In contexts such as natural disasters, humanitarian efforts, and other forensic investigations, the timely and accurate development of the biological profile (sex, age, ancestry, and stature of skeletonized remains) is vital to the identification of decedents. At present, the term “Hispanic” is a socio-linguistic classifier that includes all persons of South or Central American, Mexican, Cuban, Puerto Rican, or other Latino and Spanish-speaking persons into a single category; the term is also the current designator used by forensic anthropologists—in ancestry estimation—to identify anyone from a Latin American country. From a biological standpoint, the term is ineffective in describing these individuals because the human biological variation within and among different Hispanic populations cannot be encompassed by a single category. With regards to the development of the biological profile, ancestry estimations for these individuals are tenuous at best. This is due to the poor nature of the single reference sample used to create the current methods in ancestry and sex estimation—a common trend in forensic anthropology. The untested assumption that all Hispanic individuals are skeletally homogenous results in haphazard identifications and hinders effective forensic investigation. The primary objective of this research is to examine geometric morphometric variability in 547 documented individuals from three contemporaneous Latin American groups represented by Colombian, Mexican, and Migrant (U.S./Mexico border crossers) samples in order to ascertain whether it is possible to distinguish specific Hispanic populations. Using geometric morphometric (GM) analyses, the effects of shape-related variation independent of size can be implemented to isolate where on the cranium differences between groups are expressed. The results suggest that GM-derived population-specific criteria for Hispanic individuals possess the discriminatory power that is necessary towards improving the underdeveloped methods of identification for diverse Hispanic individuals living in the U.S. and abroad. Canonical variate analyses of the three samples separates the groups distinctly along both axes (CV1 and CV2). The morphological differences are predominantly seen in cranial height and sagittal vault shape, with Colombians having taller cranial vaults than the Mexican samples. The final results of this study demonstrate the utility that GM approaches have in forensic anthropology with respect to ancestry estimation and can be used to update various techniques required to develop the biological profile. Without constantly updating, refining, and re-validating the techniques, forensic anthropologists fail to provide the caliber of service required to approach the various forensic contexts.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a degenerative joint disease that is a leading cause of disability among aging adults. In the U.S., many individuals living with total hip arthroplasties attribute OA as the cause. Because the majority of anthropological OA research excludes pathological individuals (i.e., individuals with systemic disease, traumatic injuries, or arthroplasties), little is known about how prostheses and pathologies impact OA. This project adds to the research surrounding OA by investigating its relationship with age, disease, and prostheses. The proximal femora of 186 African- and European-American individuals (21-95 years old) from the Edmonds Orthopedic Pathology Collection (National Museum of Health and Medicine; Armed Forces Institute of Pathology) were analyzed. These individuals were grouped into three cohorts: non-disease; disease; and previous injury/prosthesis. Jurmain’s (1990) method was used to score OA, using an ordinal fourpoint scale to categorize OA changes as: none/slight; moderate; severe; and ankylosis. Results show that osteoarthritic hip changes are positively correlated with age and presence of a prosthesis, and that systemic diseases, such as cancer, increase the likelihood of OA in an individual. Results from Chi-square tests, exploratory data analysis, and ordinal logistic regression show that there is a statistically significant relationship (p<0.000) between degree of OA, age, recorded disease, and evidence of previous injury or prostheses. In contrast with the expectation that different populations would exhibit different patterns of OA, no sex or ancestry effects are observed. These results will help researchers better understand the etiology and contemporary risk factors of OA, as well as contribute data to OA research on an underrepresented sample.

