Midterm 2 (4) Flashcards
What are the hypothesized pathways of the original settlers of Australia and New Guinea?
- Through Sunda - The combined land mass of the modern islands of Java, Sumatra, Bali and Borneo. These islands became a single land mass during periods of glaciation and lowered sea level during the pleistocene.
What is the Wallace Trench?
A deep undersea chasm located between New Guinea/ Australia/ Java/ Borneo. Showed that they would have had to use watercraft.
What are the oldest sites in austrailia?
Lake mungo and Kow Swamp (southeast coast, 50, 000 kya).
Where was one of the earliest humans found in australia?
Lake Mungo.
What was found at Kow Swamp?
Individual found 10, 000 kya with a unique skull with a low-sloped forehead. Probably because of cranial deformation.
What are the Pleistocene Megafauna?
Term to describe the now extinct herbivores of the Pleistocene.
What is the connection between the arrival of modern humans and pleistocene megafauna?
The extinction of pleistocene megafauna. We probably killed off all of these animals.
What are the two models for timing of the peopling of the Americas?
- Clovis First
2. Pre-Clovis
What is the clovis first hypothesis?
Clovis culture (13, 500 - 12, 500) represents the initial human occupation of the Americas.
What is the pre-clovis hypothesis?
Human occupation of the Americas pre-dates 13, 500 years ago because a number of sites appear to pre-date clovis.
(e.g. Monte verde, Chile. Meadowcroft Rockshelter, Pennsylvania)
What was found at Monte Verde?
Site that was covered in peat moss and sediment. Preservation was great. Found plant remains, mastodon tissues, hides, wooden tools, etc. Suggests that people moved down the coast to occupy south america. Pre-dates Clovis.
What was found at meadow croft Rockshelter, Pennsylvania?
14, 000 kya. Four hundred lithic artifacts including blades, knives, projectile points.
What are the hypothesis for routes of migration to the new world?
- Bering land bridge
- Pacific coastal route
- North atlantic ice edge
What is the bering land bridge hypothesis?
At the end of the pleistocene, there was a land bridge between north america and asia between 35, 000 kya - 11, 000 kya. Suggested that they traveled between the ice sheets down in to the lower americas.
What is the pacific coastal route hypothesis?
Used watercraft to travel along the islands of asia and over to north america. Problem with this theory is there is not evidence of watercraft.
What is the North Atlantic Ice Edge Hypothesis? (solutrean hypothesis)
Travelled across 5000 km of water/ ice sheets to come from europe to north america. Believed that the solutrean people were the origin of clovis people. However, there is about 5000 years between the end of solutrean people and the beginning of clovis, so where did they go?
What evidence is there for a relationship between asian and aboriginal populations? (supporting the bering land bridge hypothesis)
Dental morphology and DNA analysis.
What does the dental morphology show?
Close connection between asian and north american populations with the shovel-shaped incisors.
What does the DNA analysis show?
Mitochondrial DNA and comparison of Y-chromosomes of living northeast asian and new world populations show a shared genetic inheritance. Shows the relationship between asian and aboriginal populations.
What are the earliest new world sites?
- Swan point, Alaska. 14, 000 kya.
- Bluefish Cave, Yukon. 15, 000 - 12, 000 kya.
- Debra Friedkin, Texas. 15, 500 kya.
- Cactus Hill, Virginia. 15, 000 kya.
- Paisley 5 Mile Point Caves, Oregon. 14, 300 kya.
How old was Kennewick man?
9300 from Washington.
What is Sahul?
The land mass of “greater australia” including australia, new guinea and tasmania. During periods of glacial maxima in the pleistocene, these three islands were combined in a single land mass.
What sites pre-date Clovis?
Monte Verde, Chile. Meadowcroft Rockshelter, Pennsylvania.
When was the Pleistocene?
2.6 - 11, 000 kya.
