Hypotheses and reasons for the progression of body height since the middle of the 19th century--a science history retrospect. II. A discussion of the reasons since the middle of the 20th century including some terminological considerations

In part I of this paper, reasons for secular height-progression till the middle of our century were discussed. In the beginning, reasons were seen in the improvement of nutrition and in lightening from strong physical load. To the middle of our century, more and more hypothetical reasons were alleged. After this time, science found back to new reality. The secular height-progression is the consequence of nutritive improvements, especially of increased consumption of animal protein. An chief matter seems to be the nutrition of babies with food containing more protein than by breast-fed childs. Early child-nutrition may to be like a stamping for endocrine activity. The last phase of stature's increase is caused by intensive lightening from physical load in the course of modern mechanization, which advanced bone-growth of the legs.     

History of methods for estimating body height by skeletal findings. Recommendations for estimating body height by skeletal findings up to the middle of the 20th century

Up to now no historical review concerning the methods to estimate body height from skeletons has been given. As well no collection of the formulae relevant to this subject, which would save laborious search in the wide-scattered literature, is available hitherto. This study tries to fill this gap. The anthropological and statistical treatment of the populations under study will not be discussed in this connection, because this has to be left to a separate study.     

Bayesian modeling of the evolution of male height in 18th century Finland from incomplete data

Data on army recruits’ height are frequently available and can be used to analyze the economics and welfare of the population in different periods of history. However, such data are not a random sample from the whole population at the time of interest, but instead is skewed since the short men were less likely to be recruited. In statistical terms this means that the data are left-truncated. Although truncation is well-understood in statistics a further complication is that the truncation threshold is not known, may vary from time to time, and auxiliary information on the threshold is not at our disposal.The advantage of the fully Bayesian approach presented here is that both the population height distribution and the truncation are modeled simultaneously. The truncation threshold is allowed to be random and time-specific whilst the height distribution is assumed to change smoothly in time. Thus, in addition to the population height characteristics, we obtain also insight into recruiting criteria over time.Analysis of historical data from Swedish army recruitment in eight time events between 1768 and 1804 has found a declining trend in the mean population height during the inspected time period and also dramatic systematic changes in the recruiting.     

Analysis of periodic fluctuations of the height of Swedish soldiers in 18th and 19th centuries.

This paper investigates the periodicity of the adult height of Swedish soldiers of the 18th and 19th centuries using spectral analysis. The height data are left truncated due to the enforcement of minimum height requirement. Hence, we use a truncated regression model using maximum likelihood estimation. We isolate the various frequency components, assess their importance, and perform sensitivity analysis by means of fitting several alternative models.     

Climate implications of biomass burning since the 19th century in eastern North America

Recent predictions that tropospheric aerosols have counterbalanced greenhouse warming assume aerosol emissions were low before ad 1850 and then increased dramatically with industrialization of the Northern Hemisphere and biomass burning in the Tropics. We assembled the lake sediment record of emissions across northeastern North America, where temperatures are predicted to have been substantially affected by industrial aerosols. Sediment evidence suggests a systematic shift in source and an overall decline in emissions since the 19th century. The geographical shift results from high presettlement emissions from wildfires in the Midwest that collapsed with tillage and fire suppression. Meanwhile, emissions were increasing in the North-east with European settlement. These regional changes produced a shift from the continental interior to the North-east. An overall decline results because decreases in the Midwest more than compensate for increases in the North-east. Results suggest the Central Plains as an important source of emissions in the recent past, consistent with pioneer accounts of dense smoke clouds emanating from prairie in the 19th century. Contrary to recent models that suggest increased 20th century combustion emissions could have offset warming effects of rising greenhouse gases, our data suggest that aerosols could have actually decreased over this interval. Although we cannot directly quantify aerosols from our methods, the emissions of large particles suggest assumptions of 20th century aerosol declines should be reconsidered.     

The biological standard of living and mortality in Central Italy at the beginning of the 19th century

The biological standard of living in Central Italy at the beginning of the 19th century is analyzed using newly collected data on the height of recruits in the army of the Papal States. The results reveal a decline in height for the cohorts born under French rule (1796–1815). Although this trend was common to many parts of Europe, the estimated magnitude of the decline suggests a worsening of the biological standard of living of the working classes in the Papal States even relative to that of other countries. Despite the differences in the economic systems within the Papal States, no significant geographical variation in height has been found: even the most dynamic and advanced regions experienced a dramatic height decline. Mortality also increased during the period under consideration.     

