Anthropology Final Pt. 3

When did Homo erectus live, and where do we find its fossils?

1.8 - 1.2 mya. Found in East and South Africa, but also in Asia and maybe Western Europe.

How old are the Early Homo tools, and where are they found?

3.3 mya - 1.6 mya. Found in East Africa.

What is the evidence for early sea travel, where is it from, and when?

4,500 years ago, people from Taiwan developed sea-going vessels. Settled Hawaii, New Zealand, etc.

During what times are Pre-Moderns found (remember that the dates vary in different regions)?

800 - 30 kya.

Why do we consider this group a grade, rather than a single species or a clade?

A grade is defined by morphology. Doesn't contain all descendants of a common ancestor. Based more on traits.

What distinguishes their way of life from early Homo and the australopithecines?

Access to higher quality food. More advanced tools. Reduced sexual dimorphism. Survived after injuries; care for others. Use of fire?

What tools are associated with Homo erectus, and what is different about those tools compared with the earlier Oldowan tools?

Acheulian stone tools. Much more sophisticated. Mode 2. Bifaces/handaxes. Require the ability to create a mental image of the finished tool.

Where are Pre-Moderns found?

Africa and Eurasia

Why is the Nariokotome Boy so important, and what information does he provide us about his species?

African Homo erectus. Almost complete skeleton, which is rare. Body proportions are essentially modern. Probably matured faster than modern humans. Brain size almost full adult size, only ~8 years old. Similar poscranially to modern humans, but skull differentiates them.

What are the patterns of modern human dispersal/migrations?

After leaving Africa ~ 70 kya, modern humans spread across Eurasia. Not a single event. Multiple waves of human dispersals. More genetic variation in Africa than the rest of the world. After Africa, humans settled in the Middle East, then Australia, then Europe, then Americas.

What is some recent evidence for Neandertal symbolic behavior?

Animal bones w burials suggest symbolic meaning, and advanced cognitive ability. Cave painting in Spain.

What is the "Paleolithic Explosion" and why is it no longer a valid concept?

Appearance of modern humans in Europe seemed sudden and recent. Modern human behaviors like cave paintings and sculptures were first identified in Europe. Thought to be exclusive to Europe until end of 20th century. Eurocentric perspective. Modern humans didn't have an insane amount of cognitive ability compared to neandertals, for example.

What are the features, both physical and cultural, that distinguish Archaic Homo sapiens, in general, from Homo erectus and modern Homo sapiens?

Archaic Homo sapiens have smaller molars than Homo erectus and larger molars than modern Homo sapiens. No chin. Have large brow ridges, low forehead, big face, long low skull. Less prognathic.

What are some indications in the archaeological record for our modern cognitive abilities and behavior?

Artifacts from South/Central Africa from up to 100 kya indicate greater cognitive ability. Technological advances, cultural changes, symbolic artifacts.

How are the Asian and African Homo erectus fossils different?

Asian Homo erectus are more heavily built than African Homo erectus. Asian have heavier brow ridges, bigger faces and jaws, larger brain, thicker skulls, sagittal keel.

Which three species of gracile australopithecines are found in South Africa?

Australopithecus africanus, Australopithecus prometheus, Australopithecus sediba

What are their characteristics and how do they differ (i.e., why are they considered different species)?

Australopithecus africanus: Forward foramen magnum, bipedal. Compared to afarensis, it has a more rounded skull, no saggital crest, less prognathic face, reduced canines, overall more derived. Grasping feet. StW Little Foot: Bipedal but w grasping toe. It is australopithecus prometheus. Australopithecus sediba: Similar body/brain size to other gracile australopithecines. *Had long, strong thumb like humans. Bipedal (pelvis and femur). Much shorter legs than human, similar arms to human. High shoulders. Probably ancestral to modern humans. Paranthropus aethiopicus: *Highly derived chewing muscles. Very prognathic. Sagittal crest. Nuchal crest. Paranthropus robustus: Bipedal, massive cheekbones, large molars, tiny canines Paranthropus boisei: Even more robust than robustus.

What is the evidence for their bipedality, and are there differences in their adaptations to bipedality?

Australopithecus africanus: Forward foramen magnum. Evidence for grasping ability in feet. StW Little Foot: Bipedal. Grasping big toe. Australopithecus sediba: Human-like pelvis. Valgus angle in femur. Large hands. High shoulders. Long arms and short legs.

What kind of environments did each australopithecine species inhabit?

Australopithecus sediba lived in savanna/open-woodland environment.

What changed in burials from Pre-Moderns (and AMHs) to BMHs?

BMH burials have deliberate orientation and position. Often include grave goods. Sometimes include animal skulls and red or yellow ochre.

