problem 5 Flashcards
(25 cards)
dominance hierarchies
some individuals are “higher” in rank than others + are constantly able to displace others from a resource, the rank is dynamic + can be challenged (by fighting) + reversed
social-brain hypothesis
idea that maintaining social relationships requires devoted brain mechanisms, thus, social species will tend to have larger brains compared to non-social ones. A bigger brain size must therefore have evolved as a result of bigger group size
stepsirrhines
Suborder of primates that includes the lemuriform primates in Africa, Madagascar, …
haplorrhines
“dry-nosed” primates, suborder of primates containing the tarsiers as a sister of the strepsirrhine
prosimians
Group of primates that includes all living + extinct strepsirrhines + haplorrhines
platyrrhines
Group of primates that includes the new-world apes, marmosets + tamarins, distinguished by having nostrils that are far apart + directed forwards or sideways + typically have a tail
catarrhines
Group of primates that include the old-world apes, characterized by having nostrils close together with an opening in front of the face
brachiation
mode of locomotion involving swinging from branch to branch using only arms
hominins
intermediate forms between chimpanzees + the humans today, not a single evolving lineage; rather there is a branching of multiple forms, many of which go extinct + only some of which are on the line leading to living humans
out-of-africa model
states that AMH (anatomically modern human) is a new species that replaced the other living hominins without interbreeding
cultural intelligence hypothesis
Argues the human’s unique cognitive skills is mainly due to species-specific set of social-cognitive skills for participating + exchanging knowledge in cultural groups
general intelligence hypothesis
larger brains enable more efficient use of all cognitive operations
adapted intelligence hypothesis
Cognitive abilities evolve in response to relatively specific environmental challenges (either ecological challenges or social challenges –> Social Brain & Cultural Intelligence Hypotheses)
bottleneck effect
Sharp reduction in the size of a population due to environmental events (such as earthquakes, floods, …) or human activities (such as genocides)
pleistocene
Ice Age = geological epoch that included the world’s most recent period of glaciations
holocene
current geological epoch which began after the last glacial period, warm period
allometry
an increasement in size doesn’t have to result in an increasement of its parts. One variable Y (i.e. brain size) can be related to a more fundamental one X (i.e. body size) by the following equation where C + k are constants. Y = CXk
encephalisation quotient (EQ)
departure of brain size from the allometric line, defined as:
(actual brain weight)/(brain weight predicted from allometric line)
chihuahua fallacy
intelligence is too complex to have such a simple relationship. Just like small dogs (chihuahuas) the body can be bred smaller but the brain size is less variable
basic metabolistic rate (BMR)
rate of energy expenditure per unit time by endothermic animals at rest. Metabolism comprises the processes that the body needs to function
machiavellian intelligence hypothesis
what differentiates primates from all other species (+ hence, what might account for their especially large brains) was the complexity of their social lives + environment. Since the term Machiavellian was misleading for many, it got replaced by the social brain hypothesis (SBH)
principle of parsimony
is basic to all science + tells us to choose the simplest scientific explanation that fits the evidence. In terms of tree-building, that means that, all other things being equal, the best hypothesis is the one that requires the fewest evolutionary changes
apomorphies
traits that are defining for all species afterwards, a novel evolutionary trait that is unique to a particular species + all its descendants + can be used as a defining character for a species/ group in phylogenetic terms
homology
similarity resulting from common ancestry (i.e. bones in hand + arm)
