Use LEFT and RIGHT arrow keys to navigate between flashcards;
Use UP and DOWN arrow keys to flip the card;
H to show hint;
A reads text to speech;
179 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
Define Anthropology |
study of humans, focusing on the similarities and differences biologically and culturally in human populations / study of human kind in all times and places |
|
Define Culture |
A set of learned behaviors and ideas that humans acquire as members of society. |
|
Define Holistic |
Study of all aspects of human life / studies many aspects of a multi-faceted system |
|
What are the four major subfields of anthropology? |
Biological, Cultural, Linguistic Anthropologies and Archaeology |
|
What is Biological Anthropology? |
The subfield of anthropology concerned with the origins of biological variation among modern humans and their ancestors.
|
|
What is Archaeology? |
The subfield of anthropology thatstudies culture in past human societies through the analysis of materialremains. |
|
What is cultural anthropology? |
The subfield of anthropology that shows how variation in the beliefs and behaviors of different human groups is shaped by culture. |
|
What is linguistic anthropology? |
The subfield of anthropology concerned with the study of human language. |
|
What is applied anthropology? |
Using anthropological knowledge to solve practical problems. |
|
Who is the father of anthropology? |
Franz Boas |
|
What are three things Franz Boas is known for? |
•Cultural relativism • Cultural particularism • Anthropology as a holistic study |
|
What are the characteristics of culture? |
•Learned •Shared •Patterned •Based on symbols •Dynamic |
|
What does culture do? |
It meets biologically determined needs. |
|
Define Adaptation |
Gradual process by which organisms adjust to the conditions in which they live. |
|
Culture is based on what? |
Symbols |
|
Symbols are what in culture? |
Arbitrary - in order for them to mean anything, it must be universally agreed upon by the society. |
|
What is the most important symbolic aspect of culture? |
Language |
|
What are the functions of culture? |
•Meet basic needs •Population sustainability •Enculturate new members •Maintain order •Motivate members to survive •Be able to change |
|
Define ethnocentrism |
The attitude that other societies’ customs and ideas can be judged in the context of one’s own culture |
|
Define cultural relativism |
The attitude that a society’s customs and ideas should be viewed within the context of that society’s problems and opportunities |
|
What are the key scientific concepts? |
1.Assumptions 2.Evidence 3.Hypotheses 4.Testability 5.Theory 6.Objectivity |
|
Define ASSUMPTIONS in relation to the key scientific concepts |
A basic, unquestioned understanding about how the world works. |
|
Define EVIDENCE in relation to the key scientific concepts |
what we see when we examine the world. This can be material and inferred. |
|
Define HYPOTHESES in relation to the key scientific concepts |
predictions about future data based on past observations. |
|
Define TESTABILITY in relation to the key scientific concepts |
the ability to test a hypotheses against nature |
|
Define THEORY in relation to the key scientific concepts |
a coherently organized series of hypotheses used to explain a body of material evidence. |
|
Define OBJECTIVITY in relation to the key scientific concepts |
the separation of observation and reporting from the researcher’s wishes. |
|
Define Evolution |
Change over time, ie: each generation is different than the previous |
|
Define essestentialism |
everything in the material world has a perfect eternal form – an essence. The world is unchanging in this view. |
|
Who is responsible for the idea of essestentialism |
Plato |
|
What is the Great Chain of Being |
the idea that all life can be arranged in a linefrom primitive to the most advanced with God at the top. This also views the world as unchanging. |
|
Who is Carl von Linee |
He is the father of taxonomy ie: binomial nomenclature |
|
What is binomial nomenclature |
the system of nomenclature in which two terms are used to denote a species of living organism, the first one indicating the genus and the second the specific epithet.
