Has anyone taken Introduction to Physical and Forensic Anthropology (ANAT10030)?

dr gonzo

I was thinking of taking this as an elective next year, ive a good interest in the subject and would like to understand how it actually works. On top of that im doing archaeology so it might even tie in a little.

I was keen, that is, right up until i read this little gem...
"the final practical assessment requires that you work in groups on remains typical of forensic anthropological casework."

Now i have a decent stomach but working with "remains" is probably a bit too intense. If anyone has done this subject can you tell me if this line means every bit of what i think it means?

Silly question maybe but screw it, might as well ask.

Dr Strange

The final part means that you will examine real human bones. These would be dry and without any odours or soft tissue but they will be real.

As for next years module some changes to the old format may happen. Some topics may be changed for next year so I would keep that in mind when talking to people who have experienced this module up to last year.

dr gonzo

Ah that makes sense. Cheers for that Preusse.

Like A Fox

It's a good elective, a lot of Med students do it because it's recommended for them. The final exam is really good fun - seriously! You're given a list of "missing people" and a human skeleton then by judging sex, height etc you work out which one of the missing people's body you have found.

PM me if you've any more q's about it!

Fad

I asked a friend who did it, would he consider it an easy elective? He does not, he said the workload was pretty serious, so you'd want to be fairly interested in the subject if you are going to do it.

Dr Strange

Fad wrote: »

I asked a friend who did it, would he consider it an easy elective? He does not, he said the workload was pretty serious, so you'd want to be fairly interested in the subject if you are going to do it.

Yes, that is correct. And there is no messing around either as you are dealing with human remains and this comes with respect and dignity. However, if you stick with it and have a real interest it will be very rewarding.

Don't forget that this is an intro to both physical and forensic anthro in order to give you an idea of the variation of disciplines which you can work in, fossils, primatology, early man, archaeological remains, recent remains, etc...

There's another module on offer for the second semester which deals exclusively with Palaeoanthropology. There may be more modules in future dealing with related subjects as well but it is important for students to put their views forward as to what would interest them (not what is easy to get through though).

Also note that boards.ie has a dedicated anthropology forum now which deals with every aspect of anthro (cultural, lingual, biological..etc.). Make sure to contribute! Link: Anthropology, Sociology & Culture

dr gonzo

Preusse wrote: »

Yes, that is correct. And there is no messing around either as you are dealing with human remains and this comes with respect and dignity. However, if you stick with it and have a real interest it will be very rewarding.

Don't forget that this is an intro to both physical and forensic anthro in order to give you an idea of the variation of disciplines which you can work in, fossils, primatology, early man, archaeological remains, recent remains, etc...

There's another module on offer for the second semester which deals exclusively with Palaeoanthropology. There may be more modules in future dealing with related subjects as well but it is important for students to put their views forward as to what would interest them (not what is easy to get through though).

Also note that boards.ie has a dedicated anthropology forum now which deals with every aspect of anthro (cultural, lingual, biological..etc.). Make sure to contribute! Link: Anthropology, Sociology & Culture

Excellent info again Preusse. Anthropology and miliaria...Boards very own polymath.

Dr Strange

dr gonzo wrote: »

Excellent info again Preusse. Anthropology and miliaria...Boards very own polymath.

Ah yes, you have to have some hobbies.

Nebit

Just to warn u dr gonzo. if ur doing a joint major in archaeology you cant take it if you do the archaeological fieldwork ARCH:20100.
They take up the 10 credits of ur electives.
I was hoping to take it this year however because of this i must wait until 3rd year. Just a heads up.
If your single major then this doesn't effect u :D

Dave!

I started this elective last year but had to drop it after a couple of weeks.

I had 2 lectures and 1 practical when I had to drop it.

I thought it looked interesting, but the workload was an awful lot for an elective. For example you were required to memorise the name and location of dozens of bones on the body, and be able to point them out on the remains in the lab. You also had to be able to connect various small bones, and assemble them in the right way.

