Biology AS 91606: Human Evolution and Hominin Concepts

Vocabulary flashcards covering hominin evolution, anatomical adaptations, tool cultures, and evolutionary theories from Biology AS 91606.

Foramen magnum

The hole in the base of the skull through which the spinal cord passes.

Diastema

The gap between the upper canine and premolar found in great apes.

Homo erectus

The first human to use fire and spread out from Africa.

Oldowan

The earliest known stone tools, characterized by pebbles with flakes knocked off one edge.

Valgus angle

The angle between the shaft of the femur and the vertical when the femur is in normal standing orientation.

Hominin

The bipedal apes and their ancestors.

Acheulian

The tool culture consisting of a core with a flattened stone with two faces made by Homo erectus.

Homo habilis

The first Hominin to use tools, also known as Handyman.

Hominoidea

The word to describe the great apes, humans, and their ancestors.

Wernicke's area

The brain centre responsible for interpreting speech.

Cultural evolution

The type of evolution where knowledge and skills are taught/learned and not passed on in the DNA.

Homo heidelbergensis

The group of hominins initially called archaic Homo sapiens and the first with firm evidence for systematic hunting.

Occipital condyle

The part of the brain or skull that articulates with the first vertebra.

Biological evolution

The type of evolution that is passed on through DNA.

Mousterian

The Neanderthal tool culture consisting of fine stone tools which include flakes, scrapers, and spears with attached handles.

Homo neanderthalensis

The group of Hominin that first buried the dead and cared for the old.

Cerebrum

The area of the brain that is most enlarged in apes, and most of all in humans.

Sagittal crest

The crest along the top of the skull.

Australopithecus afarensis

The scientific name for 'Lucy', the first hominin to probably walk upright.

Lower Palaeolithic

Also called the 'Old Stone Age', the tool culture that included Oldowan and Acheulian together.

Upper Palaeolithic

The later phase of the Old Stone Age featuring refined tools including needles and fish hooks made from bone and wood.

Composite tool

A tool made of more than one kind of material.

Multiregional hypothesis

The view that modern humans evolved independently in Africa, Europe, and Asia, with ancestors leaving Africa about $1,000,000$ years ago.

Homo sapiens

The modern human species and the first species to make and use needles.

Out of Africa hypothesis

Also called the Replacement hypothesis or Eve hypothesis, the theory that modern humans evolved in Africa and migrated to Europe and Asia about $200,000$ years ago, displacing other earlier species.

Brow Ridge

Heavy bone over the eye which reduces the stresses in the skull and lower jaw involved with chewing.

Prognathism

A condition defined as having a prominent snout or muzzle.

Zygomatic arch

The gap in the skull through which large jaw muscles pass.

mtDNA (Mitochondrial DNA)

Mitochondrial DNA, which is only passed on to daughters and changes over time through mutations.

Sexual dimorphism

The differences observed between male and female skeletons within the same species.

Arboreal

Living in trees.

Precision grip

The specialized grip capability found in humans, distinct from the power grip common to all primates.

Positive feedback

The process where one evolutionary change reinforces another.