Question 1

Describe the classification of humans, including a description of the order, family, genus, species, and the hominin clade.

Accepted Answer

Humans are classified within the order P

Question 2

Does the fact that humans are more capable than most organisms of altering their environment relax selection pressure on some traits? Please explain using an example.

Accepted Answer

Yes, the fact that humans are more capab

Question 3

Some controversial evidence of hominin tools in China suggests that hominins may have left Africa as early as

Accepted Answer

A)  60,000 years ago. 
B)  1 million years ago. 
C)  2.1 million years ago. 
D)  500,000 years ago. 
A)  60,000 years ago. 
B)  1 million years ago. 
C)  2.1 million years ago. 
D)  500,000 years ago.

Question 4

Why might natural selection have favored hands with fingers capable of precise movements in Homo erectus?

Accepted Answer

A)  Fine motor control would facilitate tool use. 
B)  Precise movements would facilitate movement among tree branches. 
C)  Increased tool use would allow hominins to access more food. 
D)  a and c 
E)  a, b, and c 
A)  Fine motor control would facilitate tool use. 
B)  Precise movements would facilitate movement among tree branches. 
C)  Increased tool use would allow hominins to access more food. 
D)  a and c 
E)  a, b, and c

Question 5

How could upright walking have helped early hominins stay cool?

Accepted Answer

A)  increased convective heat loss 
B)  cutaneous evaporative cooling 
C)  minimized skin exposure to the sun 
D)  b and c 
E)  a, b, and c 
A)  increased convective heat loss 
B)  cutaneous evaporative cooling 
C)  minimized skin exposure to the sun 
D)  b and c 
E)  a, b, and c

Question 6

When does figurative art, such as cave paintings and sculpture, begin to appear in the fossil record?

Accepted Answer

A)  approximately 75,000 years ago 
B)  approximately 60,000 years ago 
C)  approximately 40,000 years ago 
D)  approximately 35,000 years ago 
A)  approximately 75,000 years ago 
B)  approximately 60,000 years ago 
C)  approximately 40,000 years ago 
D)  approximately 35,000 years ago

Question 7

________ are typically ________, but with increased expression of the vasopressin gene, begin to act like ________ voles.

Accepted Answer

A)  Prairie voles; monogamous; polygynous 
B)  Meadow voles; polyandrous; monogamous 
C)  Prairie voles; polygynous; monogamous 
D)  Meadow voles; polygynous; monogamous 
A)  Prairie voles; monogamous; polygynous 
B)  Meadow voles; polyandrous; monogamous 
C)  Prairie voles; polygynous; monogamous 
D)  Meadow voles; polygynous; monogamous

Question 8

What lines of evidence have scientists been able to use to study brain evolution over the past four million years?

Accepted Answer

Scientists have used multiple lines of e

Question 9

Which of the following is not a type of Oldowan technology?

Accepted Answer

A)  hammer stone 
B)  flake scraper 
C)  hand axe 
D)  bifacial chopper 
A)  hammer stone 
B)  flake scraper 
C)  hand axe 
D)  bifacial chopper

Question 10

Hominins include

Accepted Answer

A)  all of the great apes. 
B)  humans and all extinct species branching from the human lineage after the split from the last common ancestor with chimpanzees. 
C)  humans and chimpanzees. 
D)  species belonging to the genus Homo. 
A)  all of the great apes. 
B)  humans and all extinct species branching from the human lineage after the split from the last common ancestor with chimpanzees. 
C)  humans and chimpanzees. 
D)  species belonging to the genus Homo.

Question 11

Which hypothesis about the selective forces influencing brain size has the strongest supporting evidence?

Accepted Answer

A)  Brain size increased as humans became more social and cultured. 
B)  Brain size increased as making tools and using them to process food increased. 
C)  Brain size has mostly experienced stasis as opposing selective forces result in stabilizing selection. 
D)  a and b 
A)  Brain size increased as humans became more social and cultured. 
B)  Brain size increased as making tools and using them to process food increased. 
C)  Brain size has mostly experienced stasis as opposing selective forces result in stabilizing selection. 
D)  a and b

Question 12

Compare Oldowan and Acheulean technology and describe how each may have contributed to the evolution of humans.

