Question 1

According to Workman and Reader, the main problem with memetics is&#10;A) We don't know what memes are made from&#10;B) The theory hasn't made many interesting predictions&#10;C) We can't decide on the boundaries of an individual meme&#10;D) Memes are transmitted differently from genes

Accepted Answer

Workman and Reader argue that memetics has not been successful in making many interesting or testable predictions, which is a significant issue for the theory's scientific validity.

Question 2

According to Diamond, the ultimate reason why Europe and Asia developed culture more rapidly than other continents was&#10;A) Their inhabitants were more intelligent&#10;B) Their inhabitants were less susceptible to disease&#10;C) Eurasia had better weather&#10;D) Eurasia had more domesticable species

Accepted Answer

Diamond argues that the reason why Europe and Asia developed culture more rapidly than other continents was because they had a greater number of domesticable animal and plant species available. This allowed for the rise of agriculture, which in turn led to the development of complex societies and civilizations.

Question 3

A current theory regarding lactose tolerance suggests that it is...&#10;A) More common than lactose intolerance&#10;B) The result of spontaneous mutation rather than inherited&#10;C) Normal, it is lactose intolerance that needs explaining&#10;D) An adaptation as a result of pastoralism

Accepted Answer

The current theory regarding lactose tolerance suggests that it is an adaptation as a result of pastoralism. This means that people who domesticated animals for milk and dairy products developed genetic mutations to continue producing lactase enzymes into adulthood, allowing them to process lactose.

Question 4

Pagel (2012), argues that one reason why humans developed sophisticated culture but chimpanzees is that chimpanzees lack&#10;A) Language&#10;B) Motivation&#10;C) Theory of mind&#10;D) The ability to imitate

Accepted Answer

Pagel (2012) argues that language is a key factor that enabled humans to develop sophisticated culture, as it allows for complex communication and the transmission of knowledge across generations, which chimpanzees lack.

Question 5

The concept of the meme was first devised by:&#10;A) Dawkins&#10;B) Blackmore&#10;C) Dennett&#10;D) Bartlett

Accepted Answer

Richard Dawkins, an evolutionary biologist, first introduced the concept of a meme in his 1976 book "The Selfish Gene." He defined a meme as a cultural unit (an idea, behavior, or style) that is passed from person to person through imitation, and subject to natural selection in the same way genes are.

Question 6

It has been suggested by Tomasello that one of the reasons why non-human animals are less good imitators than humans is that they lack&#10;A) Language&#10;B) Motivation&#10;C) Theory of mind&#10;D) Culture

Accepted Answer

Tomasello suggests that humans have a unique ability to imitate because they possess a theory of mind, which allows them to understand the intentions and mental states of others. Non-human animals, on the other hand, do not possess this ability to the same extent and therefore are less skilled at imitating. While language, motivation, and culture may play a role in human imitation, they are not considered crucial factors in the way that theory of mind is.

Question 7

According to Ridley, you should delegate a task that you are less good at to another person&#10;A) Only when you are unable to complete all your tasks effectively&#10;B) Only when the other person has spare capacity&#10;C) Only if the other person is better at it than you are&#10;D) Even if the other person is less good at it than you are

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Ridley, you should delegate a...

Question 8

The case of the Moriori is evidence that culture&#10;A) Can accelerate and decelerate&#10;B) Can go backwards&#10;C) Can make great leaps&#10;D) Can stagnate

Accepted Answer

The Moriori, initially a peaceful and cooperative society, were forced to adopt a violent and hierarchical culture after being conquered and enslaved by the Maori. This demonstrates that culture can go backwards, or regress, in response to external pressures or influences.

Question 9

The direction of inheritance of chimpanzee culture is&#10;A) Vertical&#10;B) Horizontal&#10;C) Horizontal and vertical&#10;D) Diagonal

Accepted Answer

The answer of The direction of inheritance of chimpanzee culture...

Question 10

Who originally conducted research on the Universal People?&#10;A) Donald Brown&#10;B) Donald Symons&#10;C) E.O. Wilson&#10;D) Tooby and Cosmides

Accepted Answer

Donald Brown is credited with conducting research on the Universal People, compiling a list of human universals that are found in every culture, which he published in his work "Human Universals." This research aimed to identify traits and behaviors that are inherent to all human societies.

Question 11

The notion proposed by Boyd and Richerson that culture evolved to provide a more rapid form of change is called&#10;A) Gene-culture coevolution&#10;B) Dual inheritance theory&#10;C) Memetics&#10;D) Idea diffusion

Accepted Answer

The answer of The notion proposed by Boyd and Richerson...

Question 12

Tooby and Cosmides divide culture into:&#10;A) Evoke and response&#10;B) Response and transmit&#10;C) Evoked and transmitted&#10;D) Evoked and inherited

Accepted Answer

The answer of Tooby and Cosmides divide culture into:&#10;A) Evoke...

Question 13

According to Dawkins (2005) religion could be&#10;A) The result of group selection&#10;B) Adaptive as believers live longer and are more likely to recover from disease&#10;C) A side-effect of childhood credulity and the need to learn from elders&#10;D) Adaptive as religious morals enable us to better negotiate social life

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Dawkins (2005) religion could be&#10;A)...

Question 14

Which of the following has the highest antimicrobial properties?&#10;A) Ginger&#10;B) Chillies&#10;C) Onion&#10;D) Garlic

Accepted Answer

The answer of Which of the following has the highest...

Question 15

According to Horan, Bulte, and Shogren (2005), Neanderthals might have died out because&#10;A) They showed no evidence of trade&#10;B) They showed no evidence of cultural specialisation&#10;C) They showed no evidence of manufacturing sophisticated artefacts&#10;D) They showed no evidence of rituals

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Horan, Bulte, and Shogren (2005),...

Question 16

Who introduced the concept of the 'culturegen'?&#10;A) Tooby and Cosmides&#10;B) Lumsden and Willson&#10;C) Richerson and Boyd&#10;D) Workman and Reader

Accepted Answer

The answer of Who introduced the concept of the 'culturegen'?&#10;A)...

Question 17

Robert Wright argues that interdependency between nations&#10;A) Is a bad thing as it reduces our self-sufficiency leaving us open to exploitation by other countries&#10;B) Is a bad thing as it means that our jobs go to people from other countries&#10;C) Is a good thing; we are unlikely to declare war on a country that makes something we need&#10;D) Is a good thing as it means that products are cheaper for us to buy

Accepted Answer

The answer of Robert Wright argues that interdependency between nations&#10;A)...

Question 18

According to Nagell, Olguin and Tomasello (1993), chimpanzees are able to imitate to the level of&#10;A) A one year old child&#10;B) A two year old child&#10;C) A four year old child&#10;D) A ten year old child

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Nagell, Olguin and Tomasello (1993),...

Question 19

According to Byrne and Russon (1998), many examples of imitation in non-human animals might be the result of&#10;A) Positive reinforcement&#10;B) Negative reinforcement&#10;C) Random behaviour&#10;D) Stimulus enhancement

Accepted Answer

The answer of According to Byrne and Russon (1998), many...

Deck 14: Evolutionary Psychology and Culture