Sleep matters for adolescents. It matters for physical and mental health, for success in the classroom and in extracurricular activities, for safety while driving and for protection against potential future psychological problems and substance abuse. Although the recommended nightly amount of sleep for adolescents is over nine hours, many factors interact to preclude teens from getting the sleep they need. This study uses a biocultural, multi-method approach to examine how biological, cultural, and environmental factors interact to affect adolescent sleep behavior in a cohort of 50 high school freshmen in the United States. High school is a place where adolescents learn social and academic skills that will carry them into adult life, but it also provides a space where they are socialized into "how to sleep." By exploring sleep and related behaviors, including ways to cope with inadequate sleep, in a group of teens who were 14 or 15 years old and evenly divided between White and Hispanic and male and female participants, this research explores how sleep is embedded within webs of individual, household-level, school-specific and societal factors. Beyond examining how advice about sleep and teens' experience of sleep behavior is internalized and embodied by adolescents, special attention is paid to the relationships between personal technology use and sleep, and also to the relationships among sleep and food and caffeine intake.

The use of genetic evidence to facilitate management outcomes for species of conservation or cultural concern can benefit from broadening the scope of inquiry. These efforts can include not only multiple geographic and genomic scales but also other academic disciplines and ways of knowing, which can identify unconventional drivers of genetic patterns. Genetic patterns revealed through such a broad approach can provide key information to managers regarding population differentiation, viability, isolation, and adaptive capacity, and can be incorporated into long-term precautionary management plans at local and regional scales. In this dissertation, I addressed several applied questions using multi-scale, interdisciplinary, and community-led approaches. The dramatic variation in habitat types and resource distribution in British Columbia, especially along the coastal to interior ecotone, allowed for investigation of potential genetic differentiation, landscape resistance, and local adaptation in two wide-ranging, omnivores. Grizzly bears (Ursus arctos) and black bears (Ursus americanus) in the area now known as British Columbia (BC) also hold high cultural value. Additionally, bears and people have been cohabitating and sharing resources on this landscape for millennia, prompting investigations of how this relationship and shared landscape might have shaped both. This relationship is reflected in Indigenous-led long term bear monitoring on the central coast of BC by the Nuxalk, Haíɫzaqv, Kitasoo/Xai’xais, Gitga’at, and Wuikinuxv First Nations. In the bear system of the central coast and larger BC there are management opportunities for the integration of local and regional monitoring, intergovernmental collaboration, and using genetic data to re-assert Indigenous-led management goals. Finally, given that black bear populations of the area contain a single genetic variant responsible for creating white phase or Spirit bear individuals, relevant genetic evidence that can be considered in the management of bears in BC ranges from a single genetic variant to genome-wide investigations of local adaptation across the coastal to interior ecotone. In my first data-driven chapter (Chapter 2), I used microsatellite markers to examine the pattern of genetic structure and its potential drivers among grizzly bears on the central coast of BC. We incorporated potential landscape resistance factors informed by relevant literature. Also recognizing the dramatic changes in Indigenous settlement density following European colonization and the potential for genetic markers to reflect historical patterns, we estimated resistance surfaces reflective of both pre and post colonization periods. Although no resistance surface explained a consequential proportion of genetic differentiation, we found a significant spatial overlap between Indigenous language families and the three bear genetic groups. We suspect that this pattern reflects a similar response of bears and people to unknown resource and geographic discontinuities across the landscape. This work contributes to the emerging intersection of landscape genetic and biocultural scholarship that includes non-traditional landscape factors at multiple temporal scales and considers parallel responses of wildlife and people to the landscapes they share. Additionally, given that current Provincially-designated management unit boundaries misalign to spatial patterns shown by genetic groups this research contributes detailed and actionable management implications. In Chapter 3, I used similar genetic methods to identify patterns of genetic differentiation for black bears of the central coast. In contrast with the three genetic groups of grizzly bears, we found eight genetic groups of black bears at a similar scale. This pattern likely reflects the differences in home range sizes and foraging ecology between these species. We also identified groups with low genetic diversity, with two of these groups containing high frequencies of the Spirit bear allele. We additionally found that wide waterways corresponded to genetic differentiation between groups and areas of lower than average estimated migration. We provide management recommendations based on these results that focus on balancing sufficient gene flow to ensure long-term viability of isolated and genetically depauperate genetic groups with ensuring that the rare Spirit bear variant is not swamped by an influx of genetic material. With this work, we show that linear landscape features other than roads (i.e. waterways) can provide resistance to even highly mobile species and that more gene flow is not always optimal for all scales of genetic conservation. In my third data chapter (4), I broadened the investigation of grizzly bear genetic differentiation from the scale of the central coast used in Chapter 2 to the ecotone spanning coastal and interior BC. Using whole genome resequencing, we additionally expanded the scale of genetic data to identify potential signatures of local adaptation. We found two broad-scale genetic groups corresponding to coastal and interior populations admixed along valleys that bisect the North to South Coast Mountain Range. We additionally identified potential signatures of local adaptation in genes associated with growth, development of muscle and bone, and immunity in the coastal genetic group, as well as those related to DNA repair and growth inhibition in the interior group. The functions of these candidate genes broadly align with morphological differences observed between larger coastal bears with consistent access to salmon and smaller interior bears with intermittent access to protein resources and exposure to more extreme environmental conditions. In a management context, this work highlights vulnerabilities to rapid environmental or resource changes in potentially locally adapted populations, and supports management efforts to protect connectivity via valleys that bisect the Coast Mountain Range. Finally, I summarize and discuss the conceptual and management contributions of this work and opportunities for future research (Chapter 5; dissertation conclusion). I highlight the contribution of Indigenous stewardship partners and their traditional and local ecological knowledge in defining, shaping, and expanding the scope of this dissertation, as well as applying management- relevant results. Our research methods and findings support the inclusivity of broad scientific and non-scientific communities and knowledge in genetic research and the application of genetic research to local management. / Graduate / 2022-09-14

