anthrcul 101 exam 2

when was earliest fossil evidence of hominins

7mya

8 species of hominins in chronological order

1. sahelanthropus tchadensis

2. ardipithecus ramidus

3. australopithecus afarensis

4. paranthropus boisei

5. homo habilis

6. homo erectus

7. homo neanderthalensis

8. homo sapiens

how long ago and where sahelanthropus tchadensis

7mya

west/central africa

features of sahelanthropus tchadensis

small canines, small brain (smaller than chimp)

how long ago and where ardipithecus ramidus

4 mya

east africa

features of ardipithecus ramidus

opposable big toe, grasping unarched foot, brain the size of chimp, more bowl shaped pelvis for some bipedal walking but still climbing

how long ago and where australopithecus afarensis

3.8 mya

east africa

features of australopithecus afarensis

large zygomatic arches, short growth period, smaller cranial capacity than homo

how long ago and where paranthrapus boisei

2 mya

east africa

features of paranthrapus boisei

large molar teeth, thickest tooth enamel, robust sagittal crest and zygomatic arches

how long ago and where homo habilis

2 mya

africa

features of homo habilis

still climbing, olduwan tools

how long ago and where homo erectus

1 mya

first migration out of africa and into asia

features of homo erectus

acheulean tools, fire, adaptation to new environment, increased cultural capacity, reliance on hunting and food processing, cooperative behaviors

how long ago and where homo neanderthalensis

300000 ya

europe, western asia

features of homo neanderthalensis

mousterian tools, interbreeding

how long ago and where homo sapiens

300000 ya

africa

features of homo sapiens

bigger cranial capacity, smaller teeth

shared v. derived characteristics

shared: common ancestor, shared by all or most species in phylogenic group

derived: unique to species, evolved after 2+ species with common ancestor diverged

3 morphological characteristics that make humans unique

bipedalism, brains, teeth

4 unique traits about human teeth

smaller canines, shorter, wider jaws, no diestema

3 unique traits about human brain

3 times larger, 20% energy intake, longer development

3 things longer brain development allows

problem solving, collaboration, enculturation

5 advantages of bipedalism

1. free hands

2. reach higher

3. better view

4. long distance movement

5. heat regulation

5 disadvantages of bipedalism

1. back issues

2. bowl shaped pelvis and big cranial capacity makes birth harder

3. knee issues

4. circulatory system works harder

5. we are more easily seen

6 skeletal changes associated with bipedalism

1. anterior foramen magnum

2. lumbar lordosis

3. bowl shaped pelvis

4. longer lower limbs

5. angled femur and widened tibial plateau

6. foot as stable platform

how does lumbar lordosis contribute to bipedalism

s curve of spine allows skull to balance on top of spinal column and upper body to be stabilized by hips

how does bowl shaped pelvis contribute to bipedalism

what about iliac blades

holds up internal organs and allows bigger muscles to attach

shorter and broader

how does an angled femur contribute to bipedalism

how does widened tibial plateau contribute to bipedalism

angled inward = center of mass

shock absorber

which 2 species groups have big toe in line with rest of foot

homo and australopithecus

whicih 2 species groups have opposable big toe

pan and ardipithecus

hominin

human lineage (humans and direct ancestors)

why are hominin fossils so rare

trampled, broken fossils, very limited, conditions for making fossils is very specific

lucy species

australopithecus afarensis

features of lucy’s skeleton that made her bipedal (4)

1. anterior foramen magnum

2. more bowl shaped pelvis

3. big toe in line

4. relatively inward facing femur

where was lucy found

ethiopia

laetoli footprints where and how long ago

tanzania 3.6 mya

what are laetoli footprints significant for

evidence for bipedalism

which species of hominins marked a split into lineages

paranthrapus (robust) and homo (larger, taller, bigger brain, exclusively bipedal, tools, less fur, more sweat)

species involved with oldowan tools

homo habilis (although they’re not the first to use tools)

oldowan tools features

reusage, sharp edge, core becomes the tool when flake breaks off

what tools did homo habilis use

oldowan

species associated with acheulean tools

homo erectus

what tools did homo erectus use

alcheulean

features of alcheulean tools

more symmetrical, come to a point, more varied in style

3 neanderthals to know

shanidar i, shanidar iii, la chapelle-aux-saints

where were shanidar i and iii uncovered

shanidar cave, iraq

what species were shanidar i and iii and la chapelle-aux-saints

neanderthals

shanidar i

missing hand, withered arm, fractures skull, survived 2 decades after injuries showing that neanderthals cared for each other in groups

shanidar iii

knotch in rib bone = punctured lung, survived for weeks after showing care in groups among neanderthals

la chapelle-aux-saints

neanderthal erroneously framed as hunched caveman, now more associated with care

paabo

sequenced neanderthal genome and found that 1-4% of neanderthal dna is incorporated with dna of modern humans

what species are blade tools, microliths, and pottery associated with

homo sapiens

what tools are associated with homo sapiens

blade, microliths, pottery

what tools do neanderthals use

what technique

mousterian

levallois technique (flake becomes tool)

cave at lascaux, how long ago and where

representations of animals, 20000 ya france

significance of cave at lascaux

symbolic expression, unclear how/why made (theory of storytelling)

