 |
| Stages of death |
|---|
Skeletonization is the state of a dead organism after undergoing decomposition. [1] Skeletonization refers to the final stage of decomposition, during which the last vestiges of the soft tissues of a corpse or carcass have decayed or dried to the point that the skeleton is exposed. By the end of the skeletonization process, all soft tissue will have been eliminated, leaving only disarticulated bones. [2]
In a temperate climate, it usually requires three weeks to several years for a body to completely decompose into a skeleton, depending on factors such as temperature, humidity, presence of insects, and submergence in a substrate such as water. [3] In tropical climates, skeletonization can occur in weeks, while in tundra areas, skeletonization may take years or may never occur, if freezing temperatures persist. Natural embalming processes in peat bogs or salt deserts can delay the process indefinitely, sometimes resulting in natural mummification. [4]
The rate of skeletonization and the present condition of a corpse or carcass can be used to determine the time of death. [5]
After skeletonization, if scavenging animals do not destroy or remove the bones, acids in many fertile soils take about 20 years to completely dissolve the skeleton of mid- to large-size mammals, such as humans, leaving no trace of the organism. In neutral-pH soil or sand, the skeleton can persist for hundreds of years before it finally disintegrates. Alternately, especially in very fine, dry, salty, anoxic, or mildly alkaline soils, bones may undergo fossilization, converting into minerals that may persist indefinitely. [4]
Before analysing skeletal remains, it is essential to categorise the skeletal remains for its respective discipline for further investigation. In other words, researchers have to determine the skeletal remains’ significance. There are key procedures to follow in order to categorise the skeletal remains. First, extraneous materials that are not bones or teeth should be extinguished. [6] Subsequently, researchers need to identify human bones from skeletal remains. Human bones will be examined for their significance deemed for forensic investigation purposes only. [6] Otherwise, human bones will be proceeded to the next examination on the alternative possible significance that the skeletal remains have. Other than forensic contexts, skeletal remains can be classified as education or archaeological material education or anatomical material, war memorial items or archaeological materials which could be cemetery remains traced back from prehistorical or historical times. [6]
Once a pool of skeletal remains is collected, bones and non bone materials will be mixed together. In order to avoid non bone materials being misinterpreted as bones, the following methods are applied to increase the efficiency of distinguishing bones and non bone materials. [7] A microscope can be used to examine whether there is an absence of graininess that will only appear on a bone's surface. [7] Scanning electron microscopy and energy- dispersive X- ray spectroscopy are used to examine the chemical composition of any materials that are suspected to be bones. The results of the chemical composition test will be compared with the bone specimens of a FBI's database named Spectral Library for Identification. Non bone materials are obvious to be detected since non bone materials do not have the same ratio of calcium-to-phosphorus that bones have. [7]
When the suspected material is identified as bone, the next procedure is to categorise which bones belong to humans or animals. This procedure is conducted by forensic anthropologists since their daily tasks are to identify human bones. [7] There are skeletal variations in both human and nonhuman bones. [7] In terms of human bones, forensic anthropologists need to categorise human bones in accordance to their respective biological ages through investigating the maturity of the human bones. [7] If the size of a piece of bone is suspected of having the same size of young adult bones, researchers will proceed to consider the possible factor of maturity and the presence of fused epiphyses for further analysis of classifying a bone as a young adult bone or a non bone. [7] Small fragments of human bones or large mammalian animal bones will be easily confused occasionally. [7]
Hence, microscopic methods are used to determine the external features of the bone's surface. [7] Given that the microscopic pattern of nonhuman bones is plexiform or fibrolamellar if the primary osteon has the linear arrangement of rows or bands, [7] analysing the microscopic anatomy of large mammalian bone fragments enables the forensic anthropologists to distinguish large mammals. [7] This does not mean that microscopic methods can be applied in identifying human bones. [7] Protein radioimmunoassay is a biomolecular method that identifies human bones and eliminates any nonhuman bones. [7]
Once the skeletal remains are excavated, forensic anthropologists need to ensure the skeletal remains have fulfilled a contextual criteria upon determining the forensic significance of the skeletal remains. [8] The clothing that is being left with the skeletons must be contemporary clothing, absence of mortuary artefacts and buried in a discordant body posture. [8] The timing of the bone quality is also crucial for distinguishing bones from archaeological bones, the key point to be marked on is the freshness of the bone [8] in which postmortem intervals will be useful for justifying contemporary skeletal remains from skeletons served for archaeological purposes. [9] The place of burial, physical characteristics and artefacts next to the skeletal remains will be taken into consideration to determine its forensic significance. [10]
If the skeletal remains are deemed as materials that have no forensic significance, the skeletal remains will proceed to an examination of its archaeological significance. [11] This will be determined if the skeletal remains are situated in a burial setting and the presence of accompanied artefacts beside the skeletons. [11]
The following information listed below is the information that was derived from skeletons.
