Evolutionary Anthropology Exam Practice Tests
Course Introduction
Evolutionary Anthropology explores the biological and cultural evolution of humans and our closest relatives. The course examines the fossil record, genetic evidence, primate behavior, and archaeology to trace the development of human traits, such as bipedalism, cognition, language, and social organization. Students will analyze how environmental and genetic factors have shaped the trajectory of human evolution, compare humans with other primates, and consider the ongoing influence of evolution on contemporary human diversity and behavior. Through interdisciplinary perspectives, the course provides a comprehensive understanding of the origins and adaptations of the human species.
Recommended Textbook
Our Origins Discovering Physical Anthropology 4th Edition by Clark Spencer Larsen
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14 Chapters
673 Verified Questions
673 Flashcards
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Chapter 1: What Is Physical Anthropology?
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Sample Questions
Q1) To be called a forensic anthropologist,what must a scientist do?
A)focus on skeletal analysis of individuals
B)study skeletal remains from past human populations
C)study the evolution of human skeletal traits
D)work primarily with soft tissue,as opposed to bone and teeth
Answer: A
Q2) Franz Boas studied which of the following?
A)the Inuit (Eskimos)of Baffin Island
B)the townspeople of Minden,Germany
C)the farmers of St.Catherines Island
D)the chimpanzees of Gombe,Tanzania
Answer: A
Q3) Primates are a group of mammals that have:
A)fingernails and forward-facing eyes.
B)no fingernails and a long snout.
C)complex behavior and small brains.
D)simple behavior and varied forms of locomotion.
Answer: A
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Chapter 2: Evolution: Constructing a Fundamental Scientific Theory
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Sample Questions
Q1) What are the classification levels of humans from order to species?
A)Chordata,Mammalia,Haplorhini,Hominoidea,Homo,and sapiens
B)Primates,Haplorhini,Anthropoidea,Catarrhini,Hominoidea,Hominidae,Homininae,Homini ni,Homo,and sapiens
C)Primates,Strepsirhini,Catarrhini,Hominoidea,Hominidae,Homo,and sapiens
D)Mammalia,Platyrrhini,Hominoidea,Hominidae,Homo,and sapiens
Answer: B
Q2) Discuss the forces of evolution and their role in evolution.
Answer: Natural selection,gene flow,genetic drift,and mutations are all acceptable answers.Noting that evolution is change in gene frequency over time (not just speciation,and not just natural selection)and identifying other forces such as gene flow,etc.is important.
Q3) Without the work of x-ray crystallographer ________,DNA might not have been discovered until much later than it was.
A)James Watson
B)Francis Crick
C)Thomas Malthus
D)Rosalind Franklin
Answer: D
Page 4
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Chapter 3: Genetics: Reproducing Life and Producing
Variation
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50 Verified Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) To be homologous,chromosomes must:
A)be genetically identical.
B)carry genetic information that influences the same traits.
C)be inherited only from the mother.
D)be members of different pairs.
Answer: B
Q2) What does genetic analysis of haplotypes and variants among living and precontact Native Americans indicate?
A)Native Americans underwent a huge decline in genetic diversity after Columbus's arrival in the New World.
B)Native Americans living today appear to be as diverse genetically as their ancient ancestors thousands of years ago.
C)Native Americans have a genetic structure and haplogroups that are quite recent.
D)Native Americans living today appear to be more diverse genetically than their ancient ancestors.
Answer: B
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Genes and Their Evolution: Population Genetics
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47 Verified Questions
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Sample Questions
Q1) Which of the following is an example of adaptation?
A)A population of finches develops robust beaks in response to a change in food supply.
B)An island population derived from a small group of castaways has an unusually high prevalence of a rare genetic disease
C)A rare mutant allele for a medicinally beneficial chemical is lost in a plant population residing in a tropical forest fragment
D)The last black-footed ferret dies in captivity
Q2) How can humans become infected with malaria?
A)having the parasite enter the blood while being fed on by infected mosquitoes
B)having a genetic mutation which manifests as the disease
C)drinking bad water
D)eating spoiled food
Q3) What does the Hardy-Weinberg law of equilibrium assume?
A)strong selection pressure on the trait(s)being studied
B)a significant mutation rate from generation to generation
C)gene flow that is equal both into and out of the population
D)no gene flow,mutation,or natural selection
Q4) Why is the peppered moth an excellent example of directional selection?
