ANTHR-140 Lecture Notes - Lecture 16: Homo Erectus, Encephalization, Turkana Boy
23 Sep 2020
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Document Summary
Stone tools are present in east africa by 2. 6 mya. At least one hominin with (1) larger brain (2) reduced dentition and face, is present in east africa (with other australopiths) by 2. 0 mya. This hominin(s) may or may not be the ancestor of later h. erectus. Aiello and wheeler: an attempt to explain the co-occurrence of larger brains and tools in a bio-cultural evolutionary context. Only 2% of your body mass but use 16% of your resting bmr and 30% of your glucose. Proportion of body mass dedicated to digestive function is reduced in humans. Possible because tool use allows higher-quality diet. Complex foraging -> high quality diet -> less time digesting -> small guts -> larger brain -> better tools -> complex foraging. Complex foraging -> high quality diet -> larger brain -> more complex foraging. Genus homo appears over 2 mya with evidence for (a) large brains (b) tool use and (c) dental reduction.
