Deck 2: Human Evolution

Question 1

Upper Paleolithic people gathered plants to supplement their food resources.

Answer 1

True

Question 2

The theory of natural selection was arrived at simultaneously and independently by two different scholars.

Answer 2

True

Question 3

Upper Paleolithic artisans made stone tools in distinctive styles that vary from region to region.

Answer 3

True

Question 4

The replacement model or "Eve hypothesis" suggests that modern Homo sapiens evolved in Africa and then migrated to other areas of the world, replacing the local populations such as the Neandertals.

Question 5

It is likely that only a few genes are involved in determining skin color.

Question 6

Origin myths account for the ways in which supernatural forces and beings fashioned the world and all living things.

Question 7

On any continent, the people living nearest the equator are the most likely to have dark skin.

Question 8

In the religious tradition of Taoism, the spiritual and material sources for the origins of humans are the opposite forces of yin (female) and yang (male).

Question 9

Charles Darwin can be considered an "armchair biologist" because his theories are based on the fieldwork of other researchers.

Question 10

Scientific evidence indicates that the earliest hominins were fully bipedal.

Question 11

Burins are special projectile points for hunting large game like mammoths.

Question 12

There is evidence that Homo erectus was the first hominin species to intentionally bury their dead.

Question 13

Paleolithic hunters and gatherers lived mostly in marginal areas, such as dry desert regions.

Question 14

Scientific theories are based on the belief that the universe operates according to regular, observable processes.

Question 15

The family of mammals known as primates, to which humans belong, arose about 67 million years ago.

Question 16

According to the fossil evidence, the first hominins to migrate out of Africa were the Neandertals.

Question 17

During the Upper Paleolithic period, modern Homo sapiens migrated throughout the world, including North and South America and Australia.

Question 18

Upper Paleolithic people of Europe produced ivory sculptures and mural paintings.

Question 19

Neandertals had a much reduced cranial capacity and intellect compared to modern humans.

Question 20

"Lucy" is an early hominin known scientifically as Australopithecus afarensis.

Question 21

In order to confirm that Neandertals had built a bear shrine in Drachenlock Cave, archaeologists would need to find __________.

A) cave paintings of bears
B) small chambers in the far recesses of caves that contained "religious objects," primarily clay figures of bears
C) a purposeful arrangement of bear skulls in the cave
D) clear associations between Neandertal tools and the bear bones

Question 22

The fossil "Lucy" is most similar to modern chimpanzees with respect to which of the following?

A) the ability to walk upright
B) cranial capacity
C) amount of body hair
D) body size

Question 23

The climate characteristic of environments occupied by Neandertals was __________.

A) hot
B) warm
C) temperate
D) cold

Question 24

Individuals who are born with variations or traits that make them better able to compete in the struggle for life are the ones who survive and pass on traits to their offspring. What is this process called?

A) random choice
B) spontaneous preference
C) organic change
D) natural selection

Question 25

Which was the first hominin to take advantage of the controlled usage of fire?

A) Homo sapiens
B) Australopithecus afarensis
C) Homo erectus
D) Homo habilis

Question 26

Which of the following hominin species was the first to live outside of Africa and produce bifacially flaked tools?

A) Neandertal
B) Australopithecus
C) Homo habilis
D) Homo erectus

Question 27

Archaeologists believe that the first humans came to the New World from __________.

A) Asia
B) Australia
C) Europe
D) Africa

Question 28

What was the most important technological development in stone tool production during the Upper Paleolithic period?

A) sharpened cores
B) long, narrow blades
C) scraping tools
D) hand axes

Question 29

The Denisovans are significant in that they represent __________.

A) an isolated Neandertal community
B) the first people to practice religious rituals
C) the longest continuous population of Homo erectus outside of Africa
D) a hominin species that existed at the same time as both Neandertals and modern humans

Question 30

The Acheulian stone tool technology is associated with which early hominin?

A) Australopithecus africanus
B) Australopithecus robustus
C) Homo habilis
D) Homo erectus

Question 31

The theory of evolution by natural selection was proposed by __________.

A) Copernicus and Galileo
B) Thales of Miletus
C) Darwin and Wallace
D) Darwin and Mendel

Question 32

Respond to this hypothetical example of evolution: A population of peppered moths contains individuals ranging from ones that are mostly black to ones that are mostly white. The moths that are easily seen on the barks of trees get eaten by birds. If soot from coal-burning factories makes tree trunks darker in color, then there will be __________.

A) no change in color variation among peppered moths
B) more light-colored peppered moths than dark ones
C) an increase in the population of moth-eating birds
D) more dark-colored peppered moths than light ones

Question 33

The __________ model of hominin evolution suggests that the gradual evolution of Homo erectus into modern human (Homo sapiens) populations took place in different regions of the Old World, not in one area of the world.

A) multiregional
B) replacement
C) "Garden of Eden"
D) "Eve hypothesis"

Question 34

By far, the major characteristic that identifies hominins as a distinct group is __________.

A) tool use
B) bipedalism
C) large brain size
D) meat eating

Question 35

What was the stone tool industry associated with Neandertal populations called?

