Principles of Physical Anthropology
Midterm Exam
Course Introduction
Principles of Physical Anthropology offers an in-depth exploration of human biological evolution and variability within the context of primate studies and evolutionary theory. The course examines the fossil record, human genetics, and adaptation, while also comparing anatomical and behavioral traits among humans and nonhuman primates. Students learn the scientific methods used to investigate topics such as human origins, skeletal biology, and the impact of environment on human populations, fostering a comprehensive understanding of the biological aspects that define and shape humans as a species.
Recommended Textbook
Physical Anthropology 11th Edition by Philip L Stein
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Page 2
Chapter 1: Investigating the Nature of Humankind
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Q1) Cultural anthropology:
A)is a branch of archaeology
B)is the study of art and music
C)includes the study of human social organizations and learned patterns of behavior
D)includes paleontology as a major topic
Answer: C
Q2) Darwin laid out his ideas on evolution by natural selection in the book:
A)The Antiquity of Man
B)The Principles of Populations
C)On the Origin of Species
D)The Principles of Geology
Answer: C
Q3) Carolus Linnaeus
A)classification
B)4004 B.C.age for earth
C)correct position for earth in solar system
D)anticipated Darwin's ideas
Answer: A
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3
Chapter 2: The Study of Heredity
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Q1) independent assortment
A)having the same alleles of the same gene
B)the inheritance patterns of differing traits are independent of one another
C)in the production of sex cells,the paired hereditary units separate into different sex cells
D)bred only with the same kind and shows the same trait over many generations
Answer: B
Q2) centromere
A)X and Y chromosomes
B)holds strands together
C)standardized arrangement of chromosomes
D)chromosomal strand
E)22 pairs in humans
Answer: B
Q3) Oogenesis differs from spermatogenesis in that oogenesis:
A)leads to sex cells that,if fertilized,will contribute mtDNA to the zygote
B)begins in fetal life
C)usually produces only one mature ovum at any one time
D)all of the above
Answer: D
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Chapter 3: The Modern Study of Human Genetics
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Q1) A person:
A)with one X and one Y chromosome could be phenotypically female
B)with two X chromosomes could be phenotypically male under certain conditions
C)with two X chromosomes and one Y chromosome is phenotypically male
D)all of the above
Answer: D
Q2) Cloning is the process of producing ____________ which have the same genetic constitution.
A)genes
B)cells
C)whole organisms
D)all of the above
Answer: D
Q3) The gene that determines male sex is known as:
A)Sry
B)Andro
C)Bly
D)Gen
Answer: A
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Page 5
Chapter 4: Population Genetics
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Q1) A small group of individuals who colonize a new area most likely will not represent a random sample of alleles of the population from which they came.This is the concept of:
A)genetic drift
B)assortative mating
C)founder principle
D)nonrandom mating
Q2) An earthquake occurs and destroys 95 percent of a specific population.The surviving population displays gene frequencies that are different from those of the original population.This is likely due to:
A)new spontaneous mutations adaptive to the possibilities of more earthquakes
B)sampling error
C)an increased mutation rate
D)new selective pressures that arise after the earthquake
Q3) In the above population what are the frequencies of the genotypes AA,Aa,and aa?
A)0.68,0.92,0.40
B)0.25,0.50,0.25
C)0.33,0.50,0.17
D)0.34,0.46,0.20
Q4) What are the purposes of the Hardy-Weinberg formula?
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Chapter 5: Natural Selection and the Origin of Species
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Q1) A specialized species:
A)is closely fitted to a specific niche
B)cannot tolerate much change in its niche
C)exhibits little variation
D)all of the above
Q2) An example of intersexual selection would be:
A)females preferring males with large,safe territories
B)the peacock having a brightly colored tail
C)males being significantly larger than females
D)a and b
Q3) When the Grants measured the beaks of the birds on Daphne Major after the drought,they found:
A)a large number of the birds had died as a result of the drought
B)the survivors of the drought had a larger average beak size
C)beak size is inherited so the next generation had a larger average beak size
D)all of the above
Q4) What is meant by the term preadaptation? How does the concept relate to the statement "Necessity is not the mother of (biological)invention"?
Q5) Explain the differences between natural selection,sexual selection,and kin selection.
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Chapter 6: Peoples Place in Nature
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Sample Questions
Q1) Many Australian marsupials closely resemble placental mammals.This is called:
A)parallel evolution
B)homologous evolution
C)convergent evolution
D)archetypical evolution
Q2) If a newly discovered monkey population was named Cercopithecus albigena,it would be most closely related to:
A)Cercocebus albigena
B)Cercopithecus hamlyni
C)Cercocebus torquatus
D)Parapithecus albigena
Q3) What is cladistics? What are the steps in a cladistic analysis?
Q4) What is the taxonomic classification for humans (include Kingdom,Phylum,Sub-Phylum and Class)? For each of these taxa,what are two trait that are characteristic of the group?
