Guest Post: Debunking the "Bones" Mythos

The following post was completed by former student, Esmeralda Salas.  If you want to learn more about forensic anthropology, please click here.

Television shows have the power to expose the viewer to interesting subject matter that would otherwise go unnoticed if not for the spotlight placed on it by the media.  These fictional portrayals can often be a combination of accurate information and extravagant Hollywood magic.  A close analysis of the show Bones, which deals with forensic anthropology, reveals that an accurate portrayal is not often popular and requires great amounts of artistic liberties. This can often misinform the public and lead them to believe in unreasonable expectations.  

In the first episode of the series, we are introduced to Dr. Temperance Brennan, a brilliant forensic anthropologist who can establish various features of a skeleton, such as age, sex, and cause of death, just by looking at it (Pilot).  This premise seems highly unlikely as the show oversimplifies the complexity of re-articulating a skeleton and measuring various bones that could provide all of this information.  In a scene not long after that, Dr. Brennan is seen reconstructing a shattered skull in what appears to be a matter of hours with only the aid of a bottle of glue (Pilot).  Again, it seems impossible for one person to undertake such an arduous task and successfully complete it overnight without the help of any other specialized tools or resources.  When equipment is employed, it is the latest in technology which the author of the series and real-life forensic anthropologist Kathy Reich admits most real crime labs “can't afford to buy a three-dimensional holographic reconstruction machine” (TV Forensics).  These three examples are the most obvious inconsistencies with the work of real world forensic anthropologists.

In spite of these discrepancies, the show does depict some facets of a forensic anthropologists work.  Dr. Brennan works for the Jeffersonian institute, a fictional research facility based on the Smithsonian Institution.  This type of work is typical of a forensic anthropologist; however, “relatively few people practice forensic anthropology on a full–time basis” (ABFA).  She is seen collecting remains, analyzing badly decomposed skeletons, and assisting in criminal investigations.  She also works alongside other professionals, such as an entomologist, forensic artist, and former archaeologist to piece together a forensic case.

It is important to interpret television shows like Bones as what they primarily are; entertainment.  Though they can sometimes provide the general public with insight into otherwise esoteric fields, they can also mislead through fantastic and implausible storylines.  Reliable information should always be sought in books and scientific publications that refrain from exaggerating the facts. 

Works Cited

"ABFA - American Board of Forensic Anthropology." ABFA - American Board of Forensic

            Anthropology. N.p., 2008. Web. 06 May 2014.

“Pilot.” Bones. Writ. Greg Yaitanes.  Dir. Hart Hanson. 20th Century Fox.  2006. DVD.

"TV Forensics: 'Bones' Makes It Look So Easy." Talk of the Nation.  NPR. 25 Aug. 2010. Web.

            6 May 2014. Transcript.

Applied Anthropology Profile: Sam Dunn

Anthropology?  What can you do with that?  You can only teach or do research, right?

These are questions that many anthropologists, myself included, are confronted with on a regular basis.  While these questions used to fill me with anxiety and dread at attempting to answer, I have learned that there is great utility in taking anthropology courses and having an anthropology degree that go beyond the classroom, teaching, and research.  Today’s post is one of what will hopefully be a series of posts that focus on anthropologists working within the applied anthropology subdiscipline.  Applied anthropology is the application of anthropological theory and methods to identify and solve real life problems and situations that anthropologists confront within the course of their work.  There are countless applied anthropological fields, including but not limited to medical anthropology, visual anthropology, and business anthropology, but today I want to discuss the work of one anthropologist who took his anthropological training in a very unique direction: documentary film making.

Sam Dunn, Documentary Film Maker & Anthropologist (Picture Credit: George Pimentel, Picture Source: IMDB)

 

Sam Dunn is the director and producer of a series of documentaries that focus on heavy metal culture, including Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey, Global Metal, and Metal Revolution; cofounder (along with Scot McFayden) of Bangers Films, Inc.; and an anthropologist.  Sam Dunn’s fascination with heavy metal began as a teenager, but his interests in anthropology were captured during his undergraduate when he realized the value of anthropology in understanding people, cultures, and the world around him.  Dunn eventually pursued a Masters degree in Anthropology from York University in Toronto, Canada, where he focused his research on Guatemalan refugees.  It was during this time that he decided to write a book on heavy metal, but he was convinced by Scot McFayden to instead create a documentary on the film, which eventually became Metal: A Headbanger’s Journey.  Their original plans for the film were to make it a typical film documentary on the music genre, but Sam Dunn’s anthropological background influenced the story of the film, making it more about his personal journey exploring heavy metal culture.  In this film, Sam Dunn interviewed not only notable heavy metal musicians but also fans from across the globe, exploring the music genre and the identity associated with the musicians and fans that make up the heavy metal culture.  The film gave rise to further explorations into heavy metal culture with the sophomore film Global Metal, a film that explored the processes of globalization and heavy metal among citizens around the world. 