|
|
What is catastrophism? And who is responsible for this idea? |
1. fossils could be explained by aseries of catastrophic events. 2. Georges Cuvier |
|
Define Uniformitarianism |
the same processes exist today that existed in the past and can be used to understand the history of the earth. |
|
Who is responsible for the idea of Uniformitarianism? |
Charles Lyell |
|
What is the biggest difference between Uniformitarianism and Catastrophism? |
There are no sharp breaks with uniformitarianism like there is with catastrophism. |
|
What is transformational evolution and who is responsible for this idea? |
1. through use and disuse, organisms transform themselves to their environment and pass those changes on to the next generation. 2. Jean - Baptiste Lamarck |
|
Who is Thomas Malthus? |
An economist who came up with the idea that "Population growth will alwaysoutpace the food supply. In everygeneration, more organisms are born than can survive." |
|
Who is Charles Darwin? |
Charles Darwin came up with the idea of natural selection. |
|
What are the three concepts of Charles Darwin's view of evolution? |
Variation, Heredity, and Natural Selection |
|
Describe Natural Selection |
Those variants within a population that are more successful tend to have more offspring. |
|
What did Gregor Mendel discover? |
Mendel discovered that single particles (genes) inherited from parents were responsible for traits. Some are dominant and some are recessive. |
|
What are genes? |
Single particles inherited from parents that are responsible for traits. |
|
What is an allele? |
Different forms a gene may take |
|
Alleles can be: |
Homozygous Heterozygous Dominant Recessive |
|
What is the principle of separation? |
an individual gets one allele from each parent. |
|
What is the principle of independent assortment? |
each pair of genes separates independently of all others. |
|
What are the four evolutionary processes? |
Natural Selection, Mutation, Genetic Drift, and Gene Flow |
|
Define Population Genetics |
examines how the evolutionary processes lead tochanges in gene frequency |
|
______ evolves not individuals |
Populations. |
|
What is the genotype and phenotype of heterozygous traits? |
•Genotype= one dominant and one recessive allele •Phenotype= dominant trait expressed |
|
What is the genotype and phenotype of homozygous traits? |
•Genotype= either two dominant or two recessive alleles •Phenotype= if dominant , dominant trait is expressed; if recessive, recessive trait expressed. |
|
Define mutation in relation to genes |
the creation of a new variant of a gene (allele) when a portion of a DNA moleculeis altered |
|
What are the two parts of natural selection? |
Two parts: 1.more are born than can survive. 2.best suited have more surviving offspring. |
|
What is the advantage for heterozygotes in the sickle-cell trait? |
Those with the sickle-cell trait need to be homozygous for the trait. The advantage that heterozygotes with this face is that if they have the trait, it won't manifest as they're just a carrier. |
|
Describe Genetic Drift |
•the randomloss of genes from a gene pool•Increases difference between populations |
|
Describe Gene Flow |
•the exchange of genes between populations•Populations look more similar |
|
Describe Clinal Variation |
a gradual change in a feature across a geographic region |
|
What is Allen's rule (in regards to clinal variation) |
Tall bodies with long limbs in warm climates |
|
What is Bergmann's rule (in regards to clinal variation) |
Wide bodies with short limbs in cold climates |
|
What is the difference between adaptation and acclimation? |
•Adaptation– shaping of useful traits through natural selection. •Acclimatization– adjustments to new environments during one’s lifetime. |
|
Define race |
A classification below the species level for a population distinguished as a distinct group by genetically transmitted physical characteristics. |
|
Define plasticity |
the ability of the phenotype to change in new environments. |
|
Define cline |
•a gradual change in a feature – or frequency of a gene – across a geographic region. |
|
Define racism |
•the belief, without scientific basis,that some “races” are inferior to others |
|
