The Uses Of Human Biological Remains

Radiometric dating is a technique that utilizes unstable isotopes of natural elements. Because these unstable isotopes eventually decay at a constant and singular rate despite any environmental changes such as temperature or moisture changes. The unit used as measurement is a half-life which is the amount of time it takes 50% of the original isotope to decay into the next isotope or daughter isotope. Basically the amount of half-lives is multiplied by the length of the half-life to estimate the age of the object being tested. Every element used has a different half-life and that makes each useful for measuring certain types of material. Some have longer a half-life and thus a longer effective dating range. Potassium-argon dating is useful for dating material that is extremely old. This method is used by geologists to replace relative ages based on rock formation with absolute ages. The dates found from the radiometric technique are accurate because the sources, the individual radioactive isotopes, are unchanging and unaffected by environmental factors. This means that the radiometric data will always be precise unlike relative dating which relies on the theory of uniformitarianism, the theory that geological history is made up of endless and uniform

Forensic science has come a long way from where it was less than 100 years ago. It has only been relatively recently that the advancement of technology we use, has occurred. The Body Farm, an institute in Knoxville, Tennessee, is a place where dead corpses are left to rot and then studied on how the body decays in different circumstances. Death’s Acre: Inside the Legendary Body Farm tells about the farm from Dr. Bill Bass’ point of view, from the establishment of the farm, to the impact in the world of forensic science the farm has caused. David Pitt and Alynda Wheat offers their insight into the book in their reviews. The Body Farm has been a monumental stepping stone to the advancement of modern day forensic sciences. Dr. Bill Bass, is making

Encyclopaedia Britannica also states that it is “proved to be a versatile technique of dating fossils and archaeological specimens from 500 to 50,000 years old” (1998). This method of age determination is dependent upon the decay of nitrogen and radiocarbon (Carbon-14) (Encyclopaediea Britannica, 1998; Opinions of Radiocarbon Dating, 2011). Carbon-14 is continually formed in nature by the interaction of neutrons with nitrogen-14 in the Earth’s atmosphere (Encyclopaediea Britannica, 1998; Opinions of Radiocarbon Dating, 2011) and all living things exchange the gas carbon-14 with the atmosphere surrounding them. The amount of carbon-14 exchanged into the living organism is perfectly balanced with its surroundings, but when an organism dies, they stop taking in the gas and that equilibrium is damaged. Because Carbon-14 slowly decays at a known rate called its “half-life” in a dead organism, scientists can figure out how long ago it had stopped exchanging carbon with its atmosphere. Thus, its age can be determined by measuring the amount of Carbon-14 in a sample (Hirst, 2017; Opinions of Radiocarbon Dating, 2017; Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit Research Laboratory for Archaeology, n.d.; Earthsky, 2017; Cram, 1993). With the utilisation of Radiocarbon Dating, scientists have been able to discover that Lindow

In the book Stiff, cadavers are used in different areas and kinds of research. As I read, I was surprised to see that there were so many unique ways that cadavers are used. The most surprising thing that I read was that cadavers were used as art. This book was not only interesting, but enlightening as well. It is unbelievable how useful cadavers have been in helping the living in so many different ways.

2) Carbon -14 would not be effective at dating bones that are millions of years old. Carbon -14 is effective at dating to a maximum of 40 000 to 50 000 years old. The isotope decays over time and would not be present on bones that are millions of years old.

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After finding some skeletal remains, the police have provided a list of three missing persons, Kim Lee, Theresa Woods and Jonathan Parker. While spending multiple days in the lab, plenty of information was collected to help with the identification of the bones, such as the sex of the victim, the age of the victim and the approximate height and race of the victim. This data was compiled to draw a conclusion and safely identify the remains.

Modern scientific methods and testing have made it possible for both historians and archaeologists and also

Mary Roach has written many other books about the afterlife and science, outer space, human sexuality and science, and human anatomy. In the book Stiff: The Curious Lives Of Human Cadavers Mary Roach explores what has happened to human cadavers from as far back as ancient Egypt. Mary Roach’s introduction is persuasive in nature, Roach is inclined to do something useful with corpses, “Why lie around on your back when you can do something interesting and new, something useful” (Roach, 9). She perceives that donating your body to science is much more helpful than a regular burial or cremation, “To me, ending up an exhibit in the Mutter Museum or a skeleton in a medical school

This article, titled “New Ages for Human Occupation and Climatic Change at Lake Mungo, Australia,” was written by James M. Bowler, Harvey Johnston, Jon M. Olley, and John R. Prescott et al and is about the ages of the three different human remains that are located at the Lake Mungo site, which is in New South Wales Australia. It tells about Lake Mungo I, Lake Mungo II, and Lake Mungo III, which are all different remains of the oldest living humans in Australia. The article also says that the remains are forty thousand years old and that their mitochondrial DNA is estimated to be between thirty thousand years old and forty-two thousand years old (Bowler, Johnston, Olley, et al). The climatic change has aged these three different human remains in ways that is significant for archaeologists.

Fossil preservation has always been the most accurate way to determine what species lived during a specific time period. Through correlations and radiometric dating, time periods

The second method, used by Donahue, Olin, and Harbottle in their testing of the Vinland Map is radiocarbon dating (Donahue, Olin, Harbottle, 2000). Radiocarbon dating is based on the decay of a specific carbon isotope known as 14C. All organisms contain 14C and once an organism dies, scientists are able to measure how much 14C has decayed in an organism. By measuring this rate of decay, scientists are able to date the age of an organism (Higham). Since the Vinland Map is drawn on

I chose the novel Sitff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach for my summer reading. I chose this book, not because of it's title but because the author's last name was Roach. I'm not going to lie. Why did I continue to read even though I knew what it was about? I love history and I love the parallels between past times and modern times. With that being said, Roach's novel related historical events to the experiences she wrote. For example, she associated the attachment between student and cadaver with the story of Herophilus, the first "physician".

This method is used to determine the exact age of fossils, artifacts and the earth. This involves, examining several strata of the crust of the earth to show the time intervals of one layer of rock to another layer as well as use the layering principle to confirm the series of cultures.

Isotopic analysis is one of many methods used by archaeologists to look at how past cultures and societies lived and were organized. The stable strontium isotope is one of these, and is primarily (with other isotopes) to look at diet and mobility. The measured value in strontium isotopic analysis is the ratio of the natural abundancy of two of strontium’s’ isotopes; naturally occurring 86Sr and radiogenic 87Sr that is derived from the decay of rubidium-87 (Bentley 2006; Hodell et al. 2004; Price et al. 2002; Sealy et al. 1991). While this number is small (averaging approximately 0.71025 worldwide (C. Chenery et al. 2011)), it is a quantifiable value found in all geological strata on earth. This ratio can also be found in the human body, where it has been derived from the soil where food was grown. it can be found in the hard bone and enamel , and in comparison with the values in the rocks surrounding, can be used to look at human past (Bentley 2006; Chenery et al. 2011; Ericson 1985; Grupe et al. 1997; Hodell et al. 2004; Price et al. 1994a; Price et al. 1994b).