How extensive is the fossil evidence for each species?

Best known australopithecus is afarensis.

When did hominins reach the Americas, and what species were they?

Between 15-35 kya. Homo floresiensis. Stone tool use. Fire use. Not deliberately buried. Short. Small cc. Wide pelvis. Hunched shoulders. Large feet. Flat arch. Thick skull bones. Low forehead. Flat face. No chin. Large jaw and chewing teeth.

What kind of stone tools are associated with modern humans (trick question)?

Blades. Flint tools. Bone and antler tools. Stone tools. Not metal.

How is Homo erectus postcranial skeleton different from early Homo and the australopithecines?

Body size and proportions are virtually the same as modern humans. Body proportions much different from australopithecines. More gracile. Also much bigger than australopithecines.

When and where do we find find evidence for modern human behavior?

Cave paintings and sculptures in Europe in 19th century. Art and symbolic behavior in Blombos cave site in South Africa 75-100 kya. Needles from China 26 kya. Harpoons from Congo 74-182 kya. Burial w pigment in Italy 20 kya. Art in Germany 35 kya.

What are the limestone caves, what is found in them, and why are fossils found in them difficult to date?

Cave sites in South Africa. Underground hollows carved out by water. No way out when animals fall in. Rock, sand and dirt falls in and hardens into breccia. Bones are scrambled, not layered. Harder to date bc they are mixed up.

What do we know about the Denisovans?

Child's finger bone found in cave from 50-30kya. Later, a molar tooth was found. DNA was neither modern human nor Neandertal. A partial mandible was dated to 160 kya. Molar teeth are far larger than modern human or Neandertal; they are australopithecine-sized.

How did the Earth's climate change starting at the end of the Pliocene?

Colder temperatures

What are the differences between the earliest ones assigned to our genus and the well-known australopithecines?

Compared to australopithecines, early Homo has a larger brain, a less prognathic face, smaller teeth. Similar bodies.

What tools are Pre-Moderns thought to have made and used?

Continued to use Acheulian tools. Also used Mousterian tools, Mode 3. Used Levallois special flaking technique.

Is the evidence for cannibalism from more than one site? Does the evidence for cannibalism indicate ritual behaviour, or simply dinner? How can we tell the difference (Slide # 15)?

Cutmarks similar to cutmarks on prey animals indicate simply dinner. Human bones have been found this way on all continents, in all species and time periods.

How has the DNA evidence modified our understanding of our origins?

DNA shows that modern humans left Africa and encountered Neandertals. All non-Sub-Saharan people have less genetic diversity.

How did climate changes in the last 130,000 years affect which regions we were able to occupy?

During LGM, most of Europe was uninhabitable while North Africa was suitable for farming and grazing cattle. Sea levels dropped during LGM, exposing land.

Why do some researchers put ER-1470 in a separate species, and what is it called?

ER-1470 is Homo rudolfensis. Has a much larger brain than homo habilis. Also has larger face and larger teeth.

Why do we not have any information about how we got to Australia?

Early landings and records are now under 300 feet of water.

What are the dates for them, how are they dated, and how secure are those dates?

East Africa fossils are well-dated by decay because of volcanic activity. Fossils from East Africa are dated radiometrically and used to date fossils from other South African sites. Most South African fossils can only use relative dating/faunal correlation. Dated to around 3-1 mya.

In what three regions in Africa have australopithecines been found?

East African Rift Valley, Central Africa, South Africa.

Where are Neandertals found? How long ago did they live?

Eurasia. 130,000 to 39,000 years ago.

When and where did this interbreeding take place?

Eurasia. 70 - 55 kya.

Why are the recent dates for Homo naledi so startling?

Found in South Africa. Skull similar to homo erectus. Smaller teeth and brain. From 335-236 kya. Much older than modern humans.

Where are they found, and how do they differ from the gracile australopithecines?

Found in the same areas as australopithecines (East and South Africa). They have larger faces, jaws and chewing muscles.

Are blades found with the early anatomically modern humans?

Found with behaviorally modern humans

Why are blades considered to be an advance over earlier stone tools?

Get more cutting edge than the same amount of stone.

What two major groups comprise the australopithecines?

Gracile and robust.

What characterizes behaviorally modern humans?

Greater cognitive ability. Artifacts indicating symbolic behavior. Blombos cave site in South Africa with engraved red ochre pieces. Blade tools. Atlatls for throwing javelins. Bone needles. Fishooks and harpoons. Ritual burials. Grave goods, purposeful orientation, ochre pigment. Carved figurines. Cave paintings. Oil lamps. Spoken language.

What two facts are striking about finding modern humans in Australia from so long ago?

Had to cross 45 miles of open ocean. Early landings and archaeological records are now under 300 feet of water.