Race is a _________ based on ________, not a _______________. |
social construction based on these adaptations, not a biological reality |
|
Who are primatologists? |
Scientists who focus on biology, behavior, andevolutionary history of primates |
|
Why do we study primates? |
They are the closest relatives to humans |
|
What are the characteristics of mammals? |
Live young (most species) Mammary glands Increased period of infant dependency Specialized teeth Warm Blooded |
|
When did mammals first appear? |
200 MYA |
|
What does aboreal mean? |
Refers to animals that spend the majority of their lifespan in trees. |
|
What are the traits that favor an aboreal lifestyle? |
•Small size •Varied diet •Distance judgment •Ability to grip |
|
List the Primate Characteristics |
•Unspecialized teeth •Sight (stereoscopic vision) •Tactile sense •Intelligence •Grasping hands and feet with opposablethumbs and toes •Generalized limbs •Parental investment •Social nature |
|
Describe Binocular Vision |
•Eyes sit next to each other on the sameplane•Visual fields overlap |
|
Describe stereoscopic vision |
•3D •Nerves run from each eye to both sides of the brain |
|
What does the neocortex control in the brain? |
•Conscious thought •Sensory perception |
|
What does the term 'opposable thumbs/toes' refer to? |
Ability to touch other digits on the same hand or foot |
|
What are the five natural groups of primate classification? |
1.Lemurs and lorises 2.Tarsiers 3.NewWorld monkeys 4.OldWorld monkeys 5.Apes and humans |
|
What does 'prosimians' mean and what does it include? |
Prosimian means 'before monkeys' and includes lorises, lemurs, and tarsiers. |
|
Who has the smaller brain - prosimians or monkeys? |
Prosimians have the smaller brain |
|
What are some traits of prosimians? |
•Quadrupedal •More nocturnal adaptations like Acute sense of smell, Big eyes; Big, mobile ears •Dental comb •Grooming claw |
|
What's unique about lemurs? |
- Female Dominance - Only in Madagascar - Fill a lot of mammal niches because they have flexible diets and locomotion |
|
What is unique about tarsiers? |
They pair bond and their classification is problematic |
|
What is included in the classification of anthropoids? |
•New World monkeys•Old World monkeys•Apes and humans |
|
Describe some traits of monkeys and apes |
•Mostly diurnal •Reduced sense of smell•Excellent color vision•Larger brains than prosimians•Improved hand-eye coordination•Longer period of infant dependency |
|
Define diurnal |
Active during the day rather than at night (IE: nocturnal) |
|
Describe new world monkeys |
•Tropical forests of Central and South America •Some have prehensile tails •Arboreal |
|
Describe old world monkeys |
•NONE have prehensile tails •Some arboreal, some terrestrial •Quadrupedal locomotion •Narrow bodies with hind limbs and forelimbs of equal length •Africa, Asia |
|
What is a prehensile tail? |
The long tail with the curved end that enables monkeys to hang from tree limbs and such. |
|
Describe smaller/lesser apes |
•Gibbons and siamangs•Southeast Asia•Brachiation•Pair bonding |
|
Describe great apes |
•Africa - Chimpanzees, Gorillas •Asia -Orangutans •Closest relatives |
|
Describe some differences between monkeys and apes |
Tails - apes have none, monkeys do Brains - apes have larger brains than monkeys Young - ape young are dependent longer than monkey young Apes have increased shoulder and joint mobility |
|
Parental investment enables what? |
It enables the ability to cultivate more of a society/culture as the young are present longer and are more dependent upon their parents to teach them how to survive. |
|
How do primates communicate? |
Through visual and vocal communication |
|
Give some examples of tool use by chimpanzees |
•Termite sticks•Leaves as sponges•Stones as hammers•Anvils for nut cracking |
|
What are the key differences between macroevolution and microevolution? |
Macroevolution is speciation in the long term |
|
Define Microevolution |
•Changes in allele frequencies over the short term |
|
Define Macroevolution |
•Focus is on new species formation and on the evolutionary relationships between species. |
|
What are the three families of homonoids? |
1. hylobatids (lesser apes) 2.pongids(great apes) 3.hominins (modern humans and theirancestors) |
