The Implications of Thermogenic Modification for Anthropological Recovery of Burned Bone
Date
2017-02-20
Authors
Efford, Meaghan Karyn
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Abstract
Burn trauma is prevalent in both the archaeological and forensic records. It causes
thermogenic modifications that have implications for the discipline of anthropology.
Anthropologists and medical professionals are frequently the experts who are called to
address burn trauma cases, often in the role of forensic anthropologists. This project
seeks to discuss the processes of burn trauma and the resulting changes, as well as how
the professionals in the fields of archaeology, anthropology, and medicine are discussing
the recovery and analysis of burned human remains. An experiment was conducted to
demonstrate these changes and compare them to those documented by experts in the
field. A literature review discusses the processes of burn trauma and the resulting
thermogenic modifications that are seen in the scholarly literature on the topic. The
author makes recommendations for future research, namely the inclusion of weight in the
recorded factors during experimentation and continued research into the recovery of
burned remains. The author argues that the bioarchaeological approach of forensic
anthropology benefits from the combined experience of archaeologists, biological
anthropologists, and medical experts who have a background in osteology and
biomechanics.
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Keywords
burn trauma, thermogenic modification, forensic anthropology, archaeology, biological anthropology, bone, forensic medicine, osteology, biomechanics