Student Research Conference | Presentation Abstracts

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Ostrich eggshell beads created by the Kalahari Bushmen in Southern Africa were studied in a preliminary analysis to determine whether traces are observable on ostrich eggshell beads with the integration of various advanced microscopes. Ostrich eggshell beads are very delicate, and their surfaces are easily altered making it difficult to distinguish usewear traces with only the aid of a stereomicroscope and a metallurgical microscope. Hence, it is important to include other sources of tools to study traces. The inclusion of the Hirox digital microscope benefits usewear analysis by creating 3D stacked and tiled photographs of artifacts, 3D topography images, and calculating measurements. When working with artifacts that contain faint traces, the JEOL SEM microscope is perfect. It captures detailed images of the traces that are slightly observable with a metallurgical microscope. The traces were then observed with the Olympus FV3000 Laser Scanning Confocal microscope in a higher definition to identify the first point of contact for actions observed on the surface of the beads. Each ostrich eggshell bead analyzed in this project contained drilling traces that were observed with the Hirox digital microscope, JEOL SEM microscope, and Olympus FV3000 Laser Scanning Confocal microscope. 

Master's Student 

Abstract
In the Lower Pecos Canyonlands of southwest Texas, the Intermediate Horizon of Bonfire Shelter captures a period of use spanning the earliest Archaic period (bounded by ca. 12,000-year-old bison jump features) through the Late Archaic period (bounded by ca. 2,500-year-old bison jump features). Excavations over the past sixty years have recorded four thermal features in this Intermediate Horizon. From ethnographic and experimental archaeology sources I am assembling a catalog of known thermal feature types, their attributes, and their expected structures captured using the Harris Matrix method. I compare these expectations against the archaeological results to provide tentative interpretations of the functional use of Bonfire thermal features.

Undergraduate and Master’s Students

Abstract
Spring Lake forms the headwaters of the San Marcos River. The area surrounding the lake has hosted prehistoric peoples since the Paleoindian era and remains a place of cultural reverence for contemporary Indigenous communities. In the early 20th century, an amusement park, hotel, and golf course were built around the lake and brought thousands of patrons to the area for decades until its eventual sale to Texas State University, for whom it now serves research, education, and preservation purposes. To understand evidence of the history of the anthropogenic landscape preserved in buried contexts at one of several archaeological sites associated with the lake, 41HY160, we used a 400-megahertz Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) to detect surface and subsurface anomalies and GPR-SLICE to analyze resulting geospatial data. We will present our reconstruction of the historic golf course and discuss the impact of the course’s features and infrastructure on archaeological deposits. Conclusions will summarize the utility of this data and approach to archaeological research at Spring Lake.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Community functioning is a significant predictor of how well a community will recover from a disaster or other major disruption. This paper reports the findings from adapting COPEWELL, a community resilience framework, in two rural Texas communities. Researchers selected local library directors to act as community partners, and to assemble a local stakeholder group. Each group was introduced to the COPEWELL framework and asked to select part of the framework to guide focus group discussions. Though each group selected a different element of COPEWELL, both locations revealed communication discrepancies between local government and residents, and room for increased collaboration between stakeholders to address issues of resilience.   

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
The Skiles Collection, named for landowner Jack Skiles, consists of Indigenous, Euro-American, and Asian-American cultural material from the Lower Pecos Canyonlands Archaeological region. Beginning in the late 1930s, the Skiles Family amassed an exceptional collection of cultural material representative of the Indigenous peoples who once lived in the canyon where significant archaeological sites such as Bonfire Shelter, Kelly Cave, Skiles Shelter, and Eagle Cave have been recorded. The Indigenous component of the Skiles Collection includes a wide array of artifacts made of faunal bone and lithic, as well as uniquely preserved perishable artifacts. Over multiple generations, the Skiles were consistently good stewards of the archaeological sites located on their property and in 2016 the private collection was relocated to the Center for Archaeological Studies at Texas State University (CAS) for an evaluation, limited conservation, and temporary curation. This paper provides an overview of the collection’s contents and condition, and an account of CAS’s work evaluating, rehousing, documenting, and conserving the Skiles Collection. The collection’s research and educational value will be discussed, as well as the “Ancient Life in the Lower Pecos Canyonlands” exhibition that resulted from it.

Master's Student

Abstract
The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act was added onto in January of this year. I will go over the background and implications of the original Federal Law, the implications of the new regulations, and how professionals in different fields view the new regulations. Lastly, I will discuss some professional suggestions on how to move forward with effective and meaningful consultation between agencies and Native tribes. 