|
What are hominins? |
•Modern humans, extinct humans, and their ancestors |
|
What is the major defining characteristic of hominins? |
Bipedalism |
|
Define Phyletic Gradualism |
Phyletic gradualism is a model of evolution which theorizes that most speciation is slow, uniform and gradual. When evolution occurs in this mode, it is usually by the steady transformation of a whole species into a new one. (FOCUSES ON THE LONG TERM) |
|
Define Speciation |
the formation of new and distinct species in the course of evolution. |
|
Define Punctuated Equilibrium |
the hypothesis that evolutionary development is marked by isolated episodes of rapid speciation between long periods of little or no change. |
|
What are fossils? |
•hardened remains of organic material(animal bones, plants) that have been petrified over time |
|
What is morphology? |
•study of the form and structure of organisms, and how those structures relate to one another |
|
Whats the difference between "splitters" and "lumpers" |
Splitters assume relatively little individual variation within species and Lumpers assume a lot of individual variation within a species. |
|
What are the four major trends in hominin evolution? |
•Bipedalism (walking on two legs) •Changes in teeth and jaws •Increase in brain size (cranial capacity)•Improved tool-making /language |
|
What is the skeletal evidence for bipedalism? (you don't need to name them all, at least 3) |
•Foramen magnum centered under skull •Changes in the spinal column maintain the body in an upright posture •Bowl-shaped pelvis •Robust heels to withstand force •Arches in feet to absorb force •Parallel toes |
|
What are the advantageous for bipedalism? |
•More energy efficient •Easier to spot predators •Able to exploit more resources with free hands •Carrying food, tool making •Regulating body temperature |
|
What is prognathism and why is it important? |
Prognathism is when a feature is pushed out or forward. It's important because modern humans have decreased facial prognathism in comparison to early relatives. |
|
What is cranial capacity mean? |
Cranial capacity is measured as the volume of the skull. |
|
What is the cranial capacity in chimps vs in humans? |
•Cranial capacity averages 395 cc inchimps, 1325 cc in modern humans |
|
What is the earliest hominin candidate? |
Ardipithecus ramidus |
|
What are the traits for ardipithecus ramidus |
•5.8– 4.4 million years •Apelikedentition •Arms,feet, foramen magnum suggests bipedal |
|
What are the traits for australopithecines |
•4.2-1.1 mya •Eastern and southern Africa •Sexualdimorphism •Bipedal •Hominin-like teeth •Mix of human-like and ape-like features |
|
What is the difference between australopithecine afarensis and africanus? |
Afarensis (Lucy) is in Hadar and Ethiopia and Africanus is in South Africa |
|
What are the traits of A. Afarensis? |
•Hadar, Ethiopia •Discovered in 1978 •4.0 – 3.0 mya •Clearly bipedal •Small brain size, 440 cc •Facial prognathism •Sexually dimorphic canines •Curved digits |
|
What is Lucy? |
A. Afarensis |
|
What is the skeletal evidence that Lucy was bipedal? |
Angled Femur and Basin Shaped Pelvis |
|
What evidence is there that Lucy was arboreal/quadrupedal |
Long Arms and Curved Fingers/Toes |
|
Why are the footprints found in Laetoli, Tanzania important? |
They are preserved footprints from 3.8mya of the Australopithecines and shows evidence of pronounced heel strikes, curved arches, and parallel big toes (basically bipedalism) |
|
What are the traits of A. Africanus? |
•3-2 mya •Cranial capacity: 420-490 cc •Bipedal, but limb proportions ape-like •Broad incisors, small canines (likemodern humans) •Larger molars than A. afarensis •Less prognathism than Lucy |
|
What are the traits of A. Boisei? |
•Range: East Africa •2.3-1.3 mya •Cranial capacity: 480 cc •Small canines and incisors •Very large molars •Less prognathism than other Australopiths•Sagittalcrest |
|
What is a sagittal crest? |
bony ridge on the top of the skull to which the jaw muscles are attached. |
|
What are the australopithecine trends? |
•Gracile androbust forms •Mix of human-like and ape-like features•Robust forms had a specialized diet •Gracile forms ate a more generalized diet |
|
