Anthropology Exam 1

Which of the following definitions was one of the first used by Edward Burnett Tylor?

"...that complex whole which includes knowledge, belief, art, law, morals, customs, and any other capabilities and habits acquired by man as a member of society."

Definition of Myth

A faith-based, non-rational, and sacred explanation for the origins or creation of natural, supernatural, or cultural phenomena.

Cultural Anthropology

A focus on human sociocultural adaptations of observable behavior.

Homozygous

A genotype at the same alleles at the same locus on members of a pair of chromosomes and codes for the phenotypic expression

Heterozygous

A genotype of different alleles at the same locus on members of a pair of chromosomes and equally codes for the phenotypic expression

Definition of Hypothesis

A provisional explanation using current data available of an observable phenomenon that can be tested for validity or rejected using the scientific method.

Definition of Theory

A working model that organizes concepts of the empirical world in a systematic way to help guide further research and analyze data. It contains empirical statements that can be tested and explain complex interactions of observable phenomena.

Match Genus and Species A. Gorilla B. Chimpanzee C. Bonobos D. Humans

A. Gorilla gorilla B. Pan troglodytes C. Pan paniscus D. Homo sapiens

Match the following characteristics: A. New World Monkeys B. Old World Monkeys C. Apes D. Prosimians

A.Almost exclusively arboreal, mostly diurnal, significant range in size, prehensile tails B.Terrestrial and arboreal, no prehensile tails, hardened pads, pronounced sexual dimorphism, physical sexual visual cues, large social groups C.Larger body size, absence of a tail, shortened trunk/lower back, more complex behavior, more complex brain, increased period of infant development and dependency D.Reliance on olfaction, more laterally placed eyes, shorter gestation and maturation periods, dental comb (lemurs), grooming claw (galagos)

While the capacity and elaboration of culture in humans is unmatched, many non-human primate species show forms of rudimentary cultural behavior. Match the following primates with their cultural adaptations. a. chimpanzees b. macaques c. gorillas

A.The use of selected and modified twigs to probe termite mounds for a tasty termite lunch. B. The teaching, then sharing among the group, the washing of sweet potatoes to remove dirt before eating. C.The construction of a specific type of sleeping quarter made from locally gathered material.

Haplorhini

All Monkeys and Apes (anthropoids)

As discussed in lecture, all species we rely on the process of biological and cultural evolution in order to survive (adapt) and Darwin's theory of natural selection remains the best explanation of a mechanism for evolution. So, why is there an opposition to evolution by many individuals?

All of the above, and then some. These ideas lead individuals to misunderstand the process of evolution as ongoing and critical as the way all species (animal, plant, fungus, bacteria, viruses) to adapt to environmental stresses. t is thought to be degrading to be compared to apes and monkeys, yet we are all part of the animal kingdom. Science and religion can co-exist. The belief in a higher being doesn't exclude the possibility of biological evolution and acknowledgment of evolutionary processes doesn't preclude or prevent the existence of a higher being. Not all religions reject human evolution. Today, the Catholic Church acknowledges the evolutionary processes do occur, but that the human soul is a divine creation and no subject to evolutionary processes.

Culture is adaptive

Behaviors and beliefs that allow us as biological creatures to cope with stresses within the environment.

Culture is learned

Behaviors, attitudes, and values are transmitted from generation to generation mostly during childhood, such as who we marry, what we eat, and aspects of what is considered morally right and wrong. It is not part of our biology. We are not born with culture. We acquire it through the process of enculturation.

The use of both biological and cultural approaches to analyze and understand a particular issue or problem.

Biocultural perspective

Franz Boas was an influential anthropologist who challenged social Darwinism and its notion of progress. Which statement best defines his position on the false idea that certain races were more superior than others?

Boas could find absolutely no evidence supporting the idea that one race was superior to another or that one race was inherently more intelligent than another. As quoted by Boas, "from a purely biological point of view, the concept of race unity breaks down. The multitude of genealogical lines, the diversity of individual and family types contained in each race is so great that no race can be considered as a unit. Furthermore, similarities between neighboring races and, in regard to function, even between distinct races are so great that individuals cannot be assigned with certainty to one group or another." (p. 21)

Biological Anthropology

Concerned with the biological and behavioral characteristics of human beings and our closest relatives, the non-human primates and their ancestors.

