Biological Anthropology
Biological anthropology, also known as physical anthropology, is the study of human biology. It examines the biological traits of humans past and present, and how these traits interact with cultural factors to produce human variation through time. Biological anthropologists also study the evolutionary origins of the human species from non-human primates that began many millions of years ago.Traditionally, biological anthropologists relied mainly on fossilized skeletal remains for their studies. In recent decades, however, advances in the field of genetics have enabled them to examine ancient DNA for clues to our origins. Some biological anthropologists focus on primatology, the study of the behavior and biological traits of non-human primates, in part to gain greater understanding of the behavior and biology of ancient and modern humans. Forensic anthropology, which applies anthropological methods to legal issues (e.g., identification of crime victims), is a very dynamic branch of applied biological anthropology.
In common with the other three subfields of anthropology, biological anthropology uses the comparative method to test the boundaries between the culturally constructed and the biologically determined.
