ANTA01H3 Chapter Notes - Chapter 1: Dual Inheritance Theory, Behavioral Modernity, Agribusiness
ANTA01- Chapter 1: Introduction to Physical Anthropology
1-1 The Human Connection
• Human beings are linked to all other life on earth. We are all connected to other
organisms in countless ways. For example, most of our DNA is structurally identical to
that of every living thing. We share genes that are involved in the most fundamental life
processes with even the simplest of animals, such as sponges. These genes have
changed very little over several hundred million years of evolution. Our cells have the
same structure and work the same way as in all life-forms, with few exceptions. We have
the same muscles and bones as many other animals and many aspects of
our behavior have direct connections to nonhuman species, especially other primates.
• The countless connections we share with other organisms show that humans are a
product of the same evolutionary forces that produced all living things. But we aren’t
identical to any other species. Humans are one contemporary component of a vast
biological continuum at a particular point in time.
• Human beings are truly unique in one significant dimension which is intellect. Humans
are the only species to develop language and complex culture as a means of buffering
nature’s challenges. By doing this we have gained the power to shape the planet’s very
destiny.
1-2 Biocultural Evolution
• Biological anthropologists don’t just study physiological and biological
systems they also consider culture. Culture not only relates to modern
humans but also because of its critical role in human evolution. Culture
can be seen as the strategy by which humans adapt to the natural
environment and has so altered and dominated our world that it’s become
the environment in which we live. Culture includes technologies ranging
from stone tools to computers; subsistence patterns, from hunting and
gathering to global agribusiness; housing types, from thatched huts to
skyscrapers; and clothing, from animal skins to high-tech synthetic fibers.
Technology, religion, values, social organization, language, kinship,
marriage rules, gender roles, dietary practices, inheritance of property, and
so on, are all aspects of culture. Each culture shapes people’s perceptions
of the external environment, or their worldview, in particular ways that
distinguish that society from all others.
• Culture isn’t genetically passed from one generation to the next. Culture is
transmitted from generation to generation through the process of learning, a process
that begins at birth. We are all products of the culture in which we are raised, and
since most human behavior is learned.
• Even though culture isn’t genetically determined, the human predisposition to
assimilate culture and function within it is very much influenced by biological factors.
Most nonhuman animals, including birds and especially primates, rely to varying
degrees on learned behavior. This is especially true of the great apes (gorillas,
chimpanzees, bonobos, and orangutans), which exhibit several aspects of culture.
• The predisposition for culture was inherited from our early hominin or even
prehominin ancestors. The common ancestor we share with chimpanzees
may have had this predisposition. But during the course of human
evolution, the role of culture became increasingly important. Over time,
culture influenced many aspects of our biological makeup; and in turn,
aspects of biology influenced cultural practices. For this reason, humans
are the result of long-term interactions between biology and culture, and
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we call these interactions biocultural evolution; in this respect, humans are
unique.
• Biocultural interactions have resulted in many anatomical, biological, and
behavioral changes during the course of human evolution: the shape of
the pelvis, increased brain size, reorganization of neurological structures,
smaller teeth, and the development of language, etc. Today, biocultural
interactions are very important especially with regard to health and
disease. Air pollution and exposure to dangerous chemicals have
increased the prevalence of respiratory disease and cancer. While air
travel makes it possible for people to travel thousands of miles in just a
few hours, we aren’t the only species that can do this. Millions of disease-
causing organisms travel on airplanes with their human hosts, making it
possible for infectious diseases to spread, literally within hours, across the
globe.
• Many human activities have changed the patterns of such infectious
diseases as tuberculosis, influenza, and malaria. After the domestication
of nonhuman animals, close contact with chickens, pigs, and cattle greatly
increased human exposure to some of the diseases these animals carry.
Through this contact we’ve also changed the genetic makeup of disease-
causing microorganisms. For example, the H1N1 “swine flu” virus that
caused the 2009 pandemic actually contains genetic material derived from
viruses that infect three different species: humans, birds, and pigs. The
pandemic wasn’t as serious as had originally been feared, but the next
one could be because we’ve overused antibiotics, and made many
bacterial strains resistant to treatment and even deadly. Likewise, although
we’re making progress in treating malaria, the microorganism that causes
it has developed resistance to some treatments and preventive
medications. We’ve also increased the geographical distribution of
malaria-carrying mosquitoes through agricultural practices and global
climate change. While it’s clear that humans have influenced the
development, and spread of infectious disease, we still don’t know the
many ways that changes in infectious disease patterns are affecting
human biology and behavior.
1-3 What is Anthropology?
• In the United States, anthropology is divided into four main subfields: cultural, or
social, anthropology; linguistic anthropology; archaeology; and physical, or
biological, anthropology. Each of these is divided into several more specialized
areas of interest. This four-field approach concerns all aspects of humanity
across space and time. Each subdiscipline emphasizes different aspects of the
human experience, but together, they offer a means of explaining variation in human
biological and behavioral adaptations. In addition, each of these subfields has
practical applications, and many anthropologists pursue careers outside the
university environment. This kind of anthropology is called applied anthropology.
1-3a- Cultural Anthropology
• Cultural, or social, anthropology is the study of patterns of belief and behavior found
in modern and historical cultures.
• This interest in so-called “traditional” societies led many early anthropologists to
study and record lifestyles that are now mostly extinct. These studies produced
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Document Summary
1-1 the human connection: human beings are linked to all other life on earth. We are all connected to other organisms in countless ways. For example, most of our dna is structurally identical to that of every living thing. We share genes that are involved in the most fundamental life processes with even the simplest of animals, such as sponges. These genes have changed very little over several hundred million years of evolution. Our cells have the same structure and work the same way as in all life-forms, with few exceptions. But we aren"t identical to any other species. Humans are one contemporary component of a vast biological continuum at a particular point in time: human beings are truly unique in one significant dimension which is intellect. Humans are the only species to develop language and complex culture as a means of buffering nature"s challenges. By doing this we have gained the power to shape the planet"s very destiny.