How are Homo erectus different from modern humans?

Homo erectus has smaller brain than modern humans. Larger brow ridges than modern humans. Larger teeth than modern humans. Larger face than modern humans. More prognathic than modern humans.

What kinds of tools are Early Homo associated with?

Homo habilis modified stone to make tools. Oldowan tools ("oldest") are simple core and flake tools. Were probably both hunters and scavengers.

What is the oldest species assigned to our own genus, where were fossils found, and why were they classified in the genus Homo rather than Australopithecus?

Homo habilis. Found in Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania. Have smaller teeth, less prognathic and larger brain compared to australopithecines. Homo rudolfensis. Found in Kenya. Larger brain than habilis. Large face and teeth.

Where and when did Early Homo live?

Homo habilis: 1.8-1.9 mya in Tanzania (East Africa). Homo rudolfensis: 1.9 mya in Kenya (East Africa).

What physical, mental, and genetic evidence is there for the language capability of modern humans?

Increased mental ability. FOXP2 gene has to do w linguistic capability. Not straight path from windpipe, allows us to speak.

What is the evidence that (at least sometimes) they provided for injured or disabled individuals and deliberately buried their dead?

Injured Neandertals survived long enough for their injuries to heal, indicating that others helped care for them. Some deliberate burials were accompanied by grave goods like animal bones. Some burials were found with a lot of pollen. Maybe this symbolized something.

Be familiar with KNM-ER 1470 and KNM-ER 15000, and why they are important.

KNM-ER 1470 is Homo rudolfensis. Found in Kenya. 1.9 mya. Much larger brain, face and teeth than Homo habilis, so separate early Homo species. KNM-ER 15000 is Nariokotome Boy. African Homo erectus. 1.6 mya. Almost complete skeleton. Essentially modern body proportions. Matured quicker than modern humans.

What are Neandertal physical characteristics?

Large cranial capacity compared to modern humans. Thick cranial bones. Long, low skull. Occipital bun. Heavy arched brow ridges. Prognathic. Large face, teeth and jaws. Large nasal opening. No chin. Large incisors and teeth. Robust bones and large joints. Large hands. Shorter, more robust limbs than modern homo sapiens.

Why are Neandertal teeth of special interest?

Large incisors, heavily worn at an angle. Retromolar gap. Large mandible and teeth.

What are the physical and behavioral differences between Neandertals and modern humans?

Less cognitive ability is debatable bc Neandertals had larger brains than modern humans. Made sophisticated tools, sometimes buried their dead, evidence of art = all similar to modern humans. Clearly used front teeth as tools. Adapted better to cold weather. More muscular.

What have DNA studies demonstrated about our relationships (e.g., possible interbreeding) with other "humans"?

Modern humans dispersed from Africa to Eurasia 70-55 kya, interbreeding with Denisovans and Neandertals.

How are we different from the Pre-Moderns who came before us?

More gracile than Pre-Moderns.

What is different about the Dmanisi fossils, and why are they so difficult to classify?

Morphologically, they are similar to Homo erectus but with smaller brains. Oldowan tools. 1.8 mya. Individuals are highly variable.

What kind of tools did Neandertals make?

Mousterian Mode 3 tools. More detailed. Levallois flaking technique. Wider variety of specialized tools. Wooden spears for hunting. Hafting for hunting.

Why do we call this group a "wastebasket taxon"?

Neandertals are a wastebasket taxon because the sole purpose of this classification is fitting them in because they do not fit in anywhere else

Is there evidence that they may have cared for injured individuals?

Neandertals were able to survive w multiple injuries, indicates that others cared for them

Why is there no Neandertal DNA in modern sub-Saharan Africans?

Neandertals were in Eurasia. Different lineage.

What are some of the characteristics of the various (and highly variable) Archaic Homo sapiens fossils?

No chin. Retromolar space. Thick brow ridges. Large face. Low forehead. Long low skull. Sagittal keel. Larger teeth than modern human. Cannibalism indicated. Large cranial capacity. Less prognathic.

Probably most people (until they take a class like this one) think that Neandertals are older and actually ancestral to modern humans. How do we know this is not correct and why would the occupation pattern we see in the Middle East confuse those folks?

Not ancestral because they were around at the same time and interbred. Middle East: Modern humans did not replace Neandertals; they alternated. During the last Ice Age, Neandertals were forced South and retreated back to Europe during interstadials, modern humans moved north to the Middle East.

What are the relationships among modern humans, Neandertals, & Denisovans as shown by comparisons of their DNA?

One common ancestor in Africa separated into two branches: one leading to modern humans in Africa and the other to Neandertals and Denisovans in Eurasia.

Why were Neandertals considered to be a distinct species, and why has this classification been changed?

