Bi7351 Methods of anthropology I

Faculty of Science
Autumn 2010 - only for the accreditation
Extent and Intensity
0/3/0. 3 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Teacher(s)
Mgr. Martin Čuta, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
doc. RNDr. Miroslav Králík, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Mgr. Tomáš Mořkovský (seminar tutor)
prof. RNDr. Petra Urbanová, Ph.D. (seminar tutor)
Guaranteed by
prof. PhDr. Jaroslav Malina, DrSc.
Department of Anthropology – Biology Section – Faculty of Science
Contact Person: doc. RNDr. Miroslav Králík, Ph.D.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is also offered to the students of the fields other than those the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
there are 7 fields of study the course is directly associated with, display
Course objectives
The main objective of the course is to acquaint the students with basic methods of anthropology. After completing the course the student should be able to plan and organize anthropological research; should be able to know and use basic anthropological methods to investigate biological properties of man (skeletal remains and living human); should be able to use the traditional metric and morphoscopic methods; should know the up-sides and negatives of the advanced shape analysis mehods and non-invasive methods of virtual anthropology; should be able to apply these advanced methods in research; should be able to decide, which methods are the most relevant for investigation of any given topic.
Syllabus
  • 1. Basics of organizing an anthropological examination; philosophy of measurements, measuring instruments, measuring units, reliability of anthropological methods
  • 2. Traditional morphometrics I - human skull
  • 3. Traditional morphometrics II - somatometry of the head
  • 4. Traditional morphometrics III - postcranial skeleton - axial skeleton, the cingula of the upper and lower limb
  • 5. Traditional morphometrics III - postcranial skeleton - bones of the upper and lower limb
  • 6. Traditional morphometrics IV - somatometry of the human body
  • 7. Traditional morphometrics V - somatometry of the human body
  • 8. Non-metric traits I - the human skull
  • 9. Non-metric traits II - the living human - head
  • 10. Non-metric traits III - the postcranial skeleton
  • 11. Non-metric traits IV - somatic characteristics in the living human
  • 12. Recovery and examination of a skeletal find - preparation, documentation, reconstruction, sampling
Literature
  • BASS, William M. Human osteology : a laboratory and field manual. 5th ed. Columbia, Mo.: Missouri Archaeological Society, 2005, xviii, 365. ISBN 9780943414966. info
  • WHITE, T. D. and Pieter A. FOLKENS. The human bone manual. Boston: Elsevier Academic, 2005, xx, 464. ISBN 0120884674. URL info
  • DROZDOVÁ, Eva. Základy osteometrie (Basic osteometry). 1st ed. Brno: Nadace Universitas Masarykiana, 2005, 196 pp. Panoráma biol. a sociokulturní antropologie 18. ISBN 80-7204-291-2. info
  • Antropologie :příručka pro studium kostry. Edited by Milan Stloukal. 1. vyd. Praha: Národní muzeum, 1999, 510 s. ISBN 80-7036-101-8. info
  • KNUSSMANN, Rainer. Vergleichenden Biologie des Menschen : Lehrbuch der Anthropologie und Humangenetik. 2. bearb. Aufl. Stuttgart: Gustav Fischer Verlag, 1996, xii, 524. ISBN 382740763X. info
  • FETTER, Vojtěch. Antropologie. Vyd. 1. Praha: Academia, 1967, 704 s. info
Teaching methods
The course is presented in form of practical training. Each class begins with a brief theoretical introduction into the matter at hand, followed by individual (or group) practical student work supervised by the teacher.
Assessment methods
The credit is awarded based on 90% presence (1-2 absences tolerated), protocols elaborated on content of each lab class, the course is concluded with a final test. The test includes roughly 25 questions; it is a combination of multiple-choice answers and free, short definition type of answers. The test evaluates the level of methodological knowledge in acquiring primary anthropological data which was presented during the semester. 60 % of correct answers is necessary to pass the test.
Language of instruction
Czech
Further comments (probably available only in Czech)
The course is taught annually.
The course is taught: every week.
Listed among pre-requisites of other courses
The course is also listed under the following terms Autumn 2007 - for the purpose of the accreditation, Autumn 2002, Autumn 2003, Autumn 2004, Autumn 2005, Autumn 2006, Autumn 2007, Autumn 2008, Autumn 2009, Autumn 2010, Autumn 2011, Autumn 2011 - acreditation, Autumn 2012, Autumn 2013, Autumn 2014, Autumn 2015, Autumn 2016, autumn 2017, Autumn 2018, Autumn 2019, Autumn 2020, autumn 2021, Autumn 2022, Autumn 2023, Autumn 2024.