Accepted Answer

The Oldowan and Acheulean are two distin

Question 13

Which of the following neurotransmitters is associated with motivation?

Accepted Answer

A)  dopamine 
B)  acetylcholine 
C)  epinephrine 
D)  nitric oxide 
A)  dopamine 
B)  acetylcholine 
C)  epinephrine 
D)  nitric oxide

Question 14

Which of the following is not a feature that suggests bipedalism?

Accepted Answer

A)  foramen magnum of the skull oriented vertically 
B)  femur with a ball at its top 
C)  spine with a double curve 
D)  long curved toes and fingers 
A)  foramen magnum of the skull oriented vertically 
B)  femur with a ball at its top 
C)  spine with a double curve 
D)  long curved toes and fingers

Question 15

How do the brains of Homo naledi and H. floresiensis complicate explanations of hominin brain evolution?

Accepted Answer

A)  They are larger than other hominin brains, which makes them outliers the general trend. 
B)  They have an unusually large forebrain. 
C)  They are significantly smaller than other hominins of their time. 
D)  They do not complicate hominin brain evolution; they fall in line. 
A)  They are larger than other hominin brains, which makes them outliers the general trend. 
B)  They have an unusually large forebrain. 
C)  They are significantly smaller than other hominins of their time. 
D)  They do not complicate hominin brain evolution; they fall in line.

Question 16

What is the age of the oldest hominin tools found so far?

Accepted Answer

A)  1.7 million years ago 
B)  3.3 million years ago 
C)  0.3 million years ago 
D)  0.2 million years ago 
A)  1.7 million years ago 
B)  3.3 million years ago 
C)  0.3 million years ago 
D)  0.2 million years ago

Question 17

How recent is Homo naledi thought to have lived?

Accepted Answer

A)  300,000 years ago 
B)  236,000 years ago 
C)  200,00 years ago 
D)  47,000 years ago 
A)  300,000 years ago 
B)  236,000 years ago 
C)  200,00 years ago 
D)  47,000 years ago

Question 18

What feature do humans and other primates share that caused Linnaeus and other early taxonomists to group them together?

Accepted Answer

A)  opposable toes 
B)  forward-facing eyes 
C)  a tail 
D)  hair 
A)  opposable toes 
B)  forward-facing eyes 
C)  a tail 
D)  hair

Question 19

Our earliest evidence suggests that Homo sapiens evolved in Africa; how long did our own species stay in Africa before spreading outside the continent?

Accepted Answer

A)  almost 500,000 years 
B)  almost 300,000 years 
C)  almost 200,000 years 
D)  almost 100,000 years 
A)  almost 500,000 years 
B)  almost 300,000 years 
C)  almost 200,000 years 
D)  almost 100,000 years

Question 20

Researchers studying human genomes have found that two African Bushmen living within walking distance of one another have more genetic diversity than a European and an Asian who live thousands of miles apart. Explain this observation.

Accepted Answer

This observation can be explained by the

Describe the classification of humans, including a description of the order, family, genus, species, and the hominin clade.

Does the fact that humans are more capable than most organisms of altering their environment relax selection pressure on some traits? Please explain using an example.

Some controversial evidence of hominin tools in China suggests that hominins may have left Africa as early as

Why might natural selection have favored hands with fingers capable of precise movements in Homo erectus?

How could upright walking have helped early hominins stay cool?

When does figurative art, such as cave paintings and sculpture, begin to appear in the fossil record?

are typically , but with increased expression of the vasopressin gene, begin to act like voles.

What lines of evidence have scientists been able to use to study brain evolution over the past four million years?

Which of the following is not a type of Oldowan technology?

Hominins include

Which hypothesis about the selective forces influencing brain size has the strongest supporting evidence?

Compare Oldowan and Acheulean technology and describe how each may have contributed to the evolution of humans.

Which of the following neurotransmitters is associated with motivation?