This article analyzes The Castle of Otranto from a biocultural perspective. Firstly, the theoretical landscape of Gothic horror is explored. This is followed by some suggestions on how evolutionary approaches might add to the conversation about Gothic horror. The last section applies evolutionary and cognitive approaches to The Castle of Otranto in a reading of the novel. Attention is paid to the varied ways in which Gothic horror subverts and undermines evolved strategies for the creation of meaning and understanding. Gothic tropes such as the Gothic tunnel or labyrinth undercut the dynamic and ongoing creation of place that is essential for the human wayfinding species. These tropes lead to people ineffectually attempting to orient themselves within a place. Disorientation is an innately terrifying scenario for a species that relies heavily on information to orient itself in an environment. Confusion, ambiguity, and disorientation work against the adapted advantages that have shaped human evolutionary past and present. Place and evolved place creating techniques are discussed with in the context of the novel.

No / The human condition is composed of culturally mediated biology, and this inherently dual nature is key to our understanding of human/environment interaction. Human Ecology provides a fresh view on the interrelationship between cultural strategies and their biological outcomes. It combines for the first time an ecosystems approach with cultural anthropological, archaeological and evolutionary behavioural concepts. Taking resource use and food procurement behaviour as the starting point, the volume examines major subsistence modes, the circumstances and dynamics of large-scale subsistence change, the effect of social differentiation on resource use and the effects of subsistence behaviour on population development and regulation. It is complemented by a brief history on human ecological thought and a discussion of pertinent theoretical issues. Numerous examples from all time periods illustrate the topics and emphasise the universal nature of the interpretive framework.

