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Questions and Answers
What is a key distinction between gracile and robust australopithecines?
What is a key distinction between gracile and robust australopithecines?
Which of the following best describes the tool use of australopithecines?
Which of the following best describes the tool use of australopithecines?
What is a common feature shared by some species of Paranthropus robustus, and modern great apes?
What is a common feature shared by some species of Paranthropus robustus, and modern great apes?
Which of the following is a distinguishing anatomical feature of Homo habilis compared to australopithecines?
Which of the following is a distinguishing anatomical feature of Homo habilis compared to australopithecines?
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What best characterises Oldowan tool culture?
What best characterises Oldowan tool culture?
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Which of the following is a key characteristic that distinguishes hominins from other apes?
Which of the following is a key characteristic that distinguishes hominins from other apes?
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The study of hominin tools provides insight into the evolution of which human abilities?
The study of hominin tools provides insight into the evolution of which human abilities?
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Which of the following represents a general trend observed in cultural evolution among hominins?
Which of the following represents a general trend observed in cultural evolution among hominins?
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Compared to earlier hominins, which feature is considered more 'modern' or human like?
Compared to earlier hominins, which feature is considered more 'modern' or human like?
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Which of the following hominins is known for evidence of tool use, providing insight into cognitive development?
Which of the following hominins is known for evidence of tool use, providing insight into cognitive development?
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What does a foramen magnum that is more centrally located beneath the skull indicate?
What does a foramen magnum that is more centrally located beneath the skull indicate?
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Which cranial feature is more characteristic of modern humans?
Which cranial feature is more characteristic of modern humans?
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The presence of what feature on the lower face is a more modern hominin characteristic?
The presence of what feature on the lower face is a more modern hominin characteristic?
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Which feature was NOT characteristic of the Australopithecus africanus fossil discovered by Raymond Dart?
Which feature was NOT characteristic of the Australopithecus africanus fossil discovered by Raymond Dart?
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The Paranthropus robustus fossils, found by Robert Broom, were named based on their distinction from which other fossil group?
The Paranthropus robustus fossils, found by Robert Broom, were named based on their distinction from which other fossil group?
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The 'Lucy' fossil is classified as which of the following?
The 'Lucy' fossil is classified as which of the following?
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Footprints discovered at Laetoli, dated to 3.6 million years ago, provide evidence for which characteristic of early hominins?
Footprints discovered at Laetoli, dated to 3.6 million years ago, provide evidence for which characteristic of early hominins?
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What is the approximate average cranial capacity of Australopithecus afarensis?
What is the approximate average cranial capacity of Australopithecus afarensis?
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Which of these features of Australopithecus afarensis is an indication of bipedalism?
Which of these features of Australopithecus afarensis is an indication of bipedalism?
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What was the range of the time period during which Australopithecus afarensis is known to have lived?
What was the range of the time period during which Australopithecus afarensis is known to have lived?
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A fossil skull with a cranial capacity of 430cc was found at a site in East Africa and was dated at 3.5 million years old. This fossil would most likely be:
A fossil skull with a cranial capacity of 430cc was found at a site in East Africa and was dated at 3.5 million years old. This fossil would most likely be:
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What was the primary function of a burin in early toolmaking?
What was the primary function of a burin in early toolmaking?
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Which of the following best describes a type of art that can be moved from one place to another?
Which of the following best describes a type of art that can be moved from one place to another?
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What is a key characteristic of the earliest forms of artwork?
What is a key characteristic of the earliest forms of artwork?
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During which period did artwork evolve to include more color and shading techniques?
During which period did artwork evolve to include more color and shading techniques?
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Which of the following correctly matches a hominin species with the tool culture they are known to have used?
Which of the following correctly matches a hominin species with the tool culture they are known to have used?
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Which statement accurately reflects a change in hominin tool technology over time?
Which statement accurately reflects a change in hominin tool technology over time?
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What do the trends such as increased complexity and specialization of tools indicate about changes in hominin lifestyles?
What do the trends such as increased complexity and specialization of tools indicate about changes in hominin lifestyles?
