How it Works
Undergraduates in the PEL study a wide array of topics. Many undergraduates who join the PEL have a general idea of what most interests them and are connected with anthropology faculty to help them find a focus. Undergraduates may help with existing projects, establish an independent study with a professor, or conduct their own research. Whether they produce a final product or not, PEL undergraduates can build meaningful connections in the Anthropology Department to help them learn what interests them most. Keep reading to see past and present PEL undergraduates’ areas of focus.
The Evolution of Carpals and Tarsals
Area of Focus — Polaris Smith
“My research regards the evolution of the carpus and tarsus in humans, how they evolved to facilitate the dexterity and bipedal locomotion iconic to modern humans. In 2023 and 2024, I organized and housed a faunal osteological collection for Dr. Alyson Rollins, establishing methods for filling the scant resources present for carpals and tarsals across literature. In Spring 2024, I traveled to UC Berkeley and captured carpal and tarsal scans of Washington state fauna to fill this gap, which can be found on the PEL’s lab resources page via SketchFab. For future work, I’m interested in researching bone density of carpals and tarsals across primates, hominids, and modern humans, to assess whether the density of these bones across species/time may denote specificity of use or morphological change.” –Polaris Smith
Archaeometry Techniques and Resources
Area of Focus — Adrena Hamilton
Hamilton is currently involved in a joint project between Anthropology and Computer Sciences titled “Detecting Archaeological Structures with Semantic Segmentation” to create an AI that accurately identifies Mayan Structures on LiDAR. They aim to optimize LiDAR data to improve model performance, provide a human identification dataset, and provide additional archaeological and GIS support.
Other research projects by Adrena Hamilton:
- Western Washington University Spatial History Team
- Hamilton researched the spatial history of WWU from 1899 to 2024 to create a time slider application.
- Nondestructive Archaeological Analysis on Ceramics
- Hamilton conducted analysis of ceramic sherd artifacts with a micro-CT scanner and SEM to learn more about construction methods, temper material, and firing temperature.
Primate Craniometric Landmarking
Area of Focus — Kyla Joy
“Through the PEL, I took an independent study in Primate 3D Morphometrics. I learned to 3D scan, landmarked 3D scans of orangutan skulls, practiced writing landmarking protocol, and created a video resource for other students titled An Undergraduate’s Guide to 3D Scanning. I’m currently expanding my research experience this year by learning new landmarking software and assisting with Profs. Monson and Brasil’s circumorbital integration project.” –Kyla Joy
Osteological Curation and Photography
Area of Focus — Zelie Wynne-Jones
“My area of work in the PEL for the past year has been in the realm of curation and the creation of materials for use in the classroom. I used photography to create images for use in teaching ANTH 215: Intro to Bio Anthropology. I took part in the organization of our non-human primate osteological remains, making them available for use in the classroom and for further study. Finally, I digitized slides that had been in the lab for some time, allowing them to be viewed in an easy-access online format.” –Zelie Wynne-Jones
More information on Wynne-Jones’ osteological photography collection can be found on the lab resources page.
Creating the Archive and 3D Morphometrics
Area of Focus — Chandler Landon
“Through the PEL, I have worked with fellow students to organize our collection of fossils. We have learned how to identify various families of primates while refining our skills in data collection and organization. Additionally, I have practiced 3D morphometrics by following landmarking protocol to establish bony markings on 3D scans of primate crania.” –Chandler Landon