Final exam, Key words, Concepts, and Questions Flashcards
Is race real? Why or why not?
The concept of race is not real. There is no biological basis for the typographical categories historically assigned to different groups. However, the reality of race and racism is real. The impact of how we discuss and treat race has biological, health, economic, and political consequences.
Explain how recent research about race and health disparities is complicating the way we understand race and human variation. Include examples
Biomedical research and clinical treatment still operate under the assumption of biological race which then further instills the preconceived notion that race has a biological basis. In fact, our lack of understanding of how sociocultural, environmental, and life histories play a role in our variation trumps proven research that human genetic variation is clinal. In turn, the social inequalities faced by RACIALIZED groups shapes their biology.
What is Rickets?
DISEASE FOUND IN CHILDREN CHARACTERIZED BY POOR CALCIFICATION, SOFTENING, AND DISTORTION OF THE BONES➡️ Vitamin D deficiency
What is the MC1R gene?
A gene that helps determine skin and hair color➡️ Neanderthal mutation of gene not found in present day Europs.
What is the SLC24A5 GENE?
Protein➡️Important contributor to variability in human skin color➡️highly favored in evolution, Not found in asian pops.
What is the study that lead to the discovery of the SLC24A5 GENE?
Study of the Zebrafish led to the mutation found in European pops.➡️Not found in Asian pops.
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of of Homo Erectus?
➡️1.8 MYA to ~300,000 BP (maybe 50,000 BP) ➡️Transition from Habilines between 1.9 million and 1.8 million years ago
➡️ Ileret footprints 1.5 MYA
➡️first species in our lineage to extend its range beyond Africa: it was recorded in western Asia by 1.7 million years ago,
➡️Less flared rib
➡️Reduction in tooth shape
➡️disappearance of the shoulder, arm, and trunk adaptation, can’t climb for shit
➡️Larger bodies
➡️Smaller guts
➡️Control of fire
➡️Small-medium brain volume
➡️Relatively low and thick skull
➡️Flexed occipital, transverse torus
➡️Large teeth, molar gradient valises
~1,000 cc cranial capacity
➡️Low, long, thick skull with small chewing muscles and large brow ridges
➡️Locomotion similar to humans and social grouping
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of of Neanderthal?
➡️ 200,000 BP – 28,000 BP
➡️ Eurasian distribution
➡️ More robust and stronger than AMH
➡️ 1,200 average cranial capacity
➡️ Elongated skull, occipital bun, and no chin
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of Homo sapiens (AMH)?
➡️ Concretely dated to 200,000 BP (debated earlier dates)
➡️ Earliest finds all in Africa
➡️Rounded skull, chin, and a lack of post-orbital constriction, prognathism, or occipital bun
➡️~1,300 cc cranial capacity
➡️Largest relative to body size
➡️ More gracile with diminished strength
90,000 BP sites in the Middle East
➡️ Challenges earlier assumptions of 60,000 BP
➡️ European presence ~46,000 BP
➡️ Global distribution ~15,000 BP
➡️ No other living hominin after 20,000 BP
➡️ Neanderthals 28,000 BP
➡️ Homo erectus 27,000
What is the social reasoning and origins of skin bleaching?
Complexion is purposely altered based on racialized, gendered norms and expectations.
What is VD?
A nutrient that the body needs in small amounts to function and stay healthy➡️ via the sun
What is UVR?
Ultraviolet radiation
What is human variation?
The study of how and why contemporary human populations vary biologically
What is Environmental racism?
Environmental racism is the process of exposing minority and poor communities to evinornmental risks i.e industrial sites, redlining, pollution,
What is biological racing?
Racial classifications based on the forensic analysis of remains i.e applying the classification of skin color to bones
What was the issue with Lehman’s forensic approach to the African burial ground compared to Howards?
Lehman’s forensic approach of analysis consisted of catergoizing the remains based on the same principles of eugenics whereas Howard’s team focused on interpretive analysis, genetic analysis using biobanks, and tissues from his own research+ colleagues to gather a macroethinic overview of the remains
Birth of genetic ancestry testing?
Birthed from the idea of creating a DNA bank that descendants can use to determine their ancestral origins and reconstruct their past
What are the origins of pigmentation?
1)Pigmentation naturally selected for based on environmental and reproductive needs.
2) Coloration of skin, hair, and eyes, which is determined by the amount and type of melanin produced by melanocytes.