The doctrine that certain rights are not vested in individuals but in identifiable groups, such as religious and ethnic minorities and indigenous societies.

Cultural Rights

An approach that analyzes cultures in each culture's own terms as an attempt to maintain some level of objectivity in the research of other cultures.

Cultural relativism

Which of the following is an accurate statement about Culture?

Culture is acquired by humans as members of society through the process of enculturation. Anthropologists define Culture as, "the learned and shared knowledge passed from one generation to the next via the process of enculturation". The process of learning and sharing Culture is what guides participation within a particular cultural group or society. (p. 41)

Which of the following statements about culture is NOT true?

Culture is transmitted genetically. There is no "culture gene"... Culture and the ideas and values that define Culture are learned, not inherited genetically.

Biologically, people need to eat. However, culture teaches us what, when, and how to do so. This is an example of how...

Culture takes the natural biological urges we share with other animals and teaches us how to express them in particular ways. Some behaviors are related to fundamental biological needs and they have learned cultural components that frame a set of core social values about when, how, where, and with whom to do these biological needs.

All of the following are true about the work of paleoanthropologists EXCEPT that they: A. Often work in a team with archaeologists. B.often work in another country (in the case of U.S. paleoanthropologists) and are required by the American Anthropological Association's Code of Ethics to establish truly collaborative relations with colleagues in that country. C.Study human evolution through the fossil record D.do not have to worry about ethical and legal concerns, because they are dealing with the remains of dead humans.

D.do not have to worry about ethical and legal concerns, because they are dealing with the remains of dead humans.

The tendency of all humans to position their own culture as being more rational, natural, reasonable, and superior to that of other cultures with other cultures being irrational, unreasonable, and inferior.

Ethnocentrism

Grasping

Evolutionarily associated with arboreal life where prehensile hands (and sometimes feet), five digits, and an opposable thumb (sometimes a divergent big toe) are present.

The study of non-human primate behavior reveals the "biological roots" of human behavior.

False

A scientific theory is defined as a suggested but unverified explanation for observed phenomenon. T or F

False A hypothesis is defined as a suggested but unverified explanation for observed phenomenon. A hypothesis is a provisional explanation of a phenomenon that can be tested for validity using the scientific method. A theory in social science is a set of tested hypotheses or ideas formulated to explain something and suggest patterns, connections, and relationships. A theory yields new information about nature to answer to a set of pre-existing problems.

Like our good Hollywood friend, Dr. Indiana Jones, most archaeologists are primarily interested in collecting artifacts (material culture). T or F

False Archaeologists are not only interested in collecting artifacts, but rather in the examination of artifacts within a broader context to "infer and understand human behavior" and evaluate questions such as urbanization, warfare, artistry, agricultural development, the collapse of civilizations, and environmental adaptation. (p. 36-37)

Charles Darwin independently developed the science of evolution. He had no influence from previous scholars. T or F

False The evolution concept - the fact that evolution (biological change) has occurred and is occurring - was scientifically discovered well before his time. What Darwin did contribute to evolutionary science was his (along with Alfred Wallace) theory of the mechanisms of evolution or how evolution works. He called this the process of Natural Selection.

Cupping has been studied extensively and is a traditional healing practice restricted to Southeast Asian cultures.

False.

Prosimians are considered to have characteristics that are more primitive than those of monkeys and apes, and thus they are considered less evolved.

False.

According to your reading for this week, some human societies are "lost in time" and are the result of a lack of change or transformation. In other words they have not evolved and will always remain biologically and culturally "primative". T or F

False. As your book describes, change (biological and cultural) is constant and around us everyday. There are no societies lost in time, because time will always lead to transformation. "Nothing is permanent EXCEPT change" (p. 4)

In lecture and in the reading, several examples highlight racial classifications. These classifications demonstrate that biology and behavior are linked and based on race. T or F

False. FALSE. Culture and behavior are learned not governed by genetic factors. Cultural and biological variations are not inherited in the same way. p. 25-26

Gorillins

Gorilla

As noted in your reading, who first used the term "survival of the fittest"?

