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The aim of the study was to determine how the pandemic changed the lifestyle of young women and men from Central Poland. The material consisted of data from students at Cardinal Stefan Wyszynski University in Warsaw and the University of Lodz. A total of 498 people were examined, including 370 women and 128 men. An online survey was used and questions were asked about changes in nutrition, physical activity and use of stimulants, health status and stress levels. The questions referred to two periods before the pandemic and during the pandemic. The respondents were also asked to provide their body weight and height before and during the pandemic, which were used to calculate the Body Mass Index. The Pearson chi² test and the Kruskal-Wallis ANOVA tests were used, p < 0.05. There were statistically significant differences between sexes in dietary supplementation before and during the pandemic and in changes in body weight during the pandemic, portion size and an increase in the share of processed foods in the diet, as well as in the case of self-assessment of the physical activity level, intensity of stress level and consumption of alcoholic beverages. The analyzed factors influenced BMI exclusively in women and encompassed variations in portion sizes as well as alterations in alcohol consumption patterns. The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly changed the lifestyle of young adults. Significant differences between the sexes were observed in relation to some of the factors studied, which could be caused by different needs, social maturity, or psychological differences between the sexes.

Higher investment in maternal than paternal aunts and uncles is explained by the "paternity uncertainty hypothesis". Regardless of laterality, however, aunts show a greater degree of investment than uncles, which is attributed to sex-specific reproductive strategies. Resemblance cues can be used as indicators of genetic relatedness. The central hypothesis of the current study was that perceived phenotypic resemblance between aunts/uncles and niblings would be associated with aunts' and uncles' investment. The association was predicted to be stronger with respect to patrilateral than matrilateral aunts and uncles and stronger with respect to patrilateral aunts than patrilateral uncles. 243 Iranians aged between 15 and 50 participated in a retrospective analysis and filled out a 52-item questionnaire focusing on the solicitude, emotional closeness, and contact frequency between aunts/uncles and their nephews/nieces. In addition, the participants had to rate their phenotypic resemblance with their aunts and uncles. Aunts' and uncles' solicitude, emotional closeness, and contact frequency were differentially expressed according to sex and laterality. Maternal aunts showed the significantly highest emotional closeness, contact frequency, and investment, while the opposite was true for paternal uncles. Moreover, investment was correlated with phenotypic resemblance. Such association was stronger for patrilateral than matrilateral aunts and uncles, and concerning solicitude it was stronger for patrilateral aunts than patrilateral uncles. The resemblance-based kin recognition mechanism among aunts and uncles was self- rather than family-referent. In conclusion, phenotypic similarity can be used as a cue to genetic kinship and is correlated with the investment of aunts and uncles. However, such associations also depend on the degree of genetic relatedness and the differential kin investment provided by each sex.

Height and age at menarche demonstrate plasticity in response to social, environmental, and economic factors. Since the end of the 20^th century, there has been a noticeable increase in height and a decrease in the age of maturation due to changing living conditions. While a relation between height and age at menarche is widely accepted, the extent of this relationship and the specific conditions that exert the greatest influence remain unclear. This study examines the relationship between age at menarche and final height in women who grew up under varying socio-economic conditions, with particular attention to those exposed to heavy workloads during childhood. The recall method was employed to gather data from 304 women aged 20-45 years regarding their age at menarche. 10 participants who could not recall their age at menarche were excluded, leaving a final sample of 294 women. To assess the impact of age at menarche on height, the distribution of menarcheal ages in the sample was analyzed, and participants were categorized into early (9-11 yrs), normal (12-14 yrs), and late (15-18 yrs) menarche groups. The mean height and menarcheal age for the sample were as follows: 1591.5 (±61.01) mm and 12.68 years (±1.36) for the upper socio-economic group; 1562.7 (±55.2) mm and 13.28 years (±1.45) for the lower socio-economic light worker group and 1543.2 (±62.5) mm and 13.36 years (±1.39) for the lower socio-economic heavy worker group. Significant differences were found across all variables (p < 0.010). Women with early menarche were shorter, and those with late menarche were taller, a trend that was consistent across both advantaged and disadvantaged conditions. This confirms the relationship between age at menarche and height. However, despite the influence of menarcheal age, differences in final height were more strongly associated with socio-economic factors. Consequently, the findings indicate that height demonstrates considerable plasticity in relation to socio-economic conditions and the demands of heavy physical labor.

