Kristin Krueger
Dr. Krueger's Experimental Wear Lab Awarded NSF Grant
Kristin Krueger, Professor and Chair in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Anthropology at Loyola University Chicago, has received a $201,974 National Science Foundation (NSF) Award for research in the dental wear space.
Krueger is a dental anthropologist who focuses on dietary and behavioral strategies of our recent and fossil hominin ancestors. She has done most of her research on Neandertal and modern human incisor microwear using dental microwear texture analysis.
In August 2022, Krueger applied for and was awarded an NSF-Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) grant, to bring a custom-built Artificial Resynthesis Technology (ART) chewing simulator to campus. The ART simulator, nicknamed “Chewie,” helped to establish the ChEW Lab at Loyola, a hub for interdisciplinary research, training and experiential learning that attracts researchers from around the world and across many different disciplines.
"Dr. Krueger’s innovative research is bridging disciplines and making notable contributions to the scientific community, both of which are priorities for the College,” said Peter J. Schraeder, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “This type of scholarly work is a prime example of how faculty in the College are pushing the boundaries of discovery while providing invaluable experiential learning opportunities for students.”
This new NSF grant will help fund a study investigating the progression of dental wear over 50 years of simulated chewing. The study employs complementing methodologies to measure changes in chewing function, and in tooth’s shape, structure, and elemental composition. This project provides STEM training opportunities to postdoctoral scientists and undergraduate students. The project engages elementary school students through dental anatomy learning kits that promote knowledge and good oral health.
This NSF grant totals $500,000 and is split between Loyola University Chicago and University of Pennsylvania.
“I’m excited to share the work Dr. Myra Laird (Penn Dental Medicine) and I are doing on dental wear across the human lifespan,” said Krueger.
Chewie is the first ART system to be used exclusively for paleontological, paleoanthropological, and biological purposes.
“Our collaborative project investigates how dental function and efficiency change as teeth wear down with age and different diets,” said Krueger.
“Another aspect I’m particularly proud of is our involvement with undergraduate students, who will be assisting with data collection and analysis,” expressed Krueger. “We’re also collaborating with local Chicagoland and Philadelphia elementary schools and public libraries to offer free dental kits to children, making a broader impact on oral health in our communities.”
Krueger makes the point that this research not only helps us understand the evolutionary trajectories of our hominin ancestors, but also has some exciting implications for modern dentistry.
Learn more about Dr. Krueger, the ChEW Lab, and her latest NSF Award.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 15 schools, colleges, and institutes. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments and 37 interdisciplinary programs and centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of University-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the University’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”
Kristin Krueger, Professor and Chair in the College of Arts and Sciences’ Department of Anthropology at Loyola University Chicago, has received a $201,974 National Science Foundation (NSF) Award for research in the dental wear space.
Krueger is a dental anthropologist who focuses on dietary and behavioral strategies of our recent and fossil hominin ancestors. She has done most of her research on Neandertal and modern human incisor microwear using dental microwear texture analysis.
In August 2022, Krueger applied for and was awarded an NSF-Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) grant, to bring a custom-built Artificial Resynthesis Technology (ART) chewing simulator to campus. The ART simulator, nicknamed “Chewie,” helped to establish the ChEW Lab at Loyola, a hub for interdisciplinary research, training and experiential learning that attracts researchers from around the world and across many different disciplines.
"Dr. Krueger’s innovative research is bridging disciplines and making notable contributions to the scientific community, both of which are priorities for the College,” said Peter J. Schraeder, Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. “This type of scholarly work is a prime example of how faculty in the College are pushing the boundaries of discovery while providing invaluable experiential learning opportunities for students.”
This new NSF grant will help fund a study investigating the progression of dental wear over 50 years of simulated chewing. The study employs complementing methodologies to measure changes in chewing function, and in tooth’s shape, structure, and elemental composition. This project provides STEM training opportunities to postdoctoral scientists and undergraduate students. The project engages elementary school students through dental anatomy learning kits that promote knowledge and good oral health.
This NSF grant totals $500,000 and is split between Loyola University Chicago and University of Pennsylvania.
“I’m excited to share the work Dr. Myra Laird (Penn Dental Medicine) and I are doing on dental wear across the human lifespan,” said Krueger.
Chewie is the first ART system to be used exclusively for paleontological, paleoanthropological, and biological purposes.
“Our collaborative project investigates how dental function and efficiency change as teeth wear down with age and different diets,” said Krueger.
“Another aspect I’m particularly proud of is our involvement with undergraduate students, who will be assisting with data collection and analysis,” expressed Krueger. “We’re also collaborating with local Chicagoland and Philadelphia elementary schools and public libraries to offer free dental kits to children, making a broader impact on oral health in our communities.”
Krueger makes the point that this research not only helps us understand the evolutionary trajectories of our hominin ancestors, but also has some exciting implications for modern dentistry.
Learn more about Dr. Krueger, the ChEW Lab, and her latest NSF Award.
About the College of Arts and Sciences
The College of Arts and Sciences is the oldest of Loyola University Chicago’s 15 schools, colleges, and institutes. More than 150 years since its founding, the College is home to 20 academic departments and 37 interdisciplinary programs and centers, more than 450 full-time faculty, and nearly 8,000 students. The 2,000+ classes that we offer each semester span an array of intellectual pursuits, ranging from the natural sciences and computational sciences to the humanities, the social sciences, and the fine and performing arts. Our students and faculty are engaged internationally at our campus in Rome, Italy, as well as at dozens of University-sponsored study abroad and research sites around the world. Home to the departments that anchor the University’s Core Curriculum, the College seeks to prepare all of Loyola’s students to think critically, to engage the world of the 21st century at ever deepening levels, and to become caring and compassionate individuals. Our faculty, staff, and students view service to others not just as one option among many, but as a constitutive dimension of their very being. In the truest sense of the Jesuit ideal, our graduates strive to be “individuals for others.”