Exam 1 Flashcards
(134 cards)
anthropology
the study of human cultural and biological variation and evolution
culture
learned behavior including social systems, economic systems, marriage customs, religion and philosophy
biocultural approach
studying humans in terms of the interaction between biology and culture in evolutionary adaptation (ex. Bio – sweating, cultural – clothing)
variation
difference between individuals, populations, or species
comparative approach
comparing human populations to determine common and unique behaviors or biological traits
evolution
the change in living organisms over generations
adaptation
the process of successful interaction between a population and an environment
holism
the idea that the parts of a system interconnect and interact to make up the whole, takes into account all aspects of existence to understand human variation and evolution
participant-observation fieldwork
method common in cultural anthropology that involves living with, observing and participating in the same activities as the people one studies
Main anthropology approaches
Holism, Comparison, Dynamism, Fieldwork
Carolus Linnaeus (1707-1778)
evolution theory, first taxonomy into meaningful groups. Developed genus and species terminology, based on characteristics in a hierarchical system
Georges Cuvier (1769-1832)
used presence of extinct fossil remains in quarries to argue for catastrophism (a great catastrophe)
Jean Baptiste Lamarck
thought acquired characteristics were passed on to offspring (not true)
Industrial melanism example
peppered moths in industrial England, dark and light due to the environment to blend in. Frequencies of each kind of moth changed dramatically in the presence of absence of pollution due to soot changing color of tree
Scopes Trial
“monkey” trial in 1925, trial of teacher who taught evolution to a class in Dayton, Tennessee; first trial to openly discuss evolution in science vs. religion, lost trial but great impact
“creation science”
(evolution based on religion and God): is not a science and fails all objective tests of the scientific method, it is falsifiable and has been repeatedly falsified
5 subdisciplines of Anthropology
Cultural
Archaeology (prehistorical and historical)
Linguistic
Biological
Applied Anthropology (sometimes left out)
Major subfields of bio anthro
Primatology
Paleoanthropology
Molecular Anthropology
Bioarcheology
Forensic Anthro
Human Biology
Osteology
study of bones, learn how to describe and identify
Microscopy
tools that look at the details of bones and why they have certain marks
phylogeny
evolutionary history
key components of scientific method
o Exploration
o Discovery
o Observations
o Hypothesis
o Predictions
o Test
o Hypothesis supported or rejected
science consists of
facts, hypotheses and theories
facts
verifiable truths