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What change in hominin lifestyle is associated with the transition from Oldowan tools to Acheulian tools?
What change in hominin lifestyle is associated with the transition from Oldowan tools to Acheulian tools?
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Which hominin group is primarily associated with the Oldowan pebble tool culture?
Which hominin group is primarily associated with the Oldowan pebble tool culture?
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Besides the famous hand axes, what other cultural advance is associated with the hominin group responsible for creating Acheulian tools?
Besides the famous hand axes, what other cultural advance is associated with the hominin group responsible for creating Acheulian tools?
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What percentage of the genome of living Melanesians is estimated to be of Denisovan origin?
What percentage of the genome of living Melanesians is estimated to be of Denisovan origin?
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What is the significance of the Red Deer Cave people's discovered remains?
What is the significance of the Red Deer Cave people's discovered remains?
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Which of these is NOT considered an effect of the Neolithic Revolution?
Which of these is NOT considered an effect of the Neolithic Revolution?
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What is the primary reason that led to the domestication of plants and animals during the Neolithic period?
What is the primary reason that led to the domestication of plants and animals during the Neolithic period?
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Where did the earliest known settled neolithic communities arise?
Where did the earliest known settled neolithic communities arise?
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What is the significance of 'emmer' in the context of early agriculture?
What is the significance of 'emmer' in the context of early agriculture?
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Which animal among these was NOT domesticated in South West Asia around 8000 years ago?
Which animal among these was NOT domesticated in South West Asia around 8000 years ago?
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What was a crucial consequence of longer growing seasons at the beginning of the Neolithic period?
What was a crucial consequence of longer growing seasons at the beginning of the Neolithic period?
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What is a key characteristic of Oldowan tools?
What is a key characteristic of Oldowan tools?
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Which of the following best describes the primary function of the earliest stone tools used by hominins?
Which of the following best describes the primary function of the earliest stone tools used by hominins?
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What is the significance of the footprints found at Ileret, Kenya?
What is the significance of the footprints found at Ileret, Kenya?
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What was a significant role of fire in the lives of early hominins?
What was a significant role of fire in the lives of early hominins?
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What does the term 'bifacial' mean, as it relates to Acheulian tools?
What does the term 'bifacial' mean, as it relates to Acheulian tools?
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What do the sites at Terra Amata, France, and Olorgesailie, Kenya, indicate about the behavior of Homo erectus?
What do the sites at Terra Amata, France, and Olorgesailie, Kenya, indicate about the behavior of Homo erectus?
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Which of the following best describes the 'Mousterian industry'?
Which of the following best describes the 'Mousterian industry'?
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What evidence suggests that Neanderthals had spiritual or symbolic beliefs?
What evidence suggests that Neanderthals had spiritual or symbolic beliefs?
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How did Neanderthal physical characteristics differ from those of modern humans?
How did Neanderthal physical characteristics differ from those of modern humans?
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According to one hypothesis, what are the proposed evolutionary relationships among Homo antecessor, Homo heidelbergensis and Neanderthals?
According to one hypothesis, what are the proposed evolutionary relationships among Homo antecessor, Homo heidelbergensis and Neanderthals?
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What distinguishes the Acheulian tool culture from the earlier Oldowan tool culture?
What distinguishes the Acheulian tool culture from the earlier Oldowan tool culture?
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What is one possible reason for the shift towards smaller teeth in Homo erectus compared to earlier hominins?
What is one possible reason for the shift towards smaller teeth in Homo erectus compared to earlier hominins?
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What evidence suggests an increased sense of interdependence among early hominin groups?
What evidence suggests an increased sense of interdependence among early hominin groups?
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What is the significance of the 'occipital bun' found in Neanderthal skulls?
What is the significance of the 'occipital bun' found in Neanderthal skulls?
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How did the use of fire potentially influence the cultural and social activity of hominins?
How did the use of fire potentially influence the cultural and social activity of hominins?
