How do you determine the number of people left in human skeletal remains?

Answer 1

It's a matter of sorting by bone type, then size and finally DNA or other more advanced test. Here's the dilema; let's see you are handed a box full of bones and told to figure out how many humans these came from.

So.. first... sort by bone type, put all the femurs together, all the skulls, all the tibias, etc. Once you do this, count up how many you have of each. Since you know how many bones there are in a complete human body, this sort and count could give you a pretty close estimate as to how many people and possibly what is missing.

Next sort each of the catagorized bones by size. This will help you narrow down the number of specific humans you have. For example, you should have two femurs that are very close to the same size for each human. As you do this you will begin to get an idea of the size of each human which, while not in your original question, lends it's self to how many difference sets (sizes) of bones there are. From there a farter sorting could be done by grouping all the like sizes together which again could lead to a better guess.

Since the sorting, classifications and sizing won't be exact and if you are looking for an exact number, a sample of DNA from each set could then be used to determine which set of bones go together and finally a definitive answer of how many humans.

Hope this helps and good luck!

Answer 2

I'm not sure that I understand you're question.

If you're talking about a lot of skeletal remains and are trying to figure out how many people it was, then you just have to count the bones.

For instance, count the skulls. Or the legs and arms. Ribs can be a bit trickier, especially if the bones are not all attached in the orignal form that they were in, because women have one more rib than men do. But you can tell if a woman skeletan had any children and how many, you tell that by looking at her pelvic bones, if she's had children, there will be some small notches from where the bones shift during childbirth.

Answer 3

There are a few ways:

With whole skeletons, duh.

With partial skeletons, you could analyze the general bone structure and calcium concentration. This would allow you to place certain bones with certain skeletons and not with others.

A simple DNA analysis could also take place, as some of the DNA is still likely present in very miniscule amounts (think Jurassic Park).

Carbon dating (C14) is also an option for bones that could be separated by hundreds of years or more. Then analysis of the bones and the bone structures could take place.

Answer 4

Pick out all the bones that humans have only ONE of (like a skull or jawbone)...then pick out which of those bones you have the most of. The number you have tells you a minimum number of people. (for example 15 skulls and 19 jawbones tells you there are at least 19 people).

Answer 5

Count the number of left thumbs.

Answer 6

Count the ones that are standing?

Answer 7

thats an odd question, but go with answer #2

Answer 8

what???