Michela Amendola (CE17-A219-50CC)

Curriculum Vitae

Michela Amendola

I hold a Master’s degree in Forensic Biology from the University of Florence (2022) and am currently pursuing a PhD in Forensic Anthropology at the University of Coimbra (since September 2024). My academic and research trajectory integrates forensic science, biological anthropology, and artificial intelligence. During my Master's program, I focused on the application of machine learning techniques to skeletal collections, an interdisciplinary project that established the groundwork for my current research on neural networks for sex estimation from skull images. I am a researcher associated with CIAS – Research Centre for Anthropology and Health – and the Centre for Functional Ecology (CFE) at the University of Coimbra. My professional experiences both in Italy and internationally have enhanced my problem-solving skills and my ability to collaborate with multidisciplinary teams. I have shared my work at international conferences and collaborated on publications in peer-reviewed journals.

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Identification

Personal identification

Full name: Michela Amendola
Date of birth: 1998/11/12
Gender: Female

Citation names

Amendola, Michela
Amendola, M.

Author identifiers

Ciência ID: CE17-A219-50CC
ORCID iD: 0009-0008-1856-7298
Google Scholar ID: ci3gpVUAAAAJ

Email addresses

amendola.michela98@gmail.com (Professional)

Knowledge fields

Medical and Health Sciences - Other Medical Sciences - Forensic Science
Social Sciences - Sociology - Anthropology

Languages

Language	Speaking	Reading	Writing	Listening	Peer-review
English	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)	Advanced (C1)
Italian (Mother tongue)

Education

	Degree	Classification
2024/09/01 - 2027 Ongoing	Forensic Anthropology (Doctorate) Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Ciências da Vida, Portugal
2026/06/08 - 2026/07/05 Attended	Field School "AITA Bioarchaeology" 2026 (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2025/08/03 - 2025/08/10 Attended	Field School "AITA Bioarchaeology" (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2025/06/16 - 2025/06/21 Concluded	Fieldwork of the Archaeological Site of São Simão, Portugal (Others) Penela Municipality, Portugal
2024/10/16 - 2024/11/12 Concluded	Online Course in Bioarchaeology of Children (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2024/07/28 - 2024/08/05 Concluded	Field School "AITA Bioarchaeology" (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2024/03/01 - 2024/03/31 Concluded	Online Course in Paleopathology (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2023/09/04 - 2023/09/08 Concluded	School of Biophotonics and Artifical Intelligence (Others) Biophotonics & Artificial Intelligence School, Italy
2023/05/15 - 2023/07/04 Concluded	Python Course for Data Analysis (Others) Università degli Studi di Firenze Laboratorio Europeo di Spettroscopie Non Lineari, Italy
2020/10/24 - 2022/11/24 Concluded	Molecular and Applied Biology - Forensic Biology (Laurea Magistrale) Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy "Application of Machine Learning to the estimation of sex in skeletal collections of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology in Florence" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	20
2022/02/28 - 2022/09/12 Concluded	Internship at the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology of Florence (Others) Università degli Studi di Firenze Museo di Storia Naturale Antropologia e Etnologia, Italy
2022/07/31 - 2022/08/07 Concluded	Field School "AITA Bioarchaeology" (Others) AITA Bioarchaeology, Spain
2021/03/18 - 2021/03/25 Concluded	Laboratory of Forensic Anthropology (Others) Università degli Studi di Firenze, Italy
2017/09/15 - 2020/10/23 Concluded	Scienze Biologiche (Bachelor) Università degli Studi di Salerno, Italy "Mitomycin C and its use in the treatment of Xeroderma Pigmentosum disease" (THESIS/DISSERTATION)	19

Affiliation

Science

	Category Host institution	Employer
2025/02/03 - Current	Researcher (Research)	CFE - Centre for Functional Ecology: Science for People & Planet, Portugal
	Universidade de Coimbra Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet, Portugal
2024/12 - Current	Researcher (Research)	CIAS - Centro de Investigação em Antropologia e Saúde/Research Centre for Anthropology and Health, Portugal
	Universidade de Coimbra Departamento de Ciências da Vida, Portugal