The pelvis displays sexually dimorphic characteristics, [12] and thus can be used to infer the sex of the skeleton. [13] Specifically, the hip bone is dissected into three segments which are the sacroiliac segment, ischiopubic segment and acetabular segment. [12] Any changes in the shape of the sciatic notch of the sacroiliac segment indicate the sex and the sexual maturation of the skeleton. [12] Females have a larger sciatic notch. [13] The ischiopubic segment indicates the process of sexual dimorphism during puberty. For example, the subpubic angle and pubis of females in the ischiopubic segment is larger. [12] Sub-pubic concavity is only present in females. [13] The acetabular segment indicates the spatial organisation of the general pelvic structure. [12] Through observing the physical characteristics derived from the hip bones, females have a U-shape subpubic angle and men have a V-shape subpubic angle. [13] The female pelvis is wider than that of the male in order to enable a safe pathway for reproduction. [12] The female pelvis is built to enable locomotion and parturition. [12] As males do not give birth, the male pelvis is narrower. [12] Consequently, males have stronger mastoid processes on the sides, with nuchal crests and glabellae located in the front and the back respectively. [13]
If the pelvic bone is absent from the skeletal specimen, the size and resiliency of the bones will be examined to infer sex. [13] The quality of nutrition that the deceased specimen had in its lifetime will affect the size and resiliency of its bones, so this analysis cannot be considered entirely definitive in assigning sex to a skeleton. [13]
Trauma means the injury that had occurred on a deceased individual's living tissue which is inflicted by an external force or mechanism regardless of intentional or incidental means. [14] Analysing trauma provides insight in detecting and explaining the lesions on the deceased individual or a respective population. [14] By associating the relationship between trauma and the demographic information derived from the skeleton, the relationship between them facilitates the process of interpreting the socio- cultural variables that inflicted the trauma. [14] Trauma analysis is conducted with the cooperation between forensic pathologists and anthropologists to establish the reason and manner of death. [15] The occurrence of trauma is dissected into three stages which are ante- mortem, peri- mortem and post- mortem trauma. [15] While peri- and post- mortem trauma that occurred simultaneously cannot provide hints for forensic pathologists and anthropologists, post- mortem trauma that occurred after the decomposition stage reveals the distinction between damage inflicted on dried and de- fleshed bones. [15]
Skeletal age estimation is written in the format of ranges because an individual's chronological age does not necessarily parallel his or her biological age. [16] Individual health, family genetics and environmental stressors affect the skeleton age. [16] Hence, the range format is written in the aim of combining the estimation of the skeleton's chronological age and individual variability. [16] To avoid biased examinations in skeletal age estimation, at least more than one indicators is required. [17] In order to investigate if there is an evidence of growth and development on the skeletons, the evolving pattern and fusion of ossification centers can be used to determine that the skeletons are developed. Thus, this means the skeletons are proven to be entering the stage of maturation. [18]
Skeletons should be carefully managed and protected in order to retain their original state for further research purposes in any circumstances, for instance: educational, archaeological, forensic research. [19] Applying the same case for animal skeletons, there are procedures to follow in the aim of ensuring the skeletal remains are reserved carefully for research purposes in the future. [20] There are various possible sizes of collections that researchers might want to reserve for future investigation. [19] For smaller sizes of bones collections which will be commonly applied to any researchers who retain them for archaeological or zoological educational purposes, it is suggested to organise those bones into categories, for instance: age group, tribal or ethnicity group, or sex. [19] The storage method of such small and sophisticated types of bones is recommended to be placed in a sliding shelf. [19] However, larger collections are served for academic disciplines that need a broad investigation instead of just focusing on a single piece of bone. [19] Thus, the preservation and care management method will be different from above. First, researchers have to note down the basic demographic and mortality information which will be useful for future comparisons between skeletons. [19] Similarly, for the skeletal remains collected for display or research purposes in the museum, the physical characteristics and the skeletal remains’ archaeological category has to be documented in order to acknowledge the background information of the skeletal remains. [21] Next, bones should be carefully labelled and avoid chemical substances that will affect the original state of the bone that will affect accuracy of future investigation. [19]
Cultural and social factors affect the objectivity principle required to investigate a corpse. [22] An ethical dilemma exists when forensic anthropologists and mortuary archaeologists need to adapt to the cultural context that they are working in respectively while obliged to uphold objectivity when they are engaging in skeletal analysis. [22] Both forensic anthropologists and mortuary archaeologists should not enable the working conditions of a particular environment justifying their standard of investigation process. [22]
Kennewick Man and Ancient One are the names given to the skeletal remains of a prehistoric Paleoamerican man found on a bank of the Columbia River in Kennewick, Washington, on July 28, 1996. It is one of the most complete ancient skeletons ever found. Radiocarbon tests on bone have shown it to date from 8,900 to 9,000 calibrated years before present, but it was not until 2013 that ancient DNA analysis techniques had improved enough to shed light on the remains.
