Forensic Anthropology

There are a number of applications of anthropology to the forensic sciences. A large part of physical anthropology deals with skeletal biology, which includes bone and bone system structures and their relationships to characteristics such as gender, age, race, socioeconomic status, and so forth. This knowledge can be applied to the examination of characteristics of skeletal remains that are part of a crime scene. In such cases, the goal of the analysis may be to determine the identity of the deceased person and, perhaps, the cause of death. To those ends, forensic anthropologists make use of a number of unique techniques. Two major types of human-remains evidence confront the forensic anthropologist. First is the single bone or bone fragment or small group of bones. When that is the only type of evidence present, the forensic anthropologist seeks to determine if the bone is human and, if not, what type of animal the bone belongs to. If the sample is a human bone, then the anthropologist will determine the part of the body from which it came. The second major type of forensic anthropological evidence is the complete skeleton. From that evidence, the accomplished forensic anthropologist may be able to determine gender, race, approximate age, stature, and approximate socioeconomic status. If there is damage to some of the bones, the anthropologist may be able to determine what type of trauma caused it. If the skull is present, it may be possible to prepare an approximate face on the skull using skull superimposition. Investigators may then publish a picture of the face to see if it evokes a response from a relative of a missing person.