- Forensic Anthropology in Mass Disasters

Mass disastersare events which overwhelm, damage or destroy local Emergency Medical Services (EMS) systems, and therefore need the response of a State or National Disaster Medical System (NDMS). Natural mass disasters include major earthquakes, floods, hurricanes and fires. Manmade mass disasters include major fires, industrial accidents, wars, and nuclear accidents. Mass disasters must be distinguished from “multicasualty incidents” (MCI), such as major transportation accidents, which the local EMS system should be able to handle, if necessary, with the assistance of surrounding (regional) EMS systems. Endemic-epidemic disasters (e.g., droughts, famines, infectious diseases, and refugee problems) are catastrophes which deserve separate considerations, as they require ongoing political-economic solutions.

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Forensic anthropology of sex and body size

Forensic Science International ◽

10.1016/j.forsciint.2004.09.069 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 147 (2-3) ◽

pp. 107-112 ◽

Cited By ~ 104

Author(s):

Mehmet Yaşar İşcan

Keyword(s):

Body Size ◽

Forensic Anthropology

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Documenting non‐accidental injury patterns in a dog abuse investigation: A collaborative approach between forensic anthropology and veterinary pathology

Journal of Forensic Sciences ◽

10.1111/1556-4029.14948 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Eric J. Bartelink ◽

Shannon Clinkinbeard ◽

Crystal Spessard ◽

Aoife Kilmartin ◽

William L. Spangler

Keyword(s):

Forensic Anthropology ◽

Collaborative Approach ◽

Injury Patterns ◽

Accidental Injury ◽

Veterinary Pathology ◽

Non Accidental Injury

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Playing through the Apocalypse: Preparing Children for Mass Disasters in Japan and Chile

Public Culture ◽

10.1215/08992363-8917206 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 33 (2) ◽

pp. 239-259

Author(s):

Chika Watanabe

Keyword(s):

Disaster Preparedness ◽

Nonprofit Organization ◽

The State ◽

Ethnographic Research ◽

Government Officials ◽

State Actors ◽

Mass Disasters ◽

As If

Abstract There is a growing trend to prepare children for future disasters. A Japanese nonprofit organization has developed an event called Iza! Kaeru Caravan, which includes games that teach children and their families how to survive disasters, from earthquakes to floods. Many disaster experts and government officials from other countries have now implemented the Caravan in their own contexts. Based on ethnographic research in Japan and Chile, this article shows how playful methods in disaster preparedness orient children, and by proxy their families, to accept an apocalyptic future, helping the neoliberal state buy time. Advocates of disaster preparedness in Japan and Chile accept that state actors will not come immediately to the rescue. Playful methods mobilize children and their families to take responsibility for their own survival through the subjunctive work of the “as if.” Ambiguously positioned between fun and education, playful methods of preparedness command attention from children and adults—what I call “attentive play”—as they frame and reframe the games to figure out, “Is this play?” Ultimately, the article shows that attentive play buys time for the state to temporarily defer its responsibilities to citizens, but the ambiguity of play can also exceed its ideological effects.

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Terminology Used to Describe Human Variation in Forensic Anthropology

Forensic Anthropology ◽

10.5744/fa.2021.0001 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Marin Pilloud ◽

Cassie Skipper ◽

SaMoura Horsley ◽

Alba Craig ◽

Krista Latham ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Forensic Anthropology ◽

Social Contexts ◽

Forensic Sciences ◽

Research Approach ◽

Human Variation ◽

Systemic Racism ◽

Ancestry Estimation ◽

Anthropological Research ◽

Continued Use ◽

The U.S

To understand the implications of the forensic anthropological practice of “ancestry” estimation, we explore terminology that has been employed in forensic anthropological research. The goal is to evaluate how such terms can often circulate within social contexts as a result, which may center forensic anthropologists as constituting “race” itself through analysis and categorization. This research evaluates terminology used in anthropological articles of the Journal of Forensic Sciences between 1972 and 2020 (n = 314). Terminology was placed into two categories: classifiers and descriptors. Classifiers were standardized into one of five options: “race,” “ancestry,” “population,” “ethnic,” or “other.” Descriptors included terms used to describe individuals within these classificatory systems. We also compared these terms to those in the NamUs database and the U.S. census. Our results found that the terms “ancestry” and “race” are often conflated and “ancestry” largely supplanted “race” in the 1990s without a similar change in research approach. The NamUs and census terminology are not the same as that used in forensic anthropological research; illustrating a disconnect in the terms used to identify the missing, unidentified, and in social contexts with those used in anthropological research. We provide histories of all of these terms and conclude with suggestions for how to use terminology in the future. It is important for forensic anthropologists to be cognizant of the terms they use in medicolegal contexts, publications, and in public and/or professional spaces. The continued use of misrepresentative and improper language further marginalizes groups and perpetuates oppression rooted in systemic racism.

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