Brainscape's Knowledge GenomeTM

Browse over 1 million classes created by top students, professors, publishers, and experts.


See full index

Cultural Anthropology > Glossary > Flashcards

Glossary Flashcards

1
Q

acclimatization

A

The physiological process of being or becoming accustomed to a new physical environment.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

Acheulean Industry

A

One of the major industries of the Lower Paleolithic (the Old Stone Age). The technology generally associated with Homo erectus.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

achieved status

A

A status that results, at least in part, from a person’s voluntary actions.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

adaptation

A

The process in which an organism makes a successful adjustment to a specific environment.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

adaptive radiation

A

The relatively rapid evolution of a species in a new environmental niche.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

adjudication

A

The settling of legal disputes through a formal, centralized authority.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

aerial photography

A

Photographs taken from the air of archaeological sites and the landscape. Helpful to archaeologists in mapping and locating sites.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

age grades

A

Statuses defined by age through which a person moves in the course of his or her lifetime.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

age sets

A

Corporate groups of people of about the same age who share specific rights, obligations, duties, and privileges in their community.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

age stratification

A

The unequal allocation of wealth, power, and prestige among people of different ages.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

agribusiness

A

Commercialized, mechanized agriculture.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

agricultural states

A

States in which the power of the ruling elite was vested in the control of agricultural surpluses. This type of control typifies early states.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

alleles

A

The alternate forms of genes.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

ambilineal descent group

A

A social kinship group formed by choosing to trace relationships through either a male or a female line.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
15
Q

analogy

A

Similarities in organisms that have no genetic relatedness.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
16
Q

anatomically modern Homo sapiens

A

The most recent form of human, distinguished by a unique anatomy that differs from that of earlier, archaic Homo sapiens.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
17
Q

animism

A

The belief that the world is populated by spiritual beings such as ghosts, souls, and demons.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
18
Q

antiquaries

A

Collectors whose interest lies in the object itself, not in where the fossils might have come from or what the artifact and associated materials might tell about the people that produced them. Collectors of this kind characterized the early history of archaeology.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
19
Q

anthropology

A

The systematic study of humankind.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
20
Q

apartheid

A

A political, legal, and social system developed in South Africa in which the rights of different population groups were based on racial criteria.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
21
Q

applied anthropology

A

The use of data gathered from the other subfields of anthropology to find practical solutions to problems in a society.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
22
Q

arboreal

A

Living in trees.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
23
Q

archaeology

A

The subfield of anthropology that focuses on the study of the artifacts from past societies to determine the lifestyles, history, and evolution of those societies.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
24
Q

archaeological sites

A

Places of past human activity that are preserved in the ground.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
25
Q

archaic

A

A post-Pleistocene hunting-and-gathering adaptation in the Americas characterized by tools suitable for broad-spectrum collecting and more intensive exploitation of localized resources. Corresponds in terms of general trends with the Mesolithic of Europe.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
26
Q

archaic Homo sapiens

A

The earliest form of Homo sapiens, dating back more than 200,000 years.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
27
Q

artifacts

A

The material products of past societies.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
28
Q

artificial selection

A

The process in which people select certain plants and animals for breeding.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
29
Q

ascribed status

A

A status that is attached to a person from birth— for example, sex, caste, and race.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
30
Q

assimilation

A

The adoption of the language, culture, and ethnic identity of the dominant group in a society by other groups.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
31
Q

authority

A

Power generally perceived by members of society as legitimate, rather than coercive.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
32
Q

balanced polymorphism

A

The mixture of homozygous and heterozygous genes of a population in a state of equilibrium.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
33
Q

balanced reciprocity

A

A direct type of reciprocal exchange with an explicit expectation of immediate return.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
34
Q

band

A

The least complex and, most likely, the oldest form of a political system.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
35
Q

barter

A

The direct exchange of one commodity for another; it does not involve the use of money.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
36
Q

beliefs

A

Specific cultural conventions concerning true or false assumptions shared by a particular group.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
37
Q

bilateral descent

A

A descent system that traces relatives through both maternal and paternal sides of the family simultaneously.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
38
Q

biodiversity

A

The genetic and biological variation within and among different species of plants and animals.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
39
Q

biological assimilation

A

The process by which formerly distinct groups merge through marriage and reproduction.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
40
Q

biome

A

An area distinguished by a particular climate and certain types of plants and animals.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
41
Q

