Modern Human Biology pg. 422-430 5.31.12

Biological determination: the concept that phenomena, including various aspects of behavior are governed by biological factors; the inaccurate association of various behavioral attributes with certain biological traits, such as skin color
-18th-19th century European and American scientists concentrated on classifying biological variation in humans and in nonhuman species.
-Blumenbach, German anatomist classified humans in 5 races: white, yellow, red, black and brown. Also he said that racial categories based on skin color were arbitrary.
Eugenics: the philosophy of "race improvement" through the forced sterilization of members of some groups and increased reproduction among others; among others; an overly simplified, often racist view that's now discredited.
Polytpyic: referring to species composed of populations that differ int he expression of one or more traits
-certain physical traits are associated with numerous cultural contexts a person's social identity is strongly influenced by the way he or she expresses those physical traits
-skin color highly visible, makes it easy to put someone in a certain category
-sex and age are important, an individuals biological/ethnic background is inevitably a factor that influences how he/she in initially perceived and judged by others
-race can also refer to geographically patterned phenotypic variation within a species
-biological anthropologists continue to study differences in traits as skin or eye color because these characteristics and the genes that influence them, can yield information about population adaption, genetic drift, mutation and gene flow.
-race isn't a valid concept esp. from a genetic perspective, because the amount of genetic variation that exists within groups
-some physical anthropologist think that race is an outdated creation of the human mind that attempts to simplify biological complexity
Racism 
-false belief: humans inherit such factors as intellect and various cultural attributes
-one group is superior to another
-cultural phenomenon found worldwide
Intelligence
-genetic and environmental factors contribute to intelligence
-limits are broad and the potentials aren't fully known
-product of interaction is learning and ability to learn influenced by genetic and other biological components

Evidence for Evolution

Heidelbergensis vs. Us Social -H. heidelbergensis may have been the first species of the Homo genus to bury their dead. -H. heidelbergensis, like its descendant H. neanderthalensis, acquired a primitive form of language. Red ochre, a mineral that can be used to create a red pigment which is useful as a paint, has been found. Language -The morphology of the outer and middle ear suggests they had an auditory sensitivity similar to modern humans and very different from chimpanzees. They were probably able to differentiate between many different sounds. Dental wear analysis suggests they were as likely to be right-handed as modern people. Hunting -400,000-year-old wooden projectile spears were found at Schöningen in northern Germany. These are thought to have been made by H. erectus or H. heidelbergensis. The lack of projectile weaponry is an indication of different sustenance methods, rather than inferior technology or abilities. Physical -A very large brow ridge, a larger braincase and flatter face than older early human species. It was first early human species to live in colder climates, their ­­­short, wide bodies were a likely adaptation to conserving heat. Also, this human broke new ground; it was the first species to build shelters—creating simple dwellings out of wood and rock. -The bodies of heidelbergensis tended to be compact, as would be expected for people living in cold climates.  This shape reduces the loss of heat.  Male heidelbergensis averaged about 5 feet 9 inches tall and 136 pounds. Females averaged 5 feet 2 inches tall and 112 pounds. This is only slightly smaller than most people today. With an average of 1200 cm.3, heidelbergensis brains were only 10% smaller than people today as well, but their heads did not have a modern appearance.  They had large brow ridges and low foreheads.  Their brain cases also were more elongated from front to back than in Homo sapiens.  In these characteristics, heidelbergensis was still more like Homo erectus than us. http://www.google.com/search?q=heidelbergensis&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari&um=1&ie=UTF-8&tbm=isch&source=og&sa=N&tab=wi&ei=tTi1T_2IC8aZ6AGz5NTyDw&biw=1024&bih=672&sei=tzi1T9jYA-L56QHHuNkO Comparative Anatomy -Vestigile: Humans -The vermiform appendix is a vestige of the cecum, an organ that would have been used to digest cellulose by humans' herbivorous ancestors. This organ in other animals similar to humans continue to perform that function, whereas other meat-eating animals may have similarly diminished appendices. Some research suggests that the appendix may guard against the loss of symbiotic bacteria that aid in digestion. An alternative explanation would be the possibility that natural selection selects for larger appendices because smaller and thinner appendices would be more susceptible to inflammation and disease. -Heidelbergensis -Loss of bulla in the Hyiod bone from Australopithecus afarensis -Analogous: Humans Vestigile, humans have that and it's an organ that would digest cellulose by humans'. -Heidelbergensis Lost of bulla in the Hyiod bone from Australopithecus afarensis -Embryology: Humans -preformation: the idea that semen contains an embryo — a preformed, miniature infant, or "homunculus" — that simply becomes larger during development. -Heidelbergensis: Because of the radiation of H. heidelbergensis out of Africa and into Europe, the two populations were mostly isolated. Neanderthals diverged from H. heidelbergensis 300,000 years ago in Europe, H. sapiens probably diverged between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago in Africa. Such fossils as the Atapuerca skull and the Kabwe skull bear witness to the two branches of the H. heidelbergensis tree. -Biochem(DNA): Humans -Carry out genetic information. -Heidelbergensis:

Out of Africa...and Again?

The article states that in recent evidence that homo erectus could not have been the first to migrate to Africa, that there were earlier hominids instead of homo erectus that started to migrate from Africa.

