Deck 14: Conclusion

Question 1

Which of the following was NOT among the four cornerstone principles or key propositions made in the textbook?

A) Biology and culture co-create each other and the human experience.
B) Holism and systems thinking are useful.
C) Variation is good.
D) We are all connected.
E) Human systems have progressed to the point of homeostasis.

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Which of the following is NOT true of the relationship between biology and culture?

A) they interact synergistically
B) they create together something that each cannot create on its own
C) they produce what we know of as the human experience
D) they interact both where we can see it and where we cannot easily see the interaction (under the skin)
E) they interact the same way, with the same results, in every geographic, social, and cultural context

Answer 2

E

Question 3

'Holism' and 'systems thinking' are useful because:

A) human systems are like machines.
B) these perspectives highlight the most important aspect of human experience, which is culture.
C) these perspectives highlight the most important aspect of human experience, which is biology.
D) to explain a thing means nothing less than placing it into context.
E) everything makes more sense when viewed out of context.

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Variation is good because:

A) without it, reproduction is impossible.
B) it is better when people do things one way.
C) as the saying goes, "It's best to put all your eggs in one basket."
D) it increases resilience and helps to ensure survival into the next generation.
E) it stops what some call "the Red Queen's progress.".

Question 5

In regard to the idea that humans all are connected, it is the case that:

A) the rich and the poor live in totally separate worlds.
B) what one individual does in his or her own home has no consequences beyond his or her home.
C) an action in one part of the global system has effects elsewhere in the global system too.
D) people living now in different nations share no common ancestor.
E) a small change in, say, how we produce our food, has no chance to make a difference in the big scheme of things.

Question 6

The Navdanya (biodiversity conservation and farmers' rights) program in India:

A) failed miserably after small farmers found that the hybrid seeds it provided could not grow without expensive, toxic pesticides.
B) now serves as a model for others who seek to promote regionally-appropriate, self-sustainable agriculture.
C) shows that subsistence methods have nothing to do with population-based biocultural diversity.
D) failed miserably because modern farming techniques worked so well for the once-poor farmers in the region that they wanted nothing to do with the old-time ways Navdanya promoted.
E) has helped to bring the small farmers out of the dark ages by providing them with modern, scientifically-based tools.

Question 7

The fact that even the smallest of variations or changes can turn out to have huge ramifications over the course of time for biocultural variation means that:

A) we have to do as much anticipatory work as is possible to help ensure that whatever emerges is to our world's benefit.
B) the future is not at all in our control.
C) variation should be eliminated.
D) large scale, heavily institutionalized political-economic systems of inequality cannot be overcome or altered.
E) change for the better is inevitable.

Question 8

Which of the following approaches is LEAST like the 'unified approach'?

A) holism
B) systems thinking
C) political economy
D) reductionism
E) complexity theory

Question 9

A 'unified approach' to biocultural diversity argues that:

A) continually evolving varieties of humanity emerge through the synergistic interaction of biology and culture.
B) nature and biology co-create, together, something that neither one can create alone.
C) genetic variation is responsible for the exquisite diversity we find within the human species.
D) rather than asking if nature or nurture plays the larger role in crafting the human experience, we should concentrate on the role of culture versus that of biology.
E) humanity really has no diversity; it is a uniform totality (a unified unity).