Biological Anthropology Final Exam Review

Opposable thumbs

refers to primates' thumb, in that it can touch each of the four fingertips, enabling a grasping ability (both power and precision grips).

Diurnal

refers to those organisms that normally are awake and active during day-light hours

Dental formula

the numerical description of a species' teeth, listing the number, in one quadrant of the jaws, of incisors, canines, premolars, and molars. Ex. Humans are 2123/2123.

Tooth comb

anterior teeth (incisors and canines) that have been tilted forward, creating a scaper

Prehensile tail

a tail that acts as a kind of hand for support in trees, common in New World Monkeys

Brachiators

organisms that move by brachiation, or arm-swinging

Polygynous

refers to a social group that includes one adult male, several adult females, and their offspring

Dimorphism

a difference in a physical attribute between members of a species.

Polyandrous

refers to a social group that includes one reproductively active female, several adult males, and their offspring

Sexual selection

the frequency of traits that change due to those traits' attractiveness to members of the opposite sex

Kin selection

altruistic behaviors that increase the donor's inclusive fitness, that is, the fitness of the donor's relatives

Bilophodont molars

refers to lower molars, in Old World Monkeys, that have two ridges

Y-5 molars

hominoids' pattern of lower molar cusps

Habituation

you transform their (primates') behavior by making them tolerate your presence

Phylogeny

evolutionary relationships among organisms; important basis for identifying and classifying organisms

Taxonomy

the classification of organisms into a system that reflects degree of relatedness

Analogous characters

similar traits due to convergent evolution, not genetic relation

Homologous characters

similar traits due to common descent

Ancestral characters

homologous characters that appear early in the evolution of a lineage

Derived characters

homologous traits that appear later in the evolution of a lineage

Anthropoidea

includes both Platyrrhines (New World Monkeys) and Catarrhines (Old World Monkeys); exhibit larger brains, higher levels of sexual dimorphism, more social complexity, enclosed bony eye-sockets, and fewer teeth

Prosimian

Suborder of primates that exhibit a large reliance on sense of smell, have a combination of nails and claws, lack complex social behaviors, are mostly nocturnal, and most have tooth combs

Catarrhine

(an infraorder); category pertains to Old World Monkeys and Apes. Are characterized by a wide range of habitats throughout Africa and Asia, but mostly live in the tropics or subtropics. The primates in this group can be either terrestrial or arboreal.

Platyrrhine

(an infraorder); category of New World Monkeys, word stems from "flat noses"; these monkeys are found in the New World (Americas), and spend a lot of time in the trees. New World Monkeys are the only group that can exhibit prehensile tails. Their dental formula is 2133, with an extra premolar compared to catarrhines.

Hominoid

(Superfamily); includes Lesser and Great Apes; no members of this group have tails

Folivore

a herbivore that specializes in eating leaves

Fossil

Remains of once-living organisms that have wholly or partially transformed into rock through a long process of chemical replacement

Taphonomy

The study of the deposition of plant or animal remains and the environment condition affecting their preservation

Steno's Law of Superposition

The principal that the lower in stratum the older the age of each successive layer

Relative Dating

The arrangement of artifacts or events in a sequence relative to one another but without ties to calendrically measured time

Absolute Dating

The determination of the age of an object with reference to a specific time scale, such as a fixed calendar or in years before present (BP), based on measureable physical or chemical qualities or associations with written records; also called chronometric dating

Genetic Dating

Method of dating using DNA in order to determine a chronology showing the amount of time since two species diverged in their evolution (the molecular clock)

Arboreal Hypothesis

The proposition that primate's unique suite of traits is an adaptation to living in trees

Visual Predation Hypothesis

The proposition that unique primate traits arose as adaptations to preying on insects and small animals

Angiosperm Radiation Hypothesis

The proposition that certain primate traits occurred in response to the availability of fruit and flowers following the spread of angiosperms

