Human Evolution - Cultural Evolution Flashcards
(30 cards)
What did freeing the hands due to bipedalism allow to happen in human evolution?
Brain size and dexterity developed as early hominins were able to manipulate objects to increase their efficiency
What is the order of stone tools and when were they found?
Oldowan - 2.5 MYA
Acheulian - 1.5 MYA
Mousterian - 150,000
Upper paleolithic - 50,000
What is the tool called that was used 2.5 mya? How many blows did it take to make and what is the related species?
Oldowan tools, it took 6 blows approximately to make and homo habilis is the related species
What is the tools that were used 1.5 million years ago, how many blows did it take to make and who were the related species?
Acheulian is the second tool culture to come about. It took about 50 blows to make and the related species were Homo Erectus, Homo Heildelbergensis and Homo Ergaster
What was the stone culture used 150,000 years ago, how many blows did it take to make and who were the related species?
Mousterian tool culture was used around this time. They used the Levallois technique and took about 150 blows to make the tools. The related species are the Homo Nearnerthalensis, early modern Homo Sapiens and some late archaic humans
What are hunter gatherers identical biologically? And what did they do?
They’re identical to modern humans and were extremely resourceful, they travelled in small family groups and collected food as they travelled
When did the glaciers melt from the ice age? How did this affect gathering food?
11,000 years ago they melted and the climate warmed. Plants grew more effienctly and the homo sapiens that had dispersed went looking for the best place where food was plentiful. There was a Fertile Crescent in the middle east that allowed for effiencnt growth of crops which they could use
How did the Fertile Crescent affect the way homo sapiens traveled?
The need for travelling was reduced as a family could harvest wheat and barley for 3 weeks and have enough food for an entire year. This meant settlements could be made as they didnt need to travel to find food anymore
How did agriculture affect the cultural (2 points) and biological evolution (1 point) of Homo sapiens?
Cultural -
There was a surplus of grains available so the small family groups turend into larger groups as they could feed more people. There was a division of labour as well.
Biological -
The grains didnt have as much nutrition as the hunter gatherers diet because of the lower protein intake, skeletal evidence shows they were more malnourished and smaller than hunter gatherers, even though there was a high calories diet.
Agriculture increased the quantity and eventually the quality of food and diet. What affects did this have on Homo Sapiens? Give 4 points
They were healthier and their life expectancy increased. There was a lower rate of injury therefor population growth.
What did the surplus of feed mean for hominids? One point
Trade occurred because there was a surplus therefore a currency was created.
What was Homo Erectus the first species to do?
Manipulate fire
How did Homo Erectus manipulate fire most likely?
They could make fire themselves, it was most likely they lit a torch from a bush fire caused by lightning and used that to cook their food and create warmth
When is the earliest signs of fire usage?
1.5 million years ago by homo erectus most likely
How did the cultural evolution of fire making interact with biological evolution of homo erectus?
Because homo erectus could cook food using fire, this meant food was softer and easier to chew, therefore rather than spending 4-5 hours a day chewing food, it took minutes. This interacted with the biological evolution of the endocranial features of no longer needing large jaw muscles and muscles to support it. This freed up more brain space to develop other parts of the brain
Who was the first species to bury their dead? And what does this mean?
Homo neaderthalensis were, which means they had spritual understanding and took part in rituals
Give 4 points on what the advantages of burying the deceased were
- Burying with artefacts means that they may have believed in afterlife, this shows abstract thought and the beginning of religion
- Burying the deceased meant the carcuses wouldnt be left to attract predators and possibly attacking the hominins as well
- If those deceased had diseases or illness, having them buried meant that the live hominins wouldn’t risk catching the disease which means the overall survival increased
- The burial required a ritual, which increases social bonding in the group.
What was an advantage of hunting more efficentley
There was less time spent hunting therefore other skills could be developed such as painting
What were 3 benefits of art?
Group development
Sense of identity
Cultural information passed onto generations
What were oldowan tools made out of? How much planning did they need?
Pebbles and quartzite. The required little to no planning
What tool is bifaced? (Two sides to the edge, requires more time and planning)
Archulian tools
What are the three benefits that cooked protein from animals gave hominins and who was the first species to discover fire? (And be associated with acheulian tool culture)
Food became softer to chew so jaw muscles were reduced
Protein rich foods gave more energy to feed the large brain
Fire killed the bacteria from the meat, therefore reducing the deaths due to diseases, leading to greater survival and transmission of ideas
Homo erectus was the first species to cook food.
What were the likely effects of fire useage of the biological evolution of hominins - three points (this is for excellence)
-
Describe the lifestyle of a hunter gatherer
Hunter-gatherers were most likely nomadic, spending large proportions of their time searching for and collecting plant foods, hunting animals or scavenging carcases. Groups moved as resources changed, including both seasonal growth and migration of prey species.