Herbert Spencer Spencer first used the term "survival of the fittest" before Darwin. It did not mean the same thing to Spencer and Darwin. With Darwin, fitness is related to reproductive success and those individuals that are most successful in producing fertile offspring. With Spencer, evolution favored the physically strong, the more intellectual, and those with financial success. Those were the fittest to Spencer. Spencer believed that evolution was progressive that led to perfect civilized (Western) societies. (p. 12)

In 1758 Carl Linnaeus was among the first to define and describe four races using his system of taxonomic system. Using the descriptions provided in the book, match the subspecies he created. Homo sapiens europaeus Homo sapiens asiaticus Homo sapiens americanus Homo sapiens afer

Homo sapiens europaeus- "white Europeans" Homo sapiens asiaticus- "yellow Asians" Homo sapiens americanus-"red Americans"(NativeAmericans) Homo sapiens afer- "black Africans" The classification of races, and their biased behavioral descriptions in favor of "white Europeans", established the false perception that culture and biology are linked. In fact, differences in the behavior are the result of culture and cultural upbringing... not biology. (p. 25-26)

Culture is shared

How we interact and develop notions about right and wrong (negotiated, debated, and contested systems of meaning) are all a product of our interactions with other people and the exchange of cultural models and societal norms

The doctrine that invokes a realm of justice and morality at the individual level beyond (and superior to) certain counties, cultures, and religions. These are usually seen as the right to speak freely, to freely hold religious beliefs (or lack thereof) without persecution, and to not be enslaved.

Human Rights

Hominins

Humans and their immediate ancestors

In terms of numbers and range, what is the most successful living hominoid species?

Humans. Humans are an invasive species and have developed successful biological and cultural adaptations to become the most numerous and widely dispersed species on the planet.

The cultural base of a society that defines a set of core beliefs and principles that are shared by a group as collective cultural knowledge and are specific to a culture.

Intellectual Property Rights

While anthropologists use cultural relativism to remain objective and sensitive to cultural practices, this doesn't mean that anthropologists have to ignore this.

International standards of justice and morality

Primatology is a specialization in biological anthropology. It is a very important specialization within anthropology. Why?

It allows for a comparative approach in order to make inferences about early social organization and behavior of all living primates, including humans. Primatologists study the biological and behavioral characteristics of primates (apes, monkeys, and prosimians) to understand the evolution of behavior. Many primatologists focus on what is called behavioral ecology - the examination of evolutionary mechanisms of social behavior related to reproductive success.

Gibbons

Largely frugivorous, although some insects and small animals on occasion

Is Culture unique to humans?

Not necessarily. Many non-human primate species show forms of rudimentary cultural behavior. Certain primate species do show rudimentary forms of culture, such as tool use, language, and teaching. However, the human capacity for and elaboration of culture is unmatched.

Catarrhini

Old World Monkeys, Apes, Humans

Humans

Omnivorous: culture influences what is considered acceptable to e

Chimpanzee

Omnivorous: vegetables, small pigs, insects, and small mammals (such as colobus monkeys)

Culture is integrated

Practices and beliefs form a coherent system, rather than random collection of independent activities.

Sense of sight over smell

Primates have a reduced olfaction with a decreased snout and reliance on vision. Color vision and depth perception is enhanced.

Hand over nose

Primates have increased touch sensations with tactile pads w/ sensory nerve fibers at ends of digits.

Strepsirrhini

Prosimians

Match the correct person with the correct publication, as discussed in your reading. Question Match choices Charles Lyell A. System of Nature Charles Darwin B. Mein Kampf Carl Linnaeus C. Principles of Geology Adolf Hitler D. Origin of Species

Question Selected Match Charles Lyell C. Principles of Geology Charles Darwin D. Origin of Species Carl Linnaeus . A. System of Nature Adolf Hitler . B. Mein Kampf

The precise repetition of an experiment or expansion of observed data to provide verification and predict future occurrences based on the data at hand.

Scientific method

Culture is composed of ideas based on cultural learning and symbols. What is meant by a symbol?

Something verbal or nonverbal within a particular language or culture that comes to stand for something else, with no necessary or natural connection to the thing for which it stands. Symbols are all-powerful and can contain complex levels of meaning, such as colors on a flag tied to nationalism or various symbols tied to identity within a group.

The term [x] refers to all members of the Great Apes and Humans together, whereas the term [y] refers only to those members of the human lineage after the evolutionary split from a common ape ancestor.

