Search

International audience; Because of its exceptional degree of preservation and its geological age of ∼3.67 Ma, StW 573 makes an invaluable contribution to our understanding of early hominin evolution and paleobiology. The morphology of the bony labyrinth has the potential to provide information about extinct primate taxonomic diversity, phylogenetic relationships and locomotor behaviour. In this context, we virtually reconstruct and comparatively assess the bony labyrinth morphology in StW 573. As comparative material, we investigate 17 southern African hominin specimens from Sterkfontein, Swartkrans and Makapansgat (plus published data from two specimens from Kromdraai B), attributed to Australopithecus, early Homo or Paranthropus, as well as 10 extant human and 10 extant chimpanzee specimens. We apply a landmark-based geometric morphometric method for quantitatively assessing labyrinthine morphology. Morphology of the inner ear in StW 573 most closely resembles that of another Australopithecus individual from Sterkfontein, StW 578, recovered from the Jacovec Cavern. Within the limits of our sample, we observe a certain degree of morphological variation in the Australopithecus assemblage of Sterkfontein Member 4. Cochlear morphology in StW 573 is similar to that of other Australopithecus as well as to Paranthropus specimens included in this study, but it is substantially different from early Homo. Interestingly, the configuration of semicircular canals in Paranthropus specimens from Swartkrans differs from other fossil hominins, including StW 573. Given the role of the cochlea in the sensory-driven interactions with the surrounding environment, our results offer new perspectives for interpreting early hominin behaviour and ecology. Finally, our study provides additional evidence for discussing the phylogenetic polarity of labyrinthine traits in southern African hominins.

Background Peripheral vision often deteriorates with age, disrupting our ability to maintain normal locomotion. Laboratory based studies have shown that lower visual field loss, in particular, is associated with changes in gaze and gait behaviour whilst walking and this, in turn, increases the risk of falling in the elderly. Separately, gaze and gait behaviours change and fall risk increases when walking over complex surfaces. It seems probable, but has not yet been established, that these challenges to stability interact. Research question How does loss of the lower visual field affect gaze and gait behaviour whilst walking on a variety of complex surfaces outside of the laboratory? Specifically, is there a synergistic interaction between the effects on behaviour of blocking the lower visual field and increased surface complexity? Methods We compared how full vision versus simulated lower visual field loss affected a diverse range of behavioural measures (head pitch angle, eye angle, muscle coactivation, gait speed and walking smoothness as measured by harmonic ratios) in young participants. Participants walked over a range of surfaces of different complexity, including pavements, grass, steps and pebbles. Results In both full vision and blocked lower visual field conditions, surface complexity influenced gaze and gait behaviour. For example, more complex surfaces were shown to be associated with lowered head pitch angles, increased leg muscle coactivation, reduced gait speed and decreased walking smoothness. Relative to full vision, blocking the lower visual field caused a lowering of head pitch, especially for more complex surfaces. However, crucially, muscle coactivation, gait speed and walking smoothness did not show a significant change between full vision and blocked lower visual field conditions. Finally, head pitch angle, muscle coactivation, gait speed and walking smoothness were all correlated highly with each other. Significance Our study showed that blocking the lower visual field did not significantly change muscle coactivation, gait speed or walking smoothness. This suggests that young people cope well when walking with a blocked lower visual field, making minimal behavioural changes. Surface complexity had a greater effect on gaze and gait behaviour than blocking the lower visual field. Finally, head pitch angle was the only measure that showed a significant synergistic interaction between surface complexity and blocking the lower visual field. Together our results indicate that, first, a range of changes occur across the body when people walk over more complex surfaces and, second, that a relatively simple behavioural change (to gaze) suffices to maintain normal gait when the lower visual field is blocked, even in more challenging environments. Future research should assess whether young people cope as effectively when several impairments are simulated, representative of the comorbidities found with age.

Here we report on a Holocene inter-dune site close to Walvis Bay (Namibia) which contains exceptionally well-preserved children’s footprints. The footprint surface is dated using Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) methods to approximately 1.5 ka. These dates are compared to those obtained at nearby footprint sites and used to verify a model of diachronous footprint surfaces and also add to the archaeological data available for the communities that occupied these near-coastal areas during the Holocene. This model of diachronous footprint surfaces has implications for other soft-sediment footprint sites such as the 1.5 Ma old footprints at Ileret (Kenya). The distribution of both human and animal tracks, is consistent with the passage of small flock of small ungulates (probably sheep/goats) followed by a group of approximately 9 ± 2 individuals (children or young adults). Age estimates from the tracks suggest that some of the individuals may have been as young as five years old. Variation in track topology across this sedimentologically uniform surface is explained in terms of variations in gait and weight/stature of the individual print makers and is used to corroborate a model of footprint morphology developed at a nearby site. The significance of the site within the literature on human footprints lies in the quality of the track preservation, their topological variability despite a potentially uniform substrate, and the small size of the tracks, and therefore the inferred young age of the track-makers. The site provides an emotive insight into the life of the track-makers.

The gait cycle is continuous, but for practical reasons one is often forced to analyze one or only a few adjacent cycles, for example in non-treadmill laboratory investigations and in fossilized footprint analysis. The nature of variability in long-term gait cycle dynamics has been well-investigated, but short-term variability, and specifically correlation, which are highly relevant to short gait bouts, have not. We presently tested for step-to-step autocorrelation in a total of 5243 plantar pressure (PP) distributions from ten subjects who walked at 1.1 m/s on an instrumented treadmill. Following spatial foot alignment, data were analyzed both from three points of interest (POI): heel, central metatarsals, and hallux, and for the foot surface as a whole, in a mass-univariate manner. POI results revealed low average step-to-step autocorrelation coefficients (r = 0.327 +/- 0.094; mean +/- st. dev.). Formal statistical testing of the whole-foot r distributions reached significance over an average of only 0.42 +/- 0.52% of the foot's surface, even for a highly conservative uncorrected threshold of p < 0.05. The common assumption, that short gait bouts consist of independent cycles, is therefore not refuted by the present PP results., Article, GAIT & POSTURE. 38(4):1054-1057 (2013)

Evidence has frequently been reported of modifications in gait patterns within the lower limb related to the cadence of walking. Most reports have concerned relationships between cadence and kinematic and the kinetic changes occurring in the main joints and muscles of the lower limb as a whole. The aim of the present study was to assess whether significant changes are also measurable in kinematics of the foot segments. An existing 15 marker-set protocol allowed a four-segment foot and shank model to be defined for relative rotations between the segments to be calculated. Stereophotogrammetry was employed to record marker position data from ten subjects walking at three cadences. The slow- and normal cadence datasets showed similar profiles of joint rotation in three anatomical planes, but significant differences were found between these and the fast cadence. At all joints, frame-by-frame statistical analysis revealed increased dorsiflexion from heel-strike to midstance (p < 0.05) and increased plantarflexion from midstance to toe-off (p < 0.05) with increasing cadence. From foot-flat to heel-rise, the fast cadence kinematic data showed a decreased range of motion in the sagittal-plane between forefoot and rearfoot (3.2 degrees +/- 1.2 degrees at slow cadence; 2.0 degrees +/- 0.8 degrees at fast cadence; p < 0.05). The cadences imposed and the multisegment protocol revealed significant kinematic changes in the joints of the foot during barefoot walking.

Computational steering is an investigative paradigm whereby the parameters of a running program can be altered according to what is seen in the currently visualized results of the simulation. For certain problems, interactive computation brings specific benefits: parameter sweeps can be completed more efficiently by quickly identifying combinations of input values that yield nonsensical results; 'what-if' studies may elucidate a number of related hypotheses without computing all of them from scratch; even simply tracking the development of a computation on-line may allow its early termination (with consequent resource savings) if it turns out its set-up was flawed for some reason. Having first come to prominence in the 1990s, the take-up of steering has accelerated in recent years: high performance computer (HPC) facilites have become more widely available, usage of the Grid is increasing, and visualization is experiencing take-up beyond the walls of the pioneering graphics laboratories that first nurtured it. All these factors combine to expand the range and difficulty of the scientific problems that can be tackled by steering. However, this benefit comes at the cost of increasing hardware and software complexity which itself may defeat further progress. This paper discusses these issues and, in the light of some users' recent experiences, charts the challenges that still face us.

Image registration, the process of transforming images such that homologous structures optimally overlap, provides the pre-processing foundation for pixel-level functional image analysis. The purpose of this study was to compare the performances of seven methods of within-subjects pedobarographic image registration: (1) manual, (2) principal axes, (3) centre of pressure trajectory, (4) mean squared error, (5) probability-weighted variance, (6) mutual information, and (7) exclusive OR. We assumed that foot-contact geometry changes were negligibly small trial-to-trial and thus that a rigid-body transformation could yield optimum registration performance. Thirty image pairs were randomly selected from our laboratory database and were registered using each method. To compensate for inter-rater variability, the mean registration parameters across 10 raters were taken as representative of manual registration. Registration performance was assessed using four dissimilarity metrics (#4-7 above). One-way MANOVA found significant differences between the methods (p

This study investigates the relation between walking speed and the distribution of peak plantar pressure and compares a traditional ten-region subsampling (10RS) technique with a new technique: pedobarographic statistical parametric mapping (pSPM). Adapted from cerebral fMRI methodology, pSPM is a digital image processing technique that registers foot pressure images such that homologous structures optimally overlap, thereby enabling statistical tests to be conducted at the pixel level. Following previous experimental protocols, we collected pedobarographic records from 10 subjects walking at three different speeds: slow, normal, and fast. Walking speed was recorded and correlated with the peak pressures extracted from the 10 regions, and subsequently with the peak pixel data extracted after pSPM preprocessing. Both methods revealed significant positive correlation between peak plantar pressure and walking speed over the rearfoot and distal forefoot after Bonferroni correction for multiple comparisons. The 10RS analysis found positive correlation in the midfoot and medial proximal forefoot, but the pixel data exhibited significant negative correlation throughout these regions (p5x10(-5)). Comparing the statistical maps from the two approaches shows that subsampling may conflate pressure differences evident in pixel-level data, obscuring or even reversing statistical trends. The negative correlation observed in the midfoot implies reduced longitudinal arch collapse with higher walking speeds. We infer that this results from pre- or early-stance phase muscle activity and speculate that preferred walking speed reflects, in part, a balance between the energy required to tighten the longitudinal arch and the apparent propulsive benefits of the stiffened arch.

The ratio of the power arm (the distance from the heel to the talocrural joint) to the load arm (that from the talocrural joint to the distal head of the metatarsals), or RPL, differs markedly between the human and ape foot. The arches are relatively higher in the human foot in comparison with those in apes. This study evaluates the effect of these two differences on biomechanical effectiveness during bipedal standing, estimating the forces acting across the talocrural and tarsometatarsal joints, and attempts to identify which type of foot is optimal for bipedal standing. A simple model of the foot musculoskeletal system was built to represent the geometric and force relationships in the foot during bipedal standing, and measurements for a variety of human and ape feet applied. The results show that: (1) an RPL of around 40% (as is the case in the human foot) minimizes required muscle force at the talocrural joint; (2) the presence of an high arch in the human foot reduces forces in the plantar musculature and aponeurosis; and (3) the human foot has a lower total of force in joints and muscles than do the ape feet. These results indicate that the proportions of the human foot, and the height of the medial arch are indeed better optimized for bipedal standing than those of apes, further suggesting that their current state is to some extent the product of positive selection for enhanced bipedal standing during the evolution of the foot.

Summary. Biomechanical modelling has become a very popular technique for investigating functional anatomy. Modern computer simulation packages make producing such models straightforward and it is tempting to take the results produced at face value. However the predictions of a simulation are only validwhen both the mod el and the input parameters are accurate andlittle work has been done to verify this. In this paper a model of the human jaw is produced and a sensitivity analysis is performed to validate the results. The model is built using the ADAMS multibody dynamic simulation package incorporating the major occlusive muscles of mastication (temporalis, masseter, medial and lateral pterygoids) as well as a highly mobile temporomandibular joint. This model is used to predict the peak three-dimensional bite forces at each teeth location, joint reaction forces, and the contributions made by each individual muscle. The results for occlusive bite-force (1080N at M1) match those previously published suggesting the model is valid. The sensitivity analysis was performedby sampling the input parameters from likely ranges andrunning the simulation many times rather than using single, best estimate values. This analysis shows that the magnitudes of the peak retractive forces on the lower teeth were highly sensitive to the chosen origin (andhence fibre d irection) of the temporalis andmasseter muscles as well as the laxity of the TMJ. Peak protrusive force was also sensitive to the masseter origin. These result shows that the model is insufficiently complex to estimate these values reliably although the much lower sensitivity values obtainedfor the bite forces in the other directions and also for the joint reaction forces suggest that these predictions are sound. Without the sensitivity analysis it wouldnot have been possible to identify these weaknesses which strongly supports the use of sensitivity analysis as a validation technique for biomechanical modelling.

The fossil record of early hominids (early human ancestors) suggests that their stature and weight had a tendency to increase, but their robusticity (the proportion of radius to length) to decrease. Using a simple musculo-skeletal model, this paper explores possible relationships between size, power required for motion (PRM) and cycle-time, deriving relationships which indicate that PRM per unit of mass and velocity is proportional to robusticity, but inversely proportional to stature. The results derived appear to be in general agreement with published data from physiological experiments. If the material properties of early hominids were similar to those of modern humans and the achievement of minimum PRM was the selective criterion, human stature might tend to increase slightly in human evolution (and, if selective pressures are not removed, might do so in the future but at lower rate). If mobility and stability under loading are the selective criteria, however, human size should not substantially increase in the future.

Analyses of dental function are an essential component of the study of human evolution. However, with few exceptions, they have utilized the traditional analogizing method of comparative anatomy, and have assumed rather than demonstrated that proposed adaptive characters confer a performance benefit. Since food reduction is a mechanical process, it is appropriate to measure performance using mechanical parameters, specifically the ability of a given morphology to induce failure in food particle by either of the two major regimes: crush and shear, corresponding to simple stresses (tensile and compressive) and shear stress, respectively. We apply finite elements stress analysis to model the relationship between the angulation of the intercuspal occlusal surfaces in a “puncture crushing” mode of mastication. On the basis of morphological data acquired from sectioned great ape molars, we have predicted the nature, magnitude and distribution of stress in a standard food particle by models representing each morphotype. Results indicate that the blunt-cusped molars of Homo , the gradually-sloping supporting (buccal) cusps but high-angled guiding (lingual) cusps of the lower molars of Pan , and the high angled occlusal surfaces of Gorilla are all more likely to fracture small food particles by shear, while the gradually sloping occlusal surfaces of Pongo molars are more likely to break them down by “crush”. Mechanisms of food failure induced by molars of Pan and Homo will vary according to the orientation of the tooth–food contacting surfaces, which in turn will vary according to the size of the food particle. These genera may be able to break food down either by shear or by “crush”.

We demonstrate that allometry is a major factor in the variation of hand-axes from the late Lower Pleistocene Acheulean site of Kilombe in Kenya. Acheulean hand-axes were made in a range of sizes, from ca. 8-30 cm in length, and are superficially similar in form at different sizes, even though functional requirements might be expected to vary. To make an appropriate study of three-dimensional form we require a method for analysing size-related change in multiple measures of form. Jolicoeur's multivariate generalization of the allometric equation, (y = bx4), provides a suitable technique, based on the angular relationships of co-ordinates for each measure to the first principal component of the covariance matrix. We have applied this approach to an analysis of several biface assemblages from separate parts of the Kilombe site complex. Allometry is an important component in all the localities, but one area observes a different set of adjustments. We argue that the allometry is probably imposed in response to functional requirements: it suggests that Homo erectus was constrained to follow a number of different guiding principles in the manufacturing process.