In 2016, the Colombian Constitutional Court recognized the Atrato River as a subject of rights based on the theory of biocultural rights. This dissertation analyzes a new legal concept that aims to defend the rights to a good life for humans and other-than-human co-inhabitants who share river ecosystems, focusing on the case of the Atrato River in Colombia. The 3Hs framework of biocultural ethics is adopted to interconnect complex and interrelated historical, biophysical, cultural, and political dimensions. With this analysis, broader biocultural approaches are suggested. They could be valuable for understanding and implementing biocultural rights in other world regions. Moreover, it could transform the current situation that destroys biocultural diversity toward public policies that favor more just and sustainable forms of co-inhabiting biocultural diversity. A primary limitation of the implementation of biocultural rights is the context of a "failed state," in which the Colombian State is subject to severe problems of corruption, illegal mining, conflicts between legal and illegal armed groups, and drug trafficking. There is a need for a dialogue solution to the conflict. This requires that illegal armed groups are valued as co-inhabitants. Achieving social-environmental justice is essential for biocultural ethics. In this case, it is the condition of possibility for the ruling of biocultural rights of the Atrato River to be entirely carried out.

No description available.

The biocultural heritage and diversity of localised food systems are resources that some communities, governments and other actors are mobilising to pursue their development objectives. However, further understanding is needed to determine how regimes of access and benefit surrounding this collectively held heritage are affected by its use in development projects. This dissertation examines rural development involving interventions in the food systems of the Central Valley of Tarija, Bolivia, and the ripple effects on the people who depend on these systems for their survival as producers, intermediaries and consumers. Core themes relate to personal histories and experiences of change and continuity in household economies and diet, and the role of biocultural heritage within localised food systems. These are examined in relation to processes of territorial construction and ordering through development programs and less planned processes of global and environmental change. Data were gathered through a food systems methodology, acknowledging the complex, interdependent relationships among production, transformation, exchange and consumption. The primary methods used were semi-structured interviews with local producers, intermediaries, consumers and government and non-governmental organisation key informants, complemented by participant observation, surveys, and document review. I found edible biocultural heritage to be a key resource in territorial projects seeking to alter current and future conditions of the Central Valley territory. From the 1970s onward, agricultural production possibilities available to research participant households have narrowed because of land enclosures, market integration, and other intersecting factors ultimately favouring transition towards commodity production (Chapter 2). Some smallholder viticulturalists, however, have incorporated grape production within multi-species agroecosystems to balance the risks and benefits of participation in the expanding commercial sector (Chapter 3). Edible biocultural heritage is being mobilised within multiple territorial projects in the Central Valley, including a gourmet project (Chapter 4) and an alternative food network around campesino gastronomic heritage (Chapter 5), with distinct ecological, economic and sociocultural implications. Whose heritage (or aspects of heritage) is carried forward and given precedence within development processes, and whose is rendered less viable and visible, has significant impacts on food systems’ form and function, the representations of local identity they manifest and the livelihood possibilities they entail. / February 2017

This dissertation examined the relationship between food security status and cultural congruence and indicators of child growth and development in a rural mountain town in Costa Rica. Results show that children from food secure households are significantly shorter and shorter-legged than their food insecure counterparts. It is theorized that these findings correspond to low quality diets associated with increasing commodification of food systems in rural Costa Rica. Identity-based mechanisms are discussed as potential factors contributing to the increasing commodification of life through the encroachment of the global market economy.