Specified Answer for: x Hominid Specified Answer for: y Hominin

Hominoids

The Great Apes

Culture is informed by knowledge

The ability to interpret and generate acceptable behavior through experience and as a member of a particular culture, such as the use of language rules, appropriate dress at events, and family roles.

Culture is a lens

The entire framework through which we view the world, create our beliefs, and understand physiology and human nature.

Culture is symbolic

The expression of ideas through written and spoken language, non-verbal communication, art, and other important objects.

Linguistic anthropology

The study of structure, history, and social aspects of human language

Definition of Social Science

The systematic pursuit of knowledge by recognizing a problem, formulating a question in a way that can be stated in a hypothesis, and then empirically verified or rejected using observable data.

Anthropological archaeology

The systematic study of artifacts (technology and material culture) and ecofacts as a means of reconstructing past lifeways.

As mentioned in lecture, the example of how humans cope with low oxygen pressure in high altitudes illustrates which of the following?

The unique human capacity for both cultural and biological adaptation. Biological and cultural adaptations are the mechanisms by which all organisms cope with environmental stresses, such as climate or altitude. Like all animals, humans have adapted and continue to adapt through biological means, but we are unique in that we also adapt through the use of culture. So much so, that we are dependent upon culture as a means of adaptation.

Culture is practice

The use of learned knowledge to interpret our own and others' experiences within the context of everyday social interaction and generate particular behavior

Sociality

There is a greater dependence on flexible, learned behavior with complex social groups and often-permanent association of adult males within a group.

Larger & increased complexity of brain

There is an expansion in the visual and association areas of neocortex with the ratio of brain size to body size larger in primates than other mammals.

Choose the preferred method in which anthropologists study the behavioral ecology of non-human primates.

Through observation and collection of fecal material when in the primate's natural habitat.

As defined in your reading, how does the example of ethnomusicology demonstrate the holistic and integrated nature of culture?

To understand music, an ethnomusicologist considers music more than something different than the spoken word and considers the different meanings that holistically shape and influence cultural activity.

Dominant

Traits that are governed by an allele that can be expressed in the presence of a different allele

Recessive

Traits that are not expressed when there are different copies of alleles

Culture (capital C) is an abstract concept that carries varied meanings whereas culture (lowercase c) is the expression of certain social, economic, and political attributes that define a particular period in time or across space.

True.

The example of cupping demonstrates the difficulties of being objective (using cultural relativism) when conducting anthropology on other cultures.

True.

Because of its broad approach to studying humanity, anthropology is heavily influenced by both the sciences (biological anthropology and archaeology) and the humanities (linguistics and cultural anthropology). T or F

True. Anthropology is both a scientific and humanities discipline. (p. 40)

Anthropology is more holistic than other social science disciplines because of the use of comparativism. As a result, anthropology uses a four-field approach to encompass physical anthropology, archaeology, linguistics, and cultural anthropology to examine the full breadth of what it means to be human across all space and time. T or F

True. Anthropology is unique because of this holistic and comparative perspective. This holistic and comparative perspective best characterizes anthropology when compared to other disciplines that study humans. (p. 40-41)

Applied anthropology is an approach that seeks to do more than study and describe cultures in an academic setting but to also use anthropological methods to help solve contemporary human problems. T or F

True. Applied anthropology is centered on the approach that anthropologists should work to better the lives of those they study. It is the application of anthropology to solve human problems. (p. 39)

As your reading discusses, Franz Boas reasoned that the differences in cultures is a result of different responses to different environments. These different environments created different needs, of which societies created different types of technologies or ways to meet these needs. T or F

True. His approach would ultimately be called historical particularism, which says that the differences in cultures are a result of their historical past. (p. 19)

Eugenics is rooted in a fear of a weakening civilized society with the dilution (mixing) of unfit and inferior members. It's a program of "race improvement" through controlled reproduction and sterilization of "unfit" individuals so they cannot breed and thus "mix" with more civilized members. T or F

True. In the United States, eugenics was used as a means of controlling "undesirable" populations - immigrants, people of color, poor people, unmarried mothers, the disabled, and the mentally ill. Federally funded sterilization laws were on the books in 32 states throughout the 20th century. (p. 15)

When classifying species within a taxonomy, anthropologists use homologies. Homologies are biological structures that are shared at the species level on the basis of a common descent.