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Study Notes
Hominin Evolution
- Hominins are humans and their extinct ancestors
- Hominins differ from other apes in structure and behavior, including: bipedal locomotion with a striding gait and erect posture
- Learning Outcomes: determining relatedness and possible evolutionary pathways for hominins using fossil evidence from comparisons of modern humans and great apes with fossils of: Australopithecus afarensis, Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis, and Homo sapiens.
- Learning Outcomes: tool use is seen in a number of hominin species; examining these tools provides insight into human cognitive abilities and lifestyle trends, specifically seen in manufacturing techniques and materials observed in those species tool cultures; focusing on Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis, and Homo sapiens.
Pre-Requisite Knowledge
- Chapter 12.1: Primate evolution
- Chapter 12.2: Evolutionary trends in hominids
Contents
- Introduction
- Australopithecus sp.
- Homo habilis
- Homo erectus
- Homo neanderthalensis
- Homo sapiens
Introduction
- Classify humans as hominins, belonging to the Hominini tribe
- Hominins differ from other apes in structure and behavior
- Bipedal locomotion with a striding gait
- Erect posture
Figure 13.2
- Includes a phylogenetic tree showing the evolutionary relationships among hominin species.
- Shows the time in millions of years ago each species existed.
Culture
- Activities like making stone tools, hunting techniques, food preparation, using language, and art
- Cultural evolution observed in tools, such as gradual improvement, better methods of obtaining food, and increased sophistication of language
Anatomical trends in hominin evolution
- Characteristics of ape-like (primitive) hominins and human-like (modern) hominins.
- Compares features like skull, mandible and teeth, torso, upper limbs, and lower limbs.
- Key anatomical features, such as forehead, brow ridges, and jaw structure, tooth size, pelvis shape, limb length, and proportions, are described as more ape-like or human-like.
- Data on cranial capacity is discussed.
Figure 13.3
- Illustration of the cranial capacities of hominin skulls over time.
- Shows the increased cranial capacity and reduced prognathism in hominins from the early australopithecines to modern humans.
Australopithecus sp.
- Raymond Dart discovered the first fossil of Australopithecus africanus—southern ape of Africa.
- Bipedal with human-like hands and feet but smaller brains (~one-third of modern human brains).
- Lived between 3.9-2.8 million years ago
- Other fossils (e.g., Australopithecus africanus, Paranthropus robustus) found; differentiated from other species (e.g., by variation in teeth shape and size)
Second fossil
- Robert Broom found a second Australopithecine fossil in the Transvaal, South Africa ~10 years later
- Other fossils found nearby, such as those from Sterkfontein, helped classify a new hominin species (Paranthropus robustus).
Recent fossils of Ethiopia (Hadar)
- Includes many fossil fragments including "Lucy" (female skeleton, ~40% complete)
- Classified as Australopithecus afarensis
- Features like size of canines, and cheek tooth prominence were observed and inter-related.
- Existed between 3.9-2.8 million years ago
ii. Laetoli
- 23-metre trail of footprints found in volcanic ash
- Potassium-argon dating and stratigraphy indicate footprints were 3.6 million years old
- Features of footprints indicate bipedal locomotion including a deep impression from where the heel struck the ground.
- Evidence suggests Australopithecus afarensis individuals leaving the trail.
Homo habilis, "handy human"
- Adept at tool making—Oldowan.
- Larger brain and smaller teeth compared to australopithecines
- Upright, bipedal walkers with more robust hands than modern humans
- Brains significantly larger compared to gracile or robust australopithecines.
Culture of Homo habilis
- Oldowan tool culture (simple and unspecialized tools) for cutting wood, scraping hides, and digging up edible roots and plants
- Homo habilis consume meat (animal bones found at sites)
- Adult males were likely the primary hunters, leaving females and others to gather plants.
How to create stone tools
- Use of a hammerstone to strike a core stone to remove flakes, resulting in Oldowan tools
- Flake removal, resulting in a functional tool.
- Cobble (core stone) from which flakes are removed.
Sharing of Food
- Food exchange within a group increases the sense of interdependence between individuals
- Development of spoken language correlates with an increased speech-producing area in the brain.
- The larynx might not be capable of producing complex sounds yet.
