Anthro Exam #2

Who was Carl Linnaeus and how did he classify humans?

- Created the nested hierarchy

- Suggested there were 4 subspecies of humans

Humans distinguish themselves principally culturally. Explain what that means and give examples.

Human groups distinguish one another by how they dress, their speech, decoration, movement etc. It's a way of distinguishing yourself from those closest to you

Human biological variation is continuous, not discrete. Explain what that means and give examples.

There is a gradual change in frequency of genotypes and phenotypes over geographical space

-Example: skin tone is a spectrum, and human diversity is a gradient.

People are similar to those nearby and different from those far away. Explain what that means and give examples.

The most different people are the ones that are most distant.

-Example: if you got on a boat you would see much more variation, than compared to walking from country to country.

Human races are genetically porous. Explain what that means and give examples.

Whenever there is a major invasion, human genes go with it.

- Example: humans have been moving and traveling for a long time, so traits can be found everywhere.

Clustering populations into races is arbitrary and "not real." Explain what that means and give examples.

It's not real in the sense that it simply imposes a meaning but doesn't extract an actual meaning.

- Example: how astrological signs impose meaning onto people but they don't actually extract any meaning about who you are as a person.

Some variation is adaptive. Explain what that means and give examples.

Over time, certain variations are more desired and deemed fit than others.

Example: how populations that are in the sun more have darker skin complexions compared to people living in cold climates. This is because the more melanin someone has, the more protected from sun radiation they are.

Why are human bodies in different climates shaped differently?

Body types are shaped differently in different climates because it has to do with preserving heat. For example, Inuit people will be larger bodied than people from Masai because the cold conditions they live in requires them to produce more heat and have a smaller surface area to volume ratio.

Humans have little genetic variation. Explain what that means and give examples.

Humans have little genetic variation because we all come from the same common ancestor. On the other hand, chimpanzees have 5 times the amount of genetic variation between one another.

There is more variation within groups than between groups. Explain what that means and give examples.

Most of the variations we see that exist in our species exist within particular populations. This is because racial differences do not correlate to genetic differences, so even though people from countries in Africa compared to people from countries in Europe may look completely different, their genetics will be vastly similar.

Racial classification varies across history and geography. Explain what that means and give examples.

Different cultures have different ideas about racial classification. For example some societies may think that everyone born in Africa is black, but in actuality people born in South Africa tend to be white.

Racial issues are social-political-economic, not biological. Explain what that means and give examples.

This identifies the idea that everything important is essentially a cultural construct. For example, money is a social construct because overtime we came to the conclusion that it has some sort of significance and meaning to society.

What are the three different types of adaptation? Explain them.

- Evolutionary/genetic, functional/physiological, and cultural/technological.

- Evolutionary refers to the relative reproductive success.

- Functional refers to your body adapting to an environment you are in

- Cultural refers to the creation of various technological advances to deal with environmental responses.

What factors are important in how cold it "feels" to us?

Humidity, wind velocity, exposure time, and insulation

What are the core and the shell in anatomical terms?

Core is the internal part of your brain, whereas the shell is the superficial tissues of the body and appendages

What is vasoconstriction? How does it work to conserve heat?

Vasoconstriction is when blood vessels will constrict, decreasing blood flow to the skin. This conserves heat because it reduces heat loss by keeping blood at the core.

How does exercise raise your temperature?

Exercise raises your temperature because your muscles are being activated, boosting your metabolic rate. So the increase in temperature of your muscles results in an increase in overall temperature.

How does shivering raise your temperature?

Shivering raises your temperature because it activates major muscle groups to generate heat. It also increases metabolic rate which provides heat so your body can survive in cold temperatures.

What is non-shivering thermogenesis?

The chemical production of extra body heat.

- Increases basal-metabolic rate

How do Inuits perform in cold water tests?

They were able to work with their hands in cold water and their overall hand temperature was higher. They also had an increase in blood flow to hand volume.

How might Inuit mitochondria differ from that of other people?

Inuit mitochondria may have mutations which cause an increase in production of heat.

What are some of the effects of exposure to prolonged periods of light and dark? What is "Arctic Hysteria?"

- Prolonged periods of light and dark can lead to insomnia, sleep disruption, depression and anxiety.

- Arctic Hysteria is the occurrence of temporary alterations in consciousness; show symptoms of epilepsy, and Inuits have interpreted Arctic hysteria as spirit possession.

How do Inuits deal with cold stress through cultural adaptation?

Inuits deal with cold stress by sleeping in huddles, remaining active outdoors and scheduling their activities based on the weather. For example, if it is very cold outside they will center their activities during the middle of the day.

How is Inuit clothing designed?

