Anthropology 2229F/G Lecture Notes - C4 Carbon Fixation, C3 Carbon Fixation
18 Jul 2012
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Lecture 23 bone chemistry: c4 plants. Tend to be major staples of the diet. Millet, sorghum wheat, certain canes: c3 plants. C3 plants virtually every other plant: called delta c-13 ratios. In c-4 plants with higher c-13, see on the standard chart, range from -8 - -14. C3 between -23 - -30: more you eat, the more it appears in the bone. Reflective of what they were eating in the last 5-10 years of life, bones constantly being remodeled throughout life. Teeth are different, keep record of what you were eating while your teeth were being formed. 20 to -24: suggests they are not relying on maize, or it is a very small part of their diet: no bias to c-13. Comparing bones to young and old gave ratios that showed they were heavily reliant on maize. Elite in these societies had differences in diet compared to the general population.
