Pedagogy in Paleopathology

Abstract

The study of diseases, anomalies and abnormalities in skeletal or mummified bodies representing peoples of the past, has been the stepchild of Archaeology and medical pathology for many years. In the past the emphasis has been on documentation of unusual findings. Little effort has been made to educate researchers and teachers in this field. A course of instruction in Paleopathology was held for 4 years at the U.S. National Museum. In an assessment of the teaching of Paleopathology in North America Kerley found that 68 of 340 anthropology departments and museums with physical anthropology sections offered such courses. There was considerable variation in the organization of the courses, material covered, teaching aids available, instruction methods, and the general orientation of the instruction. In 1972 a course in Paleopathology was first offered at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and has continued since. The problem of communicating concepts of pathology, epidemiology, and demography to inexperienced university students has necessitated continuing modification of the course. Education in Paleopathology has received little emphasis in the past. Our teaching methods may be of value to others. We are documenting our experiences with the hope that they are helpful and that in the future there may be increased interest in and some standardization of teaching methods.     

Paleopathology of skeletal fluorosis

Skeletal fluorosis is one of a range of conditions causing excessive ossification and joint ankylosis in skeletons. It is rarely considered, however, in differential diagnoses of palaeopathological lesions. This paper considers the identification of skeletal fluorosis in a skeletal sample from the island of Bahrain, Arabian Gulf, dating to ca. 250 BC–AD 250. Approximately 4% of 255 adult skeletons in the sample have hyperostosic lesions resulting in joint ankylosis primarily of the lumbar vertebrae, as well as the major joints. These lesions most frequently occur among males in the 50+ age group. Chemical analysis on a small series of bone and dental samples confirmed the presence of high levels of fluoride, while staining of the teeth is evidence of dental fluorosis. The level of dental fluorosis is comparable with a naturally occurring fluoride level in water of between 1–2 ppm. The prevalence of hyperostosic lesions, however, appears higher than expected, and two possible reasons are suggested: confusion between a diagnosis of diffuse idiopathic skeletal hyperostosis and skeletal fluorosis on partial or less severely affected skeletons; and the presence of predisposing factors for skeletal fluorosis on the island in the past. Am J Phys Anthropol 109:465–483, 1999. © 1999 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

评介《人类进化和史前史百科全书》

《人类进化和史前史百科全书》(Encyclopedia of Human Evolution and Prehistory)由美国自然博物馆的塔特索尔(Ian Tattersall)、德尔森(Eric Delson)和库弗林(John Van Couvering)三人主编,加兰出版社(Garland Publishing)1988年在美国纽约和英国伦敦出版,全书603页,大16开本,用可以保存250年的无酸纸印刷,售价87.50美元。     

The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: Africa

The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music: Africa. Ruth Stone. ed. New York: Garland, 1998. 852 pp., scores, and CD.     

A Brief Review on the Human Encyclopedia of DNA Elements (ENCODE) Project

The ENCyclopedia Of DNA Elements (ENCODE) project is an international research consortium that aims to identify all functional elements in the human genome sequence. The second phase of the project comprised 1640 datasets from 147 different cell types, yielding a set of 30 publications across several journals. These data revealed that 80.4% of the human genome displays some functionality in at least one cell type. Many of these regulatory elements are physically associated with one another and further form a network or three-dimensional conformation to affect gene expression. These elements are also related to sequence variants associated with diseases or traits. All these findings provide us new insights into the organization and regulation of genes and genome, and serve as an expansive resource for understanding human health and disease.