ACS Test 1 Flashcards
How have discoveries by archaeologists and anthropologists in the past 100 years changed what we know about the origins of humanity?
Discoveries by archaeologists and anthropologists in the past 100 years have changed what we know about the origins of humanity in several ways. One instance was Mary Leakey’s discovery of prehistoric foot steps, giving evidence of the first case of bipedalism and discovering the Upright Man (Homo erectus). Another example would be Donald Johansen’s discovery of the First Family, giving evidence that the ancient humans lived in groups. All of these discoveries enhance our modern understanding of the origins of humanity.
Explain the Out of Africa Theory and what evidence is there to support it?
The Out of Africa theory is a theory that suggests that all modern humans originally came from Africa before emigrating to other parts of the world. Some evidence that supports the “Out of Africa” model of human evolution is DNA evidence. This is evidence that traces every living person on Earth back to a woman in Africa who lived 200,000 years ago. She is referred to as Mitochondrial Eve. This means that if every person alive is related to her, people must have originated in Africa.
How did the discovery of Lucy by Donald Johanson change our knowledge of human evolution?
David Johanson’s discovery of Lucy changed our knowledge of human evolution by giving us evidence of when humans started to live in groups, which is an important part of human evolution. This is because when the skeleton of Lucy was discovered, there were 13 skeletons, suggesting that they had been living together. This gave them the name “The First Family”.
Discuss the importance and impact of Griots in African culture and society
A Griot would have been so important to African Culture because they kept traditions alive. This was very important because most people couldn’t read the content for themselves, so a Griot to tell the stories was integral. In West African society, their role is to keep the facts and pass this information on to future generations. Along with passing on knowledge through stories, they also played the role of advisers, mediators and negotiators for certain people.
What is White Privilege? How has this impacted others (2 ways) and what can you do to make more people aware?
White Privilege is unearned advantages/privileges granted to someone purely because they’re white. My white privilege means that I can do things like take a job with an affirmative action employer without having coworkers on the job suspect that I got it because of race or do well in a challenging situation without being called a credit to my race while other people who aren’t white might not be able to. To make people more aware, as a white person, I can use my privileges to achieve this goal by calling out and recognizing the advantages I’ve been given through no work of my own and also recognizing that these systems need to change.
What does Ethnocentrism mean? How has ethnocentrism (especially Eurocentrism) affected what we know about African countries and culture?
Ethnocentrism is the belief that your ethnicity/culture is superior or more important than other cultures. Ethnocentrism and eurocentrism have affected what we know about African countries and cultures because African history and culture may have been mostly ignored or disregarded because we believed our culture was more important and that we didn’t need to know anything about other cultures. However, we also believed that they needed to know our culture, hence where the eurocentrism came from.
Archaeologist
A person who studies human history and prehistory through the excavation of sites and analysis of physical remains.
Anthropologist
A person who studies human beings, especially their societies and customs.
Hominids
A species that includes the human family.
Radiocarbon Dating
The determination of the approximate age of an ancient object, such as a fossil, by measuring the amount of carbon 14 it contains.
Palaeoanthropology
The study of the origins of humankind.
Olduvai Gorge
The Olduvai Gorge is a location where many significant fossil remains of early humans have been found.
Donald Johanson
Donald Johanson is an American paleoanthropologist who discovered Lucy and the “First Family”.
Lucy
Lucy is the oldest and most complete human ancestor found in Africa. She was discovered in 1974 in Ethiopia.
First Family
The First Family is the remains of 13 people. They are the first evidence that people lived in groups, found 3.2 million years ago.