This article analyses fingerprints identified on a set of backed clay Egyptian funerary figurines, known as ushabtis. The strata in which they were found dates from the late Persian to the early Ptolemaic dynasties (ca. fifth to third centuries BCE), but the objects might have been made some two centuries earlier, during the Twenty-Fifth Dynasty (ca. 747656 BCE), and then reused for a later burial. The authors propose that fingerprints preserved on ancient objects can be used to understand the roles that age and sex played in the organization of production systems in ancient societies. The Mean Ridge Breadth (MRB) and Mean Ridge Density (MRD) of each discrete fingerprint was measured. The craftworkers ages and heights were calculated from the MRB using specific regression equations, and their probable sex was determined by correlating the MRD with that of the reference population (contemporary Sudan). An age/sex identification matrix was then created to combine the results of MRB and MRD determinations for each piece. The results show, with high probability, that around 90% of the ushabtis were made by female adolescents between the ages of 11 and 16, and the remainder by children and some adult women. A minimum of between four and eight craftworkers manufactured the ushabtis, and due to their age and the relatively low level of skill required, it is proposed that they are likely to have been in the learning phase of their trade.

Stature estimation from skeletal remains is crucial in forensic anthropology. This study aimed to develop population-specific equations for stature estimation using ulna and radius measurements in a Northeastern Thai population, a region known for its ethnic diversity. A total of 400 ulnae and 400 radii (200 of each bone from each sex) were analyzed from dry bone specimens. The study objectives were to: (1) develop and validate regression equations for stature estimation, (2) investigate sex differences in the relationship between forearm bone lengths and stature, and (3) compare the accuracy of these equations with existing formulae for other populations. Results showed significant sexual dimorphism in stature and bone lengths. The mean stature was 164.93 ± 6.54 cm for males and 156.21 ± 5.81 cm for females (p < 0.05). Positive correlations were observed between bone lengths and stature, with stronger correlations in males (ulna: r = 0.670; radius: r = 0.663) compared to females (ulna: r = 0.402; radius: r = 0.393). Regression equations for the pooled sample yielded coefficients of determination (r²) of 0.516 for ulna and 0.509 for radius. Sex-specific equations demonstrated higher accuracy, particularly for males. The standard error of estimate ranged from 4.87 cm to 5.35 cm across all equations. These findings suggest that ulna and radius lengths are reliable predictors of stature in the Northeastern Thai population, with sex-specific equations offering improved accuracy. This study contributes to the development of population-specific standards in forensic anthropology and highlights the importance of considering sexual dimorphism in stature estimation. The results have significant implications for forensic investigations and archaeological studies in the region.

There is a high demand of osteometric methods to address the issue of commingled remains, however, the research in reassociating the crania with C1, and C1 with C2, as part of the craniovertebral junction, is limited. Reassociating crania with the postcranial skeleton can offer beneficial information for personal identification, as the cranium is broadly utilized for sex and age estimation. Moreover, cranium contributes to the facial reconstruction, a useful supplementary method for forensic identification. For this study, measurements were collected from 159 crania and 182 C1 and C2 vertebrae from the Athens Collection, representing adult males and females between 18 and 99 years. A reassociation method was produced utilizing osteometrics of articular surfaces. A supplementary sample of ten individuals was utilized as a test sample, originating from Athens Medical School. Seven equations were generated by simple linear regression analysis for the reassociation of the cranium to C1, and C1 to C2. The blind test results demonstrated that this method can be applied with 80-100% success. Overall, the results indicated that the produced regression models are a useful addition to the existing sorting methodologies, as they can be applied in mixed-sex and/or fragmented commingled osteological assemblages.

The pelvis and the skull are the two most utilised skeletal elements to estimate sex from skeletonised remains due to their sexually dimorphic traits. However, as increasingly more fragmented remains have been presented for analyses, other bones and their fragments have now been subjected to analyses for sex estimation. In the skull particularly, the base has shown to survive harsh conditions. In this study the foramen magnum region was explored in Black South Africans to estimate sex during forensic analyses. Seven measurements of the foramen magnum and surrounding areas were measured in 120 male and female crania and subjected to discriminant function analyses. The average accuracies for the stepwise discriminant functions ranged from 60-71% whilst the average accuracies for the direct discriminant functions ranged from 63-69%. The average accuracies obtained in this study are similar to other studies performed using the foramen magnum. However, these average accuracies are much lower than other skeletal elements that have been used for sex estimation in South Africans. Thus, the equations in this study should be used with caution and only in the absence of more accurate elements. The cranial base has always shown to have a low to moderate expression of sexual dimorphism. The cranial base of Black South Africans is no different.