Sam Dunn’s anthropological background is evident in his films.  His ability to go beyond the obvious questions and delve deeper into the subject matter, exploring issues of identity, globalization, race, sex, and more, are all evidence of his anthropological training.  This training and addition of anthropology into his documentary films breathes new life into a music genre that is poorly understood (and often misunderstood, as Sam Dunn points out) and makes the subject matter interesting and accessible to a wide audience.  While Sam Dunn’s approach to applied anthropology is untraditional it is providing a marginalized group (heavy metal fans) a voice that they did not previously have and also offers them a sense of community many of them, such as Sam Dunn himself, were not previously aware of.  Furthermore, he demonstrates that anthropological training can and is useful in other pursuits, not just academic ones.

Resources:

https://www.facebook.com/BangerFilms

http://www.bangerfilms.com/

http://heavymetal.about.com/od/interviews/a/dunnmcfayden.htm

Spotlight on Students: Exploring the Problematic Race Concept

Today's post is another spotlight on students and focuses on the sensitive topic of race, in particularly how popular conceptions of race are problematic and, frankly, false.  Please welcome Austin Bunnell, one of my Anth 102: Introduction to Physical Anthropology students, in his discussion on this topic as he explores the problematic nature of race as it is understood today.

           For centuries, humans have been divided into separate categories based upon skin color. These separate categories are now known as “races.” Furthermore, a long history of false scientific claims has supported the idea that these human groups are separated by differences in intelligence and morals. The reasoning behind these claims has never been based on scientific data, but rather it has been shaped to support the maintenance of privileges for those in power. The primary means of supporting the maintenance of these privileges is to prove that those without power, i.e. those of different races, are truly genetically inferior, and therefore deserving of their lower ranking in society (Gould).

            Before Darwin’s 1859 Origin of Species, there were two schools of thought to explain these claims of racial differences:  monogenusts and polygenusts. Monogenusts believe that all humans are descendants of a single primal pair; in this case the pair is Adam and Eve. Polygenusts, however, believe that the creation story presented in Genesis depicts only the creation of the white race, and that different species are actually different races with different genetic origins. This belief is the strongest argument for the primal differences and profound inequalities based on supposed biology (Gould).

            The American Anthropological Association (AAA) has recognized the power of race as a means to divide social classes based on variations in physical appearance. In their statement on “race,” the AAA has mentioned that “physical variations in the human species have no meaning except the social ones that humans put on them” (“AAA Statement on ‘Race’”). They go on to say that the idea of race was created in the United States during the 18^th century. Race was used as a social mechanism to refer to the populations that were brought together in colonial America, such as the conquered Native Americans and African slaves (“AAA Statement on ‘Race’”).      The stigmas that were attached to the populations brought into America during the 18^th century are still present today. Because of its deeply rooted history, the idea of race has been implanted in humans and creates a body of preconceptions which alters our perceptions about varying physical characteristics. These misconceptions connected behaviors and physical characteristics, falsely implying that both were genetically determined. Thankfully, in the 20^th century, we understand that human cultural behavior is learned through conditioning at an early age. No human is born with knowledge of language and culture or assigned behavioral characteristics. These are traits that are developed over the course of a lifetime and are always subject to modification (“AAA Statement on ‘Race’”).

             The AAA is also very eager to call attention to the fact that there are no biological differences between separate races. Evidence from DNA analyses indicates that nearly 94% of genetic variation occurs within members of the same race. This means that separate races differ in only 6% of their genes (“AAA Statement on ‘Race’”). Genetically we are the most similar of all species. Only 1/1,000 nucleotides that make up our genetic code is different one human to another (“The Difference Between Us”).