-Must be warm but prevent overheating

-With vents to evaporate sweat and layers to allow for heat regulation

-Boots made with seal skin (2 layers), sewing, rabbit socks, grass pads between seal skin

How do Inuit living structures help them culturally adapt to cold?

The compact design helps avoid loss of heat and the utilization of snow, which is highly reflective, generates an internal heat source.

What are Ama women divers? How are they exposed to cold stress?

- Are Korean divers who are known to dive for plants and animal food for hours in cold water.

- They are exposed to cold stress because more heat is lost in cold water than in cold air, so they display the severest type of cold stress.

What are the physiological responses of Ama women divers?

Their physiological responses were they shivered at lower temperatures, and they also have a higher metabolic rate in the winter compared to non divers.

Is the physiological responses of Ama women divers genetic? How do we know?

The physiological responses of Ama women divers are not genetic. We know because even when the Ama divers began wearing wetsuits to try and help regulate their body temperatures, they still maintained a high metabolic rate.

Who is Lynne Cox? What does she have to do with cold stress? How does she deal with cold stress?

Lynne Cox is the world's best long distance swimmer in cold water. She was able to condition herself to reduce the effects of cold stress. She did this by sleeping without blankets, constantly wearing lightweight clothes, and swam in the ocean during the winter.

Where are some of the main high-altitude areas of the world? (cites or mountain regions)

The Rocky Mountains, Andes Mountains, Himalayas, Tibetan Plateau, Kilimanjaro, and the Pyrenees Mountains.

- Cities- Colorado, Lhasa Tibet, Machu Picchu

How does Barometric pressure work? Why is there less oxygen at high altitudes?

Barometric pressure decreases the higher in the air you are. There is less oxygen at high altitudes because there is a decrease of oxygen in blood and the oxygen isn't as densely packed at high altitudes.

What is hypoxia? What are the two types of hypoxia?

Hypoxia is when tissues receive deficient oxygen supply. The two types of hypoxia are acute and chronic hypoxia.

What are the immediate responses of an individual at high altitude?

Resting heart rate increases, decreased light sensitivity, memory and learning becomes impaired, and hearing becomes less sensitive.

What is Acute Mountain Sickness? Who gets it?

Acute mountain sickness occurs during the first few days of being at high altitude. People who are not able to adjust to a different altitude tend to get it as well as people who are unable to supply enough oxygen to their brain.

What is Pulmonary Edema? Who gets it?

-when climbers visit sea level, then back to mountains

-symptoms are vascular constriction, excess fluid in lungs, blocked capillaries

How do "normal" adults adapt to altitude?

Their bone marrow will produce more red blood cells causing their total blood volume to increase.

What is pulmonary ventilation? How does it change at high altitude in adults?

- The process of flowing air to the lungs during inhalation, and out of the lungs during exhalation.

- Changes at high altitude because the reduced oxygen content causes adults to take deep and rapid breaths.

What happens in adults with oxygen transport in the blood? How does the blood transport more oxygen in adults who have transitioned to high altitude?

Oxygen transports through blood and is pumped around the body. This is altered at high altitude because people living at higher altitudes have an increased oxygen "carrying capacity" of blood, resulting in more red blood cells allowing more oxygen to tissues.

What is the difference between the pulmonary and systemic circulatory system?

The pulmonary circulatory system moves blood between the heart and lungs, whereas the systemic circulatory system moves blood between the heart and the rest of the body.

What is the difference between the right and left ventricle of the heart?

The right ventricle pumps deoxygenated blood to the lungs, and the left ventricle receives oxygenated blood from the lungs and pumps it to the rest of the body.

How is the lung volume of high-altitude natives different from that of sea-level natives?

High-altitude natives have an increased lung volume compared to sea-level natives.

How is oxygen diffusion to tissues different in high altitude natives?

High altitude natives have 40% more capillaries which allows oxygen to travel to tissues more effectively.

How is pulmonary and systemic pressure different in high altitude natives?

High altitude native have an increase in pulmonary pressure, but they have relatively low systemic pressure due to having so many capillaries.

What happens to the placenta at high altitude?

- Placenta will have increased surface area

- Fetuses are born hypoxic.

What happens to infant birth weight and the rate of child growth at high altitude?

Infants birth weights are low and the rate of child growth will be slower and irregular compared to sea-level child growth.

How do athletes use the physiological response of the body to high altitude to improve their performance?

They would train in high altitude which would stimulate the hormone erythropoietin (EPO) to increase the production of red blood cells in marrow.

What is blood doping and how does it work?

method of increasing number of RBCs to increase athletic performance; allows more efficient delivery of oxygen and reducing fatigue; can cause death due to thickening of blood (heart attack)

What were some of the tests run on high-altitude climbers in the movie we watched? What happened to their brains and their cognitive function?

