- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10027526
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley-Blackwell
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Archeological Papers of the American Anthropological Association
- Volume:
- 28
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 1551-823X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 104 to 111
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
More Like this
-
Kim, Andrew ; Agarwal, Sabrina (Ed.)Objectives: Pandemics have profoundly impacted human societies, but until rela- tively recently were a minor research focus within biological anthropology, especially within biocultural analyses. Here, we explore research in these fields, including molecular anthropology, that employs biocultural approaches, sometimes integrated with intersectionality and ecosocial and syndemic theory, to unpack relationships between social inequality and pandemics. A case study assesses the 1918 influenza pandemic's impacts on the patient population of the Mississippi State Asylum (MSA). Materials and Methods: We survey bioarchaeological and paleopathological litera- ture on pandemics and analyze respiratory disease mortality relative to sex, age, and social race amongst patient deaths (N = 2258) between 1912 and 1925. Logistic regression models were used to assess relationships between cause of death and odds of death during the pandemic (1918–1919). Results: Findings include substantial respiratory mortality during the pandemic, including from influenza and influenza syndemic with pneumonia. Older patients (40–59 years, 60+ years) had lower odds (p < 0.01) of dying from respiratory disease than younger patients, as did female patients compared to males (p < 0.05). Age pat- terns are broadly consistent with national and state trends, while elevated mortality amongst Black and/or African American patients may reflect intersections between gender roles and race-based structural violence in the Jim Crow South. Discussion: Future work in biological anthropology on past pandemics may benefit from explicit incorporation of biocultural frameworks, intersectionality, and ecosocial and syndemic theory. Doing so enables holistic analyses of interactions between social context, social inequality and pandemic outcomes, generating data informative for public health responses and pandemic preparedness.more » « less
-
null (Ed.)Los restos humanos tal vez son la clase de material arqueológico más delicada, tanto por razones biológicas como culturales. Su recuperación, preservación, conservación e análisis presentan retos en cualquier contexto biocultural. Dada su geografía y la larga duración de la presencia humana en el país, la arqueología de campo en Grecia es intensiva, con excavaciones sistemáticas o de rescate durante todo el año. Sepulcros, cementerios y restos humanos son encontrados con frecuencia, resultando en la acumulación de material osteológico. Problemas comunes incluyen la falta de tiempo y fondos, la documentación insuficiente en el campo, la carencia de materiales y espacio adecuados para la conservación y el largo intervalo de tiempo entre excavación y análisis. En este trabajo presentamos un breve resumen de los procesos de excavación, preservación, conservación y prácticas de análisis bioarqueológico en Grecia. Nos enfocamos en un nuevo proyecto en la vasta necrópolis de Phaleron, presentando ejemplos y enfoques metodológicos. Finalmente, consideramos el papel que desempeñan los proyectos colaborativos y las instituciones sin fines de lucro como el Laboratorio Wiener de la Escuela Americana de Estudios Clásicos de Atenas en el asesoramiento y manejo de colecciones bioarqueológicas de gran escala para alcanzar las metas de preservación a largo plazo en Grecia.more » « less
-
more » « less
Abstract Objectives This study examines biological indicators of dental disease and nonspecific stress in human remains of three high altitude Himalayan archaeological sites to test whether shared ecological constraints led to similar bioarchaeological profiles in these markers.
Methods Samples (
n = 170) derive from three sites in Nepal dating to two periods (400–50 BCE and c. 400–650 CE). Dental diseases (caries, antemortem tooth loss, and abscesses) were assessed by both the number of individuals and the number of elements observed, while childhood stress markers included observation of growth disruptions (enamel hypoplasia and adult femur length/stature) and cranial porosities. Statistical analysis included chi‐square and Fisher's exact tests for categorical data and ANOVA and t‐tests for metric data.Results There are significant differences between the sites and sexes in frequencies of dental diseases in the adult samples. There are low frequencies of childhood stress markers overall and the femur length data show no significant differences across sites, but significant sexual dimorphism within each site. Females have reduced stature compared to contemporary Tibetan samples residing at a similar elevation.
Conclusions Variations in dental disease frequencies between the sites may be due to local variations in microenvironment, cultural, and/or temporal differences in resource availability, food consumption and preparation, as well as the age structure of the samples. The low frequencies of markers for nonspecific stress may be indicative of the ability of these ancient Himalayan groups to successfully meet the challenges posed by the extreme conditions of high altitude living through biocultural adaptations.