Becoming Human; Last Human Standing 4/10/12

-replaced by modern humans (neanderthal)
-remains of a 100,000 year old child found
-N. Spain archeological mine
expose ancient human habitation
-entrance to caves--pit of bones
found fragments, thought that there were skeletons
around 30 complete skeletons half a million years old
-evidence that the pit with the bones meant it was ceremonial
hand axe, cortz=believed it was an offering and a symbol
-homo heidelbergensis
-neanderthal fossils; modern humans descended from primitive form
-missing link between us and the apes?
-neanderthal physical similarities like us humans
did they think and act like us?
- Mers valley in Belgium gives us the reason; neanderthal child
jaw bone of a young boy, 100,00 years old
fragments of teeth; almost a complete mouth; put together his life
woodland and valley was his home
learning from his father to become a hunter
-germany leipzig; discovering the jaw
-about 11 or 12 years old; teeth can tell you how old
- child died around 8 years old
- grew up quicker, much less time for brain growth and learning
- less intelligent?
- evidence from skulls: endocasts (impressions in skulls tells us the information)
front of the brain is similar to ours what else?
-neanderthal brain temporal and parietal lobe are smaller than ours
sign of limited thinking powers
-diet
all exclusively meat eaters
no fish
-technology
no throwing spears or arrows
knives, tips of spears
close to prey to kill them=hunting risky
male skeletons have multiple fractures
-lives were tough and short
-skeletons tell they don't live beyond 30
-lasted almost 400,00 years
-25,000 years ago vanished
-Africa; droughts turned the area into deserts
-ancient population crashes; bottle neck effect
-lack of human diversity in DNA, wiped out
-few individuals make it through the bottle neck, but missing most of the population
-all people from earth are descendants from a small population in Africa
-hunting for shell fish
gathering berries
-stone tools
long thin blades
heating it improved it's duration
-stone tools aren't just cutting things but carrying information about the owner(s)
-shells with holes, believed to use them as necklaces, wearing ornaments and painting their bodies
-culture is the storehouse of our complex ways of thinking
"pass it on to our children like we do our genes"
-evolution will increase

Fishing techniques 3/27/12

1. A. The Inuit
2. http://www.ehow.com/list_6789215_inuit-fishing-tools.html
3. http://firstpeoplesofcanada.com/fp_groups/fp_inuit3.html
4. The Inuit made fishing lures, which were made out of bone, shell and antler. Traditional Inuit spinner lures were made from thin, highly polished pieces of shell or bone joined in the center by a carved link. When dragged through the water on a hand line, the spinning rear segment mimics the movement of salmon fry, a favorite prey animal of the Arctic char. The Inuits also used nets which were woven from sinews and thinly sliced leather. Weighted by stones on the bottom, the nets were fitted with seal bladder or dried wood floats along the top, which creates an effective trap for large-scale fishing. Hand nets, also common among the Inuit, used for hauling large fish into boats or skimming fry from the surface. Woven in a bag-like shape with a wide opening and tapering bottom, hand nets were sometimes held open by a bone or wooden hoop.The Inuits also used harpoons and spears which can be used all year round. Harpoons and spears differ in certain ways,harpoons have a detachable projectile head that is fastened to the shaft handle or a hand-held line. Carved from walrus ivory, Inuit harpoon heads detach in the deep muscle tissue and bone of an animal, allowing them to thrash in the water until subdued and clubbed to death. Spears, are a one-piece instrument with an attached point. Best used in shallow water, spears are meant to inflict a killing blow to the heart or brainpan. Both were used equally by the Inuit, with many regional variations and species-specific designs.
5. The Inuit cooked the meat so it was freshly eaten, since there wasn't a lot of storage they dried the meat to preserve it. Another method was freezing it to save it. In the summer they smoke the fish, peat bog moss.

B. The Yanomamo

1. http://www.survivalinternational.org/tribes/yanomami/wayoflife
2. Both men and women fish, and timbó or fish poison is used in communal fishing trips. Groups of men, women and children pound up bundles of vines which are floated on the water. The liquid stuns the fish which rise to the water’s surface and are scooped up in baskets. They use nine species of vine just for fish poisoning.

C. Inca

1. http://books.google.com/books?id=FlBpZDF7-XUC&pg=PA242&lpg=PA242&dq=inca+fishing+net&source=bl&ots=zjNsR97cRo&sig=nQt8Q9nfiEZoD0ytifOHcJ39Y8k&hl=en&sa=X&ei=v_txT_7uMemI0QG_hdmMAg&ved=0CCIQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q=inca%20fishing%20net&f=false
2. http://www.localhistories.org/inca.html
3. The Inca used fishing hook and nets to catch the fish. The hooks were made out of copper and the nets out of cotton. On the rivers the Inca used barbasco which is a plant like a liana, when crushed and put into the water it makes the fish go crazy and they'll float on the water as if they're dead. 
4. In the lowlands the staple food was maize. In the highlands it was potatoes. Incas also ate peppers, tomatoes and avocadoes. They also ate peanuts and a grain called quinoa.
   Llamas and alpacas were kept for wool and for carrying loads but they sometimes provided meat. Incas also ate guinea pigs. They also fished and ate birds. However for most Incas meat was a luxury.
   Incas drank a fermented drink called chicha. Ordinary Incas drank from bowls carved from gourds. Rich Incas drank from pottery vessels or even ones made from gold or silver.

Huaraches

Tarahumara 3/21/12

The Tarahumara were a Native American tribe that were widely known for their long distance running. They live in northwestern Mexico. The Tarahumaras originated from Chichuahua and then started living up near Copper Canyon and Sierre Madre Occidental.   The Tarahumara diet consists of no meat just carbohydrates. They eat approximately 10 percent proteins, 10 percent fat, and 80 percent complex carbohydrate. Running helped the Tarahumaras because it let them  communicate to other villages, hunt and transport themselves anywhere they needed to go. Running to the Tarahumara is a game, and it isn't taught. All the men race against each other and whoever wins receives higher status in the community. Before races they smoke and drink to have a little fun beforehand. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tarahumara_people

http://www.lehigh.edu/~dmd1/art.html

Technologies related to running