Quiz 1: Chapters 1 & 2
Which of the following best explains why women likely gathered food and remained close to the band's home base while men hunted farther afield before 10,000 B.C.E.?
The loss of a woman of child-bearing age would negatively impact a community far more than the loss of a single man.
Which of the following is NOT a true statement about the neolithic era?
The neolithic era is known for the introduction of copper tools and utensils.
How did the ecological conditions of Mesopotamia contribute to a dramatic rise in population density beginning around 4000 B.C.E.?
A decrease in rainfall prompted farmers to innovate new ways of storing food and prevented villagers from simply migrating to find new sources of food.
Genetic analysis tells us what about the development of Homo sapiens?
All humans living today can trace their ancestry to the continent of Africa.
Though closer to Africa, humans colonized Europe after they colonized more distant Australia. Which of the following is a likely explanation for this lag?
All these answers are correct
Innovations in farming spread throughout Afroeurasia chiefly through which of the following mechanisms?
All these answers are correct.
Which of the following describes the controversy over the discovery of Kennewick Man?
All these answers are correct.
Copper metallurgy seems to have originated in which region?
Anatolia
Ancient Egypt differed from Mesopotamia in which important aspect?
Ancient Egypt was one unified territory as opposed to a collection of strong city-states
Which of the following best summarizes the challenges archaeologists face in reconstructing the early migration patterns of humans out of Africa?
Archaeologists lack the evidence to trace with precision the routes and timing of migrations out of Africa.
Which of the following best explains the appeal of the coastal theory of human colonization of the Americas?
Artifacts found throughout the Americas suggest that humans colonized the region rapidly, a feat only possible with coastal migration.
Farming developed on all of the inhabited continents EXCEPT
Australia.
Which of the following may have been an advantage bipedal hominins had over their non-bipedal counterparts?
Bipedal hominins may have been able to see potential enemies over greater distances.
The discovery of the Floresians has caused scientists to rethink what traditionally-held belief about early hominins?
Brain size and intelligence are directly correlated in early hominin species.
How have advancements in our understanding of human genetics and human evolution complicated the concept of race?
DNA analysis has revealed that people of different races are almost genetically identical and that racial differences are simply the result of relatively recent adaptations and random variation.
Which of the following is a possible conclusion to be drawn from the discovery of obsidian glass in sites throughout Africa?
Early Homo sapiens exchanged goods and materials with one another across large distances.
What might the discovery of jewelry worn by early humans suggest about our ancestors?
Early humans engaged in acts of self-expression and symbolic representation.
The discovery of yellow amber in southern Europe originating hundreds of miles to the north tells us what about the upper paleolithic era?
Early humans engaged in networks of trade and exchange across significant distances.
Which of the following best summarizes the limitations surrounding the study of early hominin and human civilization?
Evidence about early hominins is sparse and only allows scientists to make broad conclusions about the development of bipedal species.
Which of the following enabled humans to migrate from Southeast Asia to Australia roughly 60,000 years ago?
Falling sea levels during an era of global cooling created land bridges between many of the islands of the South Pacific across which humans could trek, ultimately to Australia
Which of the following is an accurate conclusion drawn from the development of farming in parts of Northern China, Southeast Asia, and the Americas?
Farming developed in several regions independently from one another.
Which of the following accurately describes the relationship between foraging and farming in early human societies?
Foraging and farming coexisted for thousands of years.
Which of the following constituted one of the major differences between foraging societies and the first states?
Foraging societies were generally more egalitarian, while states were composed of a much more rigid social hierarchy.
Which of the following is NOT an example of a logographic language?
French
The relative uniformity in the size of Harappan dwellings suggests what about this society?
Harappan society might have been more egalitarian and less socially divided than other ancient societies.
Which of the following distinguishes hominins from chimpanzees, gorillas, and apes?
Hominins are bipedal, while chimpanzees, gorillas, and apes are not.
Which of the following distinguished early hominin species such as Homo erectus from their predecessors?
Homo erectus had a significantly larger brain than its predecessors, which enabled it to form small communities and create rudimentary tools from stone.
What is the significance of Homo habilis?
Homo habilis is one of the earliest known hominin species to make and use tools fashioned from stone
Which of the following is a true statement about early Homo sapiens?
Homo sapiens are the only hominin species to colonize the Americas and Australia.
The artifacts found at the Blombos Cave tell us what about the development of Homo sapiens?