What are the traits for the gracile form of Australopithecines? |
•“delicate” chewing apparatus •Diet: generalized•more meat than robust |
|
What are the traits for the robust form of Australopithecines? |
•“robust” chewing apparatus (Large back teeth, Well-developed muscles and bonesassociated with chewing, Sagittal crest) •Eastern and southern Africa •Extinct by 1 mya •Diet: specialized (high vegetable matter) |
|
What are the traits of homo habilis? |
•Olduvai Gorge (Tanzania); Lake Turkana,Kenya •2.3-1.7 mya•“Handy Man” •Cranial capacity: 640 cc •Reduced molar teeth •Human toes, arches •Oldowan tools |
|
What is important about oldowan tools and who are they closely linked to? |
Oldowan tools are the first recognizable tools and were used by homo habilis. |
|
What are the traits for homo erectus? |
•Range: Widespread! (Africa, Asia) •First hominin known to migrate out ofAfrica•1.7 mya-300 kya •Cranial capacity: 895-1040 cc •Further reduction in teeth, jaw size |
|
What are some skeletal characteristics of homo erectus? |
•Heavy brow ridge •Visible nose bridge •Sagittal keel •Longer legs |
|
Who is linked to the first controlled use of fire? |
Homo Erectus |
|
What are some traits of homo neanderthalenses? |
•Range: Widespread in Europe and SW Asia •300 kya– 30 kya •Cranial capacity: 1450 - >1520 cc •Larger than modern humans! •Low, elongated skull with occipital bun•Pronounced brow ridge•No chin |
|
What were neadertals adapted for and how? |
The cold. •Short, solid stature•Males 5’6’’•Females 5’2’’•Short limbs •Extremely robust bones, barrel-chested |
|
What kind of tools were the neadertals known for? |
Stone tools, mousterian tool tradition •Blades struck off a prepared central core •Tool specialization |
|
When were the Neadertals around? |
Middle Paleolithic Age (middle stone age) |
|
What are the traits of homo sapiens? |
•Earliest evidence: Ethiopia, South Africa •200 kya? topresent •Australia: 50 kya •Americas: 20-14 kya •Cranial capacity: 1350 cc |
|
What are some skeletal characteristics of homo sapiens? |
•High forehead •Domed cranium •Flat face •Definite chin |
|
What are homo sapiens known for? |
Cave art (Representational artwork) Complex burials Complex tools (Upper Paleolithic) |
|
What is the lower paleolithic age? |
1.6 MYA - 300 KYA •Time period associated with Oldowan and Acheulian stone tool traditions •Term also used to refer to H. erectus’ entire culture |
|
What is the middle paleolithic age? |
•(300,000-40,000 ya) •Time period associated with Mousterian stone tool tradition |
|
What is the upper paleolithic age? |
•(40,000-10,000 ya) •Tools found in this time period had rootsin both Mousterian and post-Acheulian stone traditions |
|
What is significant about the transition between H. Erectus to H. Sapien? |
Most scientists agree that the transition occured but aren't sure exactly where. There are fossils that have a mix of both features in which many argue should be called Homo Heidelbergensis. |
|
How does H. Heidelbergensis differ from H. Erectus? |
•smaller teeth and jaws •Larger brain (1300 cc) •No sagittal keel or occipital torus •Brow ridge divides into 2 separate arches above each eye •More robust skeleton |
|
How does H. Heidelbergensis differ from H. Sapien? |
•Retains a large, prognathic face with relatively large teeth and jaws •Pronounced brow ridge •Long, low cranial vault •Sloping forehead •More robust skeleton |
|
What is the La Chapelle-aux-Saints? |
One of the chief sources for a biased perspective of Neandertals. |
|
Why is the La Chapelle-aux-Saints biased? |
- Almost Complete Skeleton in Shallow Grave - Marcellin Boule published description that became generalized: bent-over, not fully erect - Boule misconstrued spinal osteoarthritis for normal posture b/c the individual was old and degenerative + doesn't represent the entire population |
|
How are Neandertals seen? |
Brute and Sluggish |
|
Give examples of the Neadertals symbolic behavior |
•Evidence from burials shows that Neandertals accommodated the sick and injured in life and treated the dead with honor and ritual •La Chapelle, Shanidar, and Tabun skeletons all came from graves •Grave goods sometimes included |
|
Where does the strongest evidence for Anatomically Modern H. Sapiens come from? |