Sivapithecus

A genus of Miocene apes thought to be ancestral orangutans

Gigantopithecus

A genus of Miocene apes from Asia, the largest primate that ever lived

Honing complex in apes

The dental form in which the upper canines are sharpened against lower third premolars when the jaws are opened and closed

Piltdown Hoax

Hoax in which bone fragments of modern ape paired with a human skull were passed off as evidence of the earliest human ancestor as a "missing link"

Oldowan Complex

2.5 mya, the stone tool culture associated with late gracile and robust australopithecines and early Genus Homo

- includes primitive chopper tools (cores, flakes, and hammerstones). Used for hunting, confrontational scavenging, and passive scavenging

Acheulean Complex

1.5 mya - 250 kya, the stone tool culture associated with Homo erectus, including handaxes and other types of stone tools; more refined than the earlier Oldowan tools

Handaxe

The most dominant tool in the Acheulean complex, bifacial symmetrically worked pear-shaped stone tool characterized by a sharp edge for both cutting and scraping

Wallace Line

Deep water trench representing an abrupt limit of distribution for many major animal groups including Homo erectus

Movius Line

a theoretical line proposed by Movius; the limits of Acheulean handaxe technology; likely bamboo or other perishable tool technologies on the other side of this line

Mousterian Tools

the stone tool culture in which Neandertals produced tools using the Levallois technique

Levallois Technique

a distinctive method of stone tool production used during the Middle Paleolithic, in which the core was prepared and flakes removed from the surface before the final tool was detached from the core

Dolni Vestonice

figurine of a face displaying similar facial anomalies to a skull found at site from the Czech republic dating to about 26,000-35,000bp; possibly earliest known portrait

Upper Paleolithic

Refers to the most recent part of the Old Stone Age, associated with early modern Homo sapiens and characterized by micro-blades and composite tools and other types of tools with various functions worked from bone and antler

Homo floresiensis

Nicknamed "the Hobbit" because of its small size, possibly a new species of Homo found on the Indonesian island of Flores

Kennewick Man

skeletal remains of a Paleoindian found in Washington State and is at the center of controversy over cultural descendant versus scientific rights

N.A.G.P.R.A.

Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act: requires federal agencies and institutions to return Native American "cultural items" (human remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony) to lineal descendants and culturally affiliated Indian tribes and Native Hawaiian organizations.

Clovis culture

Earliest Native American culture of North America: stone tool technology known for large, fluted, bifacial stone projectile points used as spear points for big game hunting

Domestication

The process of converting wild animals or wild plants into forms that humans can care for and cultivate

Dental caries

A disease process that creates demineralized areas in dental tissues, that lead to cavities

Cribra Orbitalia

Porosity (sponginess) in the eye orbits due to anemia caused by iron deficient diet, parasite infection, or genetic disease

Porotic Hyperostosis

Expansion and porosity of the cranial bones due to anemia caused by iron deficient diet, parasite infection, or genetic disease

Treponematoses

A group of related diseases caused by the bacteria Treponema which causes pathological changes most often to the cranium

Periosteal reaction

Inflammatory response of a bone's outer covering due to bacterial infection or to trauma

Environment of Evolutionary Adaptedness (EEA)

most of our evolution and adaptations as humans occurred while we were small scale hunter-gatherers before agriculture and as a consequence health-wise we have not had time to adapt to a much higher calorie, more sedentary lifestyle

What are the three major adaptive tendencies shared by primates?

arboreal adaptations, dietary plasticity, and high level of parental investment

How the arboreal adaptation in primates has shaped their vision

primates have their eyes rotated forward to the front of their heads, and as a result, the visual fields of the eyes overlap. Primates also have color vision, which is imperative for spotting insects and prey within the surrounding vegetation. With our increased reliance on vision, we also developed fully enclosed eye orbits (except for prosimians).