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This investigation explored the utility of mean osteon area, perimeter, and circularity as parameters for distinguishing between human and non-human bone. Although species of origin can be readily ascribed to undamaged remains, this evaluation can become difficult, if not impossible, when bone macrostructure has been obscured through taphonomic processes such as thermal alteration or extreme fragmentation. If mature Ovis aries, domestic sheep, and human osteon metrics area are significantly different, then osteon metrics can be useful parameters for distinguishing between these tissues and, thus, determining the species of origin for a bone sample of unknown provenience. This investigation consisted of histological analysis of cortical bone from 35 O. aries rib samples. O. aries samples were acquired from Riverslea Farm in Epping, New Hampshire (n = 30) and Cedar Ledge Farm in Somers, Connecticut (n = 5). Mean osteon area, perimeter, and circularity were assessed by manually tracing calibrated digital images of rib cross-sections using the ImageJ software from the National Institute of Health (NIH, Bethesda, MD). The results presented here indicate (1) that there are statistically significant histomorphometric differences between species, specifically goat and sheep, (2) that there are significant histomorphometric differences based on the anatomical, intra-rib sampling location, and (3) that the osteon metrics discussed here are may be poor parameters by which to ascribe the species of origin for remains with no known provenience, based on comparisons with findings from other publications.

The use of geometric morphometrics (GM) in physical anthropology has increased markedly over the recent years. In current studies of secular change, anthropologists have more frequently turned to this technique as it provides scientists with a powerful tool for shape analysis. Secular change is defined as changes in the skeletal biology, usually seen in a population, resulting from shifts in living standards or exposure to a new environmental factor over a short timeframe (Jantz and Meadows Jantz 2000; Weisensee and Jantz 2011). Studies conducted in Europe, Asia, and the United States have shown significant signs of secular change in craniofacial morphology. This thesis will utilize GM analyses of 57 craniofacial landmarks from 313 individuals to determine secular change in the European male populations of the Raymond A. Dart and Pretoria Skeletal Collections located in Johannesburg and Pretoria, South Africa, respectively, with birth years ranging from 1850 to 1956. Craniofacial data points were collected using a 3D Microscribe digitizer, upon which the Generalized Procrustes Analysis (GPA) was used to align all landmarks into one coordinate reference plane. In order to determine the presence of shape change, a Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was run on the Procrustes coordinates of all individuals. Then, a multivariate regression of shape score on year of birth was conducted to determine the magnitude of change as explained over time. Following the multivariate regression, various Canonical Variates Analyses (CVA) were performed to determine whether secular change was occurring. In addition to collecting metric data, ultimate and proximate causes are explored to provide a more holistic understanding of the potential reasons for the changing or unchanging nature of the crania in the ancestrally European South African population. This study hypothesizes these collections will exhibit craniofacial secular change resulting from greater exposure to increased nutrition over time, greater access to healthcare, and socioeconomic and political stability. Additionally, genetic factors could be affecting the development of the crania through time. As many studies use the Dart and Pretoria collections in tandem to understand population-specific traits of modern South Africans, the presence of secular change will greatly affect the way researchers utilize samples for their studies. Forensic anthropologists study collections to create better estimations for elements of the biological profile such as stature, age, and sex. However, failure to take into account secular change would provide erroneous results. This study provides answers regarding the need to account for secular change if necessary. This research indicates that there are some changes occurring in the craniofacial morphology as see by the PCA, but the results of the CVA indicate that this is not necessarily due to secular change. The results do not clearly indicate the presence of secular change. There are many possibilities dictating potentially why. The first possibility is that there are small changes occurring in the craniofacial morphology; however, this is not caused by secular change. There are other variables, potentially genetic, that are influencing these slight changes that we see. Despite other nations with similar economic development trajectories experiencing a definite presence of secular change, the unique history and population structure of European South Africans could be contributing to the lack of secular change present. Another possible reason is the lack of passage of time from the industrialization of the nation. Furthermore, there is potentially not enough data tested to warrant a reliable conclusion that secular change is or is not occurring. With the cranium, the possibility exists that a minimum threshold of specimens is needed in order to have a reliable conclusion.

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This thesis aims to investigate the social structure of Neolithic Period. To do this, both physical anthropological and archaeological data are used, and it is sought after whether burial customs and skeleton biology can be a parameter to understand social organization of a concerned area in a given time period. For this thesis the data comes from Abu Hureyra and &Ccedil / ay&ouml / n&uuml / . Quantified data of burial types and grave goods are used in order to create descriptive statistical graphics. Then, correspondence analysis is employed to detect statistical significance in data sets, if exists. Anthropological data is stemmed from previous researchers. On the other hand, they were still used to investigate sex and age distributions with the same tools employed before. As a final study two settlements are compared within and with each other to chase the clues for social differentiation.