bipedalism

A

The ability to walk erect on two hind legs.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
42
Q

brideservice

A

A situation in which a male resides with his wife’s family for a specified amount of time.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
43
Q

bridewealth

A

The transfer of some form of wealth from the descent group of the groom to that of the bride.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
44
Q

broad-spectrum collecting

A

The exploitation of varied food resources in local environments.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
45
Q

capitalism

A

An economic system in which natural resources, as well as the means of producing and distributing goods and services, are privately owned.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
46
Q

carrying capacity

A

The maximum population that a specific environment can support.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
47
Q

caste

A

An endogamous social grouping into which a person is born and in which the person remains throughout his or her lifetime.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
48
Q

catastrophism

A

A theory that suggests that many species have dis- appeared since the time of creation because of major catastrophes such as floods, earthquakes, and other major geological disasters.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
49
Q

central place theory

A

The theory in geography and archaeology that, given uniform topography, resources, and opportunities, the distribution of sites within a region should be perfectly regular. Political and economic centers would be located an equal distance from one another, and each in turn would be surrounded by a hierarchical arrangement of smaller settlements, all evenly spaced. Developed by the German geographer Walter Christaller in the 1930s.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
50
Q

chief

A

A person who owns, manages, and controls the basic productive factors of the economy and has privileged access to strate- gic and luxury goods.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
51
Q

chiefdom

A

A political system with a formalized and centralized leadership, headed by a chief.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
52
Q

childhood mortality rate

A

The number of children who die before reaching the age of 5.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
53
Q

civilization

A

A complex society that has dense urban centers, ex- tensive food surpluses, a specialized division of labor, a bureaucratic organization or government, monumental art, and writing systems.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
54
Q

clan

A

A form of descent group in some societies whose members trace their descent to an unknown ancestor or, in some cases, to a sacred plant or animal.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
55
Q

clinal distribution

A

Plotting the varying distribution of physical traits in various populations on maps by clines, or zones.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
56
Q

clines

A

The zones on a map used to plot physical traits of populations.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
57
Q

closed peasant communities

A

Indian communities in highland areas of Latin America that were isolated from colonialism and the market economy.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
58
Q

closed society

A

A society in which social status is generally ascribed, rather than achieved.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
59
Q

Clovis-first hypothesis

A

The theory that maintains that the Clovis culture represents the initial human settlement of the Americas.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
60
Q

cognitive anthropology

A

The study of human psychological thought processes based on computer modeling.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
61
Q

command economy

A

An economic system in which the political elite makes the decisions concerning production, prices, and trade.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
62
Q

communication

A

The act of transferring information.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
63
Q

complementary opposition

A

The formation of groups that parallel one another as political antagonists.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
64
Q

composite tools

A

Tools, such as harpoons or spears, made from several components.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
65
Q

conflict theories

A

Theories that argue that state-level organization is beneficial only to the ruling elite and is generally costly to subor- dinate groups such as the peasantry.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
66
Q

consumption

A

The use of goods and services to satisfy desires and needs.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
67
Q

context

A

The specific location in the ground of an artifact or fossil and all associated materials.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
68
Q

continental drift

A

The separation of continents that occurred over millions of years as a result of the geological process of plate tectonics.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
69
Q

continuous variation

A

A phenomenon whereby variation in a particular trait or characteristic cannot be divided into discrete, readily definable groups, but varies continuously from one end of the spectrum to the other.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
70
Q

cosmologies

A

Ideas that present the universe as an orderly system, including answers to basic questions about the place of humankind.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
71
Q

core societies

A

Powerful industrial nations that exercise economic hegemony over other regions.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
72
Q

correlation

A

The simultaneous occurrence of two variables.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
73
Q

cross-cousin

A

The offspring of one’s father’s sister or one’s mother’s brother.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
74
Q

crude birth rate

A

The number of live births in a given year for every thousand people in a population.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
75
Q

crude death rate

A

The number of deaths in a given year for every thousand people in a population.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
76
Q

cultivation

A

The systematic planting and harvesting of plants to support the subsistence activities of a population.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
77
Q

culture

A

A shared way of life that includes the material products and nonmaterial products (values, beliefs, and norms) that are transmitted within a particular society from generation to generation.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
78
Q

cultural anthropology

A

The subfield of anthropology that focuses on the study of contemporary societies.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
79
Q

