Chapter 1: What Is Physical Anthropology Flashcards
Mya
“Million years ago”
Emperical
Based on (systematically collected) observation on experiments
Anatomical Evidence
Evidence drawn from dissections
What Cultural Anthropology studies
Present day & recent past societies in non-Western settings
Variation in behavior and culture
YBP
“Years before present”
Material culture
The part of culture that is expressed as objects humans use to manipulate the environment (hammers, plumbing, computers, etc)
We are currently dependent upon material culture
Science
Comes from Latin word for ‘knowledge’
Self-correcting process that provides new discoveries connecting our lives with the world we live in
Hunting
Social behavior.
When animals organize to pursue (animals for) food.
Humans distinctive in tool use/distance travel during hunting
Sociolinguistics
The science of investigating languages’ social contexts
What linguistic anthropology studies
The structure and development of language from society to society; interaction between language and culture
Sometimes includes non-human animal populations/communities
Nonhoning Canine
Upper canine (tooth) that is not sharpened against the lower third premolar.
Genome
The complete set of genetic information (chromosomal and mitochondrial DNA) for an organism or species that represents all of the inheritable traits
Primates
A group of mammals in the order Primates that have complex behavior, varied forms of locomotion, and a unique suite of traits (e.g. Large brains, forward facing eyes, fingernails, reduced snouts)
Scientific Law
Statement of fact describing natural phenomena
Biocultural Approach (to scientific study)
Involves the interrelationship between culture and biology/what humans have inherited genetically
Scientific Method
Empirical research method in which data is gathered from: observing a phenomena, forming a hypothesis, testing it, and making conclusions to validate or modify it
Culture
Learned behavior that is transmitted from person to person; language, religion, ways of doing things, making tools, sharing gestures
Other animals may have culture, too
Theory
An explanation (grounded in evidence/incontrovertible facts) as to why a natural phenomena takes place; More than just a stab at an explanation
Arboreal
Describes animals that live in trees
Terrestrial
Describes animals that live on land (not in trees or in water)
What Archaeologists study
The process behind past human behavior (like why people lived where they did, why they shifted from hunting/gathering to argriculture,etc)
Studied by examining pre-written history/remains and artifacts
Artifacts
Material objects from past cultures (like weapons or ceramics)
Biology (in anthropology context)
Physical anatomy, genetics, physiology etc of how humans are made up and human ecology (how people interact with the environment), at times, in comparison with other primates or other humans whose fossils we study
Bipedalism
Walking on two feet
Anthropology
The study of human kind (all peoples over all time periods)
Scientific study of human cultural and biological variation and evolution; what it means to be human
Hypotheses
Testable statements that potentially explain observed phenomena AND predict future phenomena
What physical (biological) anthropologists study
All aspects of present and past human biology
Includes evolution and human variation
Forensic anthropology is a subspecialty
Variation
How humans/animals are alike and different and how those are driven
Based on populations, not individuals
Social Learning
Capacity to learn from other humans (enables gathering of knowledge across generations)
Morphology
Physical shape and appearance
Data
Evidence gathered to answer a question, solve problems, or fill in gaps in scientific knowledge
Hominin
Humans and humanlike ancestors
Language
A set of spoken or written symbols that refers to things 9people, places, concepts) other than themselves
Branches of Anthropology
Cultural Anthropology
Linguistic Anthropology
Physical Anthropology aka biological anthropology
Archaeology
Human’s (6) Distinctive Attributes
Emerged around 10,000 years ago: bipedalism Nonhoning chewing Complex material culture/tool use Speech Dependence on domesticated foods/agriculture
