MainIdea: Human skull
In humans, the adult skull is normally made up of 22 bones. Except for the mandible, all of the bones of the skull are joined together by sutures, synarthrodial (immovable) joints formed by bony ossification, with Sharpey's fibres permitting some flexibility.
The skull is a complex structure; its bones are formed both by intramembranous and endochondral ossification. The bones of the splanchnocranium (face) and the sides and roof of the neurocranium are formed by intramembranous ossification, while the bones supporting the brain are largely formed by endochondral ossification.
At birth, the human skull is made up of 404 separate bony elements. As growth occurs, many of these bony elements gradually fuse together into solid bone. The bones of the roof of the skull are initially separated by regions of dense connective tissue called "cranial sutures". At birth these regions are fibrous and moveable, necessary for birth and later growth. This growth can put a large amount of tension on the "obstetrical hinge," which is where the squamous and lateral parts of the occipital bone meet. A possible complication of this tension is rupture of the great cerebral vein of Galen. Larger regions of connective tissue where multiple sutures meet are called fontanelles. As growth and ossification progress, the connective tissue of the fontanelles is invaded and replaced by bone. The posterior fontanelle usually closes by eight weeks, but the anterior fontanelle can remain open up to eighteen months. The anterior fontanelle is located at the junction of the frontal and parietal bones; it is a "soft spot" on a baby's forehead. Careful observation will show that you can count a baby's heart rate by observing his or her pulse pulsing softly through the anterior fontanelle.
Craniometry and morphology of human skulls
The German physician Franz Joseph Gall in around 1800 formulated the theory of phrenology, which attempted to show that specific features of the skull are associated with certain personality traits or intellectual capabilities of its owner. This theory is now considered to be obsolete.
Sexual dimorphism
In general, male skulls tend to be larger and more robust than female skulls, which are more gracile. Male skulls typically have more prominent supraorbital ridges. Male skulls on average have larger, broader palates, squarer orbits, larger mastoid processes, larger sinuses, and larger occipital condyles than those of females. Male mandibles typically have squarer chins and thicker, rougher muscle attachments than female mandibles.
Ancestry
Although persons' descents are occasionally stereotyped as different from other ethnic groups on the basis of a variety of traits like eye, hair and skin color, all such characters are not discrete nor preserved in bones. Among archaeologists and forensic scientists, it is still sometimes stated that the most consistent and unique trait of ancestry in skeleton is skull shape.
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