Cultural Anthropology Midterm Study Guide

31. What is the major source of animal protein for Samoans? a. fish b. chicken c. pork d. beef

a. fish

5. Foragers are also commonly referred to as __________. a. hunter-gatherers b. farmers c. hunters d. fishermen

a. hunter-gatherers

19. What did Paul Roscoe discover to be closely associated with a New Guinean foraging society's dependence on fishing? a. population density b. family structure c. women's status d. protein intake

a. population density

58. Anthropologists have concluded that the physical environment by itself has a __________, rather than a __________, effect on the major types of subsistence. a. restraining; determining b. definitive; determining c. definitive; restraining d. positive; negative

a. restraining; determining

13. Where do most Inupiaq live today? a. small villages b. urban centers c. isolated permanent settlements d. nomadic groups

a. small villages

65. How might we best describe the subsistence strategies of contemporary cultures? a. Most people today are foragers. b. Most people today are foragers, supplemented with small-scale animal husbandry. c. There is a roughly equal balance between foraging and food producing cultures. d. Most people today are food producers.

d. most people today are food producers.

62. In which of these environments would you be least likely to find a pastoralist society? a. steppes b. savannas c. prairies d. mountains

d. mountains

53. The Lapps of Norway, Finland, and Sweden have traditionally herded __________. a. horses b. cattle c. sheep d. reindeer

d. reindeer

73. Although food production is not necessarily __________ than food collection, it is generally __________ per unit of land. a. easier; more productive b. harder; more productive c. easier; less productive d. harder; less productive

a. easier; more productive

21. Which of the following is a major type of food production system identified by anthropologists? a. food collection b. horticulture c. fishing d. grocery shopping

a. food collection

40. Most work for women in intensive agricultural societies involves __________. a. food processing b. clearing the land c. harvesting crops d. planting seeds

a. food processing

74. Ester Boserup argues that the intensification of agriculture is __________. a. not linked to population growth b. associated with greater social equality c. not likely to develop naturally out of horticulture d. dependent upon a slow progression from animal husbandry and horticulture

a. is not linked to population growth

12. The Inuit subsist mostly on __________ because __________ do not exist in large numbers at their northerly latitude. a. meat; plants b. plants; fish c. plants; land animals d. caribou; seals

a. meat; plants

80. Which is true of the core vocabularies of languages? a. more complex societies have larger core vocabularies b. more ancient cultures have larger core vocabularies c. more socially diverse societies have larger core vocabularies d. all languages have core vocabularies of about the same size

a. more complex societies have larger core vocabularies

26. In what activity do Yanomamö participate as part of their subsistence strategy? a. plant coconut and banana trees b. raise cattle and sheep c. use irrigation to control farmland d. hunt monkeys with bow and arrow

a. plant coconut and banana trees

24. As understood by anthropologists, horticulture includes __________. a. shifting cultivation b. decorative flower gardening c. large fields of cash crops d. greenhouses for growing plants

a. shifting cultivation

14. Which of the following is characteristic of foraging societies? a. small group size consisting of related families b. semi-permanent settled villages c. social hierarchies reflected in ownership of land and wealthy possessions d. high levels of social differentiation

a. small group size consisting of related families

18. Complex foraging societies like the Tlingit and the Nimpkish tend to have more __________ than most other foraging societies. a. social inequality b. elaborate folklore c. reliance on hunting d. balanced gender roles

a. social inequality

3. By "food collection," anthropologists mean the obtaining of food from __________. a. wild plants and animals b. wild plants only c. domesticated plants and animals d. plants, wild and domesticated

a. wild plants and animals

76. If a language has a basic color term for "yellow" it is most likely also to have a color term for __________. a. green b. orange c. brown d. red

d. red

27. Before the 1950s, the Yanomamö did not have steel axes or machetes. Where did they get these tools? a. the government supplied them b. the Yanomamo discovered metal working around the 1950s c. missionaries gave them the steel axes and machetes d. trade with neighboring communities

d. trade with neighboring communities

10. Most of the Ngatatjara's food supply is gathered by __________ and is __________. a. men; meat b. men; plant foods c. women; meat d. women; plant food

d. women; plant food

61. Why are the majority of intensive agricultural societies located outside of the tropics? a. It is difficult to control insects and weeds in the tropics, making agriculture less productive. b. Most societies in the tropics are too small to require intensive agriculture. c. Tropical forests are so bountiful that people can easily survive on a foraging lifestyle. d. Tropical environments are particularly well suited to pastoralism.

a. It is difficult to control insects and weeds in the tropics, making agriculture less productive.

