About Us

Teeth are used to make paleontological inferences, contribute to forensic death investigations, and are a critical data source on the lives of ancient peoples. We are interested in how teeth can be used to inform biological relatedness in past populations when DNA is not available due to poor preservation or restrictions on destructive sampling. To accomplish this we need a better understanding of how genes and the environment interact during the course of development to produce a tooth’s final form. Large databases of related individuals are needed to explore these topics within a quantitative genetic framework. The data provided here can be used for a number of different analyses that complement approaches based in evolutionary developmental biology.

 

Our Goals

1

To generate 3D dental scans from human populations from around the world.

2

To provide research infrastructure for students and professionals working on human dentition.

3

To understand the evolutionary basis of human dental variation.

Our Team

  • Chris Stojanowski

    Christopher M. Stojanowski

    Professor, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University

    A bioarchaeologist who works in North America and North Africa.

  • Duncan Williams

    William N. Duncan

    Associate Professor, Department of Sociology and Anthropology, East Tennessee State University

    A bioarchaeologist who works in Mesoamerica.

  • John Femiani

    Associate Professor, Department of Computer Science and Software Engineering, Miami University

    A computer scientist that specializes in computer graphics, pattern recognition, and image processing.

  • Chia-Yuan Chuang

    Chia-Yuan Chuang

    PhD candidate, Ira Fulton School of Engineering, Arizona State University

    A computer scientist that specializes in computer graphics, computer visualization, and cognitive science.

  • Kathleen Paul

    Kathleen Paul

    PhD candidate, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University

    A bioarchaeologist who specializes in the study of deciduous dentition.

Funding Sources

Those that have assisted with funding:

  • National Science Foundation BCS-1063942 to CM Stojanowski, WN Duncan, J Femiani, GR Scott
  • Arizona State University College of Liberal Arts and Sciences NS-SS-GRG; CL201415.205 to CM Stojanowski

How to Cite

Information forthcoming.