Others

	Category Host institution	Employer
2023/04/12 - 2023/10/31	Research Assistant	Istituto di fisica applicata Nello Carrara Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy
	Istituto di fisica applicata Nello Carrara Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy
2023/03/01 - 2023/10/31	Research Grant Holder	Università degli Studi di Firenze Laboratorio Europeo di Spettroscopie Non Lineari, Italy
	Università degli Studi di Firenze Laboratorio Europeo di Spettroscopie Non Lineari, Italy

Projects

Grant

	Designation	Funders
2025/09/01 - Current	The Implementation of Machine Learning Algorithms in Sex Estimation: a Novel Approach 2025.00962.BD Scholarship Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Ongoing

Contract

	Designation	Funders
2025/01/01 - 2029/12/31	Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet UID/04004/2025 10.54499/UID/04004/2025 Universidade de Coimbra Centre for Functional Ecology - Science for People & the Planet, Portugal Universidade de Coimbra, Portugal	Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia Ongoing

Outputs

Publications

Book	Andrea Barucci; Amendola, Michela; Fabrizio Argenti; Chiara Canfailla; Costanza Cucci; Tommaso Guidi; Lorenzo Python; Massimiliano Franci. Discovering the Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphs with Deep Learning. 2023. Published
Book chapter	Michela Amendola; Marco Merella; Juri Agresti; Salvatore Siano; Andrea Di Cencio; Simone Casati; Alberto Collareta; et al. Corresponding author: Michela Amendola. "Discovering Palaeontological Cultural Heritage Using Micro Computed Tomography: The G.A.M.P.S. Case Study". In The Future of Heritage Science and Technologies II, 288-301. Springer, 2026. Published • 10.1007/978-3-031-98379-5_22
Conference paper	Andrea Barucci; Giulia Ciacci; Amendola, Michela; Francesca Rossi; Alberto Collareta; Marco Merella; Giovanni Bianucci; et al. Corresponding author: Andrea Barucci. "Artificial Intelligence application to the identification of fossil shark teeth using Convolutional Neural Networks". Paper presented in Paleodays 2024, XXIV edizione delle Giornate di Paleontologia, Pisa, 2024. Accepted Michela Amendola; Donatella Lippi; Fabrizio Argenti; Roberto Carpi; Costanza Cucci; Salima Ikram; Guido Landi; et al. "Application of CT Imaging to Humanistic Studies: The Case of an Egyptian Cat Mummy". Florence, 2023. Published • 10.1109/histelcon56357.2023.10365988
Conference poster	Amendola, Michela; Navega, D; Curate, Francisco; Cunha, E. "Advancing Sex Estimation from Skull Images through Artificial Intelligence.". Paper presented in Forensic Anthropology Society of Europe (FASE) 2026 Symposium, 2026. Curate, Francisco; Amendola, Michela; Ferreira, Maria Teresa; Rodrigues, Félix. Corresponding author: Curate, Francisco. "Evidence of Cancer in an Individual from the First Identified Skeletal Collection of the Azores (Portugal)". Paper presented in 25th European Paleopathology Association Meeting, 2026. Amendola, Michela; M. Beatriz Barreiro; Ferreira, Maria Teresa. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "Uniquely Marked In Bone: Identifying an individual through distinctive features". Paper presented in 23° Congresso Nacional De Medicina Legal E Ciências Forenses, 2025. Amendola, Michela; Navega, David; Cunha, Eugénia; Curate, Francisco. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "The implementation of Machine Learning Algorithms in Sex Estimation: A Novel Approach". Paper presented in IX MEET.LAB, 2025. Amendola, Michela; Ciacci, Giulia; Azevedo, Tiago; Barucci, Andrea; Mori, Tommaso; Riga, Alessandro. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "Enhancing Sex Estimation in Forensic Anthropology: Machine Learning Analysis of Orbital Morphology". Paper presented in XVI Reunión Científica "Antropología, Ciencia Multidisciplinar - Asociación Española de Antropología y Odontología Forense (AEAOF), 2024. Amendola, Michela; Ikram, Salima; Lippi, Donatella; Argenti, Fabrizio; Carpi, Roberto; Cucci, Costanza; Fattorini, Valter; et al. "Unveiling the Mysteries of an Egyptian Feline Mummy through CT examination". Paper presented in European Association of Archaeologists (EAA), 2024. Curti, Lorenzo; Montagni, Elena; Ambrosone, Manuel; Franceschini, Alessandra; Costa, Alessia; Amendola, Michela; Iurato La Rocca, Antonino; et al. "The therapeutic potential of psychedelics on the behavioral and synaptic abnormalities of the Shank3 mouse model of Autism Spectrum Disorder". Paper presented in 20th Italian Society for Neuroscience (SINS) National Congress, 2023. Curti, Lorenzo; Montagni, Elena; Iurato La Rocca, Antonino; Ambrosone, Manuel; Franceschini, Alessandra; Silvestri, Ludovico; Amendola, Michela; et al. "Harnessing multiscale connectivity in the Shank3 mouse model to test the therapeutic potential of hallucinogens". Paper presented in 20th Italian Society for Neuroscience (SINS) National Congress, 2023.
Journal article	Amendola, Michela; M. Beatriz Barreiro; Cunha, E; Ferreira, Maria Teresa. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "Uniquely marked in bone: a case report of identification through distinctive features". Egyptian Journal of Forensic Sciences 16 1 (2026): https://doi.org/10.1186/s41935-026-00554-5. Open access • Published • 10.1186/s41935-026-00554-5 Amendola, Michela; Navega, D; Barucci, Andrea; Curate, Francisco; Monge Calleja, Álvaro M.. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "Tracing Asymmetry and Sexual Dimorphism in the Adult Iliac Auricular Surface: A Geometric Morphometrics and Machine Learning Approach". International Journal of Legal Medicine (2026): https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00414-026-03726-z. Published Michela Amendola; Andrea Barucci; Andrea Baucon; Chiara Zini; Claudia Borrelli; Simone Casati; Andrea di Cencio; et al. "Exploring How Micro-Computed Tomography Imaging Technology Impacts the Preservation of Paleontological Heritage". Heritage (2025): https://www.mdpi.com/2571-9408/8/8/310. Published • 10.3390/heritage8080310 Amendola, Michela; Ikram, Salima; Lippi, Donatella; Argenti, Fabrizio; Boschin, Francesco; Carpi, Roberto; Cucci, Costanza; et al. Corresponding author: Amendola, Michela. "The Story of an Egyptian Cat Mummy Through CT Examination". Applied Sciences - MDPI 14 9882 (2024): https://www.mdpi.com/2076-3417/14/21/9882. Open access • Published • 10.3390/app14219882 Tommaso Guidi; Lorenzo Python; Matteo Forasassi; Costanza Cucci; Massimiliano Franci; Fabrizio Argenti; Andrea Barucci. Corresponding author: Tommaso Guidi. "Egyptian Hieroglyphs Segmentation with Convolutional Neural Networks". MDPI - Algorithms 16 2 (2023): https://www.mdpi.com/1999-4893/16/2/79. Open access • Published • Assistant staff
Translation	Curto, Ana. "Osteologia Humana: livro para colorir e aprender" - translated in Italian by Michela Amendola. Portugal, Portugal: Imprensa Universidade de Évora. 2024. Published

