Anth 201 Final Exam

Taphonomy

Study of what happens to human remains after death, considers factors that affect bone preservation. can give indication of time and event of death

Absolute dating method

(chronometric) Gives estimated number of years for artifacts and sites

Relative dating method

Do not result number of year but rather the relative timeline of where some organism or artifacts are older or younger than others

Law of Superposition

Scientific law that the fossil deeper is the older and youngest on top.

Radiocarbon dating

Absolute/chronometric dating method based on the radioactive decay of 14C in organic remains

Hominin

Modern-day humans and extinct bipedal ancestors

Savannah Hypothesis

(Ardity) Expansion of savannah(less densely forested, drier enviroments) led away from arboreal (living on trees) life

Variability Selection Hypothesis

Changing environments and potential group isolation, move towards generalism (thrive in wide variety of habitats and have varied diet)

Fossilization

Stratigraphy

Be able to list the different types of fossils

Be able to tell the difference between absolute and relative dating methods

list the 3 timings of trauma

Antemortem – before death, Perimortem – around the time of death, Postmortem – after death

Identify four categories of trauma

Sharp force/surgical, Blunt force, Projectile, Thermal (Fire)

Be able to calculate the MNI based in a comingled burial

Minimum Number of Individuals (MNI) use the given bones to attempt to reconstruct a skeleton and then addresses duplicate bones

Estimate the age of a skeleton based on bone fusion

Estimation NEVER determination. Measure growth and development Pubic symphysis, Sternal ends of the ribs, Epiphyseal union (bone fusion), Dental development, Measure degeneration,
Most easily seen on joints of pelvis, cranial
vault, ribs

Be able to estimate the sex of a skeleton based on the pelvis

Pubic arch tends to be u shaped in females and v shaped in males. Does it seem likely that the
pelvic inlet could accommodate the birth of an infant?

Be able to describe the steps of skeletal analysis

bone? human? modern or archeological? How many individuals? Biological Profile: Who is it?
Evidence of trauma? What happened after death?

Gloger’s rule

More heavily pigmented individuals tend to live nearer to the equator, while lighter pigmented individuals, of the same species, tend to live farther from the equator

Bergmann’s Rule

Stocky bodies are better in cold climates. This is because fat helps to retain heat and because it reduces the skin’s surface area to body mass ratio, minimizing heat dissipation. In warmer climates, long limbs and slender frames help to dissipate heat more quickly, and, through sweating, actively cool the body

Allen’s rule

has to do with heat dissipation. It holds that shorter/smaller bodies are better in
cold climates

difference between adaptations and adjustments

Adapt- Trait that becomes common as natural selection takes over many generations(Skin tone, spleen size, disease resistance). Adjustments- Non-genetic way person copes with environmental stressors ( alttiude; increase erythocytes, Cranial deformation)