Introduction to Physical AnthropologyFall 2011 Exam 1 Study Guide Intro to Physical Anthropology Physical or biological anthropology is a scientific discipline concerned with the biological and behavioral characteristics of human beings primates and their ancestors o Hominins members of the evolutionary group that includes modern humans and extinct bipedal relatives Bipedal habitually walking on two legs Evolution a change in the genetic makeup of a population from one generation to the next o Studied at two levels Macroevolution over time some genetic changes in populations result in speciation especially if those populations are isolated from one another Microevolution genetic alterations within populations often causes populations of a species to differ from one another regarding the frequency of certain traits o Speciation appearance of a new species as a result of genetic changes in populations Culture a set of learned behaviors transmitted from one generation to the next by nonbiological means o Each culture shapes people s perceptions of the external environment or their worldview o Culture is learned a process that begins at birth All humans are products of the culture they re raised in and since most of human behavior is learned most human behaviors perceptions and reactions are shaped by culture o The human predisposition to assimilate culture and function within it is profoundly influenced by biological factors Biocultural evolution the mutual interactive evolution of human biology and culture Biology makes culture possible Culture further influences the direction of biological evolution Types of Anthropology Applied anthropology the practical application of anthropological and archaeological theories and techniques o Ex many anthropologists work in the public health sector Cultural anthropology the study of the global patterns of belief and behavior found in modern and historical cultures o Came about in the 19th c when travel and exploration increasingly brought Europeans into contact with various cultures Africa the New World etc o Ethnographies detailed descriptive studies of human societies Traditionally the study of non Western society Page 1 Introduction to Physical AnthropologyFall 2011 o Contemporary cultural anthropologists are concerned with the welfare of refugees and study their resettlement and cultural integration o Medical anthropology applied subfield of cultural anthropology that explores the relationship between various cultural attributes and health and disease Archaeology the study of earlier cultures and lifeways by anthropologists who specialize in the scientific recovery analysis and interpretation of the material remains of past societies o Cultural resource management applied approach that arose from environmental legislation requiring archaeological evaluations and sometimes excavation of sites that may be threatened by development Linguistic anthropology the study of human speech and language including the origins of language in general as well as specific languages Physical Biological anthropology o Physical reflects the initial interests anthropologists had in describing human variation Paleoanthropology the study of human evolution o Biological reflects the shift in emphasis to more biologically oriented topics such as genetics evolutionary biology nutrition physiological adaption and growth and development Molecular anthropologists use cutting edge technologies to investigate evolutionary relationships between human populations and primates To do this they examine DNA o Anthropometry measurement of human body parts or skeletal remains from archaeological sites o Osteology the study of the skeleton Bioarchaeology recent term study of human skeletal remains from archaeological sites o Paleopathology study of disease and trauma in archaeologically derived skeletons Forensic anthropology derives from osteology and paleopathology o Primatology study of the living nonhuman primates The Anthropological Perspective Ethnocentric viewing other cultures from the inherently biased perspective of one s own culture Often results in other cultures being seen as inferior to one s own o Anthropological perspective helps avoid this by extending our knowledge to include cultures other than our own Relativistic view viewing entities as they relate to something else o By recognizing that we share many similarities with other animals perhaps we may come to recognize that they have a place in nature just as surely as we ourselves do Theories of Creation Biocultural interaction o Mayans thought man came from corn o Pagans Wiccans believed all living things came from an egg o Christianity humans were made on day 6 of creation Page 2 Introduction to Physical AnthropologyFall 2011 Intelligent Design ID accepts the idea that humans were created by a designer and it was a miracle o Believe that the creation of our planet and all its components can be described in the pages of Genesis o Albert Einstein example of religious scientist o John Scopes Trial 1925 violated the Tennessee law that banned teaching evolution during the time militant fundamentalism in the U S Found guilty and fined 100 although charges were eventually dropped The Man Ape of S Africa was found a few months later by R Dart 80 years later Homo floresiensis the Hobbit was discovered Big Bang Theory 14 billion years ago there was a singularity infinite condensed heat that exploded and then began to expand At first it produced light and then went through a particle evolution that then slowly began creating new suns and planets o Accepted in the 1960 s Cosmology study of the evolution of the universe o Earth came to be from a supernova approximately 4 6 billion years ago It was originally a molten fireball then the heavy metals sank to the center and lighter gases elements floated to the surface and less than a billions years later Earth contained rock water and an atmosphere o Evidence of life primitive organisms produced by 3 4 BYA Oldest forms of life were in water First True life a Manufacture nutrients from external sources of energy b Repair self and grow microscopic single celled organism that could c Multiply reproduction d Mutate genetically variation Taphonomy the study of how fossils get made o To become a fossil Artifact such as bone shell tools etc must become buried in sediment conductive to fossilizations Must outlast decay and erosion Most animal s fossils are from hard parts bone