A) Oldowan complex
B) Mousterian tradition
C) Acheulian technology
D) chopper tool system

Question 36

The conceptual frameworks that present the universe as an orderly system and answer the basic questions about human existence are called __________.

A) analogies
B) cosmologies
C) paradigms
D) apologies

Question 37

The earliest stone tools, which have been found in south and east Africa, are called __________ tools.

A) Oldowan
B) Acheulian
C) Mousterian
D) Habilian

Question 38

One of the most important tool types invented by Homo erectus was the __________.

A) hammer stone
B) projectile point
C) grinding stone
D) hand ax

Question 39

Fossil and archaeological evidence suggests that the first hominins to practice intentional burial of their dead were __________.

A) modern Upper Paleolithic Homo sapiens
B) Homo erectus
C) Neandertals
D) Homo habilis

Question 40

What does the term "Paleolithic" mean?

A) "Old Stone Age"
B) "ancient knowledge"
C) "before Adam"
D) "cave people"

Question 41

Why do some archaeologists question the validity of interpreting the behaviors of Paleolithic people based on the activities of contemporary foraging populations?

A) Contemporary hunter-gatherers rely more on gathering than hunting.
B) Modern foragers have higher population densities than would have been possible in the past.
C) Contemporary foragers live in marginal environments, whereas ancient populations may have lived in more abundant environments.
D) Modern hunter-gatherers live in sedentary communities and no longer practice a nomadic lifestyle.

Question 42

When was North America first populated and by whom? What kind of archaeological evidence do we have for the first Native Americans?

Question 43

Upper Paleolithic hunters increased the power and accuracy of their projectiles by using which of the following?

A) slingshots
B) spear-throwers
C) bows and arrows
D) stone projectile points

Question 44

Which of the following is related to the evolution of skin pigmentation in human populations?

A) the amount of ultraviolet radiation and the need for vitamin D
B) the amount of carbohydrates versus proteins that are in the diet
C) the need for natural camouflage from predators
D) iron and zinc compounds in the soil

Question 45

Which of the following is an adaptive advantage of darker skin pigmentation?

A) preserving a healthy amount of vitamin B complex needed for reproduction
B) increased production of vitamin D
C) better regulation of body heat
D) eliminating the need for tanning and reducing the risk of freckling

Question 46

Can scientific creationism be considered true science? Why or why not? What are the shortcomings of creationism? How does creationism conflict with the scientific method?

Question 47

The Upper Paleolithic period, which dates from about 40,000 to 10,000 years ago, was characterized by which of the following?

A) the development of agriculture
B) core tools of many traditions
C) the invention of composite tools
D) cold weather adaptations

Question 48

__________ were responsible for abstract and naturalistic paintings of animals produced during the Upper Paleolithic.

A) Neandertals
B) Homo erectus
C) Modern Homo sapiens
D) Australopithecines

Question 49

At the 15,000-year-old site at Mezhirich in the Ukraine, archaeologists have excavated the remains of five shelters made from which of the following?

A) rough stone slabs
B) blocks of marble
C) tree trunks
D) mammoth bones

Question 50

How are archaeological cultures defined?

A) through comparison to contemporary hunter-gatherer societies
B) on the basis of distinctive artifacts left by prehistoric ethnic groups
C) by dating the natural materials used to produce nonutilitarian objects
D) according to how much trade occurred between different prehistoric population centers

Question 51

What is the evolutionary relationship between humans and australopithecines? Compare and contrast the features of genus Homo with those of the australopithecines. Include a discussion of the placement of different species of Australopithecines on the human family tree. Which are thought to be on side branches and which are considered to be direct ancestors of Homo? What features do paleoanthropologists use to make these distinctions?

Question 52

Compare and contrast the models for the evolution of modern Homo sapiens. Include the multiregional evolutionary, replacement, and hybridization and assimilation models in your answer. Which do you think is best supported by the available evidence, and why?

Question 53

Describe the specific changes in chipped stone tools that characterized the evolution of technology from the Oldowan to the Acheulian, Mousterian, and Upper Paleolithic periods.

Question 54

On what basis have physical anthropologists criticized modern racial classification systems?

A) They are based on outdated notions of evolution and genetic inheritance.
B) They emphasize skin color over other physical features.
C) They fail to account for genetic change, intermarriage, and population movements.
D) They are inherently racist, viewing some groups as superior to others.

Question 55

What is natural selection and how does it work? Give an example of natural selection in action. Explain the relationship between natural selection and variation.

Question 56

How did the culture of the Upper Paleolithic period differ from what came before? Discuss the specific innovations of this period.

Question 57

What made Homo erectus different from earlier and later members of the genus Homo? Compare and contrast the physical and cultural aspects of Homo erectus with those of Homo habilis and Homo sapiens.

Question 58

Who were the Neandertals? When and where did they live? What do we know about their belief systems? Discuss the evidence that supports your assertions.

Question 59

The term "composite tool" refers to an artifact made by __________.

A) firing clay into a hard material
B) using bone or antler to remove thin flakes
C) putting two or more materials together
D) several different people

Question 60

How can we explain the variation in physical characteristics of modern humans? Use the example of skin pigmentation to illustrate your answer.