Osteoarthritis (OA) is a widespread skeletal condition in the historical population, but it still raises many methodological and interpretative problems. The present study aimed to examine the osteoarthritic changes (osteophytes, porosity, eburnation) in the skeletal material from Radom (14^th-19^th century) (Poland), enriching knowledge about osteoarthritis and its prevalence in the past. Additionally, a comparison of OA changes prevalence in two chronological periods (the population from Radom during the 14^th-17^th century versus the 18^th-19^th century) was done. In the Late Medieval (14^th-17^th century) population from Radom, osteoarthritic changes were observed in 22% of individuals (males, 18%; females, 29%) and in the Modern Period Radom (18^th-19^th century) in 25% individuals (males, 25.7%; females, 26.5%). In both skeletal samples, the greatest number of OA changes was recorded in the hip and elbow. Knee and ankle were the least affected joints. Osteophytes were the most frequently observed type of lesions, while eburnation was the least frequent. Although the higher prevalence of osteoarthritis in the Modern Period in Radom is noted, the differences are not statistically significant. Taking the multifactorial etiology of osteoarthritic changes, and the fact that osteoarthritis, as a single indicator of health, could not tell much about the overall lifestyle of past human populations, one must be caution when drawing unambiguous conclusions according to the simple, linear effect of environmental changes on osteoarthritic changes formation.

The War of the Pacific (1879-1884) was a big scale war between Chile against the alliance of Peru and Bolivia. One of the most important battles, the "Batalla del Campo de la Alianza" was situated in the desert near Tacna, Peru. The conditions of this environment favored the conservation of the dead soldiers after many years. Decades ago, the Natural History Museum of Concepción in Chile, received a naturally mummified individual of a probably Chilean soldier as a donation; its uncertain context was never studied nor confirmed. Considering this, our investigation analyzed this body under exploratory methods, ballistic analysis, archaeological contrast, ¹⁴C radiocarbon dating, ancient DNA, and isotopic analysis to reconstruct the biological profile of this mummy. The results indicated that the mummy belongs to an adult man between 33-39 years of age (> 1.50 m) and has a perimortem wound in the left flank of the abdomen. CT scan and X-rays revealed the presence of a bullet (Comblain II or Gras) hosted near the L2 vertebra. It is possible that the individual died of bleeding from a gunshot wound done by a long-distance firearm projectile from an inferior level, whose trajectory was from left to right, with slight inclination towards the top, and without a projectile exit. Other analyses confirmed the historical context and suggests the Chilean origin of the mummy. Despite the passage of time and other factors, it was possible to reconstruct the death of this individual thanks to technology and approaches from different disciplines.

The aim of this study is the evaluation of three selected osseous pelvic features in modern anatomical specimen - the sacral preauricular extension, the preauricular sulcus and pits on the dorsal side of the pubic bone laterally to the symphysis. The specificity and significance of these features are under debate and their genesis is largely unclear. Descriptive data of specific soft tissue structures surrounding the anterior sacroiliac joint gap and the pubic symphysis were generated by assessing 20 fresh pelves and 12 embalmed hemipelves from human body donors. Computed tomography (CT) was performed on all specimens and three-dimensional (3D) surface models were generated and analysed. Afterwards, all the specimens underwent anatomical dissection and finally maceration. During dissection, it became apparent that the anterior sacroiliac ligament, due to its position, shape and potential impact on the sacroiliac joint and adjacent osseous structures, requires a detailed analysis of its dimension. The most promising result, in terms of the sacral preauricular extension, was that the measurements of the triangular part of the anterior sacroiliac ligament were significantly longer in females than in males. Pelvic floor muscle fibres and fascial parts were directly connected to this ligament in some specimens, which is an important starting point for a larger in-depth study. The evaluation of the anatomic structures in connection to dorsal pitting refutes the assumption that the pelvic floor muscles or fasciae could exert influence on its formation. A histological evaluation of the ligaments of the pubic symphysis, especially the dorsal pubic ligament, would be expedient to clarify the etiology of this feature.