30. Europeans who first saw the way South Pacific islanders maintained their gardens thought they were simply lazy. Why do they really allow their gardens to grow in such a messy state? a. The jumbled roots minimize erosion in the loose volcanic soil. b. They spend most of their days foraging, and don't have time to maintain tidy gardens. c. Islanders believe their gardens should look as much like the jungle as possible. d. They had only recently discovered horticulture, and their methods were still unrefined.

a. The jumbled roots minimize erosion in the loose volcanic soil.

41. Which of these is a consequence of intensive agriculture? a. a high degree of craft specialization b. a simple political organization c. a transient, nomadic lifestyle d. smaller population groups

a. a high degree of craft specialization

55. Individual families in pastoral societies are most likely to own __________. a. animals b. grazing lands c. permanent dwelling places d. land for cultivating crops

a. animals

37. A crop raised specifically for sale is called a __________ crop. a. cash b. market c. bumper d. trade

a. cash

46. Although a common dish in America today, spaghetti noodles originated in __________. a. China b. Italy c. Norway d. Iraq

a. china

48. One characteristic of pastoral societies is __________. a. dependence on trade with agriculturalists b. large settlements c. permanent settlements d. dependence exclusively on meat for food

a. dependence on trade with agriculturalists

75. In which areas is intensive agriculture unlikely to supplant horticulture? a. plains b. the Arctic c. tropical forests d. temperate climates

c. tropical forests

7. In the last few hundred years, about how many people are or were foragers? a. 1 million b. 5 million c. 10 million d. 15 million

b. 5 million

44. Which of these trends is associated with the increasing commercialization of agriculture? a. People are choosing to eat more local food. b. A smaller proportion of a society is involved in food production. c. Technology is being used to grow a wider variety of crops on a single field. d. More food production is controlled by family-run operations.

b. A smaller proportion of a society is involved in food production.

20. What is the difference between foraging and food production? a. Food production depends only on plant foods, while foraging involves both plants and animals. b. Foraging uses only wild plants and animals, while food production cultivates and domesticates them. c. Foraging allows for more control over processes like animal breeding and plant seeding . d. Food production requires a strict division of labor by gender, while foraging is rarely split by gender.

b. Foraging uses only wild plants and animals, while food production cultivates and domesticates them.

42. Why are intensive agriculturalists more likely to face food shortages than horticultural societies? a. Horticulture is usually more productive than intensive agriculture. b. Intensive agriculturalists often produce crops for market. c. Horticulture involves more complex and reliable technology. d. Intensive agriculturalists usually live in more challenging environments than horticulturalists.

b. Intensive agriculturalists often produce crops for market.

8. Why must we be cautious about drawing inferences about our past from the lifestyles of modern foraging societies? a. Our ancestors had regular interactions with other societies, while modern foragers remain isolated. b. Like all societies, foraging societies have evolved and are still evolving. c. Contemporary foragers live in environments that ancient foragers never used. d. Modern foraging societies represent an artificial return to what people believe were the "old" ways.

b. Like all societies, foraging societies have evolved and are still evolving.

49. What is the difference between animal husbandry and pastoralism? a. Pastoralism allows for many more animals to be kept in a small space than does animal husbandry. b. Pastoralists feed their herds on natural pasture, while animal husbandry provides special food. c. Pastoralism is associated with intensive agriculture, but animal husbandry is not. d. Pastoralists eat their animals, while animal husbandry includes raising animals for milk or wool.

b. Pastoralists feed their herds on natural pasture, while animal husbandry provides special food.

32. How have Samoan villagers earned money to buy items such as machetes, kerosene, and flour? a. They sell traditional pieces of art to tourists. b. They sell dried coconut meat to be made into coconut oil. c. They trade breadfruit with villagers on neighboring islands. d. They raise sheep and sell the milk and wool.

b. They sell dried coconut meat to be made into coconut oil.