Picea (spruce) growth rate (mm year−1) changes in southwest Yukon (Canada) since the mid 19th century

Vegetation History and Archaeobotany - Analyses of maximum early tree ring growth within a regional curve standardization (RCS) framework were used to construct ring width chronologies in...     

Determinants of variation in adult body height

Final body height is achieved as the result of a combination of genetic and environmental factors. The aim of this article is to review past studies on body height that have followed different scientific traditions. In modern Western societies, about 20% of variation in body height is due to environmental variation. In poorer environments, this proportion is probably larger, with lower heritability of body height as well as larger socioeconomic body height differences. The role of childhood environment is seen in the increase in body height during the 20th century simultaneously with the increase in the standard of living. The most important non-genetic factors affecting growth and adult body height are nutrition and diseases. Short stature is associated with poorer education and lower social position in adulthood. This is mainly due to family background, but other environmental factors in childhood also contribute to this association. Body height is a good indicator of childhood living conditions, not only in developing countries but also in modern Western societies. Future studies combining different scientific traditions in auxology are needed to create a more holistic view of body height.     

Height, income, and nutrition in the Netherlands: the second half of the 19th century.

This paper explores the relationship between height and its determinants, paying explicit attention to the dynamic nature of the velocity of the growth profile. The relationship between height and some measures of income and nutrition is characterized by a changing lag pattern in 19th century the Netherlands.     

The biological standard of living in 19th century Mexico and in the American West

During the mid-19th century, the United States acquired Texas and large parts of Mexican territory with the vast Mexican-born population. This paper considers the biological standard of living of the part of this population that was incarcerated in American prisons. We use their physical stature as a proxy for their biological welfare. These data confirm earlier results which showed that adult heights tended to stagnate in Mexico during the late-19th century despite considerable social and political turmoil. While there is some evidence of a decline in height among youth, the decline is slight (<1 cm). As in other 19th century samples, farmers were the tallest. Americans were taller than Mexican prisoners by about 2 cm.     

Measured versus self-reported body height

Students (105 males and 298 females) of the Faculty of Natural Sciences of University of Wrocław of 19–28 years of age were examined. The questionnaire and body height measurements were conducted in February and March of the year 2000. The measured as well as self — reported body height were analyzed depending on socio — economic variables such as the students' parents' education, the students' place of residence and their families' financial status, until the students' 14 year of age. The analysis of the mean self — reported and measured body height values demonstrated insignificant differences for men and the significant ones for women. Tall women declare greater than actual body height and only tall men appeared to be insignificantly taller than their questionnaire answers suggested. The analysis of the mean differences with regard to the size and kind of the place of residence didn't show significant differences. Similarly, neither the educational level nor the financial status constitute a differentiating factor with regard to the analyzed characteristics.     

Two worlds apart: Determinants of height in late 18th century central Mexico

Anthropometric literature on the American territories of the Hispanic monarchy before their independence is still scarce. We attempt to expand the field with a case study that includes some important novelties.Albeit our main source, the military records of the Censo de Revillagigedo (conducted in the early 1790s), has already been used, the sample size and the geographical scope are unprecedented: 19,390 males of four ethnicities (castizos, españoles, mestizos, and mulatos) aged from 16 to 39 from 24 localities, including towns and villages scattered across central regions of the Viceroyalty of New Spain. We build a database that, complemented with information on resource endowments obtained from other sources, permits to analyze the determinants of height.Our results show the importance of spatial differences as well as the significance of ethnicity, occupation, rurality, age and resource endowments as determinants of height. Unprivileged mulatos are only 0.5 cm shorter than, assumedly privileged, españoles in the “first world” (El Bajío) and 1.3 cm taller in the “second world” (Eastern Central Highlands). In turn, living in the “first world” implies being between nearly 1.5 cm and 5 cm taller than the inhabitants of the “second world”. Our estimates of physical statures are placed within an international comparative context and offer a relatively “optimistic” picture.     

Captive animal liability: 19th century foundations and 20th century modifications

Two important legal milestones concerning liability for keeping animals in captivity occurred in the years 1879–1881. These were the publication of The Common Law by Oliver Wendell Holmes, and the United States Supreme Court's decision in The Congress and Empire Spring Company v. Ann P. Edgar. Holmes declared that the liability one incurs for maintaining potentially dangerous animals is absolute. The Court's decision noted that wild animals not normally considered ferocious, such as deer, can be considered “domestic” under the law if they are tame, with a corresponding reduction in liability. A brief examination is presented of how the doctrine of captive animal liability was modified in the 20th century to reflect the difference between wild animals kept by a private individual and those maintained by a reputable zoological park. Zoo Biol 22:489–496, 2003. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Inter-generational educational advancement and body height