Who is Cheddar man? What is the argument against him?
1)Remains of an ancient human found in England, believed to be the oldest documented DNA link - from 10,000 BC
2)Destroys the preconceived notion of whiteness for Europeans
What is Epidermis?
Outer layer➡️
Very thin, waterproof, and abrasion-resistant
What is Dermis?
Inner layer➡️ Thicker, tenser, and tougher, containing blood vessels, sweat glands, sensory receptors, and hair follicles
What is Melanin?
A pigment that gives the skin its color
What are evolutionary purposes of Melanin?
Protects the body from ultraviolet radiation (UVR) through absorption
What was the adaptive benefit of having hairless bodies for early hominins? How did this adaptation then affect the evolution of skin pigmentation, leading to darker skin and eventually pale skin when humans moved to northern climates?
1)Loss of hair related to increased bipedalism
Increased activity (long-distance running) leads to increased body temperature in need of regulation
Loss of hair to allow for increased sweat and evaporation on the skin
2)Darker skin- Epidermis becomes tougher and more resistant to threats
Genetic evidence reveals consistent version of the MC1R (melanocortin 1 receptor) gene in continental Africa around 1.2 MYA
More melanin production
3) Environments with less direct exposure around 60,000 BP
UVR penetrates skin to assist in the production of Vitamin D, which enables the absorption of calcium from the diet
What is a Cline?
Variations in the intensity of expressions of known hereditary traits over wide geographic regions
Who is Franz Boas?
Father of modern anthropology➡️
Actively combated scientific racism through empirical methods and observations➡️
➡️Findings disprove biological innateness/determinism, highlighting variability and change due to environment
Who is Anténor Firmin?
Anténor Firmin was a Haitian anthropologist and writer who argued against the belief in the inherent inferiority of non-white races in his book “De l’égalité des races humaines” (English: “On the Equality of Human Races”).
What is the contemporary POV on race?
1)Sequencing the Human 2)Genome proves that humans are genetically 99.9% similar
3)Variation better understood through clines
DNA sequences has altered the way we understand race
What is Cold spring harbor?
-Founded in 1910 & closed in 1934
-Long Island lab that was headed by Charles Davenport, conducted experimental research on human evolution
-Davenport established the “Eugenics Record Office”
-collected data on Eugenics to educate the public.
Studied epilepsy, crime.
What is the social construction of race?
Social construct without biological meaning
Who is Ota Benga?
African Pygime captured and forcibly transported to World Fair➡️ then as a display in BX zoo
Considered to be the “MISSING LINK” of human evolution. Transition from apes to human.
What is the Human zoo?
Human zoo was created by Anthropologist William McGee to present the “story” of human evolution by displaying representatives of “lower stages of the human race”
What is Race?
A group of people belonging to the same family and descended from a common ancestor; a house, family, kindred
What is Eugenics?
Selective mating to produce a stronger, smarter, better people ➡️ Genetics determines the capabilities and fitness of populations
WHat is Phrenology?
Detailed study of the shape and size of the skull to determine mental capabilities
What is Craniometrics?
The science of measuring skulls, chiefly to determine their characteristic relationship to sex, body type, or genetic population.
What is social Darwinism?
Developed by Herbert Spencer in 1864 ➡️
The belief that only that certain people become powerful in society because they are innately better.
How did certain readings of Darwin’s theory of natural selection lead to the rise of Social Darwinism? Explain how this theory led to the rise of scientific racism.
Darwin helped lay the ground work for Eugenics in his book “The Descent of Man.”
Social darwinists where worried that modern society was trying to undermine natural selection➡️ believed they could apply selection rationally and humanely➡️ Eugenics
What is Sickle- cell anemia?
A condition whereby the structure of red blood cells is altered and oxygen transport is severely impaired
What is the Sickle cell trait?
An advantages evolutionary tradeoff for descendants bc of the heterozygous form of the disease➡️AS
AA➡️ susceptible to malaria➡️ no sickle cell
Aa➡️Resistant to malaria➡️ mild sickle cell
aa➡️Resistant to malaria ➡️fatal sickle cell
What is Malaria?
A disease caused by mosquitoes implanting parasites in the blood.
What is Lactase persistence?
Continuation of lactase production beyond early childhood that allows a person to digest milk and dairy products
➡️Mutation LCT*P allows for lactase persistence
➡️Selected for in populations that herd and utilize cattle
What is the Biocultural approach?
