Chapter 1: Biological Anthropology & Origins of Evolutionary Thinking

Types of Anthropology

Linguistics, Sociocultural, Archeology, Biological

Types of Biological Anthropology

Genetics, Primatology, Human Evolution, Ecology

Biological Anthropology

Study of humans as a biological species.

Unifying Theory

Framework to understand how humans have came to be as they are.

Evolution

Theory of changes in inherited characteristics of populations over generations

Micro-Evolution

Small Genetic Changes

Macro-Evolution

Changes after many generations (speciation)

Charles Darwin (1809 - 1882)

Published the Origins of Species, Mechanisms of Evolution, and Evolution Via Natural Selection.

Carolus Linnaeus (1707 - 1778)

Published Systema Naturae, talking about biological nomenclature, and species of primates.

Systema Naturae

Biological Nomenclature (Genus Species), Recognized 42 Species of primate and 3 Genera.

Erasmus Darwin (1731 - 1802)

Published Zoönomia, species evolved from common ancestor

Georges Cuvier (1769 - 1832)

Ended debate on if extinction Ould occur, and began study of earths fossil record.

Jean-Baptiste Lamarck (1744 - 1829)

“As environment changes, animals change using/not-using own structures”, and “Acquired changes passed to offspring”.

Thomas Malthus (1766 - 1834)

“Populations grow when plenty, but die off by famines and diseases”, “plants/animals produce more offspring than survive”, "and “Competition to survive”.

Charles Lyell (1797 - 1875)

Indicated earth was old, and uniformitarianism.

Uniformitarianism

Geological processes that influences today as well as the past.

Sir Alfred Russel Wallace (1823 - 1913)

Developed “Natural Selection”, send Darwin a draft and both presented in 1858 by Lyell.

Darwin’s Influences

Lyell: Earth’s old enough for big changes to happened

Lamarck: Species change over time

Malthus: Organisms compete over resources.