History and Development of the First Anthropology Research Facility, Knoxville, Tennessee

Vidoli, Giovanna M.; Steadman, Dawnie Wolfe; Devlin, Joanne Bennett; Jantz, Lee Meadows

doi:10.1002/9781118953358.ch35

Cited by 17 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Age‐at‐death and sex were documented for each individual for statistical comparison. A confounding variable to note is that the majority of individuals curated in the Hamann‐Todd Collection originated from local unclaimed bodies and therefore, these individuals are generally thought to be of lower socioeconomic background (Kern, 2006), while the William M. Bass Collection is comprised of mostly self‐donated individuals from mixed‐socioeconomic status across the country, although the majority originate from the surrounding southern states (Vidoli, Steadman, Devlin, & Jantz, 2017).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secular change in morphological cranial and mandibular trait frequencies in European Americans born 1824–1987

Kilroy

Tallman

DiGangi

2020

American J Phys Anthropol

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Objectives: Secular change in cranial and postcranial morphometrics and morphological traits has been documented in several studies. However, to date, few studies have addressed temporal changes occurring in the expression of cranial morphological traits commonly used in ancestry estimation. This study examines secular change in the expression of 23 cranial and mandibular morphological traits; accounting for ageat-death, sex, and year-of-birth. Materials & Methods: Data were collected on 23 morphological cranial and mandibular traits for European American individuals (19-97 years of age) from the Hamann-Todd Skeletal Collection (n = 518) and the William M. Bass Donated Skeletal Collection (n = 602). Individuals were divided into six birth-year cohorts: 1824-1849 (Cohort 1),

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Secular change in morphological cranial and mandibular trait frequencies in European Americans born 1824–1987

Kilroy

Tallman

DiGangi

2020

American J Phys Anthropol

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“…The first donation arrived in 1981 [41]. The Forensic Anthropology Center's mission was to lead research in human decomposition, advance forensic anthropology, train and educate, and provide consulting services [7]. Another purpose of the Forensic Anthropology Center was to produce a large collection of modern documented skeletons, the William M. Bass Donated Skeletal Collection [29,41].…”

Section: Modern Documented Skeletal Collectionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, initially the William M. Bass Donated Skeletal Collection was chiefly composed by unclaimed individuals from medical examiners and state donations [41]. Subsequently, the facility changed its policy and currently only accepts body self-donations, or by legal next of kin [7]. The 1994 novel "The Body Farm", by Patricia Cornwell, and popular forensic television shows in the early 2000s were major game-changers in the rise of body donations at the University of Tennessee [7,41].…”

Section: Modern Documented Skeletal Collectionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Documented Skeletal Collections and Their Importance in Forensic Anthropology in the United States

2021

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Documented skeletal collections are the backbone of forensic anthropology due to their associated biohistories. This paper describes the identified skeletal collections and their relevance in forensic anthropological research, education and training in the US. The establishment of documented skeletal collections in the US can be distinguished into two modus operandi, depending on the stance towards the dead, legislation, and medical and forensic practices. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, anatomists amassed skeletons from cadaver dissections, shaped by European influences. Those skeletons compose the anatomical collections—such as the Robert J. Terry Anatomical Collection—predominantly representing impoverished and unclaimed individuals. Ethical concerns for the curation and research of African American skeletons without family consent are growing in the US. In contrast, since the 1980s, modern documented skeletal collections originated from body donations to human taphonomy facilities, such as the William M. Bass Donated Skeletal Collection. The establishment and testing of osteological methods essential to establish one’s identity—such as age at death and sex—have been developed with skeletons from documented collections. Therefore, the analysis of identified skeletons has been crucial for the development of forensic anthropology in the US.

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“…In the early 1980s, Tennessee based forensic anthropologist Dr. William M. Bass opened a pioneering outdoor laboratory at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville where semi-controlled human decomposition research was conducted [ 1 ]. Observations from the first eight years of studies concluded that several factors such as temperature, humidity, soil characteristics and necrophagous scavenger activity significantly influenced the decomposition rate of human bodies.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perspectives on the establishment of a canadian human taphonomic facility: The experience of REST[ES]

Pecsi

Bronchti

Crispino

et al. 2020

Forensic Science International: Synergy

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REST[ES] is the first Canadian human taphonomic facility (HTF) dedicated to research and training relating to human decomposition in a northern temperate climate. The following paper outlines the measures taken to successfully establish, open and operate this novel Canadian HTF with particular focus on: project team and partnerships, facility location, approvals and permits, infrastructure and social acceptability. It is intended that our experience of establishing REST[ES] may serve as an example to help others with the establishment of future HTFs, thus contributing to the expansion in the global accessibility to human decomposition research and training.

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History and Development of the First Anthropology Research Facility, Knoxville, Tennessee

Cited by 17 publications

References 29 publications

Secular change in morphological cranial and mandibular trait frequencies in European Americans born 1824–1987

Secular change in morphological cranial and mandibular trait frequencies in European Americans born 1824–1987

Documented Skeletal Collections and Their Importance in Forensic Anthropology in the United States

Perspectives on the establishment of a canadian human taphonomic facility: The experience of REST[ES]

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