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Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts

Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2019.

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Other Authors: Beaudet, Amélie
Format: Thesis
Language:English
Published: University of Pretoria 2020
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access_status_str Open Access
author2 Beaudet, Amélie
author_browse Beaudet, Amélie
author_facet Beaudet, Amélie
collection Thesis
dc_rights_str_mv © 2020 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria.
description Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2019.
format Thesis
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institution University of Pretoria (South Africa)
language English
last_indexed 2026-06-10T12:39:45.647Z
license_str Other — see source repository
provenance_str_mv Harvested via OAI-PMH from UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
publishDate 2020
publishDateRange 2020
publishDateSort 2020
publisher University of Pretoria
publisherStr University of Pretoria
record_format dspace
source_str UPSpace — University of Pretoria Institutional Repository
spelling oai:repository.up.ac.za:2263/76830 Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts Beaudet, Amélie edwin.dejager@tuks.co.za Van Schoor, Albert-Neels De Jager, Edwin John UCTD sulci detection brain cast cerebral variation human neuroanatomy palaeoneurology SDG-03: Good health and well-being SDG-04: Quality education SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure Dissertation (MSc)--University of Pretoria, 2019. Knowledge of human brain evolution primarily relies on the interpretation of palaeoneurological evidence. In the absence of any direct evidence of the fossil neural condition, an endocast (i.e., replica of the internal table of the bony brain case) would constitute a proxy for reconstructing a timeline and mode of cerebral changes in human evolution. The identification of cerebral imprints, and more particularly, of cortical sulci, is indeed critical for assessing the topographic extension and structural organisation of cortical areas. As demonstrated by historical debates in palaeoneurology, however, the description of these crucial landmarks in fossil endocasts is challenging. The recent introduction of high-resolution imaging techniques in (palaeo)neurology offers new opportunities for tracking detailed endocranial neural characteristics. In such context, this study aimed to provide an atlas documenting the variation in the extant human, common chimpanzee and bonobo endocranial sulcal patterns for subsequent use as a comparative platform for the study of the fossil record. The total brain sample population for this study consisted of 60 formalin-fixed human brains from the Department of Anatomy, University of Pretoria, South Africa. Additionally, 58 extant human dry crania from the Pretoria Bone Collection (University of Pretoria, South Africa) which were detailed previously by X-ray microtomography (micro-CT) at the MIXRAD facility, located at the South African Nuclear Corporation (Necsa), Pelindaba, and 22 common chimpanzee and bonobo crania from the Royal Museum for Central Africa (Tervuren, Belgium) that had also been detailed previously using micro-CT at the Centre for X-ray Tomography of the Ghent University (UGCT) were processed and evaluated for inclusion in the study population. Sulci on formalin-fixed brains were documented to create a database of sulcal patterns representing a South African brain sample population. The endocasts were analysed using various software programs and appropriate algorithms, during the post-acquisition process. Finally, a probability map was constructed to document the variation of sulcal imprints on extant human endocasts, based on the identified sulci. This semi-automatic method provides an innovative, non-invasive, observer-independent method to investigate human endocranial structural organisation and a promising perspective for discussing long-standing questions in palaeoneurology. em2025 Anatomy MSc Unrestricted SDG-03: Good health and well-being SDG-04: Quality education SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure 2020-11-04T15:10:00Z 2020-11-04T15:10:00Z 20/04/24 2019 Dissertation De Jager, EJ 2019, Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts, MSc Dissertation, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, viewed yymmdd <http://hdl.handle.net/2263/76830> A2020 http://hdl.handle.net/2263/76830 en © 2020 University of Pretoria. All rights reserved. The copyright in this work vests in the University of Pretoria. No part of this work may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the University of Pretoria. application/pdf University of Pretoria
spellingShingle UCTD
sulci detection
brain cast
cerebral variation
human neuroanatomy
palaeoneurology
SDG-03: Good health and well-being
SDG-04: Quality education
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title_full Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title_fullStr Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title_full_unstemmed Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title_short Exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
title_sort exploring an innovative method for the automatic recognition of cortical sulci in cranial endocasts
topic UCTD
sulci detection
brain cast
cerebral variation
human neuroanatomy
palaeoneurology
SDG-03: Good health and well-being
SDG-04: Quality education
SDG-09: Industry, innovation and infrastructure
url http://hdl.handle.net/2263/76830