Anthropology test 2

Think about how we put fossil primates and hominins into evolutionary order. What is the difference between homologies and analogies and what are the dating methods used?

Homologies are traits that are inherited from a common ancestor, whereas analogies are shared traits due to shared environments and similar adaptation.

List each of the five australopithecines discussed in the class lectures. Note: you do not have to describe each one; it is sufficient to provide a list

Autralopithecus: anamensis, afarensis, boisei, africanus, robustus

Using your knowledge from the textbook and lecture, discuss why race is a discredited idea in biology. Use examples to make your points.

Because it is assumed subdivision of species. It is based primarily on skin color, which has a clinal distribution. There are no reproductive barriers. • Clinal differences overlap between groups Greater biological variation within the races than between

Why do biological anthropologists study non-human primates from the past? Who are the living primates who are most closely related to us and how do they inform us about human evolution?

Biological anthropologists study non-human primates from the past because they offer insights as to why the human phenotype exists the way it does, and ways certain traits could have been advantageous to archaic primates. Terrestrial apes are most closely related to us, and they inform us about human evolution because they demonstrate adaptations to ecological niches similar to the ones our early ancestors lived in.

What are some of the factors (consequences and the benefits) that various people around 10-12,000 years ago throughout the world could have reacted to when deciding to both create and adopt new adaptive strategies of domestication and sedentism?

Consequences • Population Change, Insecure Food Supply, Increase in Disease and Labor Benefits • Farmers- needed less land than a hunter-gatherer, have a more predictable food source, was less damaging to the body

What explains the biological variation between human populations today? Explain why different groups of people share certain physical traits that makes them different from others. In addition, provide an example of one of these traits.

Evolution ○ Why populations look different? • Adapting to specific eco-niche ○ Large long nose: cold weather Short flat nose: warm weather

What is the eco-niche that Homo erectus first adapted to? Discuss at least 4 environmental, adaptive, anatomical, or behavioral factors that may be relevant to being successful in this eco-niche.

First hominins outside of Africa • More efficient bipedalism • More complex behavior • Changing diets and behavior -Larger more robust

Discuss and describe two of the six primate biological tendencies/traits that were considered in the lecture and your textbook. For each, be sure to detail the evolutionary advantages of each of the tendencies.

Grasping: development of opposable thumbs and increased dexterity in hands Allowed for greater ease in food procurement and moving through the trees Increased Brain/Body Ratio: increase in cranial capacity relative to body size, orientation of skull around front-facing eyes and brain Evolutionary advantages: increased capacity for memory, communication, problem-solving ability,

How did domestication of plants OR animals occur? What physical/morphological changes happened and how were people thinking about it?

Human interference with reproduction of another species ○ Domestication of plants- opportunistic and intentional ○ a more predictable food source ○ Domestication of animals- opportunistic and intentional - a mobile food source.

Given the first discussion we had in class for this unit, how does thinking about species hybridization help us better understand hominin evolution?

It allows us to understand that animals from the genus can mate and produce offspring, despite not being of the same species. Allowed us to create new traits over time that are more efficient in the environments we live in through evolution.

Archaeologists have given at least five different explanations about why and how complex societies arose. Please briefly describe and name one of those explanations and provide a name of an Early State culture or region from the lectures or your readings that fits the theory.

Long distance trade- societies like Egypt became far more complex as they began monopolize on natural resources for trade in multiple middle eastern nations

You learned about early state formation in several areas of the world from lecture and the textbook that includes the Middle East, Indus River Valley, African States, and Mesoamerica. Describe briefly one of these region's state formation, where you talk about population growth, expanding socio-political systems, and reasons for that growth.

Mesoamerica is defined by a mosaic of cultural traits developed and shared by its indigenous cultures. 16th century- European diseases like smallpox and measles caused the deaths of upwards of 90% of the indigenous people. Writing individually developed. Domestication of dogs, beans, avocado.

Discuss one of the key attributes of the Early State that were discussed in your textbook and class. Briefly describe why you think that the attribute is unique to states and NOT in egalitarian and ranked societies.

Record-keeping systems: Cuneiform was created to keep records of goods and activity. Sumerians used pictographs to record history. through record-keeping, each state could represent their own individual records. Egalitarian gives everyone equal rights and ranked societies ranks individuals due to genealogical distance from chief.

In terms of the second discussion about Pseudo-archaeological ideas, are these 'fantastic' claims equally valid understandings to the more scientific archaeological explanations? Using what you learned in class and from the textbook, what are one of the cultural, social, or economic problems associated with pseudo-archaeology? Explain it.

pseudo-archaeology claims are not as equally valid as scientific archaeological explanations. Archaeological finds are supported by evidence, but pseudo archaeological claims only display "facts" that agree with the presented claim, rather than all of the available information. can deter society from the truths about the human past and allow for misrepresented information.

Briefly discuss the three different paths of hominin evolution. Describe each path separately by discussing where it was happening and how the evolving species are marked by the four hominin evolutionary trends as well as naming as many species as you can.

• - occurs in East Africa (4-3 mya) - gracile body types -more towards more robust body types Ex: A. anamensis, A afarensis, A. boisei • - occurs in South Africa (3.8 mya) - light skeletal build selected for Ex: A. africanus, A. robustus • - East Africa (3 mya) - more adept bipedalism - smaller teeth and face - increased cranial capacity - language Ex: homo habilis, homo erectus, homo sapiens

What are the four trends of hominin evolution? Discuss which trends happen and when (not necessarily specific dates, but relative to each other in chronological order). Use species names as examples.

• Bipedalism ex: Ardipithecus • Dental Changes ex: Australopithecines • Cranial Capacity ex: Homo genus -Material Culture ex: Homo floresienies

Given the significance of bipedalism in terms of hominin evolution and human attributes, think about what you learned in class as well as the textbook. Give 3 biological changes and 2 behavioral explanations for its evolutionary advantage.

• Environmental change • Humid forest> dispersed woodlands and savannah growth • Grassland movement • Solar protection • See predator • General adaptability Ardipithecus wooded habitat

Discuss the importance of the two methods of dating used by archaeologists to understand the past. Provide an example for each of the methods.

○ Absolute Dating - determining the absolute age of an artifact or event § Ex: Radiometric Techniques ○ Relative Dating - determining a relative age (or range of ages) for an artifact or event Ex: Stratigraphy

What are the two primary determinants that best explain the Neolithic changes leading to domestication and sedentism as a global phenomenon and how did they shape the direction of these cultural changes?

○ Environmental Determinants - changing environments caused societies to change their lifestyles in order to survive and prosper better ○ Social Determinants - more social network opportunities