Activities

Oral presentation

	Presentation title	Event name Host (Event location)
2026/04/30	Bones Under the Lenses: AI and Geometric Morphometrics for Sex Estimation and Asymmetry Assessment in Adult Iliac Auricular Surfaces	International Conference Florence HeriTech - The Future of Heritage Science and Technologies (Florence, Italy)
2026/03/18	Bone to Be Digital: AI Meets Forensic Anthropology	DCVTalks University of Coimbra (Coimbra, Portugal)
2026/03/17	Entre Ossos e Algoritmos: Inteligência Artificial em Antropologia Forense	Núcleo de Estudantes de Ciências Criminais e Forenses da Egas Moniz School of Health and Science (Lisbon, Portugal)
2025/12/09	The Dead Tell Tales, Algorithms Decode: AI in Forensic Anthropology	Online Webinar AITA Bioarchaeology
2025/12/08	A case of trepanation from Raceša, Croatia (15th-16th Century)	Paleoradiology meets Archaeology 5 Croatian Medical Association (Zagreb, Croatia)
2025/09/03	Exploring Developmental Asymmetry in The Adult Iliac Auricular Surface Through Artificial Intelligence	European Association of Archaeologists, EAA. (Belgrade, Serbia)
2024/11/15	Enhancing Sex Estimation in Forensic Anthropology: Machine Learning Analysis of Orbital Morphology	XVI Reunión Científica "Antropología, Ciencia Multidisciplinar" Asociación Española de Antropología y Odontología Forense (AEAOF) (Seville, Spain)
2024/06/11	Il Museo G.A.M.P.S. e lo Studio dei Fossili Toscani	Dialoghi sulla Scienza - Dalla Paleontologia all'Intelligenza Artificiale Castello dell'Acciaiolo (Scandicci, Firenze, Italy)
2024/04/29	Discovering palaeontological Cultural Heritage using micro-Computed Tomography: the G.A.M.P.S. Museum case study	International Conference Florence HeriTech, 4th edition (Firenze, Italy)
2024/01/18	Artificial Intelligence in Anthropology: the study of bones through Machine Learning	DataBeers Event Murate Idea Park (Firenze, Italy)
2023/09/07	Application of CT imaging to humanistic studies: The case of an Egyptian cat mummy	HISTory of ELectrotechnology CONference (HISTELCON) Antica Canonica di San Giovanni, Florence Cathedral Square (Firenze, Italy)
2023/04/18	Application of Machine Learning to the estimation of sex in skeletal collections of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology in Florence	Seminar of Application of Artificial Intelligence to Sport Science University of Florence (Firenze, Italy)
2023/03/08	Application of Machine Learning to the estimation of sex in skeletal collections of the Museum of Anthropology and Ethnology in Florence	Artificial Intelligence Seminars National Council of Research (IFAC-CNR) (Firenze, Italy)

Event participation

	Activity description Type of event	Event name Institution / Organization
2026/03/30 - 2026/04/01	Supervised two secondary school students during the Easter 2026 edition of the Scientific Internships organized by the Institute for Education and Citizenship (March 30–31 and April 1) at CIAS, supporting their participation in ongoing research activities. Workshop	CIAS nas Escolas - Edição da Páscoa 2026 dos Estágios Científicos do Instituto de Educação e Cidadania CIAS - Centro de Investigação em Antropologia e Saúde/Research Centre for Anthropology and Health, Portugal
2025/09/23 - 2025/09/24	Participation in the "Migrant Disaster Victim Identification (MDVI) Conference", focusing on innovative and collaborative approaches to migrant disaster victim identification. Conference	CA22106 – Migrant Disaster Victim Identification (MDVI) Annual Conference Instituto Nacional de Medicina Legal e Ciências Forenses Delegação do Sul, Portugal

Course / Discipline taught

	Academic session	Degree Subject (Type)	Institution / Organization
2026/09/30 - 2026/09/30	“Artificial Intelligence in Biological Anthropology: Concepts, Methods and Current Applications” On September 30, 2026, I delivered a one-hour guest lecture as part of the course "Fundamentos Teóricos em Bioantropologia" within the Master’s programme "Bioantropologia e Saúde: Dinâmica de Populações Passadas". The lecture was delivered in the presence of the course professor and introduced students to the fundamental concepts and methodological approaches of artificial intelligence and its current applications in biological anthropology.	Funadamentos Teóricos em Bioantropologia (Master's Degree)	Universidade de Coimbra Faculdade de Ciencias e Tecnologia, Portugal

Distinctions

Award

2026	Best Poster Presentation Award - FASE Conference, Bucharest, Romania, August 2026. Forensic Anthropology Society of Europe, Switzerland
2024	Second Place for Best Poster Presentation at the AEAOF Conference, Seville, November 2024. Asociacíon Española de Antropología y Odontología Forense, Spain