            Now that it is understood that there is no genetic difference between humans, it is important to comprehend why humans differ in skin color and stature and subsequently differ on the phenotypic level. As our human ancestors moved into open and hot environments in search of food, they struggled to keep cool. In order to adapt to this hot environment, their amount of body hair decreased and the amount of sweat glands on the skin increased. Since they no longer had hair to shield them from the sun’s rays, humans evolved darker skin as a means of protection.  The skin needs a certain amount of ultraviolet rays so that the body can use vitamin D in order to absorb the calcium necessary for strong bones. Too much exposure to ultraviolet rays, however, can strip away folic acid, which is essential for developing healthy fetuses. Since early humans evolved in Africa near the equator, they developed dark skin as a means to prevent deficiency in folic acid (“Race – Only Skin Deep”). This pattern of adaption is expressed using Gloger’s rule, which states that “within the same species of mammals, there is a tendency to find more heavily pigmented forms near the equator and lighter forms away from the equator” (Stein and Rowe, 398).

            Race has always been a barrier between human populations.  Thankfully, recent scientific discoveries have exposed the flaws in this system of classification. Through DNA analysis, it has been determined that there is no genetic difference between races, and that geographical migration patterns can explain differences in skin color and physical stature. With this knowledge, we can dismantle these racial stereotypes and future generations may no longer have to associate with stigmas attached to their physical appearance.

Works Cited

"AAA Statement on "Race"" AAA Statement on "Race" N.p., 17 May 1998. Web. 09 May 2014.

"The Difference Between Us." Race-The Power of an Illusion. N.d. Television.

Gould, Stephen J. "Evolution and Human Equality." College of Wooster, Wooster.

"RACE - Only Skin Deep." RACE - Only Skin Deep. American Anthropological Association, 2011. Web. 08 May 2014.

Stein, Philip L., and Bruce M. Rowe. "The Biology of Modern Homo Sapeins." Introduction to Human Evolution and Prehistory. N.p.: McGraw-Hill Eduication, 2014. 389-413. Print.

 

Spotlight on Students: Hominid Profiles

The following post is another spotlight on students featuring the work of one of my students enrolled in my Anthropology 102: Introduction to Physical Anthropology courses.  The students were tasked with providing a comprehensive summary of a hominid of their choice, and this is one of the exemplary works.  Be prepared to learn about hominids and human evolution.

Ms. Ples (Diagnostic adult Australopithecus africanus): Transvaal Museum, Pretoria, South Africa

 Australopithecus africanus
By Esmeralda Salas, Anth 102: 1501

Each discovery of hominid species brings with it a better understanding of modern human origins.  In the case of Raymond Dart’s discovery in the early 1920s, findings can provide irrefutable information about where humans evolved.  Before delving into a review of Australopithecus africanus, it is important to have some historical context in order to appreciate its importance in relation to human evolution.

Since the publication of Charles Darwin’s The Descent of Man in 1871, the scientific community was aware of the idea that it was “more probable that our early progenitors lived on the African continent than elsewhere” (Darwin, 191).  Many at the time, however, believed that early humans had evolved in Europe or Asia; a belief supported by the 1912 discovery of Piltdown Man of England. It would take nearly three decades since Dart’s discovery for Pildown Man to be exposed as a hoax.  This was also the same amount of time that it took for Dart’s claims to be justified.  Raymond Dart revolutionized the idea of human evolution and provided evidence for Darwin’s claims with the examination of a fossil skull, Taung Child that he had obtained from a quarry in Taung, South Africa (Wayman).  What he had in his hands that autumn of 1924 was the first Australopithecine discovered; its namesake meaning “southern ape from Africa.”

Australopithecus africanus is an amalgamation of ape and human features.  According to the Smithsonian Institution, this species lived approximate 3.3 to 2.1 million years ago.  The overall size of the body shows a degree of sexual dimorphism as males are estimated to weigh about 41 kilograms and measure 138 centimeters in height, while females are estimated at 66 kilograms and 115 centimeters (Australopithecus africanus).  Significantly smaller than a modern human, Australopithecus africanus has other diminutive features.   The skull approximates human features, but it also reveals how much development of the brain occurred since this species.  The cranial skeleton reveals a brain case of approximately 450-550 cc, a rounded vault lacking cranial crests, and a less prognathic face (Stanford, Allen, and Anton, 261).   This comes in contrast to modern human brain capacity. 

Much of the diet Australopithecus africanus ingested is inferred by dental characteristics.  The large, more developed front teeth and range of motion of the jaw “were important in food processing, e.g., husking, stripping, nipping, and cutting” (Sarmiento, Sawyer, and Milner, 96).   Studies have also been made that reveal some the possible foods that were consumed.  Enamel micro-ware analyses suggest food consumed by Australopithecus africanus resembled that of modern chimpanzees; however unlike these apes, they displayed an ability only unique to humans (Sarmiento, Sawyer, and Milner, 96).  