- Given memory style tests

- As they climbed higher, their cognitive function was severely impaired and things like their memory, reaction time and mental skills were slower.

What were the names of the first two stone tool industries known? What do they look like?

Oldowan and Acheulean. - Oldowan looks like a rock with flakes chipped off of it.

- Acheulean has more form to it and is spear shaped.

What did human dispersals out of Africa look like? What was their timing?

They moved into Asia and Europe approximately 1.8 million years ago.

What type of stone tools did Neandertals make?

Levallois technology - prepared core technology, very difficult to make, core and points

How were the stone tools during the Upper Paleolithic period different than previously? How did the raw materials differ?

They created blades which were twice as long as they were wide. They would still use stone for many of their tools but also utilized bone and ivory.

How did weaponry differ? What is an atlatl?

They created weapons that were able to propel far distances. An atlatl is a weapon that has a handle and a space for a dart and was highly powerful and effective and could bring down mammoths.

How did living structures differ from what we see with Neandertals?

They had intricate caves which had lots of cave art within them.

What are some possible explanations for the meaning of Venus figurines?

Some people thought they were fertility goddesses and represented the celebration of fertility. Many thought they were depictions of what a woman's body looks like when she's pregnant, and some thought that it was a type of porn.

What do Upper Paleolithic burials look like?

There were oftentimes grave goods buried with people, and also the utilization of pigments to decorate.

What are some of the characteristics of Paleolithic society (in contrast to the Neolithic)?

- Small nomadic populations that had temporary settlements

- Few to no possessions - Egalitarian social status.

- Neolithic revolution there was a transition from nomadic foraging to domesticating plants and animals and also large, complex cities and states were developed.

What are some of the environmental factors that may have triggered the beginning of agriculture?

Warmer temperatures, longer growing seasons, expansion of grasslands, disappearing coastlines.

What are horticulture, pastoralism, and agriculture?

- Horticulture= food production from gardens

- Pastoralism= agriculture that deals with herding and dairy farming

- Agriculture= large scale and involves plows and irrigation

Why are some animals not domesticatible? Don't list the words, give examples.

Some animals are not able to be domesticated due to their diet, growth rate, issues with captive breeding, and behavioral issues. An elephant for example is not an ideal animal to domesticate due to their large size, and it takes years for a baby elephant to grow into an adult. Furthermore, zebras are not ideal to domesticate because they are overall not nice animals and bite, kick, and exhibit aggressive behaviors that are simply too difficult to domesticate.

What was the Farm Fox Experiment?

The Farm Fox experiment was an experiment to see if a fox could be domesticated by allowing the foxes that showed the least amount of aggression and were friendly towards humans to breed. By breeding the friendliest foxes, it was thought that this could lead to the domestication of the fox.

How do we recognize animal domestication in the archaeological record?

Can be recognized by archaeologists through skeletal changes, evaluating sex ratio and evaluating the juvenile to adult ratio.

How did plants change with the origin of agriculture?

Plants changed with the origin of agriculture because they lost tough coatings, husks, became increasingly more sugary, and simultaneously ripened.

How did agriculture change human biology?

Phenomena like lactose tolerance, zoonoses and disease, anemia, reduced bone strength, and cavities are some biological changes that occurred in humans as a result of agriculture.

What are the signs of stress we see with the origin of agriculture?

- Dental enamel hypoplasia: which are indentations on teeth that occur when a physiological stressor is occurring

- Harris lines which are mineralized bands that occur when growth stops and starts again due to a stressor.

What other changes do we see in housing and containers with the origin of agriculture?

- Began to see the establishment of permanent structures because people were no longer nomadic and resided in places for a long period of time.

- Containers= ceramics for holding leftover food and resources

What are the main areas of the world that we see agriculture start in and what crops did they cultivate?

- Middle East= wheat and barley

- Africa= coffee

- Ecuador= squash

- Mexico= maize

- New Guinea= taro, bananas, and yams

What are the main downstream effects of the adaptation of agriculture?

People weren't able to leave because they were tied to the land because they relied on it so much. People also became much more territorial because they began to defend their resources, and we also began to see epidemic diseases and higher risks of famine.

Where and when are the world's earliest civilizations?

- Mesopotamia- 3500-400 B.C

- Egypt- 3600-100 B.C

- India- 2500-300 B.C

- China- 1800-300 B.C

- Mesoamerica- 300 B.C - 1400 A.D

What is scalar stress?

Stress that comes from living in groups

What is a city? What is a state?

- City= A relatively large permanent settlement that houses a few thousand people.

- State= A society with centralized political and economical control over a territory.

What are the major characteristics of state-level societies?

Diversification of labor, food surplus and trade, centralized government, and monumental architecture.

What are some of the reasons civilizations collapse?

- The environment

- Class conflict

- People redistributed to new areas for new food and resources