cultural assimilation

A

The process by which an ethnic group adopts the culture of another ethnic group.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
80
Q

cultural ecology

A

The systematic study of the relationships be- tween the environment and society.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
81
Q

cultural hegemony

A

The control over beliefs, values, and norms exercised by the dominant group in a society.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
82
Q

cultural materialism

A

A research strategy that focuses on technology, environment, and economic factors as key determinants in sociocultural evolution.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
83
Q

culture of poverty

A

The hypothesis that sets of values sustaining poverty are perpetuated generation after generation within a community.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
84
Q

cultural patrimony

A

The ownership of cultural properties such as human remains, artifacts, monuments, sacred sites, and associated cultural materials.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
85
Q

cultural relativism

A

The view that cultural traditions must be understood within the context of a particular society’s responses to problems, cultural practices, and values.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
86
Q

culture shock

A

A severe psychological reaction that results from adjusting to the realities of a society radically different from one’s own.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
87
Q

cultural universals

A

Essential behavioral characteristics of humans found in all societies.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
88
Q

cultural resource management

A

The attempt to protect and conserve artifacts and archaeological resources for the future.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
89
Q

culture

A

A shared way of life that includes material products, values, beliefs, and norms that are transmitted within a particular society from generation to generation.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
90
Q

Cut marks

A

Marks left on bones as a consequence of stone tool use, distinct from marks that might be left by a predator’s teeth or natural weathering.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
91
Q

datum point

A

A reference point in an archaeological excavation, often some permanent feature or marker, from which all measurements of contour, level, and location are taken.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
92
Q

deductive method

A

A method of investigation in which a scientist begins with a general theory, develops specific hypotheses, and tests them.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
93
Q

dendrochronology

A

A numerical dating technique based on the varying pattern of environmental conditions preserved in the annual growth rings of trees.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
94
Q

dentition

A

The number, form, and arrangement of teeth.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
95
Q

demographic transition

A

The decline of birth rates and death rates during later phases of industrialization.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
96
Q

demographic-transition theory

A

A model used to measure population trends within a society that assumes a close connection between fertility and mortality rates and socioeconomic development.

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
97
Q

demography

A

The study of population and its relationship to society.

98
Q

deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA)

A

A chain of chemicals contained in each chromosome that produces physical traits that are transmitted to the offspring during reproduction.

99
Q

dexterity

A

The flexibility and efficient use of the digits (fingers and toes) of the feet and hands. This is a key characteristic of the primates that allows them to grasp and manipulate objects.

100
Q

dependence theory

A

The theory that underdevelopment in Third World societies is the result of domination by industrial capitalist societies.

101
Q

dependent variable

A

A variable whose value changes in response to changes in the independent variable.

102
Q

descent group

A

A social group identified by a person in order to trace his or her real or fictive kinship relationships.

103
Q

developmental acclimatization

A

Permanent or non-reversible adaptation to specialized environmental conditions such as high altitude.

104
Q

dialect

A

A linguistic pattern involving differences in pronunciation, vocabulary, or syntax that occurs within a common language family.

105
Q

diffusionism

A

The spread of cultural traits from one society to another.

106
Q

diurnal

A

Active during the day.

107
Q

division of labor

A

The specialized economic roles and activities within a society.

108
Q

domestication

A

The systematic, artificial selection of traits in plants or animals to make them more useful to human beings.

109
Q

dominance hierarchy

A

The relative social status or ranking order found in some primate social groups.

110
Q

dominant

A

The form of a gene that is expressed in a heterozygous pair.

111
Q

doubling time

A

The period of time required for a population to double.

112
Q

dowry

A

Goods and wealth paid by the bride’s family to the groom’s family.

113
Q

drives

A

Basic, inborn biological urges that motivate human behavior.

114
Q

dyadic contact

A

A reciprocal exchange arrangement between two individuals.

115
Q

ecclesiastical religions

A

Religious traditions that develop in state societies and combine governmental and religious authority.

116
Q

ecofacts

A

Archaeological finds that have cultural significance but that are not artifacts manufactured or produced by humans. Examples of ecofacts would be botanical, faunal, and shell remains recovered from an archaeological site.

117
Q

ecology

A

The study of living organisms in relationship to their environment.

118
Q

ecological niche

A

The specific environmental setting to which an organism is adapted.

119
Q

economy

A

The social relationships that organize the production, exchange, and consumption of goods and services.