Perhaps most notable is the position of the foramen magnum, which is situated toward the front of the skull and oriented downward (Australopithecus africanus).  This is an important attribute because it is what suggests bipedal locomotion in this species and is evidence of an ancestral link to humans.   Other fossils of this kind have demonstrated skeletal structures that support bipedal locomotive pattern.  STS 14, discovered by Robert Broom and John T. Robinson in  Sterkfontain, South Africa, in 1947, is an incomplete skeleton consisting of several thoracic and lumbar vertebrae, a pelvis, a sacrum, and pieces of a rib and a femur (STS 14). This small-bodied creature had the ability to walk on two feet as the vertebrae of the spine had a distinctive shock absorbing curvature characteristic of other bipedal vertebrates (STS 14).   

It is important to note that other bones of Australopithecus africanus imply another element to its locomotive pattern.  A study by David Green and Adam Gordon looked at different fingers of the hand, specifically a distinct curvature of the phalanges.  What they concluded “suggests that arboreality would have been a significant component of their regime” (Green and Gordon, 718).   This characteristic again reinforces the link between human and ape.

The discovery Taung Child is an important contribution that steered human knowledge toward the right path, despite having been overlooked at the beginning.  Raymond Dart and those after him have enhanced the understanding of what it means to be human. Though Australopithecus africanus alone does not provide all the answers about human evolution, it does represent an important branch of the hominin family tree. 

Works Cited

"Australopithecus Africanus." Australopithecus Africanus. Smithsonian Institution, n.d. Web. 17

 Apr. 2014.

Darwin, Charles. "Affinities and Geneology." The Descent of Man, and Selection in Relation to

            Sex. London: John Murray, 1871. 191. Print.

Green, David J., and Adam D. Gordon. "Metacarpal Proportions in Australopithecus Africanus."             Journal of Human Evolution 54.5 (2008): 718. Print.

Sarmiento, Esteban E., G. J. Sawyer, Richard Milner, Viktor Deak, and Ian Tattersall. "The          South African Fossil Cave Sites." The Last Human: A Guide to Twenty-Two Species of   Extinct Humans. New Haven, CT: Yale UP, 2007. 96. Print.

Stanford, Craig B., John S. Allen, and Susan C. Antón. "Early Hominins and Australopithecus."

            Exploring Biological Anthropology: The Essentials. 3rd ed. Boston: Pearson, 2013. 261.

            Print.

"STS 14." Human Evolution by The Smithsonian Institution's Human Origins Program.     Smithsonian Institution, n.d. Web. 18 Apr. 2014.

Wayman, Erin. "How Africa Became the Cradle of Humankind." Smithsonian. Smithsonian

            Institution, 17 Oct. 2011. Web. 18 Apr. 2014.

 

Spotlight on Students: Gender Comparisons

The following post features work produced by students of my Anth 101: Introduction to Cultural Anthropology course.  These students were tasked with comparing the gender identities, norms, roles, beliefs, values, etc. between two cultures: their own and one from a list of provided.  These are the exemplary pieces composed by my students.


The Alyha and Hwame of the Mojave Tribes 

By: Jay Eyer
 

According to author Will Roscoe in his piece “How to Become a Berdache: Toward a Unified Analysis of Gender Diversity”, in over 150 North American aboriginal societies there is evidence that the gender roles did not stop at male or female but were even further defined. A third role existed in all of them and a fourth role existed in up to one half of them. As identified in the Mojave language, Alyha for the male choosing female roles and Hwame for a woman that took on male roles, but there were different names in each culture for these roles. They were categorized as Berdaches by Europeans, which had varying meanings from slave to homosexual submissive (Roscoe 2). When Europeans arrived they were extremely ethnocentric with little understanding or concern for the cultures that already existed.   They began to classify things according to their own cultures way of seeing things. The term Berdache is now taken as derogatory and a new term is preferred, Two Spirits. Walter L. Williams in his article for The Guardian Online explains, “It is more accurate to understand them as individuals who take on a gender status that is different from both men and women.” The people who were Two Spirits were revered in most of the Native American cultures. Valued as someone with a special connection to the spirits, they would give advice to the chief and help settle internal disputes. Gifted with the spirits of both sexes they were seen as advantageous to the village.

