Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with bones

Will baby's skull look "normal"?

Anonymous — Sun, 19 Jul 2009 00:20:43 -0800

Question about my three-month-old's head shape. My daughter was born 3 months ago, and during the delivery, at the last minute, there was an emergency. Her blood pressure dropped and the doctor had to affix a plunger-like vacuum device to her crowning head and pull her out for delivery. I live in a country where that technique is more commonly used than forceps.

The result of this is that her head is somewhat elongated towards the crown. If you look at her face to face, it's not noticeable, but from the side you can pretty clearly see the odd shape. She's also pretty much bald and you can see her entire skull. Once she has more hair it'll be much harder to discern her head shape.

I realize that newborns' skull bones haven't hardened yet and won't for some time. But is it possible that she'll have this elongated shape once the bones fuse?

FWIW, we love our kid no matter what! With the intensity of a thousand suns! I'm just curious how she'll look a few years from now.

Is this a type of archeologist or a type of pathologist?

biochemist — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 11:10:08 -0800

What does a paleopathologist actually do? I'm not looking for technical terms, but rather "a day in the life of." Is there another term for this specialty that can lead to more information about the profession?

My legs are built wrong. Is there a solution?

tzikeh — Tue, 21 Apr 2009 18:30:40 -0800

I'm 40 years old. Is there any way to bend my bones into another position if they're malformed? My legs are a disaster area. I have to turn my (very, very flat) feet out 90 degrees just to get my knees to face forward. If I aim my feet straight ahead, I'm not bow-legged (thighs are straight), so much as... I don't know, shins-bent-into-arc legged? And it hurts my ankles. It's like every joint from my hips to my toes was built wrong.

I don't have plantar fascitis, ITBS, or any other foot/leg-related problems.

Okay, so, lucky you - you get to see my 40-year-old legs for reference's sake:

Here my feet are parallel to one another, and facing forward. You can't really tell in the photo, but if I were to bend at the knees, they'd knock into one another at a severe angle.

Here my feet are at a 90-degree angle to one another (first position, for you ballet people out there). In this position, if I bend my knees, they go straight forward, parallel, like a regular pair of legs would do if their feet were facing straight forward.

If I were to turn my feet into a 180-degree line (and I can), my knees would bend slightly outward. This is why I never got far in ballet.

Does anyone know if there are leg braces or something that could bend my bones into some kind of normal shape? I wouldn't be at all embarrassed to wear them, if it meant that I could eventually walk and run like a person with regular legs. Or is it far too late to reshape bones at my age?

(Also - I've never understood why people with flat feet should get walking/running shoes with high arches, or orthotics. Doesn't that just throw your whole body out of whack?)

Chicken bones in NYC please

donblood — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 17:55:58 -0800

Where can I buy chicken bones in Manhattan (or Astoria)? I could have sworn I saw an identical question in the green within the last couple months but very extensive googling hasn't turned it up (the thread about NJ doesn't count). I'd like to buy chicken bones or necks for stock in NYC - Manhattan or if at all possible Astoria. The tour du butcer has come up empty; we've tried several places but they've only had beef bones.

Any recommendations, or even just a link to the original thread and prompt deletion of this one? Thanks in advance.

Can I Get In Trouble Regarding My Donation of a Human Skull?

Modus Pwnens — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 11:32:27 -0800

SkullCourierFilter- My fiancee's family had a human skull that her father had somehow procured. I donated it to our school and they said they may have to report it to the police. Do I have anything to worry about? The skull is clearly some sort of archaeological artifact. It is varnished and had some partially erased writing on the top of it detailing where (we believe) it was dug up, and by whom it was dug up. My fiancee's father (the original possessor of the skull) who passed away quite a while ago, left it with some friends who were moving. They passed it back to to my fiancee's family, who were creeped out by the prospect of having a human skull in their home, so I agreed to be its caretaker.

My fiancee called up the anthropology department at my university, and they agreed to accept it as a donation. They said they believed they might have to report it to the police, and I told them that was fine and I left my information in case I needed to be contacted.

