TY - JOUR
T1 - Dental microwear texture analysis of Homo sapiens sapiens
T2 - Foragers, farmers, and pastoralists
AU - Schmidt, Christopher W.
AU - Remy, Ashley
AU - Van Sessen, Rebecca
AU - Willman, John
AU - Krueger, Kristin
AU - Scott, Rachel
AU - Mahoney, Patrick
AU - Beach, Jeremy
AU - McKinley, Jaqueline
AU - D'Anastasio, Ruggero
AU - Chiu, Laura
AU - Buzon, Michele
AU - De Gregory, J. Rocco
AU - Sheridan, Susan
AU - Eng, Jacqueline
AU - Watson, James
AU - Klaus, Haagen
AU - Da-Gloria, Pedro
AU - Wilson, Jeremy
AU - Stone, Abigail
AU - Sereno, Paul
AU - Droke, Jessica
AU - Perash, Rose
AU - Stojanowski, Christopher
AU - Herrmann, Nicholas
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
PY - 2019/6
Y1 - 2019/6
N2 - Objectives: The current study seeks to determine if a sample of foragers, farmers, and pastoralists are distinguishable based on their dental microwear texture signatures. Materials and methods: The study included a sample of 719 individuals from 51 archeological sites (450 farmers, 192 foragers, 77 pastoralists). All were over age 12 and sexes were pooled. Using a Sensofar® white-light confocal profiler we collected dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) data from a single first or second molar from each individual. We leveled and cleaned data clouds following standard procedures and analyzed the data with Sfrax® and Toothfrax® software. The DMTA variables were complexity and anisotropy. Statistics included ANOVA with partial eta squared and Hedges's g. We also performed a follow-up K-means cluster analysis. Results: We found significant differences between foragers and farmers and pastoralists for complexity and anisotropy, with foragers having greater complexity than either the farmers or the pastoralists. The farmers and pastoralists had greater anisotropy than the foragers. The Old World foragers had significantly higher anisotropy values than New World foragers. Old and New World farmers did not differ. Among the Old World farmers, those dating from the Neolithic through the Late Bronze Age had higher complexity values than those from the Iron Age through the medieval period. The cluster analysis discerned foragers and farmers but also indicated similarity between hard food foragers and hard food farmers. Discussion: Our findings reaffirm that DMTA is capable of distinguishing human diets. We found that foragers and farmers, in particular, differ in their microwear signatures across the globe. There are some exceptions, but nothing that would be unexpected given the range of human diets and food preparation techniques. This study indicates that in general DMTA is an efficacious means of paleodietary reconstruction in humans.
AB - Objectives: The current study seeks to determine if a sample of foragers, farmers, and pastoralists are distinguishable based on their dental microwear texture signatures. Materials and methods: The study included a sample of 719 individuals from 51 archeological sites (450 farmers, 192 foragers, 77 pastoralists). All were over age 12 and sexes were pooled. Using a Sensofar® white-light confocal profiler we collected dental microwear texture analysis (DMTA) data from a single first or second molar from each individual. We leveled and cleaned data clouds following standard procedures and analyzed the data with Sfrax® and Toothfrax® software. The DMTA variables were complexity and anisotropy. Statistics included ANOVA with partial eta squared and Hedges's g. We also performed a follow-up K-means cluster analysis. Results: We found significant differences between foragers and farmers and pastoralists for complexity and anisotropy, with foragers having greater complexity than either the farmers or the pastoralists. The farmers and pastoralists had greater anisotropy than the foragers. The Old World foragers had significantly higher anisotropy values than New World foragers. Old and New World farmers did not differ. Among the Old World farmers, those dating from the Neolithic through the Late Bronze Age had higher complexity values than those from the Iron Age through the medieval period. The cluster analysis discerned foragers and farmers but also indicated similarity between hard food foragers and hard food farmers. Discussion: Our findings reaffirm that DMTA is capable of distinguishing human diets. We found that foragers and farmers, in particular, differ in their microwear signatures across the globe. There are some exceptions, but nothing that would be unexpected given the range of human diets and food preparation techniques. This study indicates that in general DMTA is an efficacious means of paleodietary reconstruction in humans.
KW - archeology
KW - diet
KW - subsistence
KW - teeth
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85063075281&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85063075281&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1002/ajpa.23815
DO - 10.1002/ajpa.23815
M3 - Article
C2 - 30888064
AN - SCOPUS:85063075281
SN - 0002-9483
VL - 169
SP - 207
EP - 226
JO - American Journal of Physical Anthropology
JF - American Journal of Physical Anthropology
IS - 2
ER -