Experimental Bone Taphonomy: A novel approach to long-term and monitored analysis of postmortem changes to bone

虽然软组织的分解已经得到了很好的研究，但关于骨组织的自然分解的实验研究很少，因为这类研究需要很长的时间和需要专门的设施。这项研究计划希望填补这一空白，并开始长期调查与骨组织的化学和物理破坏有关的独特变化，这些变化发生在地面/亚空中陆地环境中死后骨的分解和暴露过程中。这项研究将建立一个围栏露天割胶设施，配备气象和环境统计，这在加拿大是独一无二的。在这个设施中，样品将被放置在连续的时间段内分解，环境变量，如清扫或温度，将受到控制或严格监控。对骨骼的化学和物理破坏的分析将使用创新的研究设计，以及更传统的方法。在传统的设计中，所有的样品都会在实验开始时放在田里，然后定期取出一部分样品，直到它们都被回收为止。在我的新研究设计中，只会在开始时在田间摆放最古老的样品，然后定期添加额外的样品，直到实验结束时所有样品都在田间。这种新颖设计的主要优点之一是，实验不需要在开始时就确定结束，理论上可以无限期地进行。相比之下，依赖于定期收集样本的传统方法必须首先明确表明实验将持续多长时间。这种新的设计是最近才开发和测试的，我的初步研究表明，在评估环境因素(如温度)的变化序列及其相对于季节和年度变化的变化方面，它与传统设计一样好，甚至更好。主要预期结果是确定表面和表面下骨组织降解的一般热力学和动力学参数，这对于理解一般的生态和环境动力学具有重要意义。在短期内，这项研究还将允许识别与死亡时间和环境条件有关的骨组织的形态和化学-物理变化。因此，拟议的骨骼分解研究的更广泛影响是了解在地质、考古或法医背景下发现的动物和人类遗骸的死后环境的关键。在地质(化石)或考古学背景下，动物或人类骨骼的变化可以提供关于个体最有可能生活的生态环境的重要线索，以及关于促使其转变为化石或前化石的化学和物理变化。在法医死亡现场的人类遗骸中发现的同样的变化也提供了关于死亡时间的重要线索。此外，区分自然和人为的骨骼修改是解释考古背景下屠宰活动的关键，也是根据法医人类遗骸确定死因的关键，因为法医遗骸涉及疑似暴力死亡。这项研究将极大地扩展目前关于地面/亚空中陆地环境中骨骼分解以及影响骨骼随时间变化的速度的过程的知识库。它还将开发具有高度期望的技能的HQP，这些技能将促进加拿大在古生物学、墓葬动物学、动物考古学和考古学等领域的卓越研究或

Although the decomposition of soft tissue has been well studied, very little experimental research has been conducted on natural decomposition of bone tissue because such studies take a very long time and require dedicated facilities. This research program wishes to fill this gap and start investigating on a long term scale the unique changes associated with the chemical and physical breakdown of bone tissue which occur during the decomposition and exposure of bone after death in ground-surface/sub-aerial terrestrial environments. This research will establish a fenced open air taphonomy facility equipped with meteorological and environmental statons that is unique in Canada. In this facility, specimens will be left to decompose for consecutive time periods and environmental variables, such as scavenging or temperature, are either controlled for or strictly monitored. The analysis of chemical and physical destruction of bone will be carried out using an innovative research design, along with a more traditional approach. In the traditional design, all samples will be laid out in the field at the start of the experiment and then a portion of the samples will be removed periodically, until they have all been recovered. In my new research design, only the oldest samples will be laid out in the field at the start and then additional specimens are added periodically, until all samples are in the field at the end of the experiment. One of the major advantages of the novel design is that the end of the experiment does not need to be determined at the start and, in theory, can go on indefinitely. In comparison, traditional approaches that rely on collecting the specimens at regular intervals must start with a clear indication of how long will the experiment last. This novel design has only been developed and tested recently and my preliminary research has demonstrated that it is as good as or better than the traditional design for assessing the sequence of changes and their variation relative to season and annual variations in environmental factors, such as temperature. Major expected result is the identification of general thermodynamic and kinetic parameters of surface and subsurface bone tissue degradation with important implication for understanding general ecological and environmental dynamics. In the shorter term this study will also allow the identification of morphological and chemical-physical changes in bone tissues related to time of death and environmental conditions. Thus the broader impact of the proposed study of bone decomposition is key to the understanding of the post-mortem environment of animal and human remains found in geological, archaeological or forensic contexts. Changes in animal or human bones from a geological (a fossil) or archaeological context can provide vital clues about the ecology in which the individual most likely lived, and about the chemical and physical changes that mediated its transformation into a fossil or pre-fossil. Those same changes found in human remains from a forensic death scene also provide vital clues about time since death. In addition, distinguishing natural from man-made bone modifications is key to the interpretation of butchering activities in archaeological contexts, but also to the determination of cause of death from forensic human remains where a suspected violent death is involved. This research will considerably expand the current knowledge base relating to decomposition of bone in ground-surface/sub-aerial terrestrial environments and the processes that influence the rate of bone change over time. It will also develop HQP with highly desired skills who will promote the research excellence of Canada in fields such as paleontology, taphonomy, zooarchaeology and archaeology or