120
Q

egalitarian

A

A type of social structure that emphasizes equality among different statuses.

121
Q

ego

A

Freud’s term to refer to the aspect of the personality that is displayed to other individuals.

122
Q

emic perspective

A

The study of a culture from an insider’s point of view.

123
Q

embodied wealth

A

The physical or bodily health of individuals or groups.

124
Q

enculturation

A

The process of social interaction through which people learn their culture.

125
Q

endocast

A

The casts of the interior of the cranium, either natural of manmade, that provide a replica of the surface of the brain.

126
Q

endogamy

A

Marriage between people of the same social group or category.

127
Q

environmental niche

A

A locale that contains various plants, animals, and other ecological conditions to which a species must adjust.

128
Q

epidemiology

A

The study of disease patterns in a society.

129
Q

Epipaleolithic

A

The time period of about 14,000 years ago in the Near East when people begin to subsist on resources such as fish, small game, and wild plants and become more sedentary and less nomadic.

130
Q

ethical relativism

A

The belief that the values of one society should never be imposed on another society.

131
Q

ethnic boundary marker

A

The distinctions of language, clothing, or other aspects of culture that emphasize ethnicity.

132
Q

ethnic group

A

A group that shares a culture.

133
Q

ethnicity

A

Cultural differences among populations, usually based upon attributes such as language, religion, lifestyle, and cultural ideas about common descent or specific territory.

134
Q

ethnoarchaeology

A

The study of material artifacts of the past along with the observation of modern peoples who have knowledge of the use and symbolic meaning of those artifacts.

135
Q

ethnocentrism

A

The practice of judging another society by the values and standards of one’s own.

136
Q

ethnocide

A

A process in which a dominant group or society forces other groups to abandon their traditional language and culture.

137
Q

ethnogenesis

A

The emergence of a new ethnic group.

138
Q

ethnography

A

A description of a society written by an anthropologist who conducted field research in that society.

139
Q

ethnologist

A

An anthropologist who focuses on the cross-cultural aspects of ethnographic studies.

140
Q

ethnology

A

The subfield of anthropology that focuses on the cross-cultural aspects of ethnographic studies.

141
Q

ethnomusicology

A

The study of musical traditions in different societies.

142
Q

ethnonationalist movements

A

The process of emphasizing the cultural distinctions of a particular group for political purposes.

143
Q

ethnopoetics

A

The study of the poetry traditions and practices in different societies.

144
Q

ethologist

A

A scientist who studies the behaviors of animals in their natural setting.

145
Q

etic perspective

A

The study of a culture from an outsider’s point of view.

146
Q

evolution

A

Process of change within the genetic makeup of a species over time.

147
Q

evolutionary psychology

A

The study of the human mind using evolutionary findings.

148
Q

exchange

A

The transfer of goods and services from one member of society to another.

149
Q

exogamy

A

Marriage between people of different social groups or categories.

150
Q

experimental studies

A

Studies involving the replication of tools or activities to infer how ancient tools may have been made and used.

151
Q

extended family

A

A family that is made up of parents, children, and other kin relations bound together as a social unit.

152
Q

family

A

A social group of two or more people related by blood, marriage, or adoption who live or reside together for an extended period, sharing economic resources and caring for their young.

153
Q

faunal correlation

A

The dating of fossils through the comparison of similar fossils from better-dated sequences.

154
Q

faunal succession

A

Literally, “animal” succession; recognizes that life-forms change through time. First noted by the English geologist William Smith.

155
Q

features

A

Nonmovable artifacts or traces of past human activity such as an ancient fire hearth, a pit dug in the ground, or a wall.

156
Q

fecundity

A

The potential number of children that women in a society are capable of bearing.

157
Q

feminism

A

The belief that women are equal to men and should have equal rights and opportunities.

158
Q

fertility

A

The number of births in a society.

159
Q

feud

A

A type of armed combat within a political community.

160
Q

feudalism

A

A decentralized form of political economy based on landed estates, which existed during different historical periods in agrarian societies.

161
Q

fictive kinship ties

A

Extrafamilial social ties that provide mutualaid work groups.

162
Q

fission-track dating

A

A numerical dating method based on the decay of an unstable isotope of uranium. Used to date volcanic rocks.

163
Q

First World

A

The sector of the global economy that is composed of modern industrialized capitalist societies.

164
Q

fissioning

A

The moving of people from one group to another area when their population begins to increase and food or other resources become scarce.