Q5) Metatherian mammals are found primarily in:
A)Australia
B)Africa
C)North America
D)all of the above
Page 8
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Chapter 7: The Living Primates
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Q1) monkeys and apes
A)Prosimii
B)Anthropoidea
Q2) Which of the following ape does not live in Africa?
A)gorilla
B)orangutan
C)chimpanzee
D)bonobo
Q3) Probably the most important of the senses for the primate's rapid movement in the trees is:
A)vision
B)touch
C)smell
D)taste
Q4) Living on the island of Madagascar are the:
A)marmosets
B)lemurs
C)bonobos
D)all of the above
Q5) Why are humans classified as primates?
Page 9
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Chapter 8: Comparative Studies: Anatomy and Genetics
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Sample Questions
Q1) An opposable thumb is found among the:
A)New World monkeys
B)Old World monkeys
C)apes
D)b and c
E)all of the above
Q2) Among the anthropoids the cerebral cortex is highly convoluted and differentiated into areas associated with specific functions.Those areas that are greatly expanded in humans include those associated with:
A)vision
B)language
C)hand coordination
D)all of the above
Q3) In contrast to ape canine teeth,human canine teeth:
A)do not show sexual dimorphism
B)are not accompanied by a diastema
C)erupt before the second and third molars
D)all of the above
Q4) What are phylogenetic trees? What data are used in their construction?
Q5) Why are anthropologists interested in the study of teeth?
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Chapter 9: Onhuman Primate Behavior
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Sample Questions
Q1) Social interactions between adult male chimpanzees:
A)are characterized by a strict dominance hierarchy
B)are described by the terms dominance and submission
C)are usually very aggressive
D)occur only when a new male is trying to take over the group
Q2) In what situations do primatologists study primate behavior? What are the strengths and weaknesses of each type of study?
Q3) According to the resource defense model,primates exploiting what type of food source should live in the largest groups:
A)insects
B)fruit
C)leaves
Q4) Factors that determine the size of a primate group include:
A)terrestrial versus arboreal
B)diurnal versus nocturnal
C)frugivores versus folivores
D)all of the above
Q5) What is play behavior? What are some of the types of activity that are labeled play? Which age categories are most likely to engage in play behavior?
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Chapter 10: Human Behavior in Perspective
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Sample Questions
Q1) lexigram
A)a vocabulary
B)a symbol used to represent a word
C)a set of rules used to combine meaningful units
D)any transmission of a message from a sender to a receiver
E)an open,arbitrary,discrete system that allows for displacement
Q2) Donald E.Brown's list of what he considers to be human universals includes:
A)rules about sexual behavior
B)some form of play and games
C)languages that conform to a universal set of grammatical rules
D)all of the above
Q3) language
A)a vocabulary
B)a symbol used to represent a word
C)a set of rules used to combine meaningful units
D)any transmission of a message from a sender to a receiver
E)an open,arbitrary,discrete system that allows for displacement
Q4) Can apes be taught to communicate linguistically?
Q5) In what ways does human behavior differ from the behavior of the chimpanzee?
Q6) What is meant by the term protoculture?
Page 12
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Chapter 11: The Record of the Past
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Q1) Why is the concept of time so important to geologists and paleoanthropologists?
Q2) The amino acid racemization method of dating is based upon:
A)the replacement of amino acids in a dead body by minerals
B)the uptake of fluorine from groundwater
C)the processes whereby L-amino acids turn into D-amino acids
D)the radioactive decay of carbon within the amino acids
Q3) The study of fossils in general is referred to as:
A)paleoanthropology
B)palynology
C)paleontology
D)none of the above
Q4) The angle made by a line pointing to true north and a line pointing to magnetic north is called a(n):
A)declination angle
B)differential angle
C)magnetic angle
D)northerly angle
Q5) What is a fossil? How does a fossil differ from an artifact?
Q6) Why is the probability of a lowland animal being preserved as a fossil greater than a similar type of highland animal being fossilized?
Page 13
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Chapter 12: The Early Primate Fossil Record and the Origins of the
Hominins
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Q1) The earliest loris-like primate was:
A)Bugtilemur mathesoni
B)Ardipithecus ramidus
C)Karanisia clarki
D)Proconsul africanus
Q2) A fossil hominoid that was a contemporary with a member of the genus Homo is:
A)Sivapithecus
B)Gigantopithecus
C)Oreopithecus
D)Pliopithecus
E)none of the above
Q3) One of the best known propliopithecoids is:
A)Parapithecus
B)Aegyptopithecus
C)Aeolopithecus
D)Oligopithecus
Q4) Describe the geological events that led to the Miocene hominoid radiation.What were the major consequences of this event?
Q6) Describe the habitats present at the Fayum during the Early Oligocene. Page 14
Q5) What are the major differences between the Adapidae and Omomyidae?
