The Genus Homo

Question 1

mastication

Answer 1

chewing

Question 2

muscles of mastication

Answer 2

▪ temporalis
▪ masseter
▪ medial pterygoid
▪ inferior lateral pterygoid
▪ superior lateral pterygoid

Question 3

temporalis

Answer 3

muscle fibres get smaller and contract and relax to close the jaw

Question 4

masseter

Answer 4

tightly packed muscle that contract to close mouth

Question 5

medial pterygoid

Question 6

inferior lateral pterygoid

Question 7

superior lateral pterygoid

Question 8

prognathism

Answer 8

facial orientation extends beyond the vertical plane

Question 9

orthognathism

Answer 9

facial orientation does not extend beyond the vertical plane

Question 10

Miocene (23 - 5.3)

Answer 10

▪ first hominoids (apes)
▪ hominids (great apes)
▪ hominins (species more closely
related to humans)

Question 11

Australopiths

Pilocene (5.3 - 2.6)

Answer 11

▪ Australopithecus (4.2 –3, 1.9 Ma)
▪ Paranthropus (2.5 –1 Ma)
▪ small brains and bodies
▪ megadont
▪ bipedal with arboreal retentions
▪ long arms
▪ curved phalanges
▪ relatively short legs

Question 12

Australopithecus

Answer 12

▪ 4.2-3, 1.9 Ma: East Africa, South Africa, Chad
▪ multiple species
▪ prognathic, megadont, large faces

Question 13

Paranthropus

Answer 13

▪ 3 species: South and East Africa, 2.5 -1 Ma
▪ larger brain size, massive faces
▪ megadont+++
▪ overlaps with Homo

Question 14

Early Homo: Homo habilis (italics)

Answer 14

▪ East and South Africa, 2.4 –1.4 Ma (maybe 2.8 Ma?)
▪ larger brain (640 cc)
▪ associated with stone tools
▪ more orthognathic
▪ smaller teeth, but still had thick enamel and strong jaws
▪ Still short: 3.5 – 4.5’ in height, 70 lbs average weight
▪ mosaic of morphological features (longer arms, shorter legs, phalanges still somewhat curved)

Question 15

The First Tool Makers: Stone Tools 101

Answer 15

▪ indicator of human adaptation and technological complexity –material culture
▪ hyper-technological
▪ co-evolution of tools and biology causing reduction of mastication muscles
▪ knapping: hammerstone, core, flake

Question 16

knapping

Answer 16

making stone tools

▪ hammerstone
▪ core
▪ flake

Question 17

The First Tool Makers: Extant Analogues

Answer 17

▪ use of animal models/extant analogues
▪ chimpanzee cultures
▪ hammers and anvils
▪ modification of twigs
▪ leaf sponges to drink water
▪ tools focused on food procurement, social display – chimps don’t knap!

Question 18

The First Tool Makers: Early Homo

Answer 18

▪ Oldowan Industrial Complex
▪ simple, but deliberately manufactured (cores, flakes, retouched flakes)
▪ sourcing stones at a considerable distance

Question 18

Oldowan Industrial Complex

Answer 18

tools made by the Homo habilis

▪ first tool found in Gona, Ethiopia (2.6 Ma)

Question 19

Africa and Beyond: Homo erectus

Answer 19

1.8 Ma –143 000 years, potentially even later: Africa, Asia (Indonesia and China), Republic of Georgia

Question 20

Cranial characteristics of Homo erectus

Answer 20

▪ larger brain size (900 cc)
▪ long, low cranial shape (from front to back)
▪ more orthognathic
▪ supraorbital torus (brow ridge)
▪ sagittal keel
▪ nuchal torus

Question 21

sagittal keel

Answer 21

rigid of bone that runs from the frontal along the mid line to the back

▪ accommodates the large parietal lobes

Question 22

nuchal torus

Answer 22

accommodates cranium expansion

Question 23

Postcranial characteristics of Homo erectus

Answer 23

▪ modern body proportions/stature (orthognathic, small face)

▪ loss of all arboreal retentions

Question 24

Homo erectus Postcranial

Answer 24

▪ modern body proportions
▪ ↑ in height (4’9’–6’1’”), ↑ in weight (88–150 lbs)
▪ still sexually dimorphic
▪ ↑ in hindlimb length

Question 25

Nariokotome “Turkana Boy”

Answer 25

▪ 8 year old boy, 1.5 Ma
▪ reduction of upper limb
▪ long lower limbs, large hip joints
▪ would have matured 5’6”–+6’
▪ 900 cc

Question 26

Out of Africa: Dmanisi, Republic of Georgia

Answer 26

▪ 1.8 Ma
▪ cranial variability found at the site
▪ primitive tools
▪ why leave Africa – tracking game animals

Question 27

Acheulean Industrial Complex

Answer 27

▪ created by the H. erectus
▪ 1.7 Ma–160 000 years
▪ hand axes, cleavers
▪ efficient butchering tools

Question 28

Controlled use of fire

Answer 28

▪ from 1.5 Ma (debated evidence), 1 Ma (still debated), 800 000 years (good evidence), 400 000 years (widespread evidence)
▪ evidence in the form of hearths, burnt bone and artefacts, fire cracked rock

Question 29

Benefits of fire

Answer 29

▪ cooking (increases digestibility of food → feeds a large and complex brain = language, more complex tools)
▪ social interaction and gatherings
▪ warmth and light (allowed dispersal into colder regions)
▪ protection against predators