How the arboreal adaptation in primates has shaped their hands

Primate hands are also highly developed for arboreal locomotion. One of the most important attributes is the opposable thumbs and toes (in non-human primates); the opposable thumb helps primates have many types of grips (precision and power). Primates also have an enhanced sense of touch increased by the dermal ridges on the surfaces of feet and hands, and the presence of nails help to spread out the forces exerted on primate hands from gripping.

How the arboreal adaptation in primates has shaped their spines

The spines of primates are highly flexible, allowing for a wide range of movement. Because the spine is highly flexible, we can bend, twist, and stretch in order to strategically move through the trees.

How the arboreal adaptation in primates has shaped their hind limbs

Primates also exhibit hindlimb dominated locomotion, focusing a lot of the load bearing on the hindlimbs, making it easier to use primate upper limbs for other tasks.

What are the two major ways scientists observe non-human primate behavior?

Scientists observe non-human primate behavior in primate fieldwork (out in the field) or from captive studies (within a lab).

Advantages of Primate Fieldwork

observe in the most normal conditions possible

Advantages of Captive Studies

• Cheap

• Convenient

• Animals are always there and do not flee

• Controlled experimental conditions

Disadvantages of Primate Fieldwork

• 'naturalness' is an illusion

• Can cause habituation for the primates

• Generally hard working conditions

• Issues of placement, protection, support, and physical geography

• Animals are hard to locate

• Need several years of data to get enough information

• Expensive

Disadvantages of Captive Studies

• Primates may be from very different wild conspecifics:

o Could be provisioned, meaning exercising less and eating more than in normal conditions

o Social group size is often determined by number of animals in the zoo

o Intensive human interaction can teach animals behaviors not found in the wild

Boundary Maintenance

using vocalization to maintain boundaries of the group's living area to keep others out or warn others about crossing into the area controlled by another primate or group of primates

Predator Warnings

using vocalizations to let others know about predators and keep the group safe in some way or warn of danger; example: Diana monkeys in Cote d'Ivoire having a different predator warning as determined by if the predator is terrestrial or aerial

Dominant and Subordinate Relationships

using vocalizations to communicate different behavioral acts impacted by the different statuses of the primates involved; example: lower status baboons are more likely to stay put if a more dominant baboon makes a series of low grunts while approaching, than if the more dominant baboon comes up all of a sudden or makes an alarming call

In which types of groups do we see the biggest difference is sizes between males and females?

The groups in which we see the biggest differences in size between males and females are single-male (multi-female) groupings and multi-male (multi-female) groupings of primates.

Explain the relationship between sexual dimorphism and mate competition.

In primate groups where there is a lot of mate competition, sexual dimorphism (in body size and canine size) will be more pronounced. This reflects the fact that to compete for females successfully, males must be big and aggressive. In populations with low levels of mate competition, features are not as dimorphic because there is less need to exert bodily energy for these characteristics.

How does a living organism come to be preserved as a fossil?

The organism must be buried shortly after death in an anaerobic environment (or one as close to anaerobic as possible) to retard the process of bacterial decay, in soils that are non-acidic, and areas where there is limited geologic activity.

How are fossils discovered by modern humans and why are fossils discoveries so rare?

Most often, fossils are found as the result of archaeological excavations (digging them up) at locations often revealed by forces of geologic erosion allowing scientists to somewhat accurately date through stratigraphic analysis. Short of ideal geologic conditions, finding fossils is an extremely difficult process given Steno's Law and the fact that to get to very old materials one must dig through many layers of stratigraphy to get to areas where the fossils lay.