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Page 6
Chapter 5: Biology in the Present: Living People
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48 Verified Questions
48 Flashcards
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Sample Questions
Q1) How did Franz Boas challenge the study of race?
A)He strongly supported the race concept.
B)He created racial categories based on living populations in the United States.
C)He showed that U.S.-born children had the same head shapes as their immigrant parents,proving that races are innately stable.
D)He showed that U.S.-born children had different head shapes from their immigrant parents,demonstrating that races are not innately stable.
Q2) In the days when races were thought to be valid,static categories,Johann Friedrich Blumenbach incorrectly categorized humans into the following races:
A)Negroids,Caucasoids,and Mongoloids
B)Mongoloids,Negroids,Inuit,and Caucasoids
C)Mongoloids,Malays,Ethiopians,American Indians,and Caucasoids
D)Mongoloids,Negroids,Malays,Europeans,and Caucasoids
Q3) Discuss the obesity pandemic.Include current studies that demonstrate likely causes.
Q4) Discuss the origins of the race concept.Include early scientists and their views on human variation.
Q5) In humans,race is NOT a valid,biologically meaningful concept.Why?
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Chapter 6: Biology in the Present: The Other Living Primates
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Sample Questions
Q1) Relative to body size,what is primate brain size?
A)proportional to human brain size
B)more or less the same in large and small primates
C)smaller than in other large mammals
D)larger among great apes than among other primates
Q2) Which of the following primates have a rhinarium?
A)baboons
B)gorillas
C)ring-tail lemurs
D)howler monkeys
Q3) In what way do primate females differ from many other mammals?
A)Primate females invest less in their offspring.
B)Primate females give birth to more offspring.
C)Primate females give birth to fewer offspring.
D)Primate females give birth to twins frequently.
Q4) A feature unique to human teeth and found generally in Hominini teeth is:
A)the presence of a canine-premolar honing complex.
B)a canine that shows no wear on any surface.
C)the Y-5 cusp pattern.
D)a canine that shows wear on the tip.
Page 8
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Chapter 7: Primate Sociality, social Behavior, and Culture
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Sample Questions
Q1) Sociality among primates is likely the result of which of the following selective pressures?
A)predation
B)niche competition
C)adaptive radiation
D)habitat
Q2) Many primate societies are complex and involve their members forming alliances.How can these alliances be formed?
A)by rank,age,and kinship
B)by relative age,which is affected by "baby booms"
C)only by rank
D)primarily by species and subspecies
Q3) In the context of primates' food,what does the word quality refer to?
A)the location of food sources
B)the ability to acquire food
C)the storage of food for future consumption
D)the amount of energy and protein a food provides
Q4) Describe the range of primate residence patterns.Relate social grouping to food and reproduction.
Q5) Why are primates social?
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Chapter 8: Fossils and Their Place in Time and Nature
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Sample Questions
Q1) Differentiate between absolute and relative dating techniques,giving one example of each.
Q2) A wooden tomb is discovered with a well-preserved mummy inside.Which of the following methods could be used to date the tomb most accurately?
A)superposition
B)electron spin resonance
C)thermoluminescence
D)dendrochronology
Q3) What can scientists use to determine the type of plant an organism consumed?
A)carbon 14
B)radioisotopes
C)index fossils
D)carbon 13 and carbon 12
Q4) What type of dating method is fluorine dating an example of?
A)chronometric
B)nonrelative
C)chemical
D)genetic
Q5) Why is punctuated equilibrium an important addition to evolutionary theory?
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Chapter 9: Primate Origins and Evolution: The First 50
Million Years
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Sample Questions
Q1) During the Miocene epoch of the Cenozoic era,there was an adaptive radiation of which kind of primate?
A)prosimians
B)monkeys
C)apes
D)humans
Q2) Discuss the selective pressures operating in the late Miocene,Pliocene,and Pleistocene that favored an adaptive radiation of monkeys and contributed to decreased diversity among apes.
Q3) Based on genetic analysis of living primates calibrated by the fossil record,around when is it estimated that apes and Old World monkeys diverged into separate lineages?
A)5 mya
B)10 mya
C)15 mya
D)25 mya
Q4) Discuss the evolution of primates beginning with the Paleocene proprimates.In your answer,consider the effect of climate change on the environment and primates' environmental adaptations.
