Our main objective has been to develop criteria for classifying and identifying human skeletal remains in forensic casework and in archaeological investigations. In the past this has focused on generating statistical criteria for assessing sex and face in contemporary and historic Black and White adult and fetal populations. We have conducted reliability studies on these criteria and are presently engaged in extending our research to include criteria for assessing handedness for identification purposes. The latter has implications relevant to the biomedical understanding of the interrelationships between laterality and osteoarthritis, and the necessary inclusion of age, race, and sex parameters in its study make it a natural extension of our earlier research. MBRS, MARC and numerous other honors level students have been involved in earlier versions of this research over the past several years. The raw materials of this research involve major museum collections, contact with forensic scientists and law enforcement officials and, in two cases, archaeological 'style' investigations of older cemeteries. This mix of research materials and locations, coupled with the solid science of the statistical analyses, has proven a strong magnet for keeping students interested and involved in biomedical research.
