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Teaching Responsibility

LJMU Schools involved in Delivery:

Biological and Environmental Sciences

Learning Methods

Lecture

Practical

Seminar

Workshop

Module Offerings

7758NATSCI-JAN-CTY

Aims

The aims of this module are to provide students with the theoretical knowledge and practical experience required by a bioarchaeologist or forensic anthropologist to identify and examine human teeth, and to use them to characterise and compare both samples and individuals. In addition, the ability to discuss, appraise and assess the results is obtained. This course deals with a wide range of dental anthropological topics. Students will study actual human teeth and dental casts (of themselves and others), and learn about dental anatomy, metrics, morphology, pathology, forensics, embryology, teeth and behaviour (including use), genetics, evolution, affinity assessment, and a variety of bioarchaeological and quantitative applications.

Learning Outcomes

1.
Fully comprehend and discuss the history and various perspectives of dental anthropological study as a sub-field of biological anthropology and forensic anthropology.
2.
Definitively identify deciduous and permanent human teeth (i.e., a forensic and/or bioarchaeological context).
3.
Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of various analytical and quantitative methods for assessing individual life history from teeth (e.g., diet, health, cultural factors, ethnic affinity, age, sex, etc.).
4.
Demonstrate a thorough knowledge of various analytical and quantitative methods for assessing population history from samples of dentitions (e.g., diet, health, disease, cultural factors, biological affinity).

Module Content

Outline Syllabus:
• Introduction. • Background: Theoretical issues, rationale, goals and objectives, applications. • History of Dental Anthropology: The early researchers. The Human Dentition: Terms of orientation, tooth structure, tooth classes. • The Human Dentition: The masticatory system, occlusion. Identifying Human Teeth: Side, upper/lower, position, landmarks, etc. • Dental Casting of Class. • Dental Metric Variation: Measurements, indices, techniques, univariate statistical. • More Dental Metric Variation: Multivariate methods; Past and recent populations. • Dental Morphological Variation: Traits.; Recording, statistical methods. • More Dental Morphology: Past and recent populations. Growth and Development: Embryology, eruption, fields, drift, symmetry. • Dental Microstructure. Teeth and Behaviour: Use, wear, diet, modification, beauty, psychology, folklore. • More Teeth and Behaviour. Oral Pathology: Caries, periodontal disease, fluorosis, developmental anomalies (e.g., LEH), and many others. • Forensic Applications: Teeth and Traits in Individuals: sex, age, “race” ID. • Dental Evolution: Origins of teeth, major adaptations, cusp/crown form, palaeontology
Module Overview:
This module provides advanced training in the identification of teeth and deals with a wide range of dental anthropological topics. It aims to provide you with the theoretical knowledge and practical experience required to identify and examine human teeth, and to use them to characterise and compare both samples and individuals.
Additional Information:
University of Liverpool Module Code ALGY758

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