What mysteries can bones solve? Forensic anthropology beyond TV
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.
Course Code: HS221
Duration: 6 sessions (over 6 weeks)
Please note: We offer a wide variety of financial support to make courses affordable. Just visit our online Help Center for more information on a range of topics including fees, online learning and FAQs.
What is the course about?
This course will let you discover how much we can learn about persons and societies by only looking at human remains. We will also explore whether all skeletons really are the same and what this means.
This is a live online course. You will need:
- Internet connection. The classes work best with Chrome.
- A computer with microphone and camera is best (e.g. a PC/laptop/iMac/MacBook), or a tablet/iPad/smart phone/iPhone if you don't have a computer.
- Earphones/headphones/speakers.
We will contact you with joining instructions before your course starts.
What will we cover?
• Short introduction to skeletal anatomy.
• What is biological profile of a person and how to build one?
• What an individual person can tell us about a whole population.
• What diseases or traumas they suffered?
• Can we tell how they died?
• And what happened to them after death?
• Most importantly, can we tell how they lived?
• Case studies.
What will I achieve?
By the end of this course you should be able to...
• Identify the main fields of osteology
• Identify the main bones of a human skeleton
• Understand the variation of human skeletons
• Understand the methods used to build a biological profile (sex, age, stature, ancestry)
• Discuss the limitations of those methods
• Explain how learning about an individual can help us shape a view on society.
• Understand how lifestyles, work, diet, and diseases affect your skeleton
• Name some of the processes that influence bones after death
• Understand how that information can be used for solving mysteries of the past or modern crimes.
What level is the course and do I need any particular skills?
This is an introductory level course and is open to all. No prior knowledge of the subject is required but you’ll need a good grasp of English to keep up with the course and be able to participate in the discussions.
How will I be taught, and will there be any work outside the class?
You will be taught in several ways including presentation with visual examples, discussion and on-screen exercises.
Are there any other costs? Is there anything I need to bring?
Bring pen and notepad if you wish to take noets. There are no extra costs.
When I've finished, what course can I do next?
Please check our Science and nature section for other courses.
Agata started her career as an archaeologist in Poland. Quite early she discovered her passion about discovering the personal stories of people from the past. This meant she focused her later study on osteology to be more involved with this. Quickly she realized that she could use her skills in a way with more impact on the present. So she started working as an assistant in a forensic anthropology lab in Gdansk, Poland, helping to solve forensic mysteries. She decided that she wanted to study this topic further and moved to UK. She completed her MSc Forensic Anthropology at Bournemouth University in 2016. Since then, she has continued to work in major infrastructure projects in the UK as an archaeologist, team leader and osteologist. Her recent project in central London discovered around 30 thousand skeletons. She also regularly works with archaeologists and the prosecution in other European countries where she helps the prosecution answer questions about deceased people’s identification, life and death and assists archaeologists in examining the health and demography of past populations.
Please note: We reserve the right to change our tutors from those advertised. This happens rarely, but if it does, we are unable to refund fees due to this. Our tutors may have different teaching styles; however we guarantee a consistent quality of teaching in all our courses.
