Tabitha Dorshorst

Human anatomy, human osteology, ontogeny, the relationships among specific physical activities, muscle function, and bone structure, functional morphology, and biomechanics

I am a biological anthropologist specializing in human osteology and muscle function. My dissertation investigates how specific subsistence activities impact both muscle function and bone structure among the Tsimane, a pre-industrialized Indigenous community in lowland Bolivia. Age plays a critical role for muscle and bone development and dictates which activities individuals partake in; therefore, my work with the Tsimane spans a wide age range between 10 to 70 years old. In addition to my research in Bolivia, I also am engaged in a study that examines ontogenetic changes in cortical and trabecular bone structure throughout the entire life course from infancy to adulthood within the San Paragorio-Noli Medieval skeletal collection from Noli, Italy. Radiocarbon dating places these Medieval skeletal remains between 900-1,400 CE.

• Dorshorst, T., Weir, G., Hamill, J., Holt, B. (2022) Archery’s signature: an electromyographic analysis of the upper limb. Evolutionary Human Sciences
• Dorshorst T, Gold C, Best A. (2021) The 90th annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists. Evolutionary Anthropology. 2021 Jul. 30(4):230-232. DOI: 10.1002/evan.21913. PMID: 34347336.
• Bell, R., Fuchs, A., Rowan, J., Zintel, T., Dorshorst, T. and Zamora, A. (2019). The 88th annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists in Cleveland, Ohio. Evolutionary Anthropology, 28: 106-108.