angle: The space (usually measured in degrees) between two intersecting lines or surfaces at or close to the point where they meet.
artifact: Some human-made object (such as a pot or brick) that can be used as one gauge of a community’s culture or history.
atom: The basic unit of a chemical element. Atoms are made up of a dense nucleus that contains positively charged protons and uncharged neutrons. The nucleus is orbited by a cloud of negatively charged electrons.
bat: A type of winged mammal comprising more than 1,400 separate species — or one in every four known species of mammal.
bioarchaeologist: Someone who studies human history through research on the remains of ancient people or of the animals closely associated with them.
chemical: A substance formed from two or more atoms that unite (bond) in a fixed proportion and structure. For example, water is a chemical made when two hydrogen atoms bond to one oxygen atom. Its chemical formula is H2O. Chemical also can be an adjective to describe properties of materials that are the result of various reactions between different compounds.
context: The setting or circumstances that help explain an event, some statement or some conclusion.
copper: A metallic chemical element in the same family as silver and gold. Because it is a good conductor of electricity, it is widely used in electronic devices.
dental: (adj.) Meaning related to teeth.
DNA: (short for deoxyribonucleic acid) A long, double-stranded and spiral-shaped molecule inside most living cells that carries genetic instructions. It is built on a backbone of phosphorus, oxygen, and carbon atoms. In all living things, from plants and animals to microbes, these instructions tell cells which molecules to make.
excavation: A site where someone has systematically removed earth or rock to uncover buried materials of value, such as bones or artifacts.
forensic: An adjective referring to the use of science and technology to investigate and solve crimes.
insight: The ability to gain an accurate and deep understanding of a situation just by thinking about it, instead of working out a solution through experimentation.
isotopes: Different forms of an element that vary somewhat in mass (and potentially in lifetime). All have the same number of protons in their nucleus, but different numbers of neutrons.
oxygen: A gas that makes up about 21 percent of Earth’s atmosphere. All animals and many microorganisms need oxygen to fuel their growth (and metabolism).
remnant: Something that is leftover — from another piece of something, from another time or even some features from an earlier species.
silk: A fine, strong, soft fiber spun by a range of animals, such as silkworms and many other caterpillars, weaver ants, caddis flies and spiders.
skull: The skeleton of a person’s or animal’s head.
social: (adj.) Relating to gatherings of people; a term for animals (or people) that prefer to exist in groups. (noun) A gathering of people, for instance those who belong to a club or other organization, for the purpose of enjoying each other’s company.
society: An integrated group of people or animals that generally cooperate and support one another for the greater good of them all.