50. The Basseri pastoralists of Iran are characterized by __________. a. large, complex settlements b. annual migrations c. individual ownership of land d. sales of metal, spices, and oils

b. annual migrations

78. Compared to people in simpler societies, people in complex societies __________. a. commonly have fewer terms for plants but many for animals b. commonly can give a larger number of general, or life-form, terms for plants and animals c. commonly have the same number of general terms for plants, but more terms for specific plants d. usually have more names for specific plants, but the same number of general plant terms

b. commonly can give a larger number of general, or life-form, terms for plants and animals

79. Compared to people in simpler societies, people in complex societies __________. a. commonly have fewer terms for basic colors b. commonly have a larger overall vocabulary due to a greater number of technical specialties c. commonly have the same number of general terms for plants, but more terms for specific plants d. usually have more names for specific animals, but the same number of general animal terms

b. commonly have a larger overall vocabulary due to a greater number of technical specialties

38. Which of these is an important cash crop for the agricultural communities of rural Greece? a. coffee b. cotton c. sugar d. plantains

b. cotten

52. What herding system allows animals to roam over a large area and requires little surveillance? a. intensive b. extensive c. internal d. external

b. extensive

16. What food-getting activity is the most important for many (38%) of contemporary foraging societies? a. gathering plants b. fishing c. hunting big game d. hunting small game

b. fishing

9. Before Europeans came to Australia, all the aboriginal people there depended on __________. a. horticulture b. food collection c. intensive agriculture d. pastoralism

b. food collection

71. Why should we not assume that food collectors would automatically switch to food production, once they understood the process of domestication? a. food production cannot support as many people as food collection b. food production involves more work and less security than food collection c. food production is associated with a more complex diet than food collection d. food production requires less specialized skills than food collection

b. food production involves more work and less security than food collection

59. Which type of subsistence strategy has been practiced at one time in almost all areas of the earth? a. pastoralism b. foraging c. horticulture d. intensive agriculture

b. foraging

15. On what factors is the division of labor based in most foraging societies? a. wealth and gender b. gender and age c. age and status d. status and wealth

b. gender and age

22. What do anthropologists call a system in which people grow foods using simple tools, in the absence of permanently cultivated fields? a. agriculture b. horticulture c. slash and burn agriculture d. aquaculture

b. horticulture

81. The controversial Sapir-Whorf hypothesis proposes that __________. a. culture has a strong influence on how we speak languages b. language affects how individuals in a society perceive and conceive reality c. languages reflect the values, attitudes, and beliefs of the society d. language and culture have no measurable influence on each other

b. language affects how individuals in a society perceive and conceive reality

51. What is the most important commodity of the Basseri's pastoral economy? a. meat b. milk c. blood d. wool

b. milk

35. What is one of the major consequences of horticulture? a. lower population density b. more sedentary way of life c. strict egalitarianism d. reliance on hunted game for protein

b. more sedentary way of life

67. What archaeological evidence is needed to support the Binford-Flannery model? a. evidence of seafood in conjunction with agricultural fields b. population increase before the emergence of domestication c. artifacts indicating long periods of trade with food producing societies d. skeletal evidence of domesticated animals

b. population increase before the emergence of domestication

70. If climate change is involved in the emergence of agriculture, the transition may have occurred when __________ no longer provided sufficient resources to support the population. a. nomadic foraging b. sedentary foraging c. slash-and-burn horticulture d. animal husbandry

b. sedentary foraging

56. Societies that engage in pastoralism are characterized by__________. a. a dependence on small animals like chickens or pigs b. small, highly mobile groups c. living in densely forested environments d. a very high birth rate

b. small, highly mobile groups

1. A society in which all able-bodied adults are engaged in getting food for themselves and their families is said to have a __________ economy. a. service b. subsistence c. perishable d. provisions

b. subsistence

72. The spread of agriculture may be linked to the need for __________. a. more food b. territorial expansion c. permanent housing d. saving animals

b. territorial expansion

64. In what region do we see the very first evidence of a changeover to food production, dating to around 8,000 B.C.? a. the Indus Valley b. the Near East c. Mesoamerica d. eastern Europe

b. the near east

34. Which horticulturalists are likely to be the most sedentary? a. a group that uses slash-and-burn agriculture b. those who rely on food from trees that produce for a long time c. villages that raise chickens or pigs d. a group that still relies heavily on foraging

b. those who rely on food from trees that produce for a long time

60. What development was necessary before foragers could live in tropical forest environments? a. animal husbandry of small animals for protein b. trade with agriculturalists to obtain carbohydrates c. market economy to trade with neighbors for metal tools d. an irrigation system to deal with heavy tropical rains

b. trade with agriculturalists to obtain carbohydrates

36. What is the key feature that distinguishes intensive agriculture from horticulture? a. Only intensive agriculture incorporates any sort of technology. b. Intensive agriculture begins only after a population reaches a critical density. c. Intensive agriculture uses techniques that allow people to cultivate fields permanently. d. Horticulture produces foods for village use, while intensive agriculture focuses on crops to sell.

c. Intensive agriculture uses techniques that allow people to cultivate fields permanently.

