About
Bioarchaeology introduces students to the interdisciplinary field that asks- what can we learn from the analysis of human skeletal remains from archaeological sites? As such, bioarchaeology is "the contextual analysis of human remains." Skeletal and dental tissues are often overlooked as being innate and unchanging, when in fact they respond to the external environment and stressors like soft tissues that exist within and around them. The natural and built environments can have a profound impact on human biological variation. As a result, bioarchaeological research emphasizes biocultural interactions and the impact of culture on the human condition (and vice versa). Topics covered in this class include demography, health, growth and development, diet, infectious and non-infectious diseases, occupational markers of stress, migration, and population affinity. The course starts with a historical survey of the field, moves into a discussion of ethics in bioarchaeological research, and introduces important theoretical considerations that influence practice in the sub-discipline. Two subsequent weeks will be spent reviewing basic human osteology, age and sex estimation, and taphonomic factors that can influence and, ultimately, bias research findings. Weeks 6 through 16 will be spent surveying the core areas of investigation in contemporary bioarchaeological research. The lectures and discussions will be supplemented with time in the laboratory, during which students will have the opportunity to examine, describe, score, and analyze human remains, as well as interpret bioarchaeological data. In addition, students are expected to produce an annotated bibliography on a bioarchaeological topic of their choice.
Resources