science: chpt. 16 test

Question 0

Early primates sent most, if not al, of their time in the trees. How did their successful adaptations there eventually lead to important hominin adaptations

Answer 0

Successful primate adaptations include 3D vision, opposable thumbs, and the prehensile tail. All but the last adaptation are significant in hominins. 3D vision permits depth perception and opposable thumbs make grasping tools possible.

Question 1

Compare and contrast Old World and New World monkeys

Answer 1

Old and New World monkeys are both diurnal and live in trees. Old World monkeys were native to Africa and Asia. There bodies were also larger than New World monkeys. New World monkeys were native to Central and South America. They also had prehensile tails, and Old World monkeys didn’t.

Question 2

Summarize the out of Africa hypothesis? What information supports it? Is there any evidence against it?

Answer 2

The Out-of-Africa hypothesis states that humans evolved in Africa and migrated out of Africa into the ethnics groups we know today. For example, mitochondrial DNA is only passed on through the mother. The DNA indicates that all humans were descended from one woman 200,000 years ago. The opposing evidence is the multiregional hypothesis. It states modern humans arose from interbreeding populations of hominins.