Development of a new, open-source method for digitizing skeletal morphology of living subjects from EOS biplanar radiographs.

Bipedal walking is a hallmark of the human lineage. However, it is unclear whether and how the locomotor behaviors of early hominins differed from modern humans and how locomotion affected other aspects of hominin ecology and evolution. This study combines a novel method for measuring skeletal morphology of living subjects with 3D motion analysis to determine how variation in skeletal morphology is related to locomotor performance. Experimentally testing the effects of hominin skeletal morphology on performance is a transformational approach that will produce a validated framework for interpreting locomotor behavior in fossils and testing hypotheses of locomotor diversity in fossil hominins. This work is supported by the Leakey Foundation, Sigma Xi, University of Missouri GPC, and the National Science Foundation.

The 3D orientation of the human hip joint appears to differ from that of other primates. In this project, we are performing 3D analyses of human, early hominin, and non-human primate pelves to determine how 3D orientation of the acetabulum is related to locomotor behavior among primates and how this may inform our understanding of the origins of hominin bipedality. Collaboration with Drs. Carol Ward (University of Missouri) & Ashley Hammond (American Museum of Natural History)

Studying the relationship between hip anatomy and symptoms of femoroacetabular impingement in a clincal sample

Mapping of Middle Pleistocene site of Isimila, Tanzania using an uncrewed aerial vehicle

As a student in the Integrative Anatomy group, I regularly participate in scientific outreach events in Missouri. I am also available to talk to students at local schools about human anatomy & evolution, functional morphology, and vertebrate comparative anatomy.