My feeling is that since I haven't done anything wrong (and certainly haven't killed anyone and kept their skull!), I don't have anything to fear from the law. Am I wrong in believing that?

Why is it so hard to find online mouse skulls?

Squid Voltaire — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 09:49:19 -0800

Where can I buy mouse skulls online? In the interest of experimenting with found-art reliquary construction, I thought I'd buy some mouse skulls. To my shock, I couldn't find any for sale, and eventually bought a muskrat skull on ebay*.

I eventually discovered Skulls Unlimited from a previous askMe, but they charge fifteen bucks plus shipping.

I guess I assumed that, since they are considered vermin and are regularly exterminated, someone in this crazy world would be selling mouse skull five for a dollar. Preferably someone like Sarina Brewer, who uses and sells donated carcasses and roadkill only.

So, in short, anyone have any suggestions for cheap, ethical memento mori?

*Upon payment, I noticed that they also sold skins and traps, making me feel a bit as though I'd commissioned this animal's death. Boo.

What's up with canned salmon with the bones?

like_neon — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 04:28:01 -0800

Why, why, WHY sell canned salmon with bones?? Last night while making a lovely salmon pea risotto I realized I mistakenly bought canned salmon with the bones in. It wasn't just little bits of bones, but what seemed like the vertebrate as well, ick. It took me ages to pick them all out and it kind of ruined the meal experience since we were wary of any bones I might have missed.

If I ever again inadvertently fall for this trap again, what can I do with a can of salmon WITH BONES?

(and why do they sell this version and why is it so hard to tell from looking at the the can?)

Help me find a word relating to balance

Mil — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:15:58 -0800

I'm searching for a word, possibly a technical or medical term, that I think starts with the letter p, and that defines the relationship between the bones in the feet as they apply to overall balance. Am I dreaming this word?

How long should I boil my bones for?

emperor.seamus — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 10:23:31 -0800

How long should one boil bones for to get the meat/fat off them? I have two large marrow bones, and assorted smaller ones, any advice would be much appreciated!

Deathgrip related?

birdie birdington — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 12:37:56 -0800

Knuckles: A few days ago I woke up with a bad grinding feeling in my right hand knuckles. The bones in the knuckles of my middle and ring fingers feel grindy, and also clicky. Where the motion to make a fist is usually smooth and seamless, and still is on my left hand, on my right it's really exaggerated and clicky. Usually at some point during the day it gets smoother and less weird/bad feeling, but by the time I wake up in the morning it feels weird and bad again.

I know you're not a doctor or my doctor, but I'm not even sure what search terms to use, though any combination of "grinding" "knuckles" "clicking" didn't really do much.

The only thing I can think of is that I might've been doing a deathgrip on my bike handles lately, but even then, I don't know what to call it or what I should do about it. Also, there's no swelling or bruising or anything.

Can I expect it to just go away? Do I need more serious medical attention? Do I have arthritis? Help!

Bones teleplay?

clockworkjoe — Tue, 28 Aug 2007 10:34:54 -0800

Where can I find some scripts of the TV show Bones? I want to write a spec script for the show Bones, but google and the popular script sites don't have any actual teleplays. I do not want a transcript. I want a script from the show that I can read to get a better feel for the show.

Unhappy Blouse Clowns

Kloryne — Fri, 10 Aug 2007 21:23:01 -0800

My dress "bones" are impaling my chest - anyone know any tricks to ease the pain? I'm going to an evening wedding soon and I'd really like to wear this silk black dress I have. I pulled it out of the back of my closet tonight to see if it still fit and remembered why I'd shoved into the outer regions. The "bones" that hold up the stitching in the waist jab right into the underside of my breasts when I sit, breathe, or exist.

I remember wearing this to an event before and dealing with the help of an open bar. Though this is definitely an option for this event, I would like to know if there's something else I can do to keep the pain away.

Wearing a different dress is really not an option (4th wedding with the same group of people & I don't own many dresses). And I'd really like to not have to rush out and buy something new just so I can eat rice pilaf and dance with drunken relatives. Also, a bra is not an option because of the low back on the dress. But the main reason is vanity -- I actually look good in this (I think).