Originally classified as Homo neandertalensis. First pre-human fossil found. Scientist reconstructed based off of an extremely injured individual, leading to a flawed image w divergent big toes. Demonstrates sample of one problem. Now have greater understanding.

You should be able to explain why modern humans (or any other species) did not "appear".

Pre-Modern Homo sapiens were widespread and variable across Africa. In one or more populations some individuals were very gradually acquiring the characteristics we associate with modern humans. In these populations, some individuals will look Pre-Modern and some will look modern. Mosaic evolution. Not only these traits become the norm in the population that we can identify them as modern humans.

Were Early Homo hunters or scavengers, and how do we know?

Probably both. Cutmarks on bones show both scavenging carnivore kills and killing the animal themselves.

Are these shared with Neandertals?

Probably had some kind of language capability bc of presence of FOXP2.

Are Pre-Moderns ancestral to modern humans (Trick Question!)?

Share ancestors, but many diff species were around at the same time

Why do I say Homo erectus is the first "human" (although you may not agree with me)? What evidence is there that injured individuals were cared for?

Similar culture. Advanced tools. Fire use? Some survived after serious injuries, suggesting others cared for them.

What do we mean by modern humans, and what phenotypic traits characterize us?

Skeletal remains that would fall outside the range of modern human variation are considered anatomically modern humans. Ex: neandertals fall outside this range. Traits: smaller brow ridges. Shorter, higher, rounder skull. Vertical forehead. Smaller face. Smaller cheekbones. Less prognathic. Smaller teeth. Smaller jaws. Similar brain size to Pre-Moderns. Have a chin. More gracile.

When and where do we first find anatomically modern humans?

South Africa. East Africa. 300-160 kya.

What have we learned from genetic data about human evolution (origin, timing, diffusion, etc.)?

Sub-Saharan Africans have higher combined genetic diversity. Dispersed out of Africa. Three main mtDNA lineages all originating in Africa. When modern humans spread into Eurasia, they carried a subset of only one of those lineages. One common ancestor in Africa separated into two branches: one leading to modern humans in Africa and one leading to Neandertals and Denisovans in Eurasia.

How are Homo erectus body, brain, teeth, and skull different from early Homo?

Taller. Proportions like humans. Larger brain. Smaller teeth. Less prognathic. Larger brow ridges.

What does the fossil evidence tell us about when and to where we dispersed/spread out from our origin; i.e., when do we find modern humans in the Middle East, southern and eastern Asia, Australia, Europe, and the Americas?

The Middle East: 120-55 kya. Australia: 62-9 kya. Asia: 100-18 kya. Europe: 40-28 kya. Americas: 35-15 kya.

What is odd about the fossils from the two Australian sites we discussed?

The older fossils from Lake Mungo are more gracile and modern. The more recent site, Kow Swamp, are strangely more robust w heavier brow ridges.

Why are Denisovans classified as a separate population?

Their DNA is neither modern human nor Neandertal.

What are the characteristics of the three robust australopithecines (the genus Paranthropus), and why are they called robust (it is not because of their body size)?

They are called robust bc of their large faces, jaws and chewing muscles. Paranthropus aethiopicus: Highly derived massive chewing morphology. Very prognathic. Sagittal crest. Nuchal crest. Huge molars. Paranthropus robustus: 530 cc. Large molars. Tiny canines. Sagittal crest. Nuchal crest. Postorbital constriction. Bipedal. Dry, savanna-like environment. Thick enamel. Paranthropus boisei: Larger and more robust cranially than robustus. Larger molars. Thicker enamel. Wider cheekbones.

What did mtDNA studies of modern humans tell us about our origins? Do studies of modern human Y chromosomes support the mtDNA conclusions?

Three main mtDNA lineages all from Africa. When modern humans dispersed into Eurasia, they carried only one of those subsets. Yes, it supports this founder effect.

What evidence is there, if any, for hunting, shelters, and the use of fire among Pre-Moderns?

Traces of many shelters dated to 380 kya. Large mammal skeletal remains found w stone flakes and large heavy wooden spears found associated w horse bones.

Are Neandertals ancestral to modern humans?

We share common ancestors and are closely related, but both existed at same time. Interbreeding.

What changes took place in the climate during this time, and how were hominins affected by these changes (food - plants & animals - forest vs. savanna - geographic distribution - etc.)?

Wide swings and major cold periods during Ice Ages.

Could one of them (Early Homo) be ancestral to modern humans?

Yes, probably. Modern humans have smaller teeth, smaller face and larger brain. Homo habilis has smaller teeth, smaller face, and smaller brain. Homo rudolfensis has larger teeth, larger face, and larger brain. Mosaic evolution.