2 venus figurines and significance

1. venus of willendorf 25000 ya austria, 1 of 1st 3d sculptures of human body

2. venus of brassempouy france, 1 of 1st depictions of human face

emphasis on reproductive organs, not so much the face

symbolic expression

why do we call them venus figurines

we read our own cultural attitudes onto the past and try to fill in gaps by putting meaning on them

materiality

open to interpretation, collection of cultural processes in a manmade object

example of materiality with acheulean tools

placed in an art museum in weapons section when it would make more sense to place them with dinnerware

5 archeological methods

1. survey/surface collection

2. remote sensing

3. test pit

4. excavation

5. visual documentation/gis

features of survey/surface collection

regional survey = where excavation should take place (divided into grid, collecting exposed artifacts)

features of remote sensing

magnetic, produce pics/schematic, less disturbance of site

features of test pit

small excavation as preliminary way to assess artifacts below the ground, a way to determine where to further excavate

features of excavation

if test pit reveals artifacts or features, trenches are dug and detailed notes and photos taken, artifacts tagged and catalouged

features of visual documentation/gis

digital photography of excavation process, artifacts in situ as well as after

who said how we should think about and describe objects

stocking

stocking’s 7 dimensions for describing objects

1. width

2. length

3. depth

4. time

5. power

6. wealth

7. aesthetics

example of how to think about and describe objects using the duho

taino society, for people in power to sit on (function and symbolism), however we don’t see what a nonelite person would sit in (materiality)

3 ways objects change with descriptions and examples

1. material: form/use over generations (eg telephones)

2. meaning: broader social significance because of changing context (eg owning an old telephone now would be correlated with a vintage aesthetic)

3. hands: moving an individual object into different hands, significance and meaning changes (eg moving an object into a museum)

nagpra (what it stands for)

native american graves and repatriation act

nagpra meaning and 3 features

us law establishing ownership of human remains, graves, and cultural objects belonging to native americans

1. repatriation: return to. descendants of who they belonged to

2. consultation with descendants

3. increased transparency with descendants

only within us territory

slack farm

mississippian habitation site near ohio riber with over 1000 graves, looters dug up and scattered skeletons and graves looking for wealth after paying to excavate site. caused public outrage which led to legislative changes such as nagpra

neolithic revolution

shift from foraging to pastoralism, horticulture, and agriculture

what needs to happen for a society to transition to being neolithic

production of their own food, independent development of plant and animal domestication practices

9 ramifications of food production and sedentism

1. development of cities (generating a larger workforce)

2. monumental architecture (eg great bath)

3. writing (started in mesopotamia: storage, flow, retention of information. -economic gain, communication, literature)

4. changing/limited diet (less varied and less nutritious, but greater and more efficient crop yields)

5. public health (epidemic diseases → increased need for sanitaion, easier to transmit animal → human)

6. social inequality (resources aren’t shared, they’re owned. eg. pyramids of giza, king tut’s tomb (hereditary succession), poverty)

7. rise in war/human bondage (competition, slavery)

8. harder work (more demand, more modification of land)

9. environmental problems (pollution, degradation of land, decreased biodiversity)

sedentism

permanent settlement, storage, no more egalitareanism (private property), usage of pottery for storage

catal huyuk

dense living (no streets) as a result of sedentism, entrance on rooftops (defense and storage (also decor? inside)

mohenjo daro

one of the earliest urban cities, had the great bath - water system

who said that the relationship between humans and domesticated plants was entanglement

hoddler

order of domesticated animals

dogs (15000 ya)

sheep (13000 ya)

pigs (11000 ya)

cats (10000 ya)

chickens (8000 ya)

effect of plant/animal domestication on variation

artifical selection → less variation

4 modes of substinence

1. foraging

2. pastoralism

3. horticulture

4. agriculture

what is substinence

social relationships necessary for food production

foraging and correlation

not based on production, but on hunting and gathering

corr: mobility of populations, egalitarian, low population density

pastoralism and correlation

breeding, caring, use of herd animals (resources from animals)

corr: not nomadism (most of pop stays sedentary), transhumance (moving herds to different areas with changing seasons)

horticulture and correlation

less intense than agriculture, gardens/small fields to fulfill household needs

corr: shifting between small plots of land, slash-and-burn

agriculture and correlation

cultivation of land to feed large groups, intensive

corr: soil preparation, technology, labor forces, land and water management

eg of harder work (modification of land)

terrace farming at inca site of moray

what does terrace farming allow

adaptation of land otherwise note suitable for agricultural production, stone walls absorb sunlight to protect crops from frost, crucible effect: making warm weather at high elevation, healthier and more diverse diet

crucible effect of inca farming

making warm weather at high elevation to get a healthier and more variable diet

state v. empire

state: one territory

empire: nation controlling mutliple territories

2 examples of social stratification in early states

1. pyramids in egypt: tombs were for important elites only

2. royal standard of ur: monarch, bnobles/priests, artisands, laborers on different levels

   • king larger than everyone else

4 things all state systems have

1. defining who is in

2. economic support

3. judiciary for dispute resolution

4. enforcing conformity

features of defining who is in

census, borders, citizenship, not typically voluntary

example of economic support to state

taxes

judiciary for dispute resolution: power in form of…

laws, legal crimes/punishments defined, judges

eg of enforcing conformity

permanent police/military

power

ability to control/influence others to get what one wants