ANTHROP 1AA3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 4: Skull, Osteology, Sexual Characteristics

• School: McMaster University
• Department: Anthropology
• Course: ANTHROP 1AA3
• Professor: Andrew Wade

Document Summary

Osteology: branch of anatomy that deals with the structure and function of bones. Human osteologists construct an osteobiography (biological profile of aspects of a person"s life history that are recorded in the individual"s skeleton) Life history data that is used to construct a biological profile including many factors: Individualizing features (evidence of injury/illness, diet, markers of habitual activities, and cultural body modifications) *objective is to shed light on person"s way of life and what happened over the course of their life. Dramatic changes occur in skeleton and teeth as the human body ages. Different teeth erupt at predictable ages, distinguishing between children of different ages and between older juveniles and adults of the same size. Long bones of arms and legs acquire bony growths at their ends, transitioning from cartilage to bone at puberty. Lengths and proportions of bones change in predictable ways as children grow in small children, cranial bone closure changes with age.