Bio Anthro Final

Cultural anthropology

Study present-day societies in non-Western countries.

Archaeology

Study earlier human societies through material remains such as people, plants, and structures.

Linguistic anthropology

Study the construction and use of language by human societies.

Biological anthropology

Study all aspects of present and past human biology.

Adaptive radiation

The diversification of an ancestral group of organisms into new forms that are adapted to specific environmental niches.

Somatic cells

Diploid cells that form the organs, tissues, and other parts of an organism’s body.

Gametes

Sexual reproductive cells (ova and sperm) that have a haploid number of chromosomes.

Microevolution

Small-scale evolution, such as changes in allele frequency, that occurs from one generation to the next.

Menarche

The onset of menstruation in an adolescent female.

Melanin

A brown pigment that determines the darkness or lightness of a human’s skin color.

Primate social organization

Includes systems like polygyny (one male, multi-female), polyandry (one female, multi-male), and monogamy (one male, one female).

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.

Arboreal hypothesis

The proposition that primates’ unique traits are adaptations to living in trees.

Diastema

Gap between the lower canine and the third premolar in primates.

Hominin characteristics

Traits such as bipedal locomotion, upright posture, larger brains, and specialized tool use.

Taphonomy

The study of the deposition of plant or animal remains and the environmental conditions affecting their preservation.

Half-life

The time it takes for half of the radioisotopes in a substance to decay.

Stratigraphy

A method used to determine the relative ages of rock layers.

Biped vs quadruped body plan

Differences in skeletal structure, such as the position of the foramen magnum and pelvis shape.

Benefits of bipedalism

Traveling greater distances, carrying resources, and improved visibility.

Robust australopithecines

Characterized by a large face, sagittal crest, and large back teeth.

Absolute vs relative dating

Relative dating determines the relationship between items, while absolute dating provides exact dates.

Hominin climate

Transition to less tropical, drier, and more seasonal open terrain.

Out of Africa model

Theory suggesting modern humans originated in Africa and subsequently migrated out to Europe and Asia, replacing or interbreeding with local populations

Neandertal locations

Regions where Neandertals lived, including Europe and western Asia.

Wolff’s law

The idea that bones adapt in response to the stress they are subjected to.

Sahelanthropus tchadensis

An early pre-australopithecine species with possible evidence of bipedalism.

Uniformitarianism

The theory that geological processes occurring in the past are still at work today.

Primates and offspring number relative to nonprimates

fewer offspring with more parental investment

Rhinarium

Naked surface around nostrils, typically wet in mammals

(Strepsirrhines)

Strepsirrhines

lemurs, lorises; rhinarium; tooth comb for digging into material

Kin selection

Natural selection in favor of altruistic behaviors that increase the fitness of donor’s relatives (More invested to help if it is a relative)

Cause of Miocene ape extinction

cooler, drier weather and tropical forests recede

Hominin dental enamel

thicker which is good for chewing foods

Patchy forest hypothesis

Bipedalism where forest fragmented and food more dispersed, more energy efficient with free hands to pick up food

Provisioning hypothesis

freeing the early hominins’ hands was important in initiating bipedal locomotion

Ape environment

Short arms, long legs for forest environments

Stone tools and genus Homo

For hunting

Oldowan: H. habilis and Au. garhi; characterized by the use of primitive chopper tools

Anthropoid eye

fully enclosed eye socket characterized by forward facing position, allowing depth perception (hap and strep)

Increase in brain and body of Homo erectus, why?

Taller and heavier; Climate change and impact on food supply 

More protein; carnivorous; smaller gut, more leisure time, migration, cooking

First Hominind to leave Africa

Homo erectus

Control over fire for hominins

cooking and warmth

Homo floresiensis

extremely small size, a possible new species of Homo found in Liang Bua Cave, on the Indonesian island of Flores; Southeast Asia 

Modern human Cranium

rounded skull shape, small face, and large brain size, high forehead

Agriculture when and changes to teeth jaws and bone

Teeth and jaws lost their size and robusticity due to agriculture; light use of muscle produces limited bone growth; reduced faces due to softer foods  

Domestication benefits

More food per unit of land; fewer people to make food (people can do other things)

Domestication costs

Soil erosion, deforestation, and overgrazing

Darwin

Theory of evolution by natural selection, proposing that species evolve over time through variations that enhance survival and reproduction.