68. Who argues that a worldwide population pressure is the reason so many of the world's cultures adopted food production within a span of only a few thousand years? a. Lewis Binford b. Ester Boserup c. Mark Cohen d. Kent Flannery

c. Mark Cohen

66. What do Lewis Binford and Kent Flannery suggest must have influenced the changeover to food production? a. There was an economic incentive for foragers to become food producers. b. People settled first, then realized that they would have to produce food to sustain their permanent residence patterns. c. Population growth pushed people out of optimal areas, and they turned to food production to try to reproduce the resources they once had. d. Food production was spread culturally through contact with neighboring communities.

c. Population growth pushed people out of optimal areas, and they turned to food production to try to reproduce the resources they once had.

54. What herding strategies do contemporary Lapps use? a. They maintain their traditional nomadic lifestyle. b. They still herd animals, but have switched to sheep and goats. c. The Norwegian government now regulates reindeer herding. d. There are no longer any reindeer herders among the Lapp.

c. The Norwegian government now regulates reindeer herding.

11. Why did aboriginal Australians never establish campsites right next to water? a. They believed the water was protected by fierce spirits. b. Water was so plentiful that they did not need to seek it out before camping each night. c. They did not want to frighten away game that came to drink. d. The water interfered with the construction of their temporary houses.

c. They did not want to frighten away game that came to drink.

39. Wet rice cultivation in the Mekong Delta is associated with __________. a. a tool set consisting of simple, handmade equipment b. slash-and-burn horticulture c. a clearly defined set of socioeconomic roles d. a nomadic lifestyle and seasonal movement

c. a clearly defined set of socioeconomic roles

77. Which society would probably have the fewest basic color terms? a. a relatively "primitive" society b. a society located near the north pole c. a society whose people have darker eyes d. a more complex society

c. a society whose people have darker eyes

29. Which of the following is one of the staple crops of Samoan horticulture? a. millet b. manioc c. breadfruit d. rice

c. breadfruit

69. Recently, some archaeologists have returned to the idea that __________ played a role in the emergence of agriculture. a. lack of large game b. taming of animals c. climate change d. technology

c. climate change

45. To what sort of food collection does the term "market foraging" refer? a. selling foraged plant foods in the village market b. stealing crops from agricultural lands c. collecting your food from a store d. supplementing purchased foods to your foraged diet

c. collecting your food from a store

43. The worldwide trend for intensive agriculturalists to produce more and more for a market is called __________. a. modernization b. industrialization c. commercialization d. mechanization

c. commercialization

4. What subsistence strategy characterized most of human history? a. horticulture b. irrigation agriculture c. food collection d. pastoralism

c. food collection

33. Compared to food-collectors, horticulturalists generally __________. a. are more sparsely populated b. are more nomadic c. get more food from a given area d. have fewer differences in prestige between people

c. get more food from a given area

57. What do archaeologists suggest may have contributed to the decline of the earliest city-states in Mesopotamia? a. overpopulation b. drought c. salinization d. flooding

c. salinization

23. What form of horticulture involves working the land for a short time, then leaving it idle for a few years? a. cash cropping b. monocropping c. shifting cultivation d. permanent cultivation

c. shifting cultivation

28. Clearing the undergrowth, felling trees, and using controlled burning to clear a garden plot is known as __________ horticulture. a. fire-and-air b. smoke-and-ash c. slash-and-burn d. cut-and-clear

c. slash-and-burn

6. In which region are foraging societies least likely to be found today? a. deserts b. dense tropical forests c. temperate climates d. the Arctic

c. temperate climates

47. From where do most traditional pastoralists get their animal protein? a. the meat of the animals they raise b. trading wool for cheese and yogurt in cities c. the milk and blood of the animals they raise d. buying meat with cash earned through wage labor

c. the milk and blood of the animals they raise

2. Agriculture dates back only about __________ years. a. 100 b. 500 c. 1,000 d. 10,000

d. 10,000

63. Beginning about __________ years ago, people in some regions began to depend less on big game and more on relatively stationary food resources such as fish, small game, and wild plants. a. 3,000 b. 6,000 c. 10,000 d. 14,000

d. 14,000

25. Which animals are least likely to be a source of food in a horticultural society? a. pigs b. sheep c. chicken d. camels

d. camels

17. Studies of two aboriginal Australian and one African foraging group suggest that foraging societies spend __________ time getting food than most agricultural societies. a. much more b. more c. about the same amount of d. less

d. less