Homo sapiens used language to create intricate tools and objects of decoration while still living on the African continent.
In addition to a period of interglacial warming that occurred approximately 40,000-50,000 years ago, which of the following enabled humans to advance throughout Eurasia?
Humans developed more refined tools and social structures capable of tackling colder climates.
Which of the following is a consequence of the late ice age of approximately 30,000 years ago?
Humans greatly increased their toolmaking abilities as they adapted to the dropping temperatures.
Which of the following best describes the relationship between humans and the environment in Mesopotamia?
Humans had to constantly innovate ways to alter their environment to accommodate rapid population growth.
Which of the following is a likely description of how early humans domesticated plants?
Humans separated out the seeds of those plants they liked to eat over generations by chance and slowly began to observe that they could coax these plants to grow by placing their seeds in the ground.
The relative uniformity of climatic conditions from the Mediterranean to the Indian subcontinent resulted in which of the following?
Innovations in farming and domestication spread rapidly and were easily adapted throughout the region.
Which of the following modern-day countries occupy the territory of ancient Mesopotamia?
Iraq and Syria
. How was the acquisition of language advantageous for early Homo sapiens?
Language ultimately allowed Homo sapiens to adapt to their environment far faster than biology and evolution would permit.
The pharaohs of ancient Egypt's Old Kingdom governed from which main center of power?
Memphis
Which of the following species is most similar to Homo sapiens?
Neanderthals
Which of the following is NOT true concerning the extinction of Neanderthals?
Neanderthals likely interbred with humans on a regular basis and eventually became genetically integrated into the Homo sapiens species.
Which of the following best describes the process by which humans developed organized agriculture?
Organized agriculture arose as the result of a disorganized string of innovations by early human communities.
Which of the following best summarizes the reasons for human migration throughout much of the globe?
Periodic climate change and population growth caused humans to range farther and farther afield in search of adequate food supplies.
Which of the following best describes the relationship between population growth and early human migration?
Population growth compelled humans to constantly seek out new sources of food and forced humans to adapt to a wide range of climates.
of the following best describes the relationship between religious leaders and ruling elites in Sumer?
Religious leaders took part in the spiritual as well as logistical management of society, and there was a great deal of overlap between rulers and spiritual leaders.
Which of the following is evidence that humans likely lived alongside other hominin species for a time?
Remnants of Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA can be found in modern-day humans.
Until approximately 200 years ago, Australians lived in virtual isolation from the rest of the world's population. Which of the following best explains this relative isolation?
Rising sea levels during a period of global warming separated Australia from surrounding land masses.
The institution of slavery in complex societies likely resulted from which of the following?
Slavery was an outcome of the greater social and class divisions that came with more complex human civilizations.
Archaeological evidence suggests that which region was the first site of organized agriculture?
Southwest Asia
As early as 115,000 years ago, humans began to migrate from Africa to which of the following regions?
Southwest Asia
The moon god Nannar is a deity from which early civilization?
Sumer
Which of the following was a consequence of writing in Sumerian society?
Sumerian society was relatively culturally uniform..
What is the significance of the footprints found at Laetoli?
The Laetoli footprints indicate that upright hominins entered the world stage approximately 4,000,000 years ago.
The domestication of plants differed from the tending of plants in the wild in which significant way?
The domestication of plants allowed humans to control for factors such as taste and nutrition far more than they could for plants tended in the wild.
Which of the following is NOT a likely explanation for why early hominins migrated across vast distances throughout Afroeurasia?
The emergence of the more intelligent Homo sapiens drove earlier hominins from their native lands.
Which of the following best summarizes how pharaohs ruled and maintained power?
The pharaohs ruled by sending loyal representatives throughout the countryside to collect taxes and maintain order.
Which of the following best describes the role of bureaucracy in ancient Sumer?
The use of bureaucrats enabled Sumerian kings to extend their rule over a much larger territory than they could manage alone.
The lack of natural resources available to the earliest cities of southern Mesopotamia tells us what about these societies?
These early cities likely developed complex systems of trade and exchange to import the goods not readily available in their region.
of the following is an important similarity between the domestication of animals and the domestication of plants by early human societies?
They both arose in a somewhat haphazard fashion and developed over long stretches of time.
Which of the following best explains why hominins such as Homo erectus and Homo ergaster likely worked together in groups?
They likely gave birth to immature offspring, which required some type of division of labor to allow for mothers to care for their young.
What does the migration of early hominins such as Homo ergaster and Homo erectus throughout Afroeurasia tell us about these species?
