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Anthropology > Chapter 7: Primate Evolution > Flashcards

Chapter 7: Primate Evolution Flashcards

1
Q

taphonomy

A

the study of what happens to the remains of an organism after death

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2
Q

provenance

A

the original location of a fossil or artifact

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3
Q

relative dating

A

a method of dating that identifies objects as being younger or older than other objects

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4
Q

absolute (chronometric) dating

A

a method of dating that assigns a specific age and estimated error to a fossil or site (e.g., 1.6 plus/minus 0.23 million years)

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5
Q

dating error

A

the degree to which a date derived from an absolute or relative technique differs from the actual date

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6
Q

stratigraphy

A

the study of the different layers (strata) that have been deposited over time

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7
Q

biostratigraphic dating

A

a method of relative dating that involves dating a fossil based on associated faunal remains that have been securely dated using other methods

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8
Q

fluorine dating

A

a method of relative dating that involves comparing the amount of fluorine that has accumulated in fossils found at the same site

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9
Q

paleomagnetism

A

a method of relative dating that involves comparing reversals in the earth’s magnetic field

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10
Q

radioactive isotopes

A

unstable isotopes that decay, emitting radioactivity

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11
Q

radiometric dating

A

an absolute method of dating based on the radioactive decay of isotopes

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12
Q

carbon-14 (radio-carbon dating)

A

a method of absolute dating based on the radioactive decay of carbon-14 into nitrogen-14

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13
Q

half-life

A

the amount of time it takes for half of an existing quantity of radioactive material to decay

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14
Q

accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dating

A

a method of radiocarbon dating used to date very small samples

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15
Q

potassium-argon dating

A

a method of absolute dating based on the radioactive decay of potassium (40K) into argon gas (40Ar)

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16
Q

argon-argon dating

A

a method of absolute dating that measures the isotopic ratio of 40A to 39A

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17
Q

fission-track dating

A

a method of absolute dating that involves counting the number of tracks produced by the decay (fission) of the uranium isotope 238U contained in certain kinds of rocks

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18
Q

uranium-lead dating

A

a method of absolute dating that looks at the radioactive decay of uranium0238 to lead-206 and uranium-235 to lead-207 in minerals

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19
Q

uranium-series dating

A

a method of absolute dating that looks at the decay of uranium-234 to thorium-230 in calcium carbonate materials

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20
Q

electron spin resonance (ESR)

A

a method of absolute dating that involves measuring electrons trapped in materials such as teeth

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21
Q

thermoluminescence (TL)

A

a method of absolute dating that involves measuring the amount of light produced by the release of electrons trapped in objects such as stones and ceramics when they are heated

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22
Q

optically stimulated luminescence (OSL)

A

a method of absolute dating that involves determining the last time mineral grains such as quartz or feldspar were exposed to daylight by using light to measure the amount of energy trapped in the minerals’ crystals

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23
Q

cosmogenic nuclide dating

A

a method of absolute dating that looks at the ratio of aluminum-26 to beryllium-10 in quartz sand crystals

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24
Q

geologic time scale

A

the division of the earth’s geologic events into time periods such as eras and epochs

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25
Q

Cenozoic era

A

the geological era in which mammals, including primates, evolved

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26
Q

epoch

A

a measure of geologic time that partitions geologic eras (e.g., Cenozoic) into smaller units, defined with regard to major climatological /environmental events

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27
Q

Pangaea

A

the original landmass made up of the seven continents we recognize today

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28
Q

continental drift

A

the movement of the plates that make up the earth’s continents

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29
Q

Laurasia

A

the landmass consisting of North America, Europe, and Ausia

30
Q

Gondwanaland

A

the landmass consisting of South America, Africa, Antarctica, Australia, Madagascar, and India

31
Q

biodiversity

A

variation in life forms within a given ecosystem

32
Q

endemism

A

the state of being found exclusively in a particular place

33
Q

paleoecology

A

the study of ancient environments

34
Q

paleobotanists

A

specialists who study ancient plant remains

35
Q

palynologists

A

specialists who study pollen

36
Q

paleontologists

A

specialists who study the fossilized remains of extinct life forms

37
Q

oxygen isotope analysis

A

the use of stable oxygen isotopes to reconstruct ancient climates; it can also be used to examine the geographic origins of organisms such as humans

38
Q

stable isotopes

A

different forms of an element that have different atomic mass and that are not radioactive

39
Q

crown group

A

the last common ancestor of a clade plus all of its descendants, including living members of the clade

40
Q

stem group

A

a group of extinct organisms that are not part of the crown group

41
Q

extant

A

still existing; commonly used to refer to living species

42
Q

paleobiology

A

the study of the behaviour and ecology of fossil organisms

43
Q

dental microwear

A

microscopic wear on the enamel surfaces of the teeth, primarily due to diet

44
Q

shearing quotient

A

a measure of the relative shear potential of molar teeth

45
Q

occlusal

A

the chewing surface of a tooth

46
Q

Paleocene

A

the first epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating from about 66 to 56 Ma

47
Q

plesiadapiforms

A

a group of primate-like mammals that lived during the Paleocene epoch

48
Q

procumbent

A

forward-projecting

49
Q

Eocene

A

the second epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating from about 56 to 34 Ma

50
Q

omomyids

A

tarsier-like primates from the Eocene epoch

51
Q

adapids

A

lemur-like primates from the Eocene epoch

52
Q

Notharctus

A

an Eocene primate of the family Adapidae

53
Q

basal anthropoids

A

the earliest anthropoids

54
Q

Oligocene

A

the third epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating from about 34 to 23 Ma

55
Q

Fayum

A

a fossil-rich region of Egypt once home to many Oligocene anthropoids

56
Q

oligopithecids

A

early anthropoids from the Oligocene epoch

57
Q

parapithecids

A

a group of early anthropoids from the Oligocene epoch

58
Q

propliopithecids

A

the largest group of the Oligocene anthropoids

59
Q

Aegyptopithecus

A

a propliopithecid from the Oligocene epoch

60
Q

Y-5 pattern

A

cusp pattern formed by 5 cusps on the lower (mandibular) molar teeth in hominoids

61
Q

floating island model

A

the hypothesis that the ancestors of New World monkeys rafted across the Atlantic from Africa to South America on floating islands of vegetation

62
Q

Victoriapithecidae

A

the family to which the earliest Old World monkeys belong

63
Q

bilophodont

A

molar teeth characterized by four cusps connected by two ridges of enamel

64
Q

Miocene

A

the fourth epoch of the Cenozoic era, dating from about 23 to 5.3 Ma

65
Q

proconsulids

A

early Miocene hominoids from Africa

66
Q

Proconsul

A

the best-known genus of early Miocene hominoids

67
Q

cingulum

A

a raised ridge of enamel found on the upper molar teeth

68
Q

Dryopithecus

A

a genus of large-bodied hominoids that lived in Europe during the Miocene epoch

69
Q

klinorhynchy

A

downward tilting of the face relative to the cranial base

70
Q

Sivapithecus

A

a genus of large-bodied hominoids that lived in Asia during the Miocene epoch

71
Q

molecular systematics

A

the use of molecular data to reconstruct the evolutionary history of early primates and determine the time of divergence of different species

72
Q

molecular clock

A

a concept involving the use of molecular data to estimate the sequence and timing of divergence of various evolutionary lineages

Anthropology (13 decks)

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