Fossil replicas to be printed in 3D for scientific research
The world of scientific research is changing and Lake senior Jennifer Webb is taking advantage of new technology.
In October, Central Michigan University opened the MakerBot Innovation Center, the first 3D printing lab in the Midwest. While mostly art and design students use the lab, Webb plans to use the 3D printers in an unconventional way: to conduct scientific research.
The biological anthropology major will conduct research for her honors capstone project. She is studying fossilized remains of a newly-discovered species of early human, Homo naledi, found in a South Africa cave. She plans to obtain these fossils by printing them on a 3D printer.
“In the research that I’ve seen on Homo naledi, 3D printing has never been used for original research,” she said.
Larry Burditt, chairperson of art and design, said he encourages anyone interested in using 3D printers for a project to do so.
Burditt said he has never seen the printers used to print fossils.
Rachel Caspari, chairperson of the department of sociology, anthropology and social work, is Webb’s adviser. She said the Rising Star Cave site excavation was both interesting and revolutionary.
"The site itself is almost impossible to get into," Caspari said.
“You would have to travel through difficult terrain and crawl through a gap about 8 inches wide," she said.
For this reason, the excavation team was almost entirely women, which is rare in scientific research.
Instead of sitting on found material and not letting anyone see it — the usual practice with such discoveries — the excavation team decided to make the information open access. They put all the data online, so anyone can see it.
The excavation process was documented through video updates on YouTube, Caspari said.
“People around the world were watching and getting really excited about science,” she said.
Caspari said she thinks this idea of open access in the scientific community is groundbreaking.
“Hopefully, this will change the culture, and other scientists will operate with much more openness, she said.
Webb is in this first wave of students who are taking advantage of the changing world of science, technology and openness.
Researchers have had difficulty determining how old the Homo naledi fossils are, Webb said.
Previous research on the new species has been in comparison to earlier Homo species, which are approximately 2 million years old.
“Because it hasn’t been dated, I thought it would be cool to compare the remains to later hominin species, to see which one it could be more similar to, (and) get a better idea of how it could possibly be dated,” she said.
Webb will be comparing her printed Homo naledi fossils to the oldest form of our species, Homo sapiens, aged at approximately 100,000 years old.
“In any of the research I’ve seen, no one has compared Homo naledi to later Homo species like I’ve been doing,” she said.
Utility of the 3D printers is showing to be widespread, Burditt said.
“I’ve been told that a couple of engineering classes now require that students print out 3D projections,” he said. “A lot of natural history collections have started using 3D printers to archive images and information."
Caspari explained the conflicting characteristics of Homo naledi remains is one of the factors making it difficult to determine the age of the species. She said the brain size is similar to a chimpanzee, somewhat similar to very early human ancestors. However the cultural implications evident by the cave sight, and traits held, such as the ability to walk upright, are much more associated with later hominin species.
Webb plans to present her findings at the American Anthropological Association meetings in Minneapolis this November.
After graduating in the December, she said she aims to pursue a master’s degree in forensic anthropology.
“I like being able to tell a story from looking at bones,” she said. “It’s really one of the coolest things.”
