A mixed method analysis of student satisfaction with active learning techniques in an online graduate anatomy course: Consideration of demographics and previous course enrollment.

Online learning has become an essential part of mainstream higher education. With increasing enrollments in online anatomy courses, a better understanding of effective teaching techniques for the online learning environment is critical. Active learning has previously shown many benefits in face-to-face anatomy courses, including increases in student satisfaction.

Human maxillary sinus size, shape, and surface area: Implications for structural and functional hypotheses.

Objectives: Although research into human maxillary sinus (MS) morphology has overwhelmingly focused on sinus volume, other aspects of morphology (e.g., overall shape, mucosal surface area) factor prominently in hypotheses regarding MS form and function.

Ontogenetic variation in human nasal morphology.

Internal nasal cavity morphology has long been thought to reflect respiratory pressures related to heating and humidifying inspired air. Yet, despite the widely recognized importance of ontogeny in understanding climatic and thermoregulatory adaptations, most research on nasal variation in modern and fossil humans focuses on static adult morphology. This study utilizes cross-sectional CT data of three morphologically distinct samples (African, European, Arctic) spanning from infancy to adulthood (total n = 321).

Ancestry-based variation in maxillary sinus anatomy: Implications for health disparities in sinonasal disease.

Paranasal sinus drainage is mediated by mucociliary transport and gravity. However, human orthograde posture, along with the superior positioning of the maxillary sinus (MS) ostium, increases reliance on the mucociliary system. Previous research has thus suggested that differences in MS size and shape may impede mucociliary clearance, potentially contributing to disparities in sinusitis susceptibility.

Climatic adaptation in human inferior nasal turbinate morphology: Evidence from Arctic and equatorial populations.

Objectives: The nasal turbinates directly influence the overall size, shape, and surface area of the nasal passages, and thus contribute to intranasal heat and moisture exchange. However, unlike the encapsulating walls of the nasal cavity, ecogeographic variation in nasal turbinate morphology among humans has not yet been established. Here we investigate variation in inferior nasal turbinate morphology in two populations from climatically extreme environments.

Three-dimensional anatomy of the anthropoid bony pelvis.

Objectives: Pelvic form is hypothesized to reflect locomotor adaptation in anthropoids. Most observed variation is found in the ilium, which traditionally is thought to reflect thoracic and shoulder morphology. This article examines the articulated bony pelvis of anthropoids in three dimensions (3D) to test hypothesized variation in pelvic anatomy related to overall torso form.

Zygomaticomaxillary Morphology and Maxillary Sinus Form and Function: How Spatial Constraints Influence Pneumatization Patterns among Modern Humans.

Previous research has suggested that the maxillary sinuses may act as "zones of accommodation" for the nasal region, minimizing the impact of climatic-related changes in nasal cavity breadth on surrounding skeletal structures. However, a recent study among modern human crania has identified that, in addition to nasal cavity breadth, sinus morphology also tracks lateral facial form, especially anterior-posterior positioning of the zygomatics. Here, we expand upon this previous study to further investigate these covariation patterns by employing three samples with distinct combinations of nasal and zygomatic morphologies: Northern Asians (n = 28); sub-Saharan Africans (n = 30); and Europeans (n = 29).

Ecogeographic variation across morphofunctional units of the human nose.

Objectives: Although the internal nose is overwhelmingly responsible for heat and moisture exchange during respiration, external nasal morphology is more commonly cited as evincing climatic adaptation in humans. Here, we assess variation across all four morphofunctional units of the complete nasorespiratory tract (external pyramid, nasal aperture, internal nasal fossa, and nasopharynx) to determine which units provide the strongest evidence of climatic adaptation.

Materials And Methods: We employ 20 linear measurements collected on 837 modern human crania from major geographic (Arctic Circle, Asia, Australia, Europe, Africa) and climatic (polar, temperate, hot-arid, tropical) zones.

Absolute humidity and the human nose: A reanalysis of climate zones and their influence on nasal form and function.

Objectives: Investigations into the selective role of climate on human nasal variation commonly divide climates into four broad adaptive zones (hot-dry, hot-wet, cold-dry, and cold-wet) based on temperature and relative humidity. Yet, absolute humidity-not relative humidity-is physiologically more important during respiration. Here, we investigate the global distribution of absolute humidity to better clarify ecogeographic demands on nasal physiology.

Morphological Covariation between the Maxillary Sinus and Midfacial Skeleton among Sub-Saharan and Circumpolar Modern Humans.

Objectives: Maxillary sinus volume tracks ecogeographic differences in nasal form and may serve as a zone of accommodation for ontogenetic and evolutionary changes in nasal cavity breadth. However, little is known regarding how sinus volume is distributed within the midface. This study investigates morphological covariation between midfacial and sinus shape to better understand structural and functional relationships between the sinus, midface, and nasal cavity.

Dental size reduction in Indonesian Homo erectus: Implications for the PU-198 premolar and the appearance of Homo sapiens on Java.

The recent recovery of a hominin maxillary third premolar, PU-198, within the faunal collections from Punung Cave (East Java) has led to assertions that Homo sapiens appeared on Java between 143,000 and 115,000 years ago. The taxonomic assignment of PU-198 to H. sapiens was based predominantly on the small size of the specimen, following an analysis which found little to no overlap in premolar size between Homo erectus and terminal Pleistocene/Holocene H.

Geographic Variation in Zygomaxillary Suture Morphology and its Use in Ancestry Estimation.

Angled/curved zygomaxillary suture coding is widely employed in cranial assessments of ancestry. However, the efficacy of this method has not been extensively evaluated across diverse populations. In this study, zygomaxillary suture morphology was assessed on a total of 411 human crania from six populations (European, Native American, African, Asian, Arctic Circle, and Aboriginal Australian) using a novel 3D coordinate landmark method.

Sexual dimorphism in relative sacral breadth among catarrhine primates.

As the sacrum contributes to the size and shape of the birth canal, the sexually dimorphic sacrum of humans is frequently interpreted within obstetric contexts. However, while the human sacrum has been extensively studied, comparatively little is known about sacral morphology in nonhuman primates. Thus, it remains unclear whether sacral sexual dimorphism exists in other primates, and whether potential dimorphism is primarily related to obstetrics or other factors such as body size dimorphism.

Sutural growth restriction and modern human facial evolution: an experimental study in a pig model.

Facial size reduction and facial retraction are key features that distinguish modern humans from archaic Homo. In order to more fully understand the emergence of modern human craniofacial form, it is necessary to understand the underlying evolutionary basis for these defining characteristics. Although it is well established that the cranial base exerts considerable influence on the evolutionary and ontogenetic development of facial form, less emphasis has been placed on developmental factors intrinsic to the facial skeleton proper.

Allometric scaling of infraorbital surface topography in Homo.

Infraorbital morphology is often included in phylogenetic and functional analyses of Homo. The inclusion of distinct infraorbital configurations, such as the "canine fossa" in Homo sapiens or the "inflated" maxilla in Neandertals, is generally based on either descriptive or qualitative assessments of this morphology, or simple linear chord and subtense measurements. However, the complex curvilinear surface of the infraorbital region has proven difficult to quantify through these traditional methods.