Examination of Dental Maturation in South African           Australopithecines by Computed Tomography
{'Code': '04040400', 'Directorate': {'Abbreviation': 'SBE', 'LongName': 'Direct For Social, Behav & Economic Scie'}, 'Division': {'Abbreviation': 'BCS', 'LongName': 'Division Of Behavioral and Cognitive Sci'}}
{'SignBlockName': 'Jonathan S. Friedlaender', 'PO_EMAI': None, 'PO_PHON': None}
Drs. Conroy and Vannier are pioneers in the application of                      computed tomographic (CT) techniques to paleontological                         materials.  With previous NSF support, they have demonstrated                   that fossilized specimens still partially embedded in sedimentary               matrix may be analyzed.  With CT, the adhering material can, in                 effect, be stripped away to reveal the underlying bone.  Also it                is possible to examine the internal structure of the bone.  These               results have permitted paleontologists and paleoanthropologists                 to address new questions.                                                                                                                                       In this project Dr. Conroy and Vannier will continue their study                of fossil hominid (human) cranial remains.  They will travel to                 South Africa, where many important specimens were found and are                 now housed and conduct CT studies.  The results, stored in                      computerized form, will then be analyzed at Washington                          University.  To provide baseline data, a sample of modern                       specimens will also be studied.  In particular, the team will                   focus on the teeth and stages of dental eruption.  In this way                  they will attempt to determine the age at which individuals died                and to reconstruct the patterns of dental eruption.                                                                                                             This research is important for several reasons.  First,                         anthropologists cannot agree on how many different kinds of early               humans are represented in the African fossil record.  Through                   comparison of developmental rates in a number of fossils, these                 groupings may become more clear.  Secondly, anthropologists argue               about the extent to which different hominid species were, in                    their developmental rates, more human or more pongid (great ape)                like.  Until this work, the evidence has been limited to visual                 inspection which noted the teeth protruding from the mandible or                maxilla.  Because the CT technique allows one to examine the                    developmental stages of unerupted teeth, it offers a much more                  sensitive measure.  Finally, this research will provide                         additional insight into the development of basic human biological               characteristics.
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{'Name': 'Washington University', 'CityName': 'SAINT LOUIS', 'ZipCode': '63110', 'PhoneNumber': '3147474134', 'StreetAddress': 'ONE BROOKINGS DR', 'StreetAddress2': None, 'CountryName': 'United States', 'StateName': 'Missouri', 'StateCode': 'MO', 'CONGRESSDISTRICT': '01', 'CONGRESS_DISTRICT_ORG': 'MO01', 'ORG_UEI_NUM': 'L6NFUM28LQM5', 'ORG_LGL_BUS_NAME': 'WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY, THE', 'ORG_PRNT_UEI_NUM': None}
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{'Code': '1392', 'Text': 'Biological Anthropology'}
{'url': 'https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/download?DownloadFileName=1988&All=true', 'xml': '8801790.xml'}