ANTHROPOMETER: INVENTION, DESCRIPTION AND WHAT IT IS FOR - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

An anthropometer is an instrument used to measure certain parts of the human body. It has different sizes and shapes according to the part that is measured, and is used in the branch of anthropometry, which aims to accurately take different measurements to carry out anthropological and health studies.

The etymological origin of anthropometer is from the Greek "anthropos", which means "man", and "metron", which means "measure." An anthropometer uses a metric scale with a fixed part and a movable part that moves across it to measure the part of the body for which it is used. Accuracy is 1mm and body segments, diameters and heights are measured.

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It does not matter how tall the person to be studied is, since it is possible to measure heights of more than two meters thanks to the articulation of the instrument.

Who Invented the Anthropometer?

Alphonse Bertillón (Paris, 1853 - Münsterlingen, Switzerland - 1914) can be pointed out as the inventor of the current anthropometer. This was a Parisian policeman with origin in a family of anthropologists, doctors and statesmen.

Not being very satisfied with the criminal news of the Paris of that time, he decided to study methods that would serve to identify criminals, using the knowledge that abounded in his family: the numbers and the physical characteristics of the human being in general.

Thus, in 1882, he presented an unprecedented discipline to the local authorities: anthropometry. The idea was to find the existing criminality in a person through the measurement of certain parts of their body and with the use of specific tools for this purpose.

The basis for such an idea was the one that indicates that no two humans are alike in the whole world. Hence, he thought of taking measurements of parts that would not vary over time, regardless of the age of the court or devices to appear to be someone else.

In measuring, the head (length and width, ear width), elbow length, hands (ring finger length), bust, feet (length of left foot and left middle finger) and height were included, plus the record of particular signs, such as tattoos, scars, etc.

The first criminal was captured with this method in 1883 and from that moment his name took on national and then international fame in criminology, expanding his mode of identification throughout Europe and the United States.

However, its modus operandi had its turning point: two different people had the same measures and since then its system was not taken into account in the field of police investigation.

The darkest page

The fact of standardizing physiognomies and relating them directly to a type of crime has led to great injustices. Césare Lombrosso, a famous Italian criminologist, affirmed that crime was associated with the shape, physical and biological causes of a person.

In fact, he did not hesitate to affirm in his 1895 book Criminal Anthropology, that murderers have prominent jaws or that pickpockets have long hands and little beard.

The curious thing is that despite the fact that in the third decade of the 20th century the fingerprint system already existed and "bertillonism" had practically become obsolete, the Nazis used it for their "racial selection".

The Agency for the Instruction of Population Policy and Racial Welfare suggested differentiating between "Aryans" and "non-Aryans" by measuring skulls, something required by law. If before such a measurement was discriminatory, the Nazis took it upon themselves to take it to the extreme.

What is an anthropometer for?

Although we have just mentioned that it is not taken into account in the investigation of a crime, anthropometers are still valid in different branches, which use the following instruments:

Segment anthropometers

They are those that are made up of several pieces or sections so that they can be assembled according to need. They can have straight but also curved pieces, the precision is 1 mm and they are extremely reliable.

Fixed anthropometer

It is used in one piece, and the reliability of what it indicates is not as accurate as the previous one. Those of this type are much cheaper than the first ones.

The materials from which they are made will depend on each case, being possible to find tools made in light alloy, aluminum or stainless steel,

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Today the disciplines that use this type of instrument for their work are varied:

Nutrition

In this case they are used to measure body mass and fat. The aforementioned anthropometers, plus calipers (photo) are used to calculate the level of fat.

Sport

In this branch, the use of anthropometers is key, since these measure the width of the athletes' bones and with this data it is possible to determine how much a skeleton weighs. This is how Ana Chezzi, an Argentine anthropometric technician, explains: «If a skeleton weighs 10 kilos, then it can hold up to 50 kilos of body mass. Each kilo of bone supports 5 kgs. of muscle mass ».

Thus, for example, if a soccer player plays in the position of number 5, his data is compared with other numbers 5, if he weighs 60 kilos and the average is 75 kilos, it means that he is not playing in the indicated position, from the point from view of discipline.

Pediatrics

There are horizontal anthropometers (such as the Holtain model) suitable for measuring the length of children under two years of age. Meanwhile, to assess the normal or abnormal growth of a child, the height, weight, head circumference, stroke, segments (upper and lower) and their relationship and thickness of adipose tissue are taken.

The first is measured with a vertical anthropometer like the ones we mentioned above. An interesting piece of information is the one cited in the "Guide for Diagnosis and Therapy in Pediatrics", which indicates that height changes during the day, with a possible difference between 0.5 and 1.25 centimeters between 8:00 and 17:00.

Meanwhile, the lower and upper segments and the stroke (from the tip of the middle finger from one hand to the other with the patient standing and arms extended), are also made with these instruments.

Industrial design

The use of anthropometers is key to take the measurements of bodies on which the different designs of machinery, automobiles, work vehicles, workstations and other areas or products that involve the coexistence of human beings will be based.

References

1. Frank Spencer. (1997). History Of Physical Anthopology '. Recovered from: books.google.bg
2. Recovered from: infobae.com
3. Manuel Pombo Arias. (1992). «Manual of Practical Pediatrics». Recovered from: books.google.bg
4. Max Salas Alvarado. (2017). "Guide for diagnosis and therapy in pediatrics". Recovered from: books.google.bg
5. Pedro R. Mondelo. (2013). "Ergonomics 4". Recovered from: books.google.bg