Dissertation Research: The Hominid Temporal Bone: Ontogeny and Phylogenetic Implications

该项目的主要目标是研究增长和 人类和非人类颞骨的发育 灵长类动物 这将为解释 原始人类化石记录的数据，从而允许进一步 了解人类的进化史。 颞骨，即容纳耳朵的头骨， 对人类学家来说很重要，原因有二： 1)它是一个高度复杂的结构，因此具有很高的 信息密度 除了保存器官 听觉和平衡，颞骨作为部分 与下颌骨相连的头骨， 在咀嚼和饮食中的主要作用。 这种复杂性导致了 物种间的变异程度。 因此颞骨 对我们理解化石之间的关系至关重要 标本 2)颞骨的岩骨部分是 身体的致密区域。这部分骨骼是一个 最有可能的是，它是一种象征性的东西， 化石记录 检查此骨的发育及其伴随物 结构将提供额外的信息维度， 原始人类化石记录超出了对 成年人的形式。

The primary objective of this project is to study the growth and development of the temporal bone in humans and non-human primates. This will provide the background for interpreting the data from the hominid fossil record thereby allowing for further understanding of the evolutionary history of humans. The temporal bone, the bone of the skull housing the ear, is important to anthropologists for two reasons: 1) It is a highly complex structure and thus has a high information density. Aside from containing the organs for hearing and balance, the temporal bone serves as the portion of the skull that articulates with the mandible and thus plays a major role in chewing and diet. This complexity leads to a high degree of variability among species. Therefore the temporal bone is crucial to our understanding of the relationships of fossil specimens. 2) The petrous portion of the temporal bone is one of the densest areas of the body. This part of the skeleton is thus one of the likliest to fossilize and thereby be represented in the fossil record. The examination of development of this bone and its concomitant structures will provide an additional dimension of information to the hominid fossil record beyond that provided by examination of the adult forms.