I didn't get as far as the evolution or forensics parts of the course, so was pretty much just learning anatomy. This was interesting enough (though the lectures were pretty dry -- just listing body parts basically...), but more work than I was looking for from an elective.

If you're looking for a good elective, check out Fred Cummins' Introduction to Cognitive Science -- it'll knock your socks off Most interesting subject EVAR.

http://cogsci.ucd.ie/introtocogsci/

dr gonzo

Nebit wrote: »

Just to warn u dr gonzo. if ur doing a joint major in archaeology you cant take it if you do the archaeological fieldwork ARCH:20100.
They take up the 10 credits of ur electives.
I was hoping to take it this year however because of this i must wait until 3rd year. Just a heads up.
If your single major then this doesn't effect u :D

Im going to do Archaeology as my major with a minor in classics, however i do want to do the practical anyway. Does it still take up two electives?

Cheers for that Dave, if the workload is that heavy, ill have to be careful because while i want an interesting elective it might be too much. Is cognitive science heavy?

Dave!

No, cogsci is grand 2 lectures a week, really interesting content, good lecturer, no textbook to get, pretty much everything is on the lecture notes (there's a weekly reading that he puts on Blackboard but it's not checked, and it's usually interesting anyway so you'll want to read it ), and the exam isn't strenuous at all (few multiple choice Q's, and a few short paragraphs to write).

Highly recommended if you're interested in psychology and so on !

Dr Strange

Dr Gonzo, don't forget though that the perception of what is a heavy workload and what is doable and enjoyable are completely subjective. Your experience may be completely different to dave! particularly has he said he did not complete the module.

I just want you and otyhers to keep an open mind about it. Sure, an "easy" elective in which you just sit back and let it happen, it ain't. However, some of the archaeology students who took it continued to do a final year project in the area of osteo-work with the anatomy section in UCD. One went on and did a Masters in Physical Anthropology with UCD as well.

dr gonzo

Yeh thats definitely true Preusse and i dont mind a bit of work at all, especially if im liking the subject so its most definitely still on the cards, not to mention that ive no doubts it will come in handy.

Cheers Dave! for the good info on cogsci, i had thought about doing a psychology module but its even more appealing now.

As it stands both of these sound right up my alley and so unless something else catches my interest i think i'll do both.

Cheers again guys.

Nebit

In that case the fieldwork will be compulsory and won't take up your electives
However i will say try to go for an elective in the second semester because you'll have alot of compulsory modules in the first that will require you to write 3 portfolios and numerous essays... just a heads up like

dr gonzo wrote: »

Im going to do Archaeology as my major with a minor in classics, however i do want to do the practical anyway. Does it still take up two electives?

Cheers for that Dave, if the workload is that heavy, ill have to be careful because while i want an interesting elective it might be too much. Is cognitive science heavy?

Gaeldor68

Yeah I did it this year just as an elective, I'm doing computer science, and I found it great fun. As was said earlier there is no messing around while in the dissection room but all round I found that they make it sound as if it was really difficult but I already knew most of the bones, so that made it a lot easier for me, and then learning markers to determine sex and side of the body the bone was from was the earlier easier stuff.

You also got to learn about some of the earlier stages in human evolution and primates. Learning about gorillas, orangoutangs and Australapichicus Afarensis(spelt wrong). You learn to be able to compare the different stages and know which is which. Towards the end you learn how to age and determine height.

The way I learn is generally through listening and so when I listen in lectures I basically know the stuff and don't have to study to learn it and I found the course fairly easy by only listening. I know other people have said its heavy work load but I guess that depends on how you learn really.

dr gonzo

I usually wouldnt bump an old thread but im curious to know if anyone doing this at the moment? What do you think?

Dave!

dr gonzo did my whoring of Intro to Cognitive Science convince you to do it? What'd ye think?

Conor108

I'm doing cog sci in semester 2. Expecting greatness....

dr gonzo

Dave! wrote: »

dr gonzo did my whoring of Intro to Cognitive Science convince you to do it? What'd ye think?

haha Dave you actually did, i was looking into it this year but i couldnt take it unfortunately as i have far too much in second semester. Has to be two semester 1 electives.