Forensic anthropology is the application of the anatomical science of anthropology and its various subfields, including forensic archaeology and forensic taphonomy, in a legal setting. A forensic anthropologist can assist in the identification of deceased individuals whose remains are decomposed, burned, mutilated or otherwise unrecognizable, as might happen in a plane crash. Forensic anthropologists are also instrumental in the investigation and documentation of genocide and mass graves. Along with forensic pathologists, forensic dentists, and homicide investigators, forensic anthropologists commonly testify in court as expert witnesses. Using physical markers present on a skeleton, a forensic anthropologist can potentially determine a person's age, sex, stature, and race. In addition to identifying physical characteristics of the individual, forensic anthropologists can use skeletal abnormalities to potentially determine cause of death, past trauma such as broken bones or medical procedures, as well as diseases such as bone cancer.
Coffin birth, also known as postmortem fetal extrusion, is the expulsion of a nonviable fetus through the vaginal opening of the decomposing body of a deceased pregnant woman due to increasing pressure from intra-abdominal gases. This kind of postmortem delivery occurs very rarely during the decomposition of a body. The practice of chemical preservation, whereby chemical preservatives and disinfectant solutions are pumped into a body to replace natural body fluids, have made the occurrence of "coffin birth" so rare that the topic is rarely mentioned in international medical discourse.
Osteology is the scientific study of bones, practised by osteologists. A subdiscipline of anatomy, anthropology, and paleontology, osteology is the detailed study of the structure of bones, skeletal elements, teeth, microbone morphology, function, disease, pathology, the process of ossification, and the resistance and hardness of bones (biophysics).
A body farm is a research facility where decomposition of humans and other animals can be studied in a variety of settings. The initial facility was conceived by anthropologist William M. Bass in 1981 at the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee, where Bass was interested in studying the decomposition of a human corpse from the time of death to the time of decay. The aim was to gain a better understanding of the decomposition process, permitting the development of techniques for extracting information such as the timing and circumstances of death from human remains. Body farm research is of particular interest in forensic anthropology and related disciplines, and has applications in the fields of law enforcement and forensic science. By placing the bodies outside to face the elements, researchers are able to get a better understanding of the decomposition process.
The term bioarchaeology has been attributed to British archaeologist Grahame Clark who, in 1972, defined it as the study of animal and human bones from archaeological sites. Redefined in 1977 by Jane Buikstra, bioarchaeology in the United States now refers to the scientific study of human remains from archaeological sites, a discipline known in other countries as osteoarchaeology, osteology or palaeo-osteology. Compared to bioarchaeology, osteoarchaeology is the scientific study that solely focus on the human skeleton. The human skeleton is used to tell us about health, lifestyle, diet, mortality and physique of the past. Furthermore, palaeo-osteology is simple the study of ancient bones.
The Robert J. Terry Anatomical Skeletal Collection is a collection of some 1,728 human skeletons held by the Department of Anthropology of the National Museum of Natural History of the Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., United States.
Forensic facial reconstruction is the process of recreating the face of an individual from their skeletal remains through an amalgamation of artistry, anthropology, osteology, and anatomy. It is easily the most subjective—as well as one of the most controversial—techniques in the field of forensic anthropology. Despite this controversy, facial reconstruction has proved successful frequently enough that research and methodological developments continue to be advanced.
