Download BONES

BONES
• Bones may reveal someone’s identity,
sex, age, height, race, background, &
sometimes what happened to them before
death
• Anthropology: the scientific study of
all aspects of human development &
interaction
• Forensic anthropology: studies
unique identifying human differences on
the remains of an individual
• Our bones are alive
• Bones consume energy, make
blood cells, and are capable of
growth & repair b/c they receive
blood flow
• Throughout our lives, bone is
deposited, broken down, &
replaced
How many???
• Answer = 206 (only partially
correct!)
• Adult = 206
• Baby = 450!!!
• As we grow, bones in our
body fuse together (so
number goes down)
How bones connect
• Joint: location where bones meet
(articulate)
• Parts:
– Cartilage: wraps ends of bones for
protection, keeps them from scraping
against each other
– Ligaments: bands of tissue
connecting two or more bones (bone
to bone)
– Tendons: connect muscle to bone
(muscle to bone)
Aging of bone
• Children build more bones at a faster
rate than the rate of bones being
broken down (so bones increase in size)
• After 30 years, process begins to
reverse, bones deteriorate faster than
they’re built
• Deterioration can be slowed with
exercise
• # of bones & condition can tell
investigator about age, health, whether
they took in enough calcium
Osteobiography?
• “the story of a life told by bones”
• Examples:
– Low bone density, poor teeth, signs of
arthritis could mean nutritional deficiencies
& disease
– Right-handed person’s arm would be
slightly bigger than left arm bones
– Weight lifter’s bones would be denser than
someone who didn’t work out
– Sports can produce different kinds of wear
& tear
– X-ray would show previous fractures,
artificial joints, & pins
Male vs female
• Male skeleton:
– Usually thicker, rougher, appears
quite bumpy (due to muscles pulling
on them)
– Due to male hormones, muscles are
more developed, so require stronger
attachment sites on bones (knees)
Skulls
male
female
• Frontal bone low
& sloping
• Eye orbits square
• Lower jaw square
• Squarer chins
• Frontal bone
higher, more
rounded
• Eye orbits more
circular
• Lower jaw sloped
• Chins rounder or
more V-shaped
male
Pelvis
• Pelvic cavity =
heart shaped
• Sacrum = longer,
narrower, curved
in
• Pelvic girdle more
narrow
female
• Surface has scars
if she’s had
children
• Pelvic cavity =
oval shaped
• Sacrum = shorter,
wider, curved out
• Generally pelvic
girdle wider
Thigh bones
• Thigh bones tend to angle
inward toward knee in females;
straighter down in males
• Femur also thicker on males
Age determination
• Age can be estimated by
number of bones
• Sutures that mark bone joints
(skull)
• Presence & location of
cartilaginous lines (epiphyseal
or growth plates)
Estimate height
• Measuring bones like humerus
& femur
• Mathematical relationships can
be used to calculate
• Separate tables for males,
females, & different races
Distinguishing race
• Often difficult b/c of years of
intermarriage (physical traits have
blended)
• Race probably best indicated by
skull & femur
–Skull: shape of eye sockets, nasal
spine, width of face, angulation of
jaw & face, etc
Facial reconstruction
• Theoretically, it is possible to
rebuild a face from the skeleton up
• Facial markers are positioned at
critical locations on face, & clay is
contoured to follow the height of
the markers
• Computer programs also used