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Q2. What are the current fields of study in physical anthropology?
Ans. The study of physical or biological anthropology has achieved new heights as much
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emphasis has been laid on the systematic orientation of various approaches for its
development.
1. Palaeo-anthropology: Paleoanthropology is the study of ancient humans
through fossil evidence, including bones and other preserved features like
footprints. The term paleoanthropology comes from the Greek palaeos for
ancient, anthropos for human, and logia for study.
Paleoanthropologists study ancient remains to extract information about the
lives of early people. Like other anthropologists, they are interested in social
groups, the development of culture, and the ways that humans create tools. Like
physical anthropologists, paleoanthropologists use physical bodies to provide
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evidence about the lives of people.As it turns out, there's a lot a skeleton can tell
you. The shape of the pelvis indicates if the person was male or female, and what
age they were. The amount of wear on joints and bone density can indicate what
sort of activities that person often did. For example, people who farmed put more
pressure on their backs than people who hunted, and humans who often rode
horses had more stress on their kness. Teeth are also good indicators about
someone’s life because they store minerals from water the person drank. This
means that a paleoanthropologist can tell what rivers a person lived near by the
ratio of chemicals in their teeth.
2. Palaeo-primatology: Palaeo-primatology deals with the study of living and
fossil primates. Primates are the most diversified of all animals and these include
man– the focus of anthropological study. Hence an integrated study of the
primates helps in understanding the position of man. Through such studies
attempts are made for preserving the habitats of our closest living primates.
3. Osteology: Osteology refers to the study of bones. An osteologist studies the
bone structure, skeletal features and morphology and ascertains the age, sex,
growth, development and death of the human remnants.
4. Human Genetics: Human genetics is the study of the inheritance of epigenetic
traits among humans, notably but not exclusively traits of medical interest. The
overarching goal of human genetics is to apply knowledge of human heredity to a
better understanding of diversity in development and adaptation as “nature is
nurtured.” Another central goal of human genetics is the public health function of
reducing dysgenetic burdens on individuals, families, and society at large.
Although the boundaries of subdisiplines within genetics are not precise, the
term anthropological genetics is used to distinguish general human genetics from
more clinical applications, with the latter sometimes denoted specifically as
medical genetics.
5. Population Genetics: A population in a genetical perspective is defined as “a
reproductivecommunity of sexual cross-fertilizing individuals which share in a

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