True. Homologies are biological structures that are shared at the species level on the basis of a common descent - for example, forelimb bone organization of mammalian vertebrates. They may not have the same function today, but the structure and organization is the same. They are homologous.

Humans are most closely related to chimpanzees.

True. Humans and chimpanzees split from a common ancestor about 6 million years ago. Chimpanzees are the most closely related to humans and we share certain traits with anatomy, brain structure, genetic, and overall biochemistry. We share a 98% DNA commonality with chimpanzees. It is important to note that because we split 6 million years ago we did not evolve from chimpanzees. Each of us has evolved separately along our evolutionary line into the forms we see today.

Lemurs are prosimians found primarily on the island of Madagascar. They are the most diverse in biology and behavior of the prosimians with over 60 different species living on the island.

True. Lemurs are found on the island of Madagascar and other islands off the coast of Africa. Lemur behavior is as variable as lemur morphology with differences in diet, social systems, activity patterns, locomotion, communication, predator avoidance tactics, breeding systems, and intelligence levels.

In anthropology, our complex ability to communicate is grounded in the use of arbitrary symbols (sounds, written language, gestures, etc.) to impart meaning, which can then be interpreted by people as members of different cultures and societies. T or F

True. Communication is the use of arbitrary symbols and humans assign cultural meaning to these symbols. They have no inherent meaning otherwise. (p. 38)

Humans are one the most adapted organisms on this planet. This is because in addition to biological adaptations that have occurred over millions of years, we also utilize cultural adaptations to cope with a variety of environmental stresses that define our ecological surroundings. T or F

True. We has humans can adapt to our surroundings through both biological and cultural means. The use of a complex suite of cultural adaptations distinguishes us (but not necessarily makes us better!) from other organisms. Adaptations do not always lead to positive outcomes. This combination of biological and cultural adaptations emphasizes to the biocultural approach used by anthropologists.

T or F: Humans are dependent on culture and bipedal locomotion.

True. Humans are completely dependent on culture and cultural innovation, tools, structures, hunting strategies, etc. We are also obligate to bipedal locomotion. We cannot get around any other way.

T of F Paleopathology is the study of disease and injury in skeletons from archaeological sites.

True. They study old pathogens.

Gorilla

Vegetarian: plants, leaves, bark, and fruits.

Jane Goodall

chimpanzees

Panins

chimpanzees and bonobos

Many people assume that evolution is linear, which implies progress toward betterment or perfection. However, the peppered moth example demonstrates that

evolution is non-directional and not about progress from a state of imperfection toward a perfect species. Evolution through natural selection is direction-less or non-directional. As the environment changes, so does the direction of biological change. (p. 9)

An exchange of genetic material between populations of the same species through direct or indirect interbreeding is known as

gene flow

Franz Boas developed his modern version of anthropology and distanced himself from unilineal evolutionary thought. He argued for an approach of ____________________ , where the key to understanding cultural diversity around the world is because each culture is an outgrowth of its own past or history.

historical particularism Boas argued that all humans are biologically equal and the differences that exist among human societies are the result of culture and the particular trajectory of history (historical particularism) that influenced each culture. He demonstrated that societies could not be evaluated by comparing them to the so-called civilized "Western" cultures and must be evaluated under their own terms. (p.19)

Anthropologists study....

humans, our immediate ancestors, and our closest living primate relatives. This includes all cultures from around the world, including our own "western" culture. Anthropologists study people across all time and space. Anthropologists study all human cultures, including western cultures! They also study the biology and behavior of our closest living relatives, non-human primates.

Dian Fossey

mountain gorillas

Any factor that contributes to the change in allele frequency in a breeding population from generation to generation is considered a mechanism of genetic evolution. Those mechanisms are

natural selection (directional, diversifying, and stabilizing selection), mutation, random genetic drift, and gene flow

Platyrrhini

new world monkeys

Cercopithecoidea

old world monkeys

Birute Galdikas

orangutans

As noted in your reading for this week, biological anthropology is a broad subdiscipline of anthropology. However, a unifying concept among biological anthropologists is....

the study of evolution. "A unifying concept in biological anthropology... is biological change, or evolution" (p. 36)