Rachel Pieterse is a final year MSc student at BARU (Biological Anthropology Research Unit) in the Division of Clinical Anatomy at Stellenbosch University (SU) and a Bakeng se Afrika research assistant.
At the beginning of this year, my fellow MSc colleague, Michaela Middleton, and I were tasked with travelling to Gauteng, to assist in the scanning of skeletal samples. As part of the aim of Bakeng se Afrika, namely to establish a digital skeletal repository of South African individuals, and as a partner institution, Stellenbosch University’s contribution to the project is to scan skeletal sample from the Kirsten Skeletal Collection (KSC), hosted in the Division of Clinical Anatomy. This was the second trip to take bones from the KSC for scanning at Necsa (South African Nuclear Energy Corporation). Michaela will tell you more about the first trip in another blog post, as it was already in November 2019, when Michaela and Dr Rudolph Venter travelled by car from Western Cape to Gauteng...
Transporting bones across the country by courier was surprisingly not as difficult as expected. Firstly, we obtained permission from the Inspector of Anatomy (IoA) for the transport and scanning of the selected skeletal material. The next step was organising the use of a willing courier service, where the contents of the boxes transported had to be declared as dry skeletal material for research purposes. Meanwhile, we also organised and booked our own flights, transportation, and accommodation at Pelindaba, which was a smooth ride.
Upon the collection of the samples from the airport, we discovered that the contents of one of our packages had been inspected by the South African Police Services (SAPS). Michaela and I had a fun time speculating what they must have thought of the contents of the inspected package. Thankfully, with the prior permission of the IoA taped to the boxes, there were no delays with the collection, and we were soon on our way to Necsa.
The process of signing and obtaining access into Necsa was an entirely different experience, as our colleagues from UP and SMU already experienced it. A permit for the week for each individual entering the premises had to be obtained, and any laptops or electronics also had to be declared before entering. Any vehicles entering and exiting the facility were also checked before being allowed to do so. As guests to the facility, Michaela and I had to be escorted through the premises by a host staff member, which was extremely helpful. I’d like to thank Frikkie, Kobus and Lunga, as it would have been easy to get lost in the vast Necsa labyrinth without any assistance.
Our days spent at Necsa consisted mostly of navigating between sorting and packing bones for scanning, reconstructing the 2D raw images to produce the 3D renderings of scans, and backing up both the 2D and 3D files to ensure that no data is lost. In terms of packing the bones for scanning, an arduous trial-and-error process was experienced in trying to find the most efficient and cost-efficient method. Dr Venter and Michaela discovered, during their first bone scanning ordeal, something marketed as "Crazy Fun Foam" (not nearly as crazy or as fun as it makes itself out to be), which are essentially EVA (Ethylene-vinyl acetate) foam sheets. These sheets were used to pack the bones onto, as well as ensure that no bone comes into contact with another, as this would complicate the reconstruction and segmentation process later on.
While it was a long and busy time spent at Necsa, it was a fulfilling experience where we were able to gain new skills and insights into the scanning and reconstruction processes employed there. I am grateful for the time we were able to spend there for the benefit of our research projects and Bakeng se Afrika.
Rachel Pieterse
Bakeng se Afrika Research Assistant
BARU (Biological Anthropology Research Unit)
Division of Clinical Anatomy
Stellenbosch University