Recent reports reveal that a centuries-long trend in mortality has reversed, with post-1980 rural populations now being vulnerable to higher death rates than urban areas (Cossman et al. 2010). Scholars have also documented a post-1980 “return migration” of urban African Americans returning to rural regions (Stack 1996, Falk et al. 2004). The purpose of this research was: 1) to determine if the high urban mortality from 1900 to 1979 is related to the mass migration of rural African Americans to northern cities; 2) to discern if the high rural mortality post-1980 is related to the return migration of African Americans to southern rural regions; and 3) to test whether or not holistic and interdisciplinary research which incorporates the Racial Context of Origins will reveal discrepancies when compared to life table analyses. While the post-1980 “return migration” of urban African Americans to rural regions is of interest to scholars, the lack of death data needed to study them is often non-existent, often resulting in the exclusion of these marginalized populations from research (Sattenspiel and Stoops 2010:7). In order to test the above hypotheses, a replicable methodology that incorporates Read and Emerson’s (2005) call for the incorporation of a new theoretical concept in data collection and analysis, the Racial Context of Origins, was formulated in order to extract mortality data from these and other minority populations when archival data seemingly does not exist. Relying upon a fusion of biological and cultural anthropology and genealogical methods, this study’s main objectives were: 1) to collect vital statistics from and reconstruct three cemeteries that represent rural, semi-rural, and urban African American populations from 1880-2010 in order to document the mortality profiles through the use of life table analyses; 2) to compile narrative genealogies and migration histories through various archival records, integrating the Racial Context of Origins, by focusing on a semi-rural cemetery which represents a spectrum of both rural and urban lifestyles; and 3) to compare and contrast the statistical mortality profiles with the narrative genealogies and histories. The rural and semi-rural cemetery’s reconstructed burial registers resulted in 122 narrative genealogies that collectively revealed a migratory pattern where the rural and semi-rural populations in Missouri moved to urban cities prior to 1980, later returning to rural areas post-1980, findings confirmed by the life tables. Although only a single ethnic group was studied, the results indicated that post-1980 high rural mortality was at least in part affected by African American migration. Incorporating a methodology that included the Racial Context of Origins to reconstruct records from which to extract data provided more, and better, data with which to work. The methodology used to reconstruct archival records increased the sample size by 85%. As a result, there were no discrepancies in the life tables because those data were extracted from the reconstructed records.

This dissertation presents the results of a comparison of human skeletons from two historic villages (the Larson site, 39WW2, and the Leavenworth site, 39CO9), which were inhabited by Great Plains Village Horticulturalists following the arrival of Europeans and Americans. The people living at these villages are suspected to have experienced changes to their cultural practices, with Larson occupied during the beginning of the Post-Contact period and Leavenworth occupied just before the complete abandonment of the Plains Village lifeway. This study examines whether observed differences in the strength of the bones of their limbs resulted from different activities performed at each village or if the introduction of new genes may have altered limb bone shape during the Post-Contact period. The analysis relies on the examination of limb bone strength (cross-sectional properties) to identify patterns related to activities, but unlike previous studies that examine cross-sectional properties, this analysis includes a measure of biological distance to determine if biological kin share limb bone shape. The results indicate some general trends in limb strength during the Post-Contact period including a reduction in male lower limb bone strength and increased asymmetry in the lower limbs of the women at the later village, and many variables indicate greater variation in limb bone strength among women from both villages. While it is difficult to draw any definitive conclusions about activity, the patterns seem to support accounts from the archaeological and historic records regarding the introduction of new cultural practices and a reduction in mobility, especially among males. The interpretation that these patterns may result from changing activities is bolstered by the analysis of biological distance. Mantel results comparing biodistance scores based on odontometry and distance scores based on limb geometry indicate that intragroup pairwise distance scores rarely correlate, with the left humeri being the most consistent exception to this pattern. The left humeri (and potentially the radius and ulna) may exhibit similarities among related individuals due to these non-dominant bones receiving relatively less biomechanical stress during activities. A seeming paradox developed in the analysis when groups (male and female samples from each site) were compared. Unlike biodistance between individuals, the groups exhibiting the greatest genetic similarities also exhibit the greatest similarity in the cross-sectional shape of their right and left femora, right humeri, and right radii, with the mid-section of the femur exhibiting the most consistent correlation regardless of the side used in the analyses. These bones seem to be the ones experiencing the greatest biomechanical stress during activities. At the group level, shape for those bones experiencing a relatively high degree of biomechanical stress during activity seem to mirror genetic relationships. These correlations may result from a convergence between genetic patterns and activity patterns. Despite greater univariate variation within each sample, females across the two sites exhibit closer biological distances than do the males. This result may be due to both matrilocality, which creates less variation within the female population over time, and continuity in female activity over time. By contrast, males exhibit a greater degree of divergence, suggesting that males from each site are more genetically dissimilar than females and that they may have experienced a greater degree of change to their activities.