ANTH 151 Exam 1 Extra Notes PDF

HOMININS [Who are they, where/when did they live, what were their physical/skeletal/dental (e.g., crania, dentition, etc.) & behavioral traits (e.g., tools, diet, control of fire, etc.] Australopithecus – Robust Australopithecus ○ Bipedal, 3-1 million years BP ○ Pronounced sa...

HOMININS [Who are they, where/when did they live, what were their physical/skeletal/dental (e.g., crania, dentition, etc.) & behavioral traits (e.g., tools, diet, control of fire, etc.] Australopithecus – Robust Australopithecus ○ Bipedal, 3-1 million years BP ○ Pronounced sagittal crest ○ Post-orbital constriction (small brain) ○ Large molar teeth: plant diet ○ Were NOT human ancestors (Paranthropus) (see sagittal crest, etc.) ○ Genus name for robust australopith species found in south and east africa. ○ Extremely large premolar and molar teeth ○ Massive chewing muscles ○ Males have sagittal crest ○ Low nutrition diet ○ Side branch to lineage leading up to modern humans Australopithecus afarensis (see steep sloping forehead, small brain case, etc.) ○ Habitual biped but retained long arms and curved finger bones that are apelike traits, there is some evidence indicating sexual dimorphism Homo habilis ○ Slightly larger brain size of this fossil species from east africa led louis leakey to place it in the genus homo rather than that of australopithecus ○ Ape-like features such as long arms and curved finger bones Homo erectus (see large brow ridges, etc.) ○ From the island of flores in indonesia (southeast asia) ○ Migrated out of africa to middle east, parts of europe, southeast asia, and east asia Homo neanderthalensis (see receding chin, occipital bun, etc.) ○ Lived in western eurasia (europe, middle east, central asia)  ○ Distinctive set of skeletal features suggests they’re a lineage separate from modern humans ○ Recent nuclear DNA studies indicate that neanderthals interbred with modern humans Homo sapiens (see rounded crania, vertical forehead, jutting chin, etc.) ○ The genus and species name for skeletally modern humans, who first appeared in Africa 315,000 years ago. It is us humans that are members. Time periods/Epochs Pleistocene ○ A geological epoch (ice age) beginning 2.6 million years ago, lasting until 10,000 years ago; the first stone tools appear just before the beginning of the Pleistocene Holocene ○ the current geological epoch ○ Started around 11,700 years ago ○ Warming: Temperatures rose, melting glaciers and raising sea levels. ○ Civilization: Humans developed agriculture and complex societies. ○ Ecosystem changes: Forests grew, and new species appeared. ○ Human impact: Humans caused climate change, pollution, and biodiversity loss. Paleolithic ○ Upper Paleolithic Represents period from 45,000 to 9700 cal BC In Europe, all of the upper paleolithic cultures except chatelperronian, are associated with modern humans. ○ Middle paleolithic 300,000-50,000 years ago in africa Evidence of personal ornamentation Art Bone tools  Different stone points Shellfish in diet at coastal sites Tool Industries (core versus blade) Oldowan ○ 2.5 million years ago ○ Not found with australopithecines ○ Chopper and flake tool technology ○ Crude, but reflects mental capacity ○ Manual dexterity ○ Tool-making and early stone technology Percussion flaking to detach flakes from core (hit rock with to shape rock) ○ The Oldowan Stone Industry Acheulian  ○ Flaked stone tool tradition characterized by bifaces such as handaxes. It first appeared in Africa 1.7 million years ago, but not in East Asia until 800,000 years ago and in Europe until 500,000 years ago. Mousterian/Levallois ○ Special way of knapping a core so that it is shaped in a way that allows the removal of thin well shaped flakes ○ Known as Levallois flakes and points ○ Found in middle stone age and middle paleolithic stone artifact tradition Blade technology ○ particularly during the Paleolithic period ○ development and use of blades marked a crucial advancement in toolmaking and hunting strategies ○ Blades are characterized by their long, thin, and sharp shape ○ Were produced using sophisticated techniques like pressure flaking. Concepts and Models Four field Anthropology Culture Multiregionalism Model ○ An interpretive model for the origins of modern humans, it is based on the evolutionary process of gene flow and hypothesizes that modern humans everywhere in the old world evolved locally from archaic hominins because gene flow kept all populations similar enough to interbreed successfully Recent Single Origin Model (replacement) ○ Model for the origins of modern humans based on the idea that modern humans originated only on the continent of africa and spread from there to other regions ○ Hypothesized that modern humans replaced more archaic hominins living in regions outside africa Assimilation Model ○ It uses a combination of fossil and mtDNA evidence indicating a mainly African origin for modern humans in combination with  nuclear DNA evidence showing that modern humans interbred with sister lineages such as the Neanderthals and Denisovans Hypotheses for bipedality Scavenging vs hunting Characteristics of the genus Homo Interactions of Homo sapiens and Neanderthals Terms and Characteristics Artifact Ecofact Site Context Survey Excavation Radiocarbon dating ○ Absolute dating method that uses the decay rate of the radioactive isotope carbon-14 to calculate the age of organic materials fund at archaeological sites. It can be used to date materials from the past 50k years. Potassium argon dating ○ Radiometric dating technique that provides absolute dates based on the half life decay rate of the radioactive isotope K (Potassium) into the non radioactive isotope Ar (Argon); used in dating inorganic materials (lava flows, tuff beds) from 100,000yrs ago-100s of millions Stratigraphy ○ The layers or levels at an archaeological site. These can be defined as natural (geological) or cultural and can be used as a relative dating technique in which cultural materials found in deeper levels or layers are older than those in overlying levels or layers. Relative dating ○ Dating techniques that provide a sequence of “older”/”younger” rather than calendar dates ○ Stratigraphy ○ seriation  Absolute Dating ○ Methods of obtaining calendar dates for archaeological sites or fossil finds, including dendrochronology, radiocarbon dating, thermoluminescence, optically stimulated luminescence and potassium argon dating. Remote sensing ○ Uses technology and such as satellite images, ground penetrating radar, and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) to aid in the location of archaeological sites and buried or vegetation covered features of sites. Foramen magnum ○ The opening in the skull where the spinal column joins the head, the position of the foramen magnum can be used to determine whether a fossil species was a biped or a quadruped. FOXP2 gene ○ The human form of this gene regulates the growth and development of the basal ganglia, a brain structure important in motor control and sequencing for bipedalism and for spoken language Hominin ○ The generic term for the tribe taxonomic category that includes gibbons, orangutans, gorillas, common chimpanzees/bonobos, and modern humans ad their ancestors. Prognathism Cranial capacity Laetoli footprint ○ A site in tanzania that yielded australopithecus afarensis fossils as well as a trail of fossilized footprints attributed to australopithecus afarensis Sagittal Crest ○ A ridge of bone from the front to the back along the top of the skull; one set of chewing muscles attaches to this crest in species of Paranthropus as well as in male gorillas.