The mineral in your bones is constantly being remodeled by your hormones, and the different biomechanical stresses placed upon your skeleton by your life and occupation can cause differential development of bony landmarks. In short, each person has features related to their sex, age, race, stature, and life history that may be unique from person to person. This is what allows a forensic anthropologist to do his or her job in the personal identification of skeletal remains when they are discovered. Very often, forensic anthropologists also have experience in archaeological methods, and can actually assist in the recovery process, particularly where the remains are scattered or buried. This often puts them at crime scenes doing investigative work along with their skeletal analysis.
Forensic anthropology is an exciting science, but it also is very competitive.
There are only a handful of full-time forensic anthropology positions in the entire country, and only a few schools that offer degrees specifically in forensic anthropology. It is given at the AAFS annual meetings to those individuals who have a PhD in Anthropology and who have passed an application process. Currently, there are less than 60 people who are board-certified forensic anthropology diplomates in the entire world. There are lots of good career opportunities, in addition to anthropology, that you may want to consider. Here is a link to an article that was recently featured in the Cincinnati Post regarding my forensic work in Southwest Ohio.