•from Africa (Herto, Ethiopia and KlasiesRiver Mouth cave) |
|
What is the single origin hypothesis? |
All humans have an originating common ancestor (originating in Africa) and then spread out replacing all other hominids without significant interbreeding. - Typically supported with evidence found outside Africa |
|
What is the multi-regional hypothesis? |
Suggests that H. erectus populations gradually evolved into modernhumans, Continuity in skeletal features ismain evidence used to support this hypothesis |
|
What is the most widely supported hypothesis for the origin of H. Sapien? |
The Assimilation Hypothesis |
|
What is the assimilation hypothesis? |
This suggests that while there may have been some replacement, interbreeding between modern humans leaving Africa and populations already present in Europe and Asia also contributed to emergence of modern humans |
|
What provides the strongest support for the assimilation hypothesis? |
Genetic Data - Modern human nuclear DNA contains 1-6% of Neandertal and Denisovannuclear DNA•Some of that DNA provided important benefits to modern humans |
|
What is the Woman of Willendorf? |
an 11.1-centimetre (4.4 in) high statuette of a female figure estimated to have been made between about 28,000 and 25,000 BCE and to have been made by early H. Sapiens |
|
What is the Lascaux cave art? |
Lascaux is the setting of a complex of caves in southwestern France famous for its Paleolithic cave paintings. They contain some of the best-known Upper Paleolithic art (early H. Sapiens) |
|
Define Sexual Dimorphism |
distinct difference in size or appearance between the sexes of a species |
|
What is the occipital bun? |
a prominent bulge or projection of the occipital bone at the back of the skull. It is important in scientific descriptions of classic Neandertal skulls |
|
How do Archaeologists investigate the past? |
Through material culture |
|
What are some 3 types of material culture? |
1.Features 2.Artifacts 3.Ecofacts |
|
Define features in reference to material culture |
Non-Portable Material Culture (ie: caves, mud houses, etc) |
|
Define artifacts in reference to material culture |
Items deliberately shaped by human activity (tools, sculptures, etc) |
|
Define ecofacts in reference to material culture |
Plant and animal remains that are by-products of human activity |
|
What are the three key concepts to archeological methods? |
1.Survey 2.Excavation 3.Analysis & Interpretation |
|
What is a survey in regards to archeological methods? |
Systematically looking for material culture in a geographic location |
|
As part of a survey, archeologist sometimes use remote sensing which is _________ |
– detecting physical objects in the soil without excavation |
|
What is excavation? |
Removing soil deposits and other material to uncover archaeological remains. Context is essential. |
|
What is stratigraphy? |
A form of relative dating that uses how rock or soil layers are laid down in successive layers, or strata. |
|
What is the law of superposition? |
lower layers of soil were deposited first and are therefore older |
|
What is seriation? |
a method of relative dating based on the assumption that artifacts that look alike date to the same time. |
|
What is dendrochronology? |
a method of absolute dating based on the analysis and observation of tree growth rings. |
|
What is isotopic dating? |
an absolute dating method based on the known decay rate of radioactive isotopes. |
|
What is radiocarbon dating? |
An absolute dating method to determine the age or date of organic matter from the relative proportions of the carbon isotopes carbon-12 and carbon-14 that it contains. The ratio between them changes as radioactive carbon-14 decays and is not replaced by exchange with the atmosphere. |
|
What is potassium-argon dating? |
a absolute dating method of dating rocks from the relative proportions of radioactive potassium-40 and its decay product, argon-40. |
|
What is absolute dating? |
the process of determining an age on a specified chronology in archaeology and geology. |
|
What is relative dating? |
the science of determining the relative order of past events (i.e., the age of an object in comparison to another), without necessarily determining their absolute age |