Anthro2050 1st Edition Lecture 2 Outline of Last Lecture I About the Professor II Syllabus Information III Introduction to Anthropology Outline of Current Lecture IV Biological Anthropology V The Scientific Method in Biological Anthropology Current Lecture Biological Anthropology The study of human biology within the specific framework of evolution Sub disciplines of Biological Anthropology include bioarchaeology population genetics primatology and paleoanthropology Bioarchaeology The study of relatively recent post invention of agriculture skeletal remains to learn about trauma disease rates nutrition and past lifestyles Population Genetics Studies the change of the genetic composition of populations through time and how these changes occured Primatology The study of modern primate biological and behavioral adaptations and diversity Large focus on apes as they are our closest animal relatives Paleoanthropology Interdisciplinary study of human ancestors hominids and evolution particularly via the fossil record Anthropology s purpose in the greater world is to act as a mediator between things that may seem to be complete opposites and to help find the similarities between them as well as gain an understanding and appreciation for the differences Examples include individuals groups colonial societies indigenous societies past present humans animals science folk These notes represent a detailed interpretation of the professor s lecture GradeBuddy is best used as a supplement to your own notes not as a substitute knowledge and the sciences the humanities Anthropology is commonly thought of as the most scientific of the humanities and the most humanistic of the sciences The Scientific Method in Biological Anthropology Science is about sorting ontological questions questions that can be asked into epistemological questions questions that can be answered Not all questions about the world or universe can be answered definitely Such questions involving religious and superstitious believes cannot be answered with definite certainty by science because many of them are un testable People make two huge assumptions about science that are not exactly true which causes them to misunderstand a lot of scientific research and theories 1 Things are always as they seem The reality is perspective can change how things seem and sometimes there are filters that do not allow us to see things as they are 2 Scientists know everything and are one hundred percent certain on whatever they say The reality is scientific knowledge is always changing and expanding If this were true there would be no need for scientists Normative science a step by step process of how science should be conducted However this process is not flawless as scientific research can be very complicated hypothesis an educated and observed statement about some phenomena in the world or of reality that is testable and falsifiable Meaning the statement can be tested and scrutinized and there is a possibility of something existing that could challenge the statement There is a misconception that science is about proving things Actually science is about observation and questioning the world around us theory a broad statement of scientific relationships which has not been falsified and has more complication and complexity than a hypothesis ex the theory of gravity A good explanation of scientific research explains how not why the results were as they were The simpler the explanation the better Parsimonious explanations all things held equal the simplest explanations are generally the best For example a tree has fallen There are two explanations given 1 The tree fell because the strong wind blew it over 2 The tree fell due to aliens hitting it with their ship as they were on their way to abduct Jimmy because he had information they needed Scientifically we would go with the first simplest explanation