Intro to Anthropology Midterm study guide – Flashcards
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Anthropology
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The exploration of human diversity in time and space.
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The 4 subdisciplines of general anthropology
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cultural, archeaological, biological, linguistic
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Archaeology
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The study of past cultures & interpretation of material culture
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Applied Anthropology
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Applying anthropological knowledge to solving practical, real-world problems
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Biological & Physical Anthropology
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The study of humans as biological organisms
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Cultural Anthropology
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The study of living human cultures that often includes fieldwork
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Linguistic Anthropology
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The study of the structures of human language
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Ethnography
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The firsthand, personal study of local settings.
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Ethnology
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the comparative, generalizing aspect of cultural anthropology.
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Gene
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the basic physical unit of heredity in DNA that leads to the expression of hereditary character.
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mitosis
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cell division in which the nucleus divides into nuclei containing the same number of chromosomes
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meiosis
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(genetics) cell division that produces reproductive cells in sexually reproducing organisms
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chromosome
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a threadlike body in the cell nucleus that carries the genes in a linear order
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homozygous
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having identical alleles at corresponding chromosomal loci
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heterozygous
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having dissimilar alleles at corresponding chromosomal loci
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dominant allele
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an allele whose trait always shows up in the organism when the allele is present
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recessive allele
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an allele that is masked when a dominant allele is present
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phenotype
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An organism's evident traits, or physical appearance
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genotype
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the particular alleles at specified loci present in an organism
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mutation
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(genetics) any event that changes genetic structure
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genetic drift
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The gradual changes in gene frequencies in a population due to random events
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gene flow
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The transmission of genetic material between populations
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four forces of evolution
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Mutation, Gene Flow , Genetic Drift, Natural Selection
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natural selection
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a natural process resulting in the evolution of organisms best adapted to the environment
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adaptation
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The processes by which organisms cope with environmental forces and stresses
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Biological Anthropology
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Study of humans as biological organisms
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Cultural anthropology
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The study of human culture
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adaptive radiation
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Many species emerging from one or few ancient ones
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Directional selection
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Natural selection that drives evolutionary change by selecting for a greater or lesser frequency of a given trait in a population
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Stabilizing selection
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Selection that maintains a certain phenotype by selecting against deviations from it
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sexual dimorphism
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Difference is size, shape, or color between the sexes
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homology
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Similarity of traits resulting from shared ancestry
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analogous
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Having similar traits due to similar use, not due to shared ancestry
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Convergent evolution
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similar form or function brought about by natural selection under similar environments rather than shared ancestry
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population genetics
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the study of genetic variation within and between groups of organisms
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Cline
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The distribution of a trait or allele across geographic space
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Phylogeny
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An evolutionary tree indicating relatedness and divergence of taxonomic groups
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Melanin
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A dark pigment produced by the melanocytes of the epidermis, which is the most important component of skin color
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Prosimian
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Member of the primate suborder Prosimii that includes the lemurs, lorises, galagos and tarsiers
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Anthropoid
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Members of the primate suborder Anthropoidea that includes the monkeys, apes and hominins
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Dirunal
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Active during the day
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Hominin
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Member of our own human family, past or present
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Brachiation
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Mode of arm-hanging and arm-swinging that uses a rotating shoulder to suspend the body of an ape or hominin beneath a branch or to travel between branches
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Participant-Observation
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Studying a culture both by participating and observing the actions and statements of its members.
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Characteristics of Culture
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Learned, shared, symbolic, all-encompassing, and integrated
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Artifacts
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Objects shaped by humans (intentionally or incidentally) that make their culture material and reflect their ideas or needs
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Ethnocentrism
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The belief that one's own culture's way of doing something is right, natural, or universal
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Cultural Relativism
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The idea that we must understand others' cultural practices on their own terms. The natives know what they're doing.
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Emic
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Perspective held my members of a cultural group
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Etic
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Perspective held by outsiders through their own ideas and concerns
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Language
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A system for the communication, in symbols, of any kind of information
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Symbol
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A sound, gesture, or object which a particular culture has associated with a particular meaning. Stop signs.
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Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis
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Language shapes what you are able to think
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Dialect
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A variant form of a language that reflects a particular region or class yet is similar enough to be mutually intelligible
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Pidgin
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A simplified language, often a hybrid of two languages, used for communication between two groups (ruling and ruled)
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Creole
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A pidgin language which has fully developed after being learned as a first language by children of pidgin speakers
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Focal Vocabulary
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A set of words and distinctions that are particularly important to certain groups such as Eskimos or skiers
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Hunter-Gatherers
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Hunting wild animals and gathering wild plant food as a way of life. Characterized by no farming, high mobility, small groups, few possessions, food sharing
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Domestication
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The process whereby humans modify the genetic makeup of a plant or animal population to make them better suited to human use
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Pastoralism
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A form of subsistence based on caring for herds of domesticated animals before eating them
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Nomadic
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Groups who travel with animals on a seasonal pattern and get all other food by trade
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Transhumant
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Part of the group travels with the animals and others stay in settled villages growing crops
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Agriculture
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the practice of cultivating the land or raising stock
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Mode of Production
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A set of social relations through which labor is deployed to wrest energy from nature by means of tools, skills, organizations, and knowledge
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Capitalist Economy
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Money buys labor power and a social gap forms between the people involved in the production process
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Market Principle
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Means of production (land, labor, resources, technology, and capital) are bought and sold using money to maximize profit. Value is determined by supply and demand
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Redistribution
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Operates when goods, services, or their equivalent move from the local level to a center (chief) who manages the surplus
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Generalized Reciprocity
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Someone gives to another person and expects nothing concrete or immediate in return
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Balanced Reciprocity
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Exchanges between people who are more distantly related where the giver expects something in return
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Negative Reciprocity
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Exchanges in which someone attempts to get something for as little as possible
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Potlatch
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Sponsors traditionally give away food, blankets, pieces of copper, or other items in return for prestige
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Band
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A type of political organization that is autonomous at the local level; bands are kin-based and egalitarian
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Tribe
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composed of a number of bands
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Chiefdom
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a type of political organization that is regional, kin-based and hierarchical
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State
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a type of political organization that is regionalized, bureaucratic, and hierarchical
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Paleoanthropology
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The study of hominid evolution and human life as revealed by the fossil record
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Hominids
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humans and other creatures that walk upright
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Australopithecines
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Any of several extinct human like primates that lived from about 4 million years ago to 750,000 years ago. The name means "southern ape", which refers to the area in Africa where they were primarily found. Skull evidence suggests largely vegetarian
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Paleolithic age
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Second part of the Stone Age beginning about 750,00 to 500,000 years BC and lasting until the end of the last ice age about 8,500 years BC
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Opposable thumb
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Thumbs that enables grasping objects and using tools
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Homo habilis
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Extinct species of upright east African hominid having some advanced humanlike characteristics
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Homo Erectus
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Extinct species of primitive hominid with upright stature but small brains
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Neanderthal
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Extinct robust human of Middle Paleolithic in Europe and western Asia
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Racial classification
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The attempt to assign humans to discrete categories supposedly based on common ancestry
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Explanatory Explanations of "race"
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Natural selection in particular environments led to variation in the amount of melanin in the skin cells, changes skin color
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Anthropological interest in Primatology
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The study of the cultural and behavioral traits that primates share with humans
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Archeological Methodology
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Two primary methods are systematic surveys and excavation
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Principle of superposition
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In an undisturbed sequence of strata, the oldest layer is on the bottom
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Stratigraphy
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Determining the age of undisturbed soil strata according to the depth and order of their deposition
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taxonomy
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The classification of organisms based on their relationships and resemblances
