This award will provide continuing support for a Research Experience for Undergraduates Site at the University of Rhode Island. Students will be trained in anthropometry, osteopathology, trace metal and stable isotope analyses, skeletal densitometry, and biological differentiation of skeletal samples as tools for studying adaptation to physical and cultural environments through time. Such experiences will be invaluable to students majoring in anthropology, biology or ecology and interested in pursuing an interdisciplinary approach towards a common objective. The topic to be addressed is paleodietary reconstruction which draws from a wide variety of disciplines and technologies--thus offering undergraduate students from several fields the opportunity to pursue a common goal while acquiring invaluable fieldwork experience and subsequent laboratory analysis of data collected. This project involves collaboration with the University of Tarapaca in northern Chile. The principal investigator, Dr. Marc Kelley (URI) along with co-investigators have established a well-defined research project for undergraduate training in paleonutrition reconstruction based on well-preserved mummies and skeletal remains spanning the last 8,000 years form northern Chile. The students will learn new techniques and be in a position to assess their value for future studies.