165
Q

floatation

A

A specialized recovery technique in archaeology in which material from an excavation is placed in water to separate soil from organic remains such as plants, seeds, and charcoal.

166
Q

folkways

A

Norms guiding ordinary usages and conventions of everyday life.

167
Q

foraging society

A

Another classification used for a hunting-and-gathering society.

168
Q

foramen magnum

A

The opening in the base of the skull through which the spinal cord passes.

169
Q

forensic anthropology

A

The identification of human skeletal remains for legal purposes.

170
Q

fossil

A

The remains of bones and living materials preserved from earlier periods.

171
Q

fossil localities

A

Places where fossils are found. These may be locations where predators dropped animals they killed, places where creatures were naturally covered by sediments, or sites where early humans or primates actually lived.

172
Q

founder effect

A

A type of genetic drift resulting from the randomly determined genetic complement present in the founders of an isolated population.

173
Q

Fourth World

A

Indigenous, native, or aboriginal societies.

174
Q

functionalism

A

An anthropological perspective based upon the assumption that society consists of institutions that serve vital purposes for people.

175
Q

galactic polity

A

A type of state that rules primarily through religious authorities and cosmologies.

176
Q

gametes

A

Sex cells (such as egg and sperm in humans). They contain only half of the chromosomes found in ordinary body, or somatic, cells.

177
Q

gene flow

A

The exchange of genes between populations as a result of interbreeding.

178
Q

gene pool

A

The total collection of all the alleles within a particular population.

179
Q

generalized reciprocity

A

A type of reciprocal exchange based upon the assumption that an immediate return is not expected and that the value of the exchange will balance out in the long run.

180
Q

genes

A

Discrete units of hereditary information that determine specific physical characteristics of organisms.

181
Q

genetic drift

A

Change in allele frequencies within a population as a result of random processes of selection.

182
Q

gender

A

Specific human traits defined by culture and attached to each sex by a society.

183
Q

genocide

A

The physical extermination of a particular ethnic group in a society.

184
Q

genotype

A

The specific genetic constitution of an organism.

185
Q

geronticide

A

The killing of old people.

186
Q

gerontocracy

A

Rule by elders (usually male) who control the material and reproductive resources of the community.

187
Q

globalization

A

The worldwide impact of industrialization and its socioeconomic, political, and cultural consequences on the world.

188
Q

glocalization

A

The incorporation of global factors into the local culture.

189
Q

goods

A

Elements of material culture produced from raw materials in the natural environment, ranging from the basic commodities for survival to luxury items.

190
Q

greenhouse effect

A

Global warming caused when carbon dioxide traps heat from solar rays, preventing it from radiating back into space.

191
Q

Green Revolution

A

The use of bioengineering and industrial technology for agricultural purposes.

192
Q

hamula

A

The Arabic term for a clanlike organization.

193
Q

Hardy–Weinberg theory of genetic equilibrium

A

An idealized mathematical model that sets hypothetical conditions under which no evolution is taking place. Developed independently by G. H. Hardy and W. Weinberg, the model is used to evaluate evolutionary processes operating on a population.

194
Q

heterozygous

A

Having two different alleles in a gene pair.

195
Q

hierarchical society

A

A society in which some people have greater access than others to wealth, rank, status, authority, and power.

196
Q

hieroglyphic writing

A

Hiero meaning “sacred” and gyphein meaning “carving.” An early pictographic writing system in which symbols denoted the ideas and concepts.

197
Q

historical linguistics

A

The comparison and classification of different languages to discern the historical links among them.

198
Q

historical particularism

A

An approach to studying human societies in which each society has to be understood as a unique product of its own history.

199
Q

holistic

A

A broad, comprehensive approach to the study of hu- mankind drawing on the four subfields of anthropology and integrating both biological and cultural phenomena.

200
Q

hominid

A

The family of primates that includes modern humans and their direct ancestors who share distinctive types of teeth, jaws, and bipedalism.

201
Q

homology

A

Traits that have a common genetic origin, but may differ in form and function.

202
Q

homozygous

A

Having the same alleles in a gene pair.

203
Q

horticulture

A

A form of agriculture in which people use a limited, nonmechanized technology to cultivate plants.

204
Q

hunter-gatherer society

A

A society that depends on hunting animals and gathering vegetation for subsistence.