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Theory has long been an important part of archaeological discovery and creating methodologies that assist in the interpretation of the past. Developing theories in archaeological research has been an essential tool in the creation of appropriate research designs, fostering the growth of scientific techniques for analysis, and teaching the next generation of archaeologists how to identify best practices. Decolonization theory emerged in the post-processual archaeological world, heralding a change in these best practices, where a singular Western point of view is no longer the only valid form of archaeological investigation or interpretation. While this shift is key to decolonizing global archaeology, most publications falling within the decolonization spectrum discuss the debates, and key points, citing case studies of decolonization in action. This paper will examine what is largely lacking in decolonization publications, namely sound replicable methodologies for implementing decolonization theory into archaeological practice. 

Master's Student

Abstract
Numerous previous archaeological investigations and sites are recorded at Spring Lake in San Marcos, Texas, representing decades of academic research and work undertaken in cultural resources compliance projects. These projects have identified continuous occupation of the area surrounding the springs that form the headwaters of the San Marcos River from the Paleoindian to the Historic period. Previous geoarchaeological investigations have explored the history of site formation processes primarily at the headwater’s locality; however, the stratigraphy northeast of the springs remains to be clearly defined. This presentation will discuss the current gaps in our understanding of site formational processes northeast of the San Marcos River headwaters and the proposed methodology for a future geoarchaeological investigation to answer these questions.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract 
Fishtail also known as Fell points are Paleoindian points found throughout South America dating to the end of the Late Pleistocene. They are found throughout today’s countries of Brazil, Chile, Argentina, Peru, and other South American countries. Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS), we can better understand the spatial distribution of Fishtail points. The goal of this project was to create a map of the spatial distribution of the sites where Fishtail points have been found and recorded in academic literature. The map includes sites that have noted the GPS coordinates of Fishtail points finds. Results inform on the where past hunter-gatherers were using this point type on the landscape with also consideration of any bias of where the artifacts are being found. 

Master's and Undergraduate Students

Abstract 
The San Marcos Spring site (41HY160) is located along Spring Lake near the Meadows Center for Water and the Environment (formerly Aquarena Center) within the city limits of San Marcos on the Texas State University campus. Spring Lake and the adjacent Sink Creek form the headwaters of the San Marcos River and have been a consistent source of water and has lured flora, fauna, and humans to the area for 13,000 years or more. The area has experienced recurring episodes of deposition, erosion, and stability that resulted in varied stratigraphy across the site. Understanding this variability is crucial to understanding the site's dynamic history. To help inform on the site's dynamic history and stratigraphy, a geophysical survey using ground penetrating radar (GPR) and electrical resistivity (ERT) is currently underway to help identify and map stratigraphic layers and archaeological features. This presentation will highlight the ongoing research and findings from the geophysical survey being conducted at Spring Lake by Trey Lasater. 

Ph.D. Students and Faculty

Abstract 
In forensic anthropology, bone fracture morphology provides potential evidence of the mechanism of injury or death. Specifically, the type of weapon used, the trajectory of impact, and the direction of fire can potentially be estimated from trauma patterning when features such as cranial buttresses and sutures are considered. This study examines fracture patterns resulting from gunshot wounds inflicted along the sagittal and coronal planes on twelve human skulls housed in the Forensic Anthropology Center at Texas State (FACTS) Donated Skeletal Collection. In each donor, the presence and distribution of ectocranial fractures, missing bony segments, and entrance/exit wound morphology are described and compared. Results from these comparisons indicate that while radiating fractures run parallel to buttressed areas of the cranial vault in gunshot wounds along both planes, they also run perpendicular to buttressed areas of the splanchnocranium in wounds inflicted along the sagittal plane. Additionally, both diastatic fractures of the zygomaticotemporal suture and damage inside the orbit were consistently observed in both wound trajectories. This research provides additional lines of evidence to help reconstruct trauma histories of skulls with suspected ballistic trauma and build upon previous research examining gunshot wounds along both the sagittal and coronal planes.  

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
Lucy Atkinson was a student at Texas State University (then called Southwest Texas State Normal School). She was studying home economics and left behind her notes for Domestic Art 1 which involved learning how to hand-sew, use a sewing machine, drafting and using patterns, and general information about handling textiles. I will be conducting an experimental study utilizing techniques in these notebooks to learn how to hand-sew. I will be documenting my work in a notebook just as Lucy Atkinson did. My goals include having the ability to efficiently hand-sew using fundamental stitches and hems, to create/draft a pattern from a small illustration, be able to fit the pattern to my size, and be familiar with hand-sewing teaching techniques in 1915. I will be presenting the project by exhibiting the work and progress of my hand stitches and any garments I create. I will discuss the historical relevance of Lucy’s notebooks and what I was able to learn by using her notes as an educational tool for myself, a young woman at the same school almost 110 years later. 

Undergraduate Students

Abstract
Spider monkeys (Ateles geoffroyi) take part in the social organization system fission-fusion. The structure is coined as this due to the way in which individuals separate from and join smaller subgroups called “parties” within a larger community encompassing a specified home range. This social organization developed likely as the result of feeding competition within groups or parties, and now operates as a mechanism to avoid such behavior. It is utilized by various primates despite vast genetic differences. For example, the social structure can be seen in both chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) and spider monkeys.  This study focuses on a community living in the rainforest of northeastern Costa Rica at Camaquiri Conservation Initiative in Pococi, Limon. Over twelve days, data was collected using scan sampling and interval recording. Collection periods focused on party size, behavior, and composition of subgroups. This research aims to better characterize the impact of adult female spider monkeys on subgroup feeding behavior dynamics. Preliminary findings suggest that higher densities of adult females within subgroups leads to reduced affiliative interactions, shorter party engagement durations, and increased competitiveness among individuals. This work marks some of the initial findings of the Camaquiri spider monkey community’s social organization and composition. 

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
As Texas' Gift to the Nation, Big Bend national park is one of the largest national parks in the United States. The park covers 800,000 acres, ranging nearly 1,800 to 8,000 feet in elevation. Evidence of nearly 12,000 years of human occupation by Paleo-Indian, Archaic peoples, and a variety of southwestern tribes exists here. Early farming and Spanish activity are also evident. While the park currently has a current preservation plan, it has not met expectations. This poster presents a history of the area, the current preservation plan, and a look at the current state of the park with suggestions to improve preservation. 

Master's Student

Abstract
The Nasca culture existed during the Early Intermediate Period from AD 1-650 on the south coast of Perú. In the Nasca culture, significance was placed on the taking of heads and head iconography. Despite all the research on head iconography on Nasca ceramics, little has been conducted on head jars. In instances where head jars have been found in context, it has been hypothesized that they were used as head replacements for headless burials, elite drinking vessels, or symbols of agricultural fertility thought to be brought about by decapitation. I evaluate these hypotheses using a sample of head jars in The Carmichael Archive and the Museo de Arte de Lima. I conducted a structural analysis of the information present on each jar iconographically, their manufacture, position of motifs on each jar, shape, size, level of detail, and evidence of use. Using the Panofsky method I answer my research questions: Do Nasca head jars show signs of use before entering the archaeological record? Are the differences between Nasca head jars indicative of them representing individuals? What is the degree of variability of the shape and iconographic motifs present in the Nasca head jars?

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
Ballet dancers spend years of training to develop the ability to dance en pointe, many starting at very young ages. Once they enter the professional realm of dance, the need to push their physical abilities only increases. For the writing anthropology course, I wanted to see how a professional career in ballet may manifest in the bones. The physical difficulties of a professional career as well as the harmful culture in the ballet world have some negative effects on the human body. I looked at a variety of sports medicine and exercise studies to find the most common effects of dancing en pointe. Dancing en pointe at a professional level can increase the risk of stress fractures, vulnerability to the female athlete triad, and wearing of cartilage in the feet. These issues can have lasting effects as dancers continue their careers and age. 

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
This poster focuses on the intersection of anthropological and geographical causes that may have led to the underutilized disc golf course on the Texas State campus. Focusing on the disc golf course gives a unique insight into what may have led to different underutilized spaces all across campus. I will be using peer reviewed journals, books, case studies, and the official PDGA website to better understand how the lack of attention and care has affected the Texas State campus and student body. This research is aimed at discovering why this space has been neglected and underutilized, and the discussion focuses on why the university should focus on rehabilitating them, and how it could improve student involvement and sense of place.

Master's Student

Abstract
The US healthcare system is unequal? Without universal coverage some individuals, particularly poor and/or underemployed persons, lack access to quality care. While this situation is well-documented, some areas remain unexamined, including coverage among young adults transitioning to adulthood. In my research, I address this gap by interviewing college students about the causes of their insurance gaps and the associated challenges and risks they face living without healthcare coverage. By taking this approach, my research documents the plight of young adults in the US who are precariously transitioning to adulthood.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Before the arrival of the Spanish and their stock animal, the Indigenous cultures of the Eastern Pueblos (Rio Grande and Pecos River Valleys) had contact with the tribes living on the Southern High Plains, who regularly hunted, gathered, and traded for their everyday goods, such as ceramics, stone tools, etc. (Baugh 1991). Starting in 1540, with the coming of Coronado’s expedition and their search for riches, the identities and societies of the Eastern Pueblos and Southern High Plains nations would start to shift, incorporating European tools and animals (Cruse 2023). Come 1680, the Pueblos of the Rio Grande Valley planned out and enacted the first successful Pan-Indigenous revolt in the Americas against the Spanish who escaped south, leaving behind their domestic stock, which allowed them to be easily acquired by the Indigenous peoples of the Southwest and Southern Plains. This study aims to integrate science, tribal collaboration, ethnohistory, and Spanish historical documents into a theoretical materials network model to examine the first avenues of when and from whom the indigenous communities of the Tierra Blanca and Garza complexes of the Southern High Plains acquired their domestic animals and are these similar to where they were getting their trade goods? 

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
The septal aperture is the perfect example of human variation, and how sometimes these morphologies can be most prevalent in certain groups, and for certain reasons. First described in 1815 by J. F. Meckel, septal apertures later garnered the attention of well-known anthropologists including Aleš Hrdlička. Since then, countless studies to understand septal apertures have been performed. The septal aperture can be defined as a small opening varying in size at the distal end of the humerus within the olecranon fossa. Researchers have discovered that septal apertures occur most frequently in females, on the left humeri. The studies on frequency within population affiliation have presented various results, likely influenced by cultures changing definition of who is considered white, and changing methods used to calculate septal aperture frequencies. It should also be mentioned that the connection between robusticity and the presence of a septal aperture has been brought up in tandem with the dominant hand corresponding with the presence of a septal aperture. Scholars and researchers remain divided on whether the septal aperture arises from mechanical function or robusticity of the humerus, indicating the need for further research in this area.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
I will speak in my Dis. Project. I am constructing a " Casa de Cultura" (Culture House)in the Lacandon Maya Village of Lacanja, Chiapas Mexico. This will serve as a place for the Lacandon Maya to exhibit their own cultural materials such as photos, audio and video recordings, and home made art works. The Casa Cultura will also serve as a gathering place for visitors who want to enjoy a coffee and food while learning about the Lacandon Maya from their authentic sources.This Casa Cultura will also give jobs to the Lacandon of Lacanja village.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Diversity is a popular topic for many modern organizations in the United States. As Americans attempt to reckon with historic inequality, government and private institutions now positively promote diversity among their workforce. Despite this common popular theme, however, there is great variation in how organizations promote, manage, and even understand the concept of diversity. What counts as diverse varies from one organizational context to another, and the goals of diversity, equity, and inclusion programs are often poorly articulated to the general workforce, if at all. This research explores how women in the United States Marine Corps experience the regulation of difference. Making up around nine percent of the overall population, women in the Marine Corps are a highly visible minority and are regulated differently than their male counterparts. Using data collected from active-duty Marines across the U.S. and Japan, this work seeks to illuminate how the regulation of difference impacts the lives of female Marines and presents new concepts that may assist organizations lower the regulatory burdens placed upon minority groups.

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
Life along the US-Mexico border is often defined by representations of its perceived issues and measured in units of tragedy. While these notions of the region are not a new phenomenon, they have since worsened after the 2016 presidential election, the August 3, 2019 domestic terrorism attack, and recent waves of migration, resulting in a popular narrative of the borderlands which is dominated by problem-based thinking and misconceptions about the community. Re-membering El Paso seeks to amend this issue, applying multi-media and literary components to create an autoethnography based on interviews with six family members about their experiences living in the El Paso region. Drawing on elements of Chicana feminist theory, the piece presents an alternative to existing narratives about the border shaped by masculine Anglo-American language, “re-membering” El Paso by piecing together its fragmented history. The project is a culmination of oral history, mapmaking, photography, and ethno-poetics forming a collage that takes readers on a tour of the borderlands through time and space from the perspective of those who live there, reclaiming the history of the borderland through the power of storytelling.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
Numerous facets of life are crafted in the attempt to fulfill the needs of humanity. Commodities such as clothing safeguard us from the elements where food, water and other consumables satiate our most basic requirements for survival. However, among the vast inventions that serve humanity, one has left a significant mark: Music. The presence of music is thought-provoking, leading us to question what demand of humanity it pacifies. Music reveals that humanity’s needs transcend the acquisition of tangible goods, extending into a realm of emotion and sound, creating a profound impact on our lives. Music’s impact does not exist in a vacuum of modernity but expands throughout humanity’s ancient history as with the Maya of Mesoamerica. Regarding the Maya, music appears to permeate deep within the mythos of the Maya world. Yet beyond this, it served as a marker of cultural transmission and a form of cultural identity. In this paper, we will journey through the mythical origins of music for the Maya, as it is depicted in iconographical context, followed by its presence in the archaeological record. In conclusion, we will examine potential evidence of cultural transmission through musical instruments between the site of Teotihuacan and the Maya region. 

Master's Student

Abstract
Young adults, including college students, are a high-risk group for many infectious diseases including COVID-19. This is due to social behaviors and norms regarding personal health practices and beliefs about invulnerability to infection within this group. Young adults also have the lowest rates of vaccination among adults, including for COVID-19 vaccines. Using grounded theory, my research seeks to understand how college students make decisions about their health generally, and COVID-19 boosters specifically. In my presentation I will detail the results of this study and consider the relationships between information, decision-making, and health behaviors among college students.

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
In the Trans-Pecos, Lower Pecos, and Southern United States, mandibles of small mammals have been found in varying contexts and interpreted as possible pressure flakers. Pressure flakers, often made of antler or bone, are a key part of flintknapping, especially when making arrow points. Numerous examples exist of mandibles wrapped with sinew or plant material, with examples present from the Trans-Pecos and Lower Pecos regions of Texas. The sinew wrapping is hypothesized to help grip the mandible when being used as a pressure flaker. This project aims to experiment with sinew wrapped jackrabbit mandibles to test their viability as a flintknapping tool and to identify characteristics of use of sinew-wrapped mandibles. 

Master's Student

Abstract
Cycling and bike infrastructure are an important part of modern city design. Cycling Citizenship explores the relationship cyclists have with the state through road infrastructure. It is a type of infrastructural citizenship where certain rights and protections are not always guaranteed. Through participant observation and 20 interviews with local cyclists, I argue that cycling citizenship is characterized by prioritizing safety in the face of neoliberal development practice’s power ecosystem. The result of this study concludes that when the state prioritizes cars over other modes of mobility using infrastructure as a medium with infrastructure funding, design, and enforcement, it creates an unsafe environment for non-cars. Roads then become a medium of segmentation for the community. The type of advocacy that cyclists employ then are the choices they make on the road to prioritize their safety while transforming the space from a transportation one to a sustainable, healthy, acts of choices multilayered and situated within a community.

Undergraduate Student

Abstract
Climate mitigation is an increasingly important topic in modern discourse that goes hand-in-hand with conservation efforts. Most approaches to climate mitigation revolve around large-scale operations that require millions of dollars. There are, however, a host of small-scale options that offer solutions to multiple issues such as food insecurity, mental health, and community presence. This paper will give a brief overview of indigenous practices and philosophies, and how their integration into modern urban society can positively impact these issues on small scales while simultaneously mitigating climate change and furthering conservation efforts.

Masters and Undergraduate Students

Abstract
The purpose of the study was to better understand how anthropology students (graduate and undergraduate) and their faculty mentors perceive applied anthropology graduate education, including how their perceptions impact student-faculty advisement and mentorship, student decisions about graduate schools, and student decisions about their careers. To study this phenomenon we conducted three surveys: (1) undergraduate anthropology majors and minors with and interest in sociocultural anthropology; (2) students currently seeking a master's degree in sociocultural anthropology; and (3) faculty who mentor/advise undergraduate or masters level sociocultural anthropology students. The survey asked participants to volunteer for a Zoom-based phone interview. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis in the hope of supporting the promotional efforts of Texas State Anthropology graduate programs.

Ph.D. Student

Abstract
The composition of the gut microbiome in primates plays a crucial role in the health and well-being of the individual, group and population. It is a dynamic array of bacteria, archaea and fungi constantly shifting. These shifts can occur through horizontal spread of microorganisms not only across single-species groups, but between species. This research focused on the influence of housing squirrel monkeys (Saimiri) with the Brazilian three-banded armadillo (Tolypeutes tricinctus) at the San Antonio Zoo. Fecal samples from captive Saimiri were compared to current microbiome literature of Tolypeutes t. (due to facility regulations and capabilities). The heterospecific housing of Saimiri with armadillos to have an impact on the composition of the gut microbiome with a higher level Fusobacteriota and Firmicutes and a decrease in  and Campylobacterota in those individuals housed with armadillos. There is a significant difference in the diversity of the gut between Saimiri with and without armadillos (p=0.01). Shifts found in the Saimiri gut microbiome should be monitored as the observed impacted phyla have strong influences on digestion, body weight and disease potential. Future research should collect samples directly from heterospecific armadillos for a detailed comparison to heterospecific primates.