Jane Ellen Buikstra is an American anthropologist and bioarchaeologist. Her 1977 article on the biological dimensions of archaeology coined and defined the field of bioarchaeology in the US as the application of biological anthropological methods to the study of archaeological problems. Throughout her career, she has authored over 20 books and 150 articles. Buikstra's current research focuses on an analysis of the Phaleron cemetery near Athens, Greece.
FORDISC is a software program created by Stephen Ousley and Richard Jantz. It is designed to help forensic anthropologists investigate the identity of a deceased person by providing estimates of the person's size, ethnicity, and biological sex based on the osteological material recovered.
The University of Tennessee Anthropological Research Facility, better known as the Body Farm and sometimes seen as the Forensic Anthropology Facility, was conceived in 1971 and established in 1972 by anthropologist William M. Bass as the first facility for the study of decomposition of human remains. It is located a few miles from downtown Knoxville, Tennessee, US, behind the University of Tennessee Medical Center, and is part of the Forensic Anthropology Center, which was established by Dr. Bass in 1987.
Richard L. Jantz is an American anthropologist. He served as the director of the University of Tennessee Anthropological Research Facility from 1998–2011 and he is the current Professor Emeritus of the Department of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. His research focuses primarily on forensic anthropology, skeletal biology, dermatoglyphics, anthropometry, anthropological genetics, and human variation, as well as developing computerized databases in these areas which aid in anthropological research. The author of over a hundred journal articles and other publications, his research has helped lead and shape the field of physical and forensic anthropology for many years.
Douglas W. Owsley is an American anthropologist who is head of Physical Anthropology at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History (NMNH). He is regarded as one of the most prominent and influential archaeologists and forensic anthropologists in the world in some popular media. In September 2001, he provided scientific analysis at the military mortuary located at Dover Air Force Base, following the 9/11 attack in Washington, D.C. The following year, the US Department of Defense honored him with the Commander's Award for Civilian Service for helping in the identification of 60 federal and civilian victims who died when American Airlines Flight 77 hit the Pentagon.
Ata is the common name given to the 6-inch (15 cm) long skeletal remains of a human fetus found in 2003 in a deserted Chilean town in the Atacama Desert. DNA analysis done in 2018 on the premature human fetus identified unusual mutations associated with dwarfism and scoliosis, though these findings were later disputed. The remains were found by Oscar Muñoz, who later sold them; the current owner is Ramón Navia-Osorio, a Spanish businessman.
Osteoware is a free data recording software for human skeletal material that is managed through the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History. It is used by biological anthropologists to document data relevant to research and forensic applications of human skeletal remains in a standardized and consistent way. It has influenced other skeletal recording software, and has been successfully used at the Smithsonian for collecting data relevant to biological anthropology. Osteoware is the only free, individual-use software for the collection of data on skeletal material in anthropology.
Mortuary archaeology is the study of human remains in their archaeological context. This is a known sub-field of bioarchaeology, which is a field that focuses on gathering important information based on the skeleton of an individual. Bioarchaeology stems from the practice of human osteology which is the anatomical study of skeletal remains. Mortuary archaeology, as well as the overarching field it resides in, aims to generate an understanding of disease, migration, health, nutrition, gender, status, and kinship among past populations. Ultimately, these topics help to produce a picture of the daily lives of past individuals. Mortuary archaeologists draw upon the humanities, as well as social and hard sciences to have a full understanding of the individual.
Erin H. Kimmerle is an American forensic anthropologist, artist, and executive director of the Institute of Forensic Anthropology & Applied Science at the University of South Florida. She was awarded the 2020 AAAS Award for Scientific Freedom and Responsibility.
Lucile Eleanor St. Hoyme was an American biological anthropologist who conducted research related to human variation, bioarcheology, and paleopathology. St. Hoyme served as an Assistant Curator in the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History. St. Hoyme analyzed human remains excavated from the John Kerr Reservoir Basin using a new bioarcheological approach combining data from other disciplines. Beyond her work with the Smithsonian collections, St. Hoyme also worked on FBI forensic cases in the 1960s with National Museum of Natural History Anthropology Curator J. Lawrence Angel.
The stages of death of a human being have medical, biochemical and legal aspects. The term taphonomy from palaeontology applies to the fate of all kinds of remains of organisms. Forensic taphonomy is concerned with remains of the human body.
Near Eastern bioarchaeology covers the study of human skeletal remains from archaeological sites in Cyprus, Egypt, Levantine coast, Jordan, Turkey, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, United Arab Emirates, Oman, and Yemen.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link){{cite journal}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