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Page 15
Chapter 13: The Early Hominins
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Q1) Specific anatomical adaptations for a tough,fibrous diet include:
A)thickened tooth enamel
B)large molars and premolars
C)flared zygomatic arches
D)all of the above
Q2) What is the range of cranial capacities in early hominins? How does this compare with the cranial capacities in the apes and in modern humans?
Q3) The dentition of A.afarensis shows many nonhominin features including:
A)a small diastema between the upper canine and premolar
B)a parabolic dental arcade
C)a nonprojecting canine
D)all of the above
Q4) The person associated with finds of both Kenyanthropus platyops and Australopithecus anamensis is:
A)Louis Leakey
B)Raymond Dart
C)Meave Leakey
D)Donald Johanson
Q5) What ideas exist on the use of tools by Paranthropus? What evidence is there?
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Chapter 14: Early Species of the Genus Homo
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Q1) Homo erectus is characterized by a:
A)relatively large facial skeleton as compared to H.sapiens
B)cranial capacity averaging 1400 cubic centimeters
C)prominent chin
D)lack of brow ridges
Q2) Having a low,relatively flat forehead is referred to as being:
A)platycephalic
B)prognathic
C)prolific
D)none of the above
Q3) The teres minor is:
A)a muscle of the upper arm
B)a muscle of the leg
C)a small primate
D)a part of the brain
Q4) Homo ergaster is found in:
A)East Africa from 1.8 to 1.5 million B.P.
B)South Africa from 2.4 to 2.1 million B.P.
C)East Europe from 1.3 to 1.1 million B.P.
D)South Europe from 1.8 to 1.7 million B.P.
Page 17
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Chapter 15: The Evolution of Homo Sapiens
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Q1) The Neolithic refers to:
A)a type of cultural setting in which hunting-gathering is the main source of food
B)the cultural setting in which people lived in villages and food production dominated hunting and gathering
C)the time of the first civilization
D)a cultural setting which first appeared about40,000 years ago
Q2) Which of the following statements is most valid on the basis of current evidence?
A)people were living in the New World sometime after 28,000 years ago
B)people were living in the New World sometime before 50,000 years ago
C)people did not arrive in the New World until 9,000 years ago
D)there is good evidence that people lived in the New World before 500,000 years ago
Q3) The Neolithic was characterized by:
A)great technological and social changes
B)elaboration of tool types
C)refined pottery
D)all of the above
Q4) What significant cultural developments are associated with the Mesolithic?
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Chapter 16: The Biology of Modern Homo Sapiens
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Q1) A person moves from a cold humid to a hot dry climate.At first she feels tired most of the time,very hot,and often faint.Gradually she feels better and notices a reduction in the amount of urine she produces.This scenario illustrates a(n):
A)acclimatory adjustment
B)behavioral adjustment
C)development adjustment
D)adaptation
Q2) Within the same species of mammals,there is a tendency to find more heavily pigmented forms near the equator and lighter forms away from the equator.This is known as:
A)Allen's rule
B)Gloger's rule
C)Bergmann's rule
D)Stein's rule
Q3) The process of turning cartilage into bone is called:
A)diaphysis
B)ossification
C)hardening
D)osteolication
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Chapter 17: The Analysis of Human Variation
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Q1) The difficulty in using skin color to categorize human groups is that:
A)the precise genetic mechanisms of skin color are not known
B)skin color can be strongly influenced by environmental and cultural factors
C)skin color distribution is largely clinal
D)all of the above
Q2) Describe the various attempts to scientifically describe human variation.
Q3) Human variation is:
A)static
B)dynamic
C)indescribable
D)always clinal
Q4) Blood type B is rare or absent among the aboriginal populations of:
A)North America
B)India
C)Japan
D)Africa
Q5) What is the difference between a race and an ethnic group?
Q6) In what ways are folk taxonomies not scientific?
Q7) Some researchers believe that the concept of race as applied to humans is more of a social concept than a biological one.Explain this point of view.
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Chapter 18: The Modern World
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Q1) The most significant cause of global warming is:
A)a tilt in the earth's orientation to the sun
B)greenhouse gases
C)the thinning of the ozone layer
D)acid rain
Q2) Infectious diseases transmitted from other animals to humans:
A)are referred to as paleopathogens
B)are referred to as zymotics
C)are referred to as zoonoses
D)do not exist;humans cannot catch animal diseases
Q3) Discuss the problems facing modern people that are presented in this chapter.Can you think of any major problems that were not discussed?
Q4) The consequences of the greater mobility found in industrial societies include:
A)the fact that hybrid groups have tended to develop from populations that were once separated
B)a possible increase in the number of heterozygotes
C)an increase in the probability of assortative mating
D)all of the above
Q5) In what ways will genetic engineering and cyborgenenics affect people in the future?
Page 21
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