Is there anything I can sew into the dress to help? Or is there something out there that costumers use when this occurs? I really don't know what to do.

Thanks for your help.

Fish skull thingies

casarkos — Tue, 12 Jun 2007 20:18:18 -0800

Icthyoid anatomy question: what are these things inside fish skulls? When I pick apart the skull from a whole fish to get at the last tasty meat bits, I frequently find a pair of hard brittle pieces sitting just behind the fish brain, which don't seem to be attached to anything. These pieces are different shapes and sizes depending on the fish species, and are harder and more brittle than fish bone - actually they seem to have the same texture as tooth enamel or seashells, and each pair is exactly symmetrical, so I don't think they're calcium deposits or somesuch. Anyway what are these things, and what are they for? Do other vertebrates have them, and I'm only finding them in fish because that's the vertebrate skulls I'm most likely to have access to?

Where to buy bones for stock?

Finder — Fri, 09 Feb 2007 11:58:51 -0800

Cookingfilter: where do people buy bones for stock? I'm in central Jersey, and supermarket butchers here give you a blank stare when asked about bones for stock... I tried to call a couple of halal butchers from the phone book to no avail so far.

The left hand says: "Thsfdghmsh."

ElectricBlue — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 18:49:54 -0800

I just got my cast off my broken distal radius. I'm supposed to move it, but it hurts like crazy. Is that normal? Can anyone recommend a good exercise to strengthen my (sad, weenie) muscles while I wait for physical therapy? Any post-cast advice in general? I just got my cast off for a distal radius fracture. I had surgery to put in a plate the day before Thanksgiving. Now, it hurts pretty badly. I'm supposed to move it, but it's so stiff. It hurts a lot.

MeFites who have had broken bones: is this normal? I can't bend it at all. Does anyone have any anecdotal advice on what to expect post-cast? (Comments from people who've fractured their radius are especially awesome!) I can't even rest my hand down to type without feeling a sharp pain.

I'm going to PT as soon as the doctor's office wrestles with my insurance. That will probably be a week or two. In the meantime, does anyone have a recommendation of exercises that would be beneficial to my wrist? My poor arm is all skinny and atrophied.

Thanks, guys. This broken bone has been a pain. I guess this post-cast period is yet another cycle of annoyance I have to get used to. Alas!

What kind of skull is this?

Jairus — Fri, 01 Sep 2006 17:46:01 -0800

What kind of skull is this?

It's the real thing, bones in a bottle.

ok — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 20:13:56 -0800

Any ideas on the value an unopened 12 ounce bottle of Coke, purchased in the spring of 1960, with pork bones inside? With the afternoon sun shinning through this Coke bottle, my parents saw that something was inside. Pork bones. My mother wrote a letter to coke about it and she never received a reply, so it’s been a fun novelty we have had at the house.

I was telling my folks about eBay and the strange things that people sell, and I was reminded about the Coke bottle. I told them that I thought that it would be worth something to some collectors , (and to think that my brothers and sister use to take this to show and tell).

The syrup has separated over all these years and a lot of sediment is at the bottom, along with a piece of fat floating at the top there are two pork bones inside.

how many bones do a pig, cow, and sheep skeleton have?

Nik_Doof — Fri, 17 Mar 2006 10:51:08 -0800

how many bones do a pig, cow, and sheep skeleton have? My other half is currently studying a faunal module at university, and today she rang me up asking to do a search on how many bones a pig, cow, sheep actually have. I've tried searching but came up with nothing. Does anyone know?

How would one go about legally obtaining a real human skull?

Espoo2 — Sun, 12 Mar 2006 22:59:12 -0800

How would one go about legally obtaining a real human skull?

How and to what extent can one strengthen tendons, ligaments and bones (also thicken bones)?

dino terror — Sun, 21 Aug 2005 20:01:31 -0800

How and to what extent can one strengthen tendons, ligaments and bones (also thicken bones)? I understand there is a supplement to strengthen ligaments, and calcium promotes bone density I believe, but besides dietary means Im looking at exercise techniques. Ive found differring opinions on the internet. Might aswell ask this also: does gaining flexibility strengthen or just stretch tendons?