Visualizing Bone Structure Relationships
Welcome to the Functional and Evolutionary Morphology Research (FEMR) Lab!
Our lab focuses on primate functional morphology, evolutionary morphology in humans and other primates, and bone biomechanics.
We use advanced computational techniques such as high-resolution computed tomography imaging (microCT), 3D morphometrics, deep learning image segmentation, high-performance computing for morphological analysis, and interactive visualization to understand the relationships between bone structure and activity patterns in living and extinct humans and nonhuman primates.
Our Research Focuses
We are engaged in several ongoing projects investigating:
Inter/Intraspecific variation in trabecular and cortical bone structure in humans and other primates.
Ontogenetic development of cortical and trabecular bone in the human postcranial skeleton.
Functional relationships between human mobility patterns and bone structure using novel 3D quantification techniques.
Skeletal response to locomotor loading.
The lab’s ongoing research broadly seeks to address questions related to the interplay between form and function in the musculoskeletal system and how this linkage can be used to reconstruct behavior and interpret the fossil record and evolutionary histories of primates and humans. The main focus is on skeletal variation, adaptation, and plasticity and how variation in the skeleton can be understood within the context of mechanical and non-mechanical factors.