The scientific study of the interrelationship between what humans have inherited genetically and culturally
What is Monogenesis?
The theory that all humans descended from the same pair of ancestors
What is Polygenesis?
The theory that different “races” originated from distinct ancestors
What are the Racial taxonomies?
Nazis believed that “Aryans” were the master race
Slaves counted as 3/5 of a person in the constitution
What is the Petrous bone?
Temporal bone
What are the problematic trends of ancient research?
Few labs control overwhelming majority of technology and data
Studies aim to explore migration processes, routes, and chronologies across the globe
Large generalizations about population movements and replacements based on limited data
Lack of concern for politics, local populations, or classificatory assumptions
What is Stress?
Any factor that interferes with the normal limits of operation of an organism
Can be naturally occurring or human inspired
What is Acclimation?
Short-term physiologic responses to a stress, usually within minutes or hours
What is Acclimatization?
Long-term physiologic responses to a stress, usually taking from days to months
What is Developmental acclimatization?
Changes in organ or body structure that occur during the physical growth of any organism
What is Vasodilation?
The opening of blood vessels to increase blood flow and heat loss
What is Vasoconstriction?
Narrowing of blood vessels to reduce blood flow and heat loss
What is the control of fire theory?
The theory that Homo sapiens have been controlling fire since our evolution
Did cooking lead to gender roles?
Hunting, gathering, and cooking impossible for long-term survival of a single individual
Gender divisions in food procurement/preparation nearly universal
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of Homo heidelbegensis ?
A transitional species between Homo erectus and Homo sapiens
➡️800,000-200,000 BP
inhabited diverse (including cold) environments ➡️Throughout Africa and Eurasia
➡️Possible origins in Europe
Gran Dolina Cave in Spain
Ceprano, Italy
➡️~1,200 average cranial capacity * 1,100-1,400 cc range
Create a chronology of hominins from their origins about 7 MYA to anatomically modern humans.
➡️Sahelanthropus tchadensis (Chad) – 7 MYA,Miocene epoch, species of Hominiae, partial cranium,
➡️Orrorin Tugenesis- 6.1 to 5.7 million years ago, species of Hominiae, several limb bones, jaw fragments and isolated teethone of the oldest early humans on our family tree.
➡️Ardipithecus ramidus is a species of australopithecine from the Afar region of Early Pliocene Ethiopia 4.4 million years ago- walked up right, arboreal
➡️Australopithecus Afranesis- 3.9–2.9 million years ago - An early australopithecine from Pliocene of East Africa that had a brain size equivalent to a modern chimpanzee’s and is thought to be a direct human ancestor.
➡️Australopithecus Africanus-about 3.3 and 2.1 million years ago in the Late Pliocene to Early Pleistocene of South Africa
➡️Homo habilis- 2.8-1.6 mya, First to make stone tools, same weight as chimps, great climbers, walked upright
➡️Paranthroupus Boisei-2.4 - 1.3 million years
➡️Paranthroupus Robustus- 1.8 - 1.5 million years, South Africa, similar to A. boisei
➡️Homo erectus (1.8 million years ago)-the first species in our lineage to extend its range beyond Africa: it was recorded in western Asia by 1.7 million years ago,
➡️Homo heidelbergensis-800,000 -200,000 BP, transitional species between H. Erectus & H. Sapiens, inhabited diverse environments, possible origins Europe
➡️Densiovans- Denisova Cave in southern Siberia dating to 50,000-30,000 BP
➡️Neanderthals -200,000 BP – 28,000 BP
➡️Homo sapiens (200,000 years ago)
What is Schöningen?
Presence of fire➡️Schöningen in Germany➡️burnt flint, fireplaces, sharp sticks either used as a poker or to cook pieces of meat, dried meat with fire, 400,000 years ago.
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of Habiliines?
➡️2.8 to 1.6 MYA
➡️Small brain volume
➡️Relatively high and thin skull
➡️Rounded occipital, no transverse torus,
➡️Large teeth, molars increase towards back
➡️Walked upright
➡️Great climbers
➡️estimated to have stood about 1 to 1.3 meters tall (3 feet 3 inches to 4 feet 3 inches) and appear to have weighed about the same as a chimpanzee
➡️First to make stone tools
Origin, Transition, Definition and Anatomical traits of australopithecines?
➡️Walked upright
➡️Great climbers
➡️