Both Alyha and Hwame were accepted in their tribes’ societies. The Alyha and Hwame could marry, raise children, and participate in the activities of their chosen gender. The Alyha were treated as a woman would be treated, albeit a woman with a spiritual connection. They also had the ability to take on the jobs associated with either gender. An Alyha would make baskets, plant crops, take care of the home, and took elaborate means to act like women up to and including faking pregnancies. Anthropologist George Devereux was cited as writing that Alyhas would give birth to a “still born fecal fetus”, which would be buried with ceremony (Roscoe 14).  Hwames would often be shamans in their villages. Evelyn Blackwood and her 1984 article “Sexuality and Gender in Certain Native American Tribes: The Case of Cross-Gender Females” in Signs, a feminist magazine, states that with divorce and  subsequent remarriage, Hwame may even have been involved in raising children that were not their own (9). She points out that in cases of divorce during pregnancy the paternity of the child changed with a new partner. The gender identities that these people assumed were considered different but equal members of society that were productive in the daily life of their villages.

When comparing the two cultures I find the native cultures usually had a much better grasp on how to address the issue of Two Spirits. Unfortunately, as Europeans started seeing this phenomenon, it struck them as barbaric. The devout foreigners were not at all open minded to the idea of differences within our own gender but the practice did survive until the late 19^th century.  Our own culture retained many of its puritanical ideas on how gender roles should be discussed and until forty years ago or so it was rarely thought about in general society. As the country went through the sexual liberation of the 1970s and subsequent HIV/AIDS epidemic in the 1980s the topic of homosexuality was more in the open. Discussions of transgenderism are still an uncomfortable idea for many but it is becoming easier and more widely accepted.  

The key parts of both of our cultures are very similar. Family is valued and basic gender identities are the same.  Gender roles are changing as traditionally male oriented jobs are being done more frequently by women and as a result that has opened up female centric jobs to more men. Male nurses, female doctors, female firefighters, and male flight attendants are just a few examples. There is a growing acceptance for legal marriage between couples regardless of gender and television has made various lifestyles more accessible to the masses. Americans seem unready, however, to address the Two Spirit folks as a different gender any time in the near future.

The morals and actions that have been acceptable in our country have been ingrained in us for a few hundred years. The acceptance of Two Spirits in the indigenous tribes went back thousands of years. Possibly the cultures themselves were to blame for the far different levels of recognition. Our culture, influenced by Christianity and our conservative colonists, has rejected the idea of homosexual relationships except to condemn them. Our economy was run by men, as was our military and government. Even at home men were in charge, women meant to be submissive and at home. Men that were not manly had little influence. By contrast the more egalitarian Mojave would have been less concerned with building wealth and cities and more entrenched in the survival of the village. Women had a much stronger home role. The Alyha and Hwame could fill a void in certain roles and not increase the burden on the village. Their economy was less about things and more spiritual. The major roles for the Alyha and Hwame were spiritual in nature. In addition to their everyday existence as male and female, they were treated as shamans or advice givers to chiefs. The things that made our cultures unique either allowed for or stunted the growth of the idea of other gender.

I was aware of a lot of the history of Native American tribes, even that gay members had certain status. I was unaware of the Alyha and Hwame and I was pleasantly surprised, when through my reading, I saw how widely and universally accepted the practice was. I have always felt that Americans could learn more from the people that we subjugated than they ever learned from us. Sometimes replacing a millennia’s old culture with our updated version causes us to     lose much more than we gain. The term Berdache, even though I had never heard it, feels like a negative word after my readings. The culture we inhabit has many, many good things. It has regrettably, made us forget how to appreciate them.  While the spiritualistic aspect of the Two Spirits may be too religious feeling for me, the concept of acceptance or affirmation of the person who is Two Spirit seems much more comfortable.

Works Cited

Blackwood, Evelyn. ”Sexuality and Gender in Certain Native American Tribes: The Case of Cross-Gender Females” Signs, Vol. 10, No. 1 (Autumn, 1984), pp. 27-42 The University of Chicago Press

Roscoe, Will. ”How to Become a Berdache: Towards a Unified Analysis of Gender Diversity.”

Northeastern.eduhttp://www.northeastern.edu/womensstudies/graduate/courses/course_material/feminist_theory/documents/berdache.pdf

Williams, Walter L. “The 'two-spirit' people of indigenous North Americans”theguardian.com, Monday  11 October 2010 07.28 EDT  

AndrogyneOnline. http://androgyne.0catch.com/2spiritx.htm