a form of religious dissociation. Dissociation is a universal capacity often conflated with “trance.” It refers to the partitioning of awareness associated with a variety of cross–cultural forms, from daydreaming and denial to possession trance, shamanic spirit journeys, and dissociative identity disorder. Dissociation is believed to reduce or filter stress by mediating evaluation of potential stressors and reactivity of the mechanisms of biological stress response. Previous studies have examined these …

The Fourth Level Of Social Structure In A Multi-Level Society: Ecological & Social Functions Of Clans In Hamadryas Baboons, Amy Schreier, Larissa Swedell

Publications and Research

Hamadryas baboons are known for their complex, multi-level social structure consisting of troops, bands, and one-male units (OMUs) [Kummer, 1968]. Abegglen [1984] observed a 4^th level of social structure comprising several OMUs that rested near one another on sleeping cliffs, traveled most closely together during daily foraging, and sometimes traveled as subgroups independently from the rest of the band. Abegglen called these associations “clans” and suggested that they consisted of related males. Here we confirm the existence of clans in a second wild hamadryas population, a band of about 200 baboons at the Filoha site in lowland Ethiopia. During …

Male Aggression Towards Females In Hamadryas Baboons: Conditioning, Coercion And Control, Larissa Swedell, Amy Schreier

Publications and Research

No abstract provided.

The Tadpole Of Hypsiboas Atlanticus (Anura, Hylidae) From Northeastern Brazil, Filipe A. C. Do Nascimento, Marcelo G. De Lima, Gabriel O. Skuk, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

The tadpole of Hypsiboas atlanticus (Caramaschi & Velosa, 1996) is described from the municipality of Maceió, State of Alagoas, Brazil. At stage 36 the larvae have an overall elliptical body in lateral and dorsal views, oral disc anteroventral, spiracular tube sinistral, and labial tooth row formula 2(1,2)/3(1). The oral disc is surrounded, almost completely (anterior medial gap present) by a single row of marginal papillae. Described tadpoles of the H. punctatus species group can be differentiated by a combined disc oral features. Additional descriptions of H. punctatus (Schneider, 1799) tadpoles from populations throughout South America may be helpful in determining …

The Influence Of Fallback Foods On Great Ape Tooth Enamel, Paul J. Constantino, Peter W. Lucas, James J.-W. Lee, Brian R. Lawn

Biological Sciences Faculty Research

Lucas and colleagues recently proposed a model based on fracture and deformation concepts to describe how mammalian tooth enamel may be adapted to the mechanical demands of diet (Lucas et al.: Bioessays 30[2008] 374-385). Here we review the applicability of that model by examining existing data on the food mechanical properties and enamel morphology of great apes (Pan, Pongo, and Gorilla). Particular attention is paid to whether the consumption of fallback foods is likely to play a key role in influencing great ape enamel morphology. Our results suggest that this is indeed the case. We also consider the implications of …