Homo erectus
- Teeth generally smaller than earlier members of the species.
- Larger cranial capacity compared to Homo habilis.
- "Peking Man" found in Beijing, China.
- Footprints found at Ileret in Kenya (2009), with parallel big toe to other toes, and short toes, similar to modern humans, were made by Homo ergaster.
Culture of Homo erectus
- Modifying the environment to suit one's needs; building shelters.
- Use of fire—its effects: warmth, cooking, deterrents, and providing light for extended social interaction. Acheulian tool culture
Acheulian tool culture
- Flaked all around the edges, first in one direction and then in another.
- Two-faced lumps/bifacial, approximately teardrop in shape.
- Tools used as choppers, scrapers, etc.
Transition to modern humans
- Homo heidelbergensis—seen by many as a common ancestor of modern humans and Neanderthals
- Homo antecessor—another hypothesis that the species evolved into Homo heidelbergensis (or Neanderthals in Europe and Homo sapiens in Africa)
Homo neanderthalensis (Neanderthals)
- Existed in Europe during the last of the ice ages
- Adapted to the cold environment
- Large faces, low skulls, and heavy brow ridges
- Brains slightly larger than modern humans
- Occipital bun—skull drawn out in a "bun" shape.
- More prognathism—projecting jaw.
- Evidence of nasal bone forward projection, short stature, short limbs with heavily jointed, powerful muscles, and barrel-shaped chests
Neanderthal culture
- Production of stone flakes (which were trimmed into tools for cutting, scraping, etc.)—Mousterian industry
- Ability to make clothes.
- Buried their dead—evidence of spiritual belief
- Evidence of ritual burial with objects like wild goat horns
Homo sapiens (Cro-Magnon people)
- Features more modern than Neanderthals (e.g., shorter/wider skulls front to back with rounder back; less prominent brow ridges, reduced prognathism, smaller jaws, larger brains ~1350 cubic centimeters, and a chin).
Modern human tool culture
- Finer blades, projectile weapons.
- Aurignacian tools (e.g., beautifully made willow-leaf and laurel-leaf points).
- Solutrean culture
- Dominance of bone and antler tools over flint and stone tools (tools were fashioned with burins).
The Denisovans
- Fossilized little finger bone discovered in Denisova Cave in Siberia
- mtDNA – neither Neanderthal nor a modern human
- Denisovan hominin was more closely related to Neanderthals than modern humans
- Denisovan genes found in present-day Melanesians
Indigenous people of Australia
- Exhibit Denisovan ancestry
- Evidence includes a second bone and a molar tooth, which are larger than those found Neanderthals and early modern humans.
The Red Deer Cave people
- Thick bones, prominent brow ridges, short and flat face, but lacked a human-like chin
- Unusual combination of features—11,500 years old.
- Evidence indicates these people cooked large deer
- Suggested that they are the product of mating of Denisovans and our ancestors from East Asia
The beginnings of Agriculture
- Neolithic Revolution: domestication of plants and animals, construction of villages.
- First took place in Southwest Asia (e.g.,Natufian communities of Palestine)
- Hybrids created—e.g., emmer wheat created from a cross of wild goat grass and wild wheat
- Other forms of plant domestication were found throughout the world.
Large grains and Animals
- Grains ground into flour and used as damper.
- Domestication of animals like sheep, pigs, goats, and cattle in Southwest Asia (~11 000-8000 years ago).
- Early agricultural settlements around the eastern shores of the Mediterranean.
Causes and Effects of the Neolithic Revolution
Causes: scattered seeds, growth of new crops, scarce game animals, and climate change Effects: abandonment of nomadic lifestyles, permanent settlements, increased populations, animal domestication, specialization of labor, tool development, culture
Common Mistakes:
- Mistaking common names (e.g., "Australopithecine") as species names.
- Improperly formatting species names (first letter of the genus capitalized, species name underlined).
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Description
Test your knowledge on the distinctions between gracile and robust australopithecines, as well as the tool use habits of early hominins. Explore key features of hominin anatomy and cultural evolution, providing insights into human development over time.