They were able to adapt to a variety of environmental conditions and likely possessed greater intelligence than earlier hominins.
What are some possible conclusions we can draw from the discovery of Turkana Boy?
Though capable hunters and biologically well-adapted to their environments, early hominins possessed limited intelligence and were likely to die young.
The largest urban center in ancient Sumer was
Uruk.
Sahul refers to which of the following?
a bygone landmass composed of Australia, New Guinea, and Tasmania
The rise of complex civilizations in the Nile, Indus, and Tigris and Euphrates River valleys led to which of the following?
a rise in the spread of disease and a series of ecological disasters resulting from over-farming and human efforts to reshape their landscapes
A city can best be defined as
a settlement with a multitude of occupations, whose inhabitants relied on food brought in from outside sources.
The great pyramids of Giza are examples of which of the following?
an ancient tomb
The term Holocene refers to which of the following?
an era of large-scale global warming occurring approximately 14,000 years ago
The irregularity of global warming trends during the early Holocene era resulted in which of the following?
an intensification of farming to compensate for cooler temperatures
Cities of the Indus valley were characterized by
an organized grid of streets.
presence of decorative objects at burial sites dating back as far as 25,000 years ago indicates that
certain members of a group held higher status than others, which suggests an organized social structure.
Unlike Mesopotamia's rulers, Egyptian pharaohs were
considered to be incarnations of the gods.
Sargon and his successors are said to be responsible for which of the following?
creating the first known empire by conquering several Sumerian cities
Çatal Hüyük and ancient Jericho are examples of what?
early "super villages"
The discovery of pig bones near a human settlement in southeastern Turkey dating from approximately 10,000 B.C.E. is evidence of which of the following?
early domestication of animals
Ceramic pots were an innovation of which of the following groups?
foragers
Scholars use the term sedentism to describe the process by which early
founded permanent settlements.
Which of the following techniques enabled scientists to discover the Denisovan species of hominin?
genetic analysis
The upper paleolithic era is known for being the era in which
humans began to form more complex societies and engage in higher levels of symbolic communication.
Conventional thought maintains that
humans entered the Americas via a bygone land bridge connecting Siberia to Alaska.
For most of their history, humans engaged in which of the following activities?
hunting and gathering
Before humans developed language, they
managed to colonize large parts of the African continent.
The term patriarchy refers to a society in which
men hold more power than women.
The Epic of Gilgamesh is an example of which of the following?
one of the first known stories written down in ancient Sumer
The region known as the Fertile Crescent is significant because it is
one of the first regions in which humans developed farming.
Which of the following discoveries has led some anthropologists to believe that humans may have entered the Americas from different points in Asia?
skeletal remains of early humans throughout North and South America
The first civilizations developed in which of the following regions?
the Indus, Nile, and Tigris and Euphrates River valleys
A consequence of the increasing social complexity of early farming settlements was
the concentration of wealth in the hands of certain individuals and families.
The paleolithic era refers to which of the following?
the era in which hominins began to make and use stone tools
Holocene refers to which of the following?
the era of global warming, beginning roughly 10,000 years ago, that is connected to the rise of human agriculture
Food surpluses in the first complex civilizations led to which of the following?
the formation of occupational specialization
Lucy, Selam, and Ardi are all examples of what?
the fossil remains of early hominin species known as australopithecines
Which of the following is NOT a technological innovation of Mesopotamian society?
the making of ceramic pots
Which of the following best describes the term collective learning?
the process by which humans amass and transmit knowledge from generation to generation, enabling rapid adaptation to a host of varying conditions
Which of the following contributed to the size of human bands during the upper paleolithic period?
the type of ecological system in which they dwelled
Cuneiform is
the writing system of ancient Sumer.
The discovery of decorative objects such as painted seashells pierced to make beads is significant because it indicates that early Homo sapiens
were capable of highly symbolic thought, and likely conveyed the meaning of these decorative objects through language.
Contrary to popular belief, Neanderthals
were highly intelligent, were capable of adapting to a host of environments, buried their dead, and cared for the sick.
The discovery of the site of a complex temple structure at Göbekli Tepe in modern-day Turkey has forced archaeologists to rethink what about early human civilization?
when humans developed highly organized religious beliefs
Humanity's first farmers were most likely
women and girls who generally remained close to communal settlements.
Which of the following is NOT an example of evidence scholars use to make conclusions about early hominins?
written records