Stratigraphic Correlation

Relative Dating Method

Rocks and Fossils in layers of strata of earth

Present to millions of years in the past

Dendrochronology

Absolute Dating Method

Tree rings

Present to 8,000 to 10,000 years ago

Radiocarbon Dating

Absolute Dating Method

Organic material

50,000 years ago to about 1950

Electron Spin Resonance Dating

Absolute Dating Method

Fossilized bones and teeth

A few thousand to more than a million years ago

Paleomagnetic Dating

Absolute Dating Method

Sedimentary and igneous rock containing metal grains

Present to several million years ago

Radiopotassium Dating

Absolute Dating Method

Volcanic rock and ash

200,000 to several million years ago

When did MAMMAL ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

emerge in the Mesozoic (Cretaceous Period) • Therapsids: Small (mouse size) • Larger brains relative to reptiles esp. the cerebrum • Endothermic • Viviparous • Heterodont

When did PRIMATE ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

(~66 Mya Eocene) Pleisadapiformes (Purgatorius)• Teeth suggest diet of insects and fruit - Very anatomically primitive features: • Claws, no opposable big toe, small brain, no postorbital bar, large rodent-like incisors

When did PROSIMIAN ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

(~60 Mya Eocene) - Adapids: somewhat squirrel-like in size and appearance - grasping hands and feet -brains and eyes were becoming larger

When did ANTHROPOIDEA ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

(32- 29 Mya Eocene) - Omomyids, Eosimians (Aegyptopithecus): anatomy of jaw, teeth and tarsal bones suggest anthropoid • Dental formula: 2123 • Sagittal crest • Larger brain • Arboreal quadruped

When did PLATYRRHINE ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

(~26 Mya late Oligocene) - Branisella: Characterized by a combination of 3 premolar and 3 upper molars with a four-cusp chewing surface

When did HOMINOIDEA ancestors with the distinctive features of this group emerge?

(~22-17 Mya Miocene) - Proconsulids (Morotopithecus) Y-5 molars, somewhat short stiff backs, suspensory shoulder, a small brain, and a diet of leaves and other vegetation

When did HOMINID ancestors with the distinctive features of this group first emerge?

(5-6 Mya Pliocene) -Ardipithecus, Sahelanthropus, Orrorin: bipedal, large brains, material culture, prolonged fetal dependence, slow development, thick tooth enamel, small canines, large molars

What are the two characteristics that define the first hominids in the fossil record? How do paleoanthropologists observe these characteristics on fossils (what bones/anatomical features)?

Shape of the pelvis with its "bowl shaped" design and forward placement of the foramen magnum at the bottom of the skull. Additional characteristics are S-shaped spine, longitudinal arch in the foot, non-opposable big toe, and non-honing canines.

"Schlepping" hypothesis

bipedalism allowed for the freeing up of the hands for caring stuff including food, tools and offspring

Long view hypothesis

bipedalism allowed for individuals to see over tall grasses and through tress in order to locate prey as well as potential predators

Heat dissipation hypothesis

bipedalism allowed for a more efficient means of heat distribution and dissipation which provided for greater energy efficiency

Gracile Australopithecines

Dental Feature:

1.thick enamel

Cranial Features (2):

1. chimp size brain

2. High level sexual dimorphism

Postcranial Feature:

1. Bipedal pelvis

Robust Australopithecines

Dental Feature:

1. Large check teeth

Cranial Features (2):

1. Flared zygomatic arc

2. Sagittal crest

Postcranial Feature:

1. Thicker bones

Early Pleistocene Genus Homo

(aka H. Ergaster/ Erectus/ Antecessor)

Dental Feature:

1. reduced size (all teeth)

Cranial Features (2):

1 smaller face

2. larger brain

Postcranial Feature:

1. Straight phalanges

2. What are the two aspects of hominid evolution that come into a conflict referred to as the "obstetric dilemma?"

a larger brain (large brains need big heads) and a narrow pelvis (needed for obligate bipedalism).

What is one of the ways that the "obstetric dilemma is solved in humans?

more altricial newborns (early births)

Ardipithecus ramidus

Lived: 4.4 Mya

Discovered in: East Africa

Group: Gracile

Significance: Bipedal pelvis, but divergent big toe so bipedal but maybe not like humans

Australopithecus anamensis

Lived: 4.2-3.9 Mya

Discovered in: East Africa

Group: Gracile

Significance: mix of bipedal legs and long arms