This study investigates the association between body height and inter-generational social advancement through education. Questionnaire data were collected from 2800 students (1023 men and 1777 women) from the universities of Wroclaw, Poland. The questions referred to three generations: the students and their parents and grandparents. Information was collected on the age, body height and weight of the students and their parents, and on the parents' and grandparents' education. The lowest body heights were typically found for individuals from families with the lowest educational levels, whereas the greatest body heights were found for those brought up in families with a high educational status or in families who had upgraded their status. The size of the change in the educational level of parents is only associated with fathers' and female students' body height. Individuals who had advanced from a middle educational level or who came from families with this type of advancement were found to be significantly taller, on average, than those upgrading their educational level from the lowest position. The results show that, for men, educational advancement during the course of their lives or in the earlier generation is more favourable to achieving higher stature, whereas for women, the multi-generational tradition of a high educational status is of greater significance.     

Stature, economy and migration during the 19th century: Comparative analysis of Haute-Vienne and Hautes-Alpes, France

Data sources are achieved records of men workers' passbooks and registry for work permits in two rural parts of Southern France. We obtained three samples: masons from Rancon, a Limousin village, local sedentary alpine workers and Italian immigrants. The results obtained provide two types of information. The first concerns adult height, which is thought to be a result of both a growth pattern and environmental factors. The second concerns growth rates at the end of adolescence. The results seem to contradict the statements made above concerning the relationships between misery, elevation and height. While the alpine inhabitants are shorter, the Limousin inhabitants are taller in sprite they live in a miserable environment. It appears that taller individuals select themselves into migration. Thus, this model would contradict the idea of a regional genetic base.     

The anthropometric history of Argentina, Brazil and Peru during the 19th and early 20th century

This anthropometric study focuses on the histories of three important Latin American countries - Brazil, Peru, and Argentina - during the 19th century, and tests hypotheses concerning their welfare trends. While non-farm Brazil and Lima, Peru, started at relatively low height levels, Brazil made substantial progress in nutritional levels from the 1860s to the 1880s. In contrast, Lima remained at low levels. Argentinean men were tall to begin with, but heights stagnated until 1910. The only exception were farmers and landowners, who benefited from the export boom.     

Reliability of self-reported body height and weight of adult Japanese women

The purpose of this study was to validate the self-reported body height and weight of adult Japanese women. The subjects were women, aged 20-42 years, who participated in a survey on eating disorders in women in 1995. Physically measured height and weight data were obtained for 368 (89.8%) of the 469 women who self-reported their height and weight. The report-based heights and weights were compared with the measured values. The correlation coefficients for height and weight were 0.990 and 0.963 (p < 0.0001), respectively. Mean reported height was 0.1 cm shorter and mean reported weight 0.2 kg lighter than the measured values. Shorter women tended to report a taller height than their actual height, and heavier women to report a lower weight than their actual weight. Despite these limitations, the self-reported heights and weights of adult Japanese women were precise and accurate, and their use in epidemiological surveys is considered acceptable.     

Did the mean height of Australian-born men decline in the late nineteenth century? A comment

Using military and prisoner measurements, a number of scholars have concluded that there was a decline of the mean height of Australian-born men in the late nineteenth century. This paper offers an evaluation of these studies and suggests that further research is needed to determine the Australian height trend in the late nineteenth century.     

Marker genotypes and population admixture and their association with body weight, height and relative body mass in United States federal bison herds

Elucidating genetic influences on bison growth and body composition is of interest, not only because bison are important for historical, cultural, and agricultural reasons, but also because their unusual population history makes them valuable models for finding influential loci in both domestic cattle and humans. We tested for trait loci associated with body weight, height, and bison mass index (BMI) while controlling for estimated ancestry to reduce potential confounding effects due to population admixture in 1316 bison sampled from four U.S. herds. We used 60 microsatellite markers to model each phenotype as a function of herd, sex, age, marker genotypes, and individual ancestry estimates. Statistical significance for genotype and its interaction with ancestry was evaluated using the adaptive false discovery rate. Of the four herds, two appeared to be admixed and two were nonadmixed. Although none of the main effects of the loci were significant, estimated ancestry and its interaction with marker loci were significantly associated with the phenotypes, illustrating the importance of including ancestry in the models and the dependence of genotype-phenotype associations on background ancestry. Individual loci contributed approximately 2.0% of variation in weight, height, and BMI, which confirms the utility and potential importance of adjusting for population stratification.