Which of the following is not a feature that suggests bipedalism?

How do the brains of Homo naledi and H. floresiensis complicate explanations of hominin brain evolution?

What is the age of the oldest hominin tools found so far?

How recent is Homo naledi thought to have lived?

What feature do humans and other primates share that caused Linnaeus and other early taxonomists to group them together?

Our earliest evidence suggests that Homo sapiens evolved in Africa; how long did our own species stay in Africa before spreading outside the continent?

Researchers studying human genomes have found that two African Bushmen living within walking distance of one another have more genetic diversity than a European and an Asian who live thousands of miles apart. Explain this observation.

The Whale and the Virus: How Scientists Study Evolution

From Natural Philosophy to Darwin: a Brief History of Evolutionary Ideas

What the Rocks Say: How Geology and Paleontology Reveal the History of Life

The Tree of Life: How Biologists Use Phylogeny to Reconstruct the Deep Past

Raw Material: Heritable Variation Among Individuals

The Ways of Change: Drift and Selection

Beyond Alleles: Quantitative Genetics and the Evolution of Phenotypes

The History in Our Genes

From Genes to Traits: the Evolution of Genetic Networks and Development

Natural Selection: Empirical Studies in the Wild

Sex: Causes and Consequences

After Conception: the Evolution of Life History and Parental Care

The Origin of Species

Macroevolution: the Long Run

Intimate Partnerships: How Species Adapt to Each Other

Brains and Behavior

Evolutionary Medicine

Filters

Exam 17: Human Evolution: a New Kind of Ape

Describe the classification of humans, including a description of the order, family, genus, species, and the hominin clade.

Does the fact that humans are more capable than most organisms of altering their environment relax selection pressure on some traits? Please explain using an example.

Some controversial evidence of hominin tools in China suggests that hominins may have left Africa as early as

Why might natural selection have favored hands with fingers capable of precise movements in Homo erectus?

How could upright walking have helped early hominins stay cool?

When does figurative art, such as cave paintings and sculpture, begin to appear in the fossil record?

________ are typically ________, but with increased expression of the vasopressin gene, begin to act like ________ voles.

What lines of evidence have scientists been able to use to study brain evolution over the past four million years?

Which of the following is not a type of Oldowan technology?

Hominins include

Which hypothesis about the selective forces influencing brain size has the strongest supporting evidence?

Compare Oldowan and Acheulean technology and describe how each may have contributed to the evolution of humans.

Which of the following neurotransmitters is associated with motivation?

Which of the following is not a feature that suggests bipedalism?

How do the brains of Homo naledi and H. floresiensis complicate explanations of hominin brain evolution?

What is the age of the oldest hominin tools found so far?

How recent is Homo naledi thought to have lived?

What feature do humans and other primates share that caused Linnaeus and other early taxonomists to group them together?

Our earliest evidence suggests that Homo sapiens evolved in Africa; how long did our own species stay in Africa before spreading outside the continent?

Researchers studying human genomes have found that two African Bushmen living within walking distance of one another have more genetic diversity than a European and an Asian who live thousands of miles apart. Explain this observation.

The Whale and the Virus: How Scientists Study Evolution

From Natural Philosophy to Darwin: a Brief History of Evolutionary Ideas

What the Rocks Say: How Geology and Paleontology Reveal the History of Life

The Tree of Life: How Biologists Use Phylogeny to Reconstruct the Deep Past

Raw Material: Heritable Variation Among Individuals

The Ways of Change: Drift and Selection

Beyond Alleles: Quantitative Genetics and the Evolution of Phenotypes

The History in Our Genes

From Genes to Traits: the Evolution of Genetic Networks and Development

Natural Selection: Empirical Studies in the Wild

Sex: Causes and Consequences

After Conception: the Evolution of Life History and Parental Care

The Origin of Species

Macroevolution: the Long Run

Intimate Partnerships: How Species Adapt to Each Other

Brains and Behavior

Evolutionary Medicine

Filters

are typically , but with increased expression of the vasopressin gene, begin to act like voles.