205
Q

hybridization and assimilation models

A

Models of the evolution of anatomically modern humans that they allow for varying degrees of gene flow between Homo sapiens and earlier populations of archaic Homo sapiens via gene flow or genetic admixture.

206
Q

hypodescent concept

A

A system of racial classification in which children of mixed parentage acquire the social and racial status of the parent whose social and racial status is lower.

207
Q

hypothesis

A

A testable proposition concerning the relationship between different sets of variables within the collected data.

208
Q

id

A

Freud’s term to refer to the unconscious, innate drives such as sex and aggression found in all humans.

209
Q

ideal culture

A

What people say they do or should do.

210
Q

ideographic writing systems

A

An early form of writing in which simple pictures are used to communicate ideas, an individual picture expressing each idea. In actuality, this system involves neither language nor writing.

211
Q

ideology

A

Cultural symbols and beliefs that reflect and support the interests of specific groups within a society.

212
Q

imperialsm

A

The economic and political domination and control of other societies.

213
Q

incest

A

Sexual relations or marriage between certain relatives.

214
Q

incest avoidance

A

Avoidance of sexual relations and marriage with members of one’s own family.

215
Q

incest taboo

A

Strong cultural norms that prohibit sexual relations or marriage with members of one’s own family.

216
Q

independent variable

A

A causal variable that produces an effect on another variable, the dependent variable.

217
Q

inductive method

A

A method of investigation in which a scientist first makes observations and collects data and then, formulates a hypothesis.

218
Q

industrialization

A

The use of machines and other sophisticated technology to satisfy the needs of society by transforming raw materials into manufactured goods.

219
Q

industrial society

A

A society that uses sophisticated technology based upon machinery powered by advanced fuels to produce material goods.

220
Q

infanticide

A

The deliberate abandonment or killing of infants 1 year of age or younger.

221
Q

infant mortality rate

A

The number of babies per thousand births in any year who die before reaching the age of 1.

222
Q

instincts

A

Fixed, complex, and genetically based unlearned behaviors that promote the survival of a species.

223
Q

integrationist theories

A

A variety of theories that argue that state organization is, on the whole, advantageous and beneficial to all members of a society.

224
Q

intelligence

A

The capacity to process information and adapt to the world.

225
Q

intensive agriculture

A

The cultivation of crops by preparing permanent fields year after year, often using irrigation and fertilizers.

226
Q

intensive horticulture

A

A method of crop production by irrigating, fertilizing, hoeing, and terracing hillsides.

227
Q

jajmani economy

A

The Hindi term for the traditional caste-based economy in India.

228
Q

jati

A

The Hindi term for caste.

229
Q

jihad

A

The Arabic term that refers to a “holy struggle” against the destroyer of one’s own religion and culture.

230
Q

Jim Crow laws

A

The laws that were used to segregate African Americans from white Americans in the southern United States prior to the civil rights era.

231
Q

kindred

A

Overlapping relatives from both sides of a family that an individual recognizes as being part of his or her descent group.

232
Q

kinesics

A

The study of body motion and gestures used in nonverbal communication.

233
Q

knowledge

A

The storage and recall of learned information based on experience.

234
Q

Knuckle walking

A

A distinctive type of quadrupedal locomotion used by gorillas. Knuckle walkers rest their hands on the ground in a curled position, with the tops of their curled middle and index fingers bearing their weight.

235
Q

kula

A

A form of reciprocal exchange involving ceremonial items in the Trobriand Islands.

236
Q

lactase deficiency

A

The inability to digest lactose, the sugar found in milk.

237
Q

language

A

A system of symbols with standard meanings through which members of a society communicate with one another.

238
Q

law of supraposition

A

States that in any succession of rock layers, the lowest rocks were deposited first and the upper rocks have been in place for progressively shorter periods. This assumption forms the basis of stratigraphic dating.

239
Q

Levalloisian technique

A

A refined type of percussion flaking used during the Middle Paleolithic.

240
Q

levirate

A

The rule that a widow is expected to marry one of her deceased husband’s brothers.

241
Q

life expectancy

A

The number of years as average person can expect to live.

242
Q

lineages

A

Descent groups composed of relatives, all of whom trace their relationship through consanguineal or affinal relations to an actual, commonly known ancestor.

Cultural Anthropology (1 decks)

Brainscape helps you reach your goals faster, through stronger study habits.
© 2024 Bold Learning Solutions. Terms and Conditions