Deck 4: Emergence of Culture and People Like Us

Question 1

Which of the following did NOT contribute to our evolved capacity for culture?

A) protruding nose
B) control of fire
C) brain evolution
D) tool-making skills
E) invention of money

Answer 1

E

Question 2

Looking at a friend and feeling that we know what is on their mind without them having to say is an example of:

A) shared thought space
B) shared intentionality
C) theory of mind
D) allocare
E) reflexivity

Answer 2

C

Question 3

Rituals entail symbolic elements in order to:

A) establish a stratified social hierarchy so that everyone knows their place
B) display the group's cultural sophistication to outsiders
C) perpetuate the illusion of exclusivity
D) create solidarity and emotional cohesion within a group
E) encourage disloyalty among group members

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Walter Goldschmidt has explained that the emergence of our capacity for ritual:

A) has been a longstanding lead-up to our downfall.
B) was inevitable.
C) occurred over 3 million years ago.
D) is impossible to recognize within the archaeological/fossil record.
E) provided our bridge to humanity.

Question 5

Which of the following is the most narrowly defined/specific classification category of organisms?

A) Kingdom
B) Domain
C) Species
D) Family
E) Genus

Question 6

Why is Allocare considered an advantageous (beneficial) behavioral strategy?

A) It led to bipedal locomotion.
B) 'Other care' is a way of redistributing the group's total workload in a way that maximizes productivity
C) Adopting this behavioral strategy allowed early humans to defend themselves against predators.
D) children raised cooperatively or by people other than their biological mothers are not well-balanced
E) None of the answers is correct.

Question 7

Allocare provides the biggest selective advantage in communities facing what type of environment pressure?

A) Intergroup violence
B) Natural disasters
C) Disease
D) Food scarcity
E) Predators

Question 8

Homo ergaster/erectus first appears in the fossil record:

A) before Homo sapiens
B) after Homo sapiens
C) 13 million years ago
D) before Homo habilis
E) less than 10,000 years ago

Question 9

Which of these features of life is unique to modern humans?

A) lack of infantile dependency
B) traveling and eating in groups
C) mirror neurons
D) a biological stage called childhood
E) disadvantageous genetic traits

Question 10

The Hominidae family classification group was recently broadened to include:

A) humans exclusively, and their direct ancestors.
B) humans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and orangutans (i.e., all great apes-and their ancestors).
C) all great apes except for humans.
D) all primates.
E) humans but no other great apes

Question 11

The expansion of the Hominidae family classification group reflects:

A) science's self-correcting capacity
B) all answers are correct
C) a new appreciation for species connectivity
D) a decrease in human self-importance
E) a paradigm shift

Question 12

What forced scientists to reevaluate Neanderthals' previous classification as a distinct species?

A) Discovering Neanderthal DNA in modern humans.
B) Finding archaeological evidence of farming and pottery-making among Neanderthal people
C) Uncovering Neanderthal remains that exhibit traits only associated with modern humans.
D) Discovering Neanderthals also had a cultural revolution.
E) Finding epigenetic data that proves different species absolutely cannot interbreed.

Question 13

Homo (our genus) first appears in the fossil record about how long ago?

A) Just over 2 million years ago
B) 10,000 years ago
C) 75,000 years ago
D) 13 million years ago
E) 300,000 years ago

Question 14

The evolutionary path to Homo sapiens is best described as:

A) Multi-stranded
B) Unilinear
C) Without any gene flow
D) Progressively linear, from one species to the next
E) Single-stranded

Question 15

Of the following, which was supported by cooking?

A) Increased metabolic effort
B) Release of four to five hours once spent chewing for other pursuits
C) Lengthening of the intestine
D) Stronger teeth
E) Decreased ingestion of tubers or yams

Question 16

Why might what doctors call Attention Deficit Disorder (ADD) have been naturally selected for to some degree?

A) Without anyone impulsive or fearless enough to grab the unlit end of a burning stick we might not have gained control of fire
B) ADD provides no advantages
C) Groups learn from information produced when risks prove too high
D) All the advantages listed are possible
E) Without anyone impulsive or fearless enough to jump on a floating log, rafting may not have been discovered

Question 17

Why does non-human primate cooperation fall short of the standards for full or true cooperation, as humans practice it?

A) Non-human primate cooperation is generally more selfless or altruistic than human cooperation.
B) Non-human primate cooperation is generally pragmatic; they do it only because there is safety in numbers.
C) Non-human primates divvy up jobs and rotate though roles instead of everyone doing the same thing, like a human hunting party.
D) Humans will look to see where other humans are looking and non-human primates don't do that.
E) All of the answers are correct.

Question 18

Which of the following may have provided 'evolutionary shortcuts' to evolving groups from the genus Homo, allowing adaptive traits to spread between them without depending on natural selection?

A) gene flow
B) genetic drift
C) unilineal mutations
D) a lack of genetic interchange
E) engineer logic

Question 19

Which of the following is seen only in humans?

A) Only humans can point at things.
B) Only humans will habitually share information for the sake of the other individual.
C) Only humans are able to follow another being's eyes (line of sight).
D) Only humans use tools.
E) Only humans forage and eat together.

Question 20

Which of the following is NOT an example of allocare?

A) occasional baby-sitting
B) being a nanny or governess
C) being a foster parent
D) taking care of one's own biological offspring
E) taking care of one's grandchildren

Question 21

Which is a uniquely human life stage?

A) infancy
B) a "juvenile" stage
C) childhood
D) adulthood
E) adolescence

Question 22

Which sequence best describes our evolutionary emergence as a species?

A) Homo habilis; Homo erectus/ergaster; Homo sapiens
B) Homo erectus/ergaster; Homo habilis
C) Homo erectus/ergaster; Homo habilis; Homo sapiens
D) Homo habilis; Homo sapiens sapