Rebecca L. George

Instructor of Anthropology and Assistant Director of Forensic Anthropology Facilities Western Carolina University

  • Cullowhee NC

Rebecca L. George focuses on the utility of dental morphology and metrics to estimate population affinity within forensic anthropology.

Contact

Media

Social

Biography

George is an Instructor of Anthropology and the Forensic Anthropology Facilities Curator at Western Carolina University. Her research centers on the utility of dental morphology and odontometrics to answer bioarchaeological and forensic anthropological questions, with specific focuses on U.S. Latinx and Mexico City populations.

Industry Expertise

Medical/Dental Practice

Areas of Expertise

Forensic Anthropology
Dental Anthropology
Osteology
Skeletal Processing
Bioarchaeology

Accomplishments

Program of the Year Award,, Western Carolina University

2023

Outstanding Graduate Student Researcher Award, UNR Graduate Student Association

2020

Public Engagement Award, UNR Department of Anthropology

2019

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Education

University of Nevada, Reno

Ph.D.

Anthropology

2020

California State University, Chico

M.A.

Anthropology

2015

University of Tennessee

M.A.

Anthropology

2012

Affiliations

  • American Academy of Forensic Sciences: Anthropology : Trainee Affliate
  • Northern Nevada Disaster Victim Recovery Team : Member
  • Dental Anthropology Association : Member
  • American Association of Physical/Biological Anthropologists : Member
  • American Academy of Forensic Sciences: Anthropology : Student Affliate
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Languages

  • English

Media Appearances

Deceased nun has retained her composure

The Telegraph  online

2023-06-02

Rebecca George, an anthropology instructor at Western Carolina University, offers a scientific explanation for Lancaster’s inviolate remains. "When there is decreased oxygen flow, such as in a coffin, and in a cooler climate - such as the clay the coffin was in - could absolutely slow decomposition down," she said. "The public rarely sees a human body at this stage of decomposition, so this is likely contributing to the interest we are seeing.” The condition of Lancaster’s corpse “is typical given the coffin and clothing protecting the remains."

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Nun whose body shows little decay since 2019 death draws hundreds to rural Missouri

AP News  online

2023-05-30

Rebecca George, an anthropology instructor at Western Carolina University in North Carolina, said the body’s lack of decomposition might not be as rare as people are expecting.

George said the “mummification” of un-embalmed bodies is common at the university’s facility and the bodies could stay preserved for many years, if allowed to.

Coffins and clothing also help to preserve bodies, she said.

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Why thousands are visiting Sister Wilhelmina Lancaster's body 5 years after burial

Geo News  online

2023-05-30

Rebecca George, an anthropology tutor at Western Carolina University, noted that the "body's lack of decomposition might not be that rare, adding that coffins and clothing help to preserve bodies."

She added: "Typically when we bury people, we don't exhume them. We don't get to look at them a couple of years out."

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Event Appearances

Applicability of malocclusion scoring within the John A. Williams Human Skeletal Collection

(2023) 92nd Annual Meeting of the American Association of Biological Anthropologists  Reno, NV

Applicability of malocclusion scoring within the John A. Williams Human Skeletal Collection.

(2023) WCU Research and Scholarship Conference  Cullowhee, NC

The thermal damage analysis resulting from a controlled burn

(2023) 75th Annual AAFS Scientific Conference  Orlando, FL

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Articles

Fuzzy logic as an approach for assessing dental variation.

American Journal of Biological Anthropology

In preperation

A Survey of Metopic Suture Persistence in the Published Literature

The Journal of Student Research

2023

The metopic suture separates the halves of the frontal bone. This suture typically fuses by the second year of life, but in some instances, persists beyond that. This project examines published literature to explore rates of persistence for examining its utility in bio-anthropological contexts, such as forensic anthropology or bioarchaeology, for ancestry estimation and in clinical settings so it is not confused with a fracture. The metopic suture shows variation in the timing of closure, but when it persists permanently, may assume a variety of shapes. The metopic suture is believed to persist commonly in European and Asian ancestries. A global survey paper by Hanihara and Ishida (2001) served as the impetus to explore published rates on metopism. This project relied on a literature review through academic search engines such as GoogleScholar, OneSearch, and Science Direct to find sources examining metopism. Results demonstrated that metopism does vary according to population, with persistence rates being as high as 63.2% in certain ancestral groups. Generally, the metopic suture persists most commonly in populations with European and Asian ancestry, as expected, but was also found in rates as high as 7.5% in historic African American samples. These results provided some insight as to how future studies relying on population history could explore the influence of genetics and environment on the prevalence of cranial morphological traits such as the metopic suture, as there is still a great deal unknown about why certain traits are more common in some ancestry groups than others.

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Barriers to entry and success in forensic anthropology

Anthropologist Vital Topics Forum: Cultivating a Socially Conscious, Activist, and Inclusive Forensic Anthropology.

2022

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