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New article in WIREs Forensic Science by members of MSU Forensic Anthropology Lab on ancestry estimation
Department of Anthropology PhD students Rhian Dunn, Micayla Spiros, Kelly Kamnikar, and Amber Plemons and Assistant Professor Dr. Joseph Hefner recently published an article in Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews (WIREs): Forensic Science, titled “Ancestry estimation in forensic anthropology: A review”. The article discusses the methods and future of ancestry estimation in forensic anthropology. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1002/wfs2.1369 Abstract: “Forensic anthropologists assist law enforcement agencies and medical examiner’s offices with investigations involving human remains, providing insight into trauma analysis, the establishment of postmortem interval, and the estimation of biological profile data. Ancestry is considered one of the more difficult aspects…
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Research Associate Gabriel Sanchez publishes in Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports on reconstructing ancient Pacific herring size
Department of Anthropology Dean’s Research Associate Dr. Gabriel Sanchez recently published an article in the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, entitled “Indigenous stewardship of marine and estuarine fisheries?: Reconstructing the ancient size of Pacific herring through linear regression models”. The article discusses reconstructing the size of Pacific herring from archaeological sites in Point Reyes National Seashore, California, and the implications these findings have on understanding ancient fishing practices and indigenous stewardship of the area’s fishery. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.102061 Abstract: “Linear regression models constructed from modern fish skeletal collections and applied to archaeological fish remains have a long…
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Professor Emeritus William Lovis publishes on effects of climate change on coastal sites at Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park
Department of Anthropology Professor Emeritus Dr. William Lovis and colleagues Dr. G. William Monaghan and Dr. Alan Arbogast recently published an article in The Journal of Island and Coastal Archaeology entitled, “Reconstructing the precontact Late Woodland archaeology of site 20LU115 and the landscape history of Sleeping Bear Point, Great Lakes, USA.” The article discusses the landscape evolution of Sleeping Bear Point, within Sleeping Bear Dunes National Park and Lakeshore, and the effects of global climate change on the alteration and management of archaeological sites on the Lake Michigan coastal zone. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1080/15564894.2019.1659885 Abstract: “A multifaceted, multidisciplinary…
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Dr. Andrea Louie Wins Prestigious NEH Fellowship
Dr. Andrea Louie, Professor of Anthropology and founding director of the Asian Pacific American Studies Program at MSU, has been awarded a competitive 2020 National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship. Dr. Louie’s fellowship is among $30.9 million in grants awarded by the NEH for 188 humanities projects across the nation. Only eight percent of NEH Fellowship applicants were funded, with 99 fellowships approved out of 1,220 applicants across NEH’s four fellowship programs. The NEH Fellowship, worth $60,000, will support Dr. Louie to fully engage in her yearlong research project, culminating in a book titled Chinese American Mothering Across Generations: Toy…
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Associate Professor Ethan Watrall publishes in International Journal of Historical Archaeology on digital heritage project
Department of Anthropology Associate Professor Dr. Ethan Watrall and colleagues Russell Townsend, Dr. Kathryn Sampeck, and Johi Griffin recently published an article in the International Journal of Historical Archaeology, entitled “Digital Archaeology and the Living Cherokee Landscape.” The article presents the digital repatriation project Cherokee Landscapes (http://firstlandscapes.matrix.msu.edu/), which is an interactive space for engaging with a multitude of information in ways observed by Ani-Kitu Hwagi (Cherokee) today. The platform for this project was developed by Michigan State University’s MATRIX: The Center for Digital Humanities and Social Sciences. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10761-019-00534-7 Abstract: “Cherokee Landscapes is a digital conservation project to…
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Assistant Professor Joseph Hefner publishes in American Journal of Physical Anthropology on probit analysis in ancestry estimation
Matthew Go (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) and Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Dr. Joseph Hefner recently published an article in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, entitled “Morphoscopic ancestry estimates in Filipino crania using multivariate regression models.” The article examines the use of probit analysis in estimating ancestry from cranial morphoscopic traits, and contributes to the understanding of human cranial variation in the Phillipines. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.24008 Abstract: “Objectives: Probit has not been applied to ancestry estimation in forensic anthropology. The goals of this study were to: (1) evaluate the performance of probit analysis as a…
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Assistant Professor Kurt Rademaker publishes in PaleoAmerica on Early Holocene human skull from Cuncaicha, Peru
Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Dr. Kurt Rademaker and colleagues Dr. Lumila Paula Menéndez and Dr. Katerina Harvati recently published an article in the journal PaleoAmerica entitled, “Revisiting East-West Skull Patterns and the Role of Random Factors in South America: Cranial Reconstruction and Morphometric Analysis of the Facial Skeleton from Cuncaicha Rockshelter (Southern Peru).” The article discusses the affinity of a human skull uncovered from Cuncaicha Rockshelter with other Holocene South American specimens, and the implications of these findings regarding migratory pathways. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1080/20555563.2019.1703167 Abstract: “The aim of this paper is to evaluate the craniometric affinities…
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Assistant Professor Chantal Tetreault and PhD student Sara Tahir publish in Journal of Muslim Mental Health
Department of Anthropology Assistant Professor Dr. Chantal Tetreault and PhD student Sara Tahir published an article entitled “Muslim Women’s Ethical Engagement and Emotional Coping in Post-Election United States” in the Journal of Muslim Mental Health with colleagues from MSU’s Department of Psychiatry. In the article, they investigate Muslim religious practice related to frequency of Islamophobic experiences, socio-emotional/mental distress, and coping strategies among American Muslim women since the 2016 American presidential election. Read the full article at: http://dx.doi.org/10.3998/jmmh.10381607.0013.103 Abstract: Muslim women, especially those wearing headscarves or hijab, are targets of anti-Muslim stereotypical rhetoric and violent attacks in the United States, with…
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New article in the Journal of Forensic Sciences by PhD student Micayla Spiros and Assistant Professor Joseph Hefner on a combined approach to ancestry estimation
Department of Anthropology PhD student Micayla Spiros and Assistant Professor Dr. Joseph Hefner recently published an article in the Journal of Forensic Sciences entitled, “Ancestry Estimation Using Cranial and Postcranial Macromorphoscopic Traits.” The article discusses a combined approach of using cranial and postcranial traits in ancestry estimation and introduces a new web-based application for forensic anthropologists, ComboMaMD Analytical. Read the full article at: https://doi.org/10.1111/1556-4029.14231 Abstract: Ancestry estimation methods using macromorphoscopic (MMS) traits commonly focus exclusively on cranial morphology. The objective of this study was to demonstrate the value of postcranial MMS traits, highlighting a combined cranial/postcranial trait approach to ancestry…
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Dr. Mara Leichtman co-edits special journal issue on Lebanese Shi’ism
Dr. Mara Leichtman is an Associate Professor of Anthropology affiliated with the Muslim Studies Program, African Studies Center and Asian Studies Center. Dr. Leichtman specializes in sociocultural anthropology and the study of religion, migration, transnationalism, humanitarianism, and economic development. She is currently co-facilitating an interdisciplinary Trans-Regional Studies Scholarly Writing Group at MSU for faculty and graduate students as part of the Academic Advancement Network’s 2019–2020 learning communities, which “provide safe and supportive spaces for complicated conversations.” Dr. Leichtman also serves as a board member of the Society for the Anthropology of Religion, a section of the American Anthropological Association. One…