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Chapter 10: Early Hominin Origins and Evolution: The Roots of Humanity
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Sample Questions
Q1) What did the Laetoli footprints have that demonstrated that the foot of Australopithecus afarensis was humanlike?
A)long and curved toe bones
B)a divergent big toe
C)a single arch and five toes
D)a rounded heel and a double arch
Q2) What do bipedalism's advantages over quadrupedalism include?
A)an ability to transport food more easily
B)an ability to run faster
C)reduced burden on the circulatory system
D)less exposure to predators
Q3) Which of the following two obligate features is a hominin defined as having?
A)speech and advanced cognition
B)bipedal locomotion and nonhoning chewing complex
C)bipedal locomotion and speech
D)nonhoning chewing complex and advanced cognition
Q4) Discuss the two obligate traits,including specific anatomical features,that first emerge in the pre-australopithecines to eventually become firmly established in australopithecines.
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Q5) What was Piltdown Man? Why was it significant?
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Chapter 11: The Origins and Evolution of Early Homo
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Q1) Compared to earlier hominids,which of the following did Homo erectus have?
A)a smaller brain
B)larger teeth
C)a bigger sagittal keel
D)a larger brain
Q2) What features show that Homo erectus walked just like a modern human?
A)long legs and opposable toes
B)double arches of the feet and an adducted big toe
C)long arms
D)a foramen magnum at the base of the skull
Q3) What do the many stone tools,fragmentary animal bones,and teeth found at Gran Dolina,Spain,indicate about hominids there?
A)They processed and consumed animals including other hominids.
B)They did not differ appreciably from earlier Asian Homo erectus.
C)They were similar to later Homo sapiens.
D)They were australopithecines.
Q4) Contrast the cranial and dental anatomy and adaptation of Australopithecus robustus with African Homo erectus.
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Page 13
Chapter 12: The Origins,evolution,and Dispersal of Modern People
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Sample Questions
Q1) What does the Out-of-Africa model assert?
A)a single origin of modern people and eventual replacement of archaic Homo sapiens throughout Africa,Asia,and Europe
B)the importance of gene flow across population boundaries
C)migrations of australopithecines came out of Africa
D)migrations of Homo habilis came out of Africa
Q2) Discuss which anatomical traits are used to contrast modern humans' physical appearance with that of similar hominids.Which are derived and which are ancestral? Are these traits biological adaptations,as in the case of Neandertals?
Q3) At what European Upper Paleolithic site were anatomically modern human fossils discovered?
A)Atapuerca,Spain
B)Mauer,Germany
C)Petralona,Greece
D)Cro-Magnon,France
Q4) Discuss the origin of the Neandertals in terms of biological adaptation and other forces of evolution.
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Chapter 13: The Past 10, 000 Years: Agriculture, population, biology
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Sample Questions
Q1) What happened as towns and cities began to compete for increasingly limited resources?
A)Organized warfare developed.
B)Cooperation among neighbors developed.
C)Agriculture increased as well.
D)Violence decreased.
Q2) ________ iron is found in some foods that provide all the amino acids humans require for the absorption of iron.
A)Heme
B)Nonheme
C)Flat
D)Raw
Q3) Based on the archaeological record from various areas,what was the initial effect of agriculture on height?
A)Height decreased.
B)Height increased.
C)Height became more variable within the population.
D)Height stayed the same.
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Chapter 14: Evolution: Today and Tomorrow
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Sample Questions
Q1) A publication in the year 2020 reports on the results of autopsies of elderly people in three cultures.Of individuals in the study,90% showed signs of osteoporotic fractures and osteoporosis.What might the researchers suggest is happening in these cultures?
A)Longevity of individuals is decreasing.
B)Longevity of individuals is increasing.
C)Fewer dairy products were consumed than by individuals in other cultures,leading to bone conditions.
D)Interpersonal violence leading to the fractures was more common.
Q2) Which of the following health conditions are considered climate-sensitive and likely to increase with increasing greenhouse gases?
A)blindness
B)rickets
C)obesity
D)cardiovascular disease
Q3) What are the human biological consequences of global climate change and population increase?
Q4) Discuss how the process of globalization affects human biocultural variation today.
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