Tag: Anthropology

Evaluating 2D and 3D Methods of Measuring Fluctuating Asymmetry of Primate Skulls

Presenters : Colin Oliveira, Lauren Moore

Mentor : Frances White

Major : Anthropology

Poster 36

Morphological fluctuating asymmetry (FA), particularly cranial FA, can be used as an indicator of past developmental instability or environmental stress. Primate FA has been measured using a variety of two and three dimensional methods either directly from speci- mens or from images. We compared the effectiveness of three methods of calculating FA: Microscribe readings of three dimensional landmarks on the specimen, two dimensional landmarks measured from photographic superimposition using tpsDig, and linear distances using digital calipers on the specimen. Three observers used each of the three methods on two Macaca fuscata skulls, one that appeared asymmetrical and one that appeared symmetrical, using 5 midline points and 7 bilateral points for 5 replicates. Measure- ments taken by each method were compared between the two specimens. Measurement in 3D space via Microscribe exhibited no sig- nificant interaction term, no significant difference between observers (F=1.22, df 2,24, p=0.3119), and significant difference between specimens (F=5.56, df 1,24, p<0.05). Measurement of 2D distances from photographs via tpsDIG exhibited no significant interaction term, significant difference between observers (F=9.78, df 2,24, p<0.001), and significant difference between specimens (F=10.80, df 1,24, p<0.01). Measurement of linear distances via digital calipers exhibited no significant interaction term, no significant difference between observers, and no significant difference between specimens.

The Indigenous Siberian Health and Adaptation Project: Seasonal Variation in Autoimmune Thyroid Disorders among the Yakut (Sakha) of Siberia

Presenter : Vimal Balu

Mentor : Josh Snodgrass

Major : Biology, Anthropology

Northern populations physiologically adapt to extreme cold by upregularing basal metabolic rate. The thyroid appears central to this adaptation. Thyroid hormones regulate metabolic responses to chronic cold among indigenous Arctic populations. However, it is un- clear whether this adaptation among circumpolar groups predisposes them to autoimmune thyroid disorders (AITDs). This study ad- dresses this question by examining correlates of seasonal variation in anti-thyroid peroxidase antibody (TPOAb) concentrations among the Yakut of Siberia. Anthropometric and biomarker data were obtained on two occasions (Summer 2009 and Winter 2011) on a sample of Yakut men (n=52) and women (n=88) (≥18 years old). TPOAb levels are higher in summer than winter in both men (P<0.01) and women (P<0.05). Women have significantly higher TPOAb levels than men (P=0.05), and are more likely to have an AITD (28% of women versus 4% of men; TPOAb >30 IU/mL). TPOAb concentrations are associated with several anthropometric dimensions among men (negative trends with weight [P=0.08]). Finally, changes in TPOAb showed a positive trend association with change in thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH; P=0.06) among men, but among women change in TPOAb was negatively associated with change in HDL cholesterol and showed a positive trend with change in triglycerides (P=0.1) and hemoglobin (P=0.08). This study documented impor- tant sex differences in AITD risk among the Yakut, and an unexpected drop in TPOAb levels between summer and winter.

Traditional Iron Forging in Contemporary Times: An Ethnoarchaeological Study on the Position of Blacksmiths in the Archaeological and Socio-cultural Records

Presenter: Sarah Wyer

Mentor: Daniel Wojcik, William Ayres

Oral Presentation

Major: Anthropology/Folklore

This paper is an ethnoarchaeological look at blacksmithing by combining ethnographic field work and archaeological data. I interviewed blacksmith Jack Frost, a resident of Glenwood, Oregon but originally from Devon, Great Britain. Frost works with a traditional forge and tries to keep his practices as authentic as possible. By asking Frost questions about his blacksmithing techniques and experience, I have been able to compare his methods and his step-by-step processes to what the archaeological record tells us of blacksmithing. In particular, I focus on the quantity of carbon versus phosphorus in iron and how that affects the blacksmithing process as a whole. By looking at the procedure of modern blacksmithing in a traditional vein through Frost’s work, I attempt to explain how archaeological data, such as carbon residue discovered during an excavation, might have come to be. Blacksmithing and smelting methods from Europe to Africa are explored to provide a historical context. This paper combines two usually differing fields of anthropology, socio-cultural and archaeology, to show how ethnographic research might contribute to how we interpret archaeological data. Bringing Frost into the study shows how ethnographic research can couple with archaeological data to offer some insight into the unrecorded past.

Crafting the Ancient: Pre-Columbian Music for a Modern Audience

Presenter: Sarah Wyer

Mentor: Daniel Wojcik, William Ayres

Oral Presentation

Major: Anthropology/Folklore

In this paper I recount my fieldwork with local Eugenian artist musician Samuel Becerra and his motivations for crafting clay flutes. Becerra is a formally trained musician with a specialization in pre-Columbian Mesoamerican music and a further focus on Aztec instruments and musical forms. Beyond giving an overview of the instruments and how Becerra defines their importance and use, I ask questions regarding his motivations for making folk art. Of particular focus is his use of Aztec heritage to form his identity and inform his work. Consulting background research on Aztec music, I attempt to create a framework for understanding Becerra’s artistic creations in terms of personal reasons, motivations and issues of community and identity. Through my fieldwork with Becerra, I explore the deeper meanings, such as strengthening a nostalgic connection to his Aztec heritage, behind his goal to uphold ancient Aztec traditions.

Cetacean Hunting at the Par-Tee Site? Ethnographic, Archaeological, and Blood-residue Investigations

Presenter: Gabriel Sanchez

Mentor: Jon Erlandson

Oral Presentation

Major: Anthropology 

Anthropologists have long believed that Native Americans on the Northern Oregon Coast did not actively hunt whales, but archaeological evidence suggests otherwise. My project utilizes ethnographic data, comparative artifact analysis, radiocarbon dating, and blood residue analysis to investigate whether whales may have been hunted during prehistoric times along the Northern Oregon Coast. From the Par-Tee site (35CLT20), a humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae) phalange with an elk bone harpoon point embedded in it, provides evidence of whale hunting. AMS 14C dating of the whale bone and elk harpoon showed that they were both used approximately 1500 years ago, well before European contact. The dimensions of the embedded harpoon point were determined using computed tomography (CT) scanning to compare it to other harpoons points from the site. Several of these harpoons were selected for blood residue analysis, which identified evidence for trout, salmon, and steelhead fishing.

An Analysis of Artifact, Bone, and Coprolite Distributions in Paisley Caves Younger Dryas (Botanical Lens) and Underlying Pleistocene Deposits

Presenter: Katelyn McDonough

Mentor: Dennis Jenkins

Oral Presentation

Major: Anthropology

The Paisley 5 Mile Point Caves are located in the Summer Lake Basin of south-central Oregon. Preservation of perishable materials is excellent within the caves, and has yielded the earliest evidence of human DNA yet discovered in the Western hemisphere. Bone fragments of many large mammals have been preserved in very early deposits.
To investigate the human utilization of megafauna resources at this site during the terminal Pleistocene (>12,900 cal. BP) through Younger Dryas/ Early Holocene period (9,000 – 12,900 cal. BP), we statistically examined the distribution of artifacts, megafauna bones, and coprolites (ABCs). Artifacts used in this study included basketry, cordage, modified bulrush, formed lithic tools, lithic debitage, ground stone, and human hair. Bones were limited to megafauna with a minimum net weight of 225 kg. If the distribution of large mammal remains was affected by cultural activity, we would expect to see significant correlations between bone and artifact distributions. Conversely, negative to weak correlations between these material types would be expected to result from the natural deposit of bones by nonhuman predators. This project produced statistically significant correlations, which suggest that distributions of large mammal bones are not random, and have likely been affected by cultural activity. To further investigate the causes of these correlations, future research will focus on broadening the statistical analyses of ABCs to Caves 1 and 5, comparing artifact assemblages from EH/YD and late Pleistocene deposits, using small class size faunal remains as a fourth comparative variable, and incorporating additional DNA and radiocarbon dates.

Maintaining Compassion and Harmony: An Analysis of Three Interreligious Communities in Bali

Presenter: Sunny Harrison

Mentor: Lamia Karim

Oral Presentation

Major: Anthropology 

Compassion triggers an emotional response to suffering and a desire to help. Theories of religion and compassion suggest that social barriers may perpetuate a strained relationship between Hindus and Muslims in Bali; that strained relationship may suggest a lack of compassion (Geertz, 1973 and Nussbaum, 2001). However, by examining three interreligious villages in Bali, my research explores the ways in which compassion is conceptualized in contrast to Western theory. I conclude that the conceptualization of compassion may correlate to the existing harmonious state in each village and its related socio-economic development. This research adds to the general effort to understand how interreligious societies conceptualize, foster, and maintain harmony and therefore compassion. Although the Balinese have similar ways of conceptualizing compassion, the difference in socio-economic structure differs from the West. However, understanding how harmonious societies have overcome social barriers will help better identify how other communities can also eliminate social barriers, fostering more compassionate communities.

Gender, Power and Depo-Provera: Constraints on Reproductive Choice in Rural Nicaragua

Presenter: Nicolette Dent

Mentor: Kristin Yarris

Poster: 8

Major: Anthropology

Using interviews conducted with 87 women in 2003 in Nicaragua, my research explores how gender ideologies reinforce men’s non-involvement with family planning and limit women’s reproductive choices. The popularity of the injectable contraceptive Depo-Provera among this sample reflects these patterns of gender inequality and social constraints on women’s health and power in Latin America. I used Pearson chi-square statistics and t-tests of means to analyze the relationships between women’s marital and socioeconomic statuses and their contraceptive use. I found that rates of Depo-Provera use are higher among women who are married or in union, reflecting how the presence of a male partner influences women to choose “invisible” contraceptive methods. I also found that women who do not have access to electricity, as a measure of lower socioeconomic status, use Depo-Provera at higher rates than women who have electricity. I situate these findings within the historical and cultural context of Nicaragua, and within the contested social history of Depo-Provera. While the current administration in Nicaragua acknowledges the need to involve men in reproductive health issues, men’s lack of participation in family planning remains a global concern. I suggest that women will not be able to employ reproductive choice until governments address issues of gender equality and encourage male participation in reproductive health and responsibility.

Physical activity, Functional Abilities, and Health: Results of a WHO SAGE Sub-study Among Older Adults in an Urban Setting in India.

Presenter: Tyler Barrett

Mentor: Josh Snodgrass

Poster: 2

Major: Anthropology and Media Studies

Recent research in Western settings suggests that decreased physical activity in old age is detrimental to health, yet few studies have examined the relationships among physical activity, functional abilities, and health among older adults in non-Western settings. This study examines associations among measures of physical activity using seven consecutive days of ActiGraph GT3X accelerometry (total daily energy expenditure [TDEE; kcal/day], physical activity level [PAL], daily average activity count [AC], and activity energy expenditure [AEE; kcal/day]), physical function (grip strength, timed walk, daily average sit time, and average sleep time), and self-reported health conditions (diabetes, hypertension, arthritis, and depression) among 127 older adult women and 71 older adult men in an urban setting in India as part of a sub-study of the WHO’s Study on global AGEing and adult health (SAGE).

Findings among women (controlled for age) include a significant negative correlation between PAL and walking speed (p<0.05) and a significant positive correlation between AC and grip strength (p<0.01). Women diagnosed with hypertension had significantly lower PAL (p<0.05) and AC (p<0.05) than women without hypertension. Surprisingly, physical activity was not significantly associated with functional or health measures for men. This study documented relationships among physical activity, function, and health among older women, thereby further suggesting the use of physical activity intervention as a means for prolonging functional abilities and reducing chronic disease burden in older ages.

Support: NIH NIA Interagency Agreement YA1323-08-CN-0020; and grant NIH R01-AG034479

Sutural Methodology for Determining Age in Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca mulatta)

Presenter: Julia Arenson

Mentor: Frances White

Poster: 1

Major: Anthropology 

Cranial sutures are frequently used to determine age in forensic and bioarchaeological contexts. However, these methods are mostly only utilized in human populations, and a lack of comparative data for non-human primates makes visualizing the evolution of growth patterns difficult. This project documents cranial suture fusion in rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) as a marker of development. To develop a standardized methodology, I used Meindl and Lovejoy’s (1985) established 0-3 point scale for human ectocranial fusion, and scored sutures all over the cranium that were included in Wang et al.’s research (2006). My sample included osteological specimens with known ages from the UO Comparative Primate Osteological Collection, ranging from 0 to over 14 years, totaling15 specimens (5 females and 10 males). Total percentage fusion of each region of the skull, divided into facial, neurocranial, and basicranial regions, revealed which areas correlated positively with age, while analysis of scoring precision over 10 trials of the same specimens showed which sutures were not scored reliably. Sutures on the neurocranium and face gave the best age correlates, while sutures within the eye orbit and the squamosal suture were not consistently scored. To best estimate the age of an osteological specimen, the findings suggest a focus on sutures of the face and neurocranium. Developing comparative methods to evaluate growth patterns can allow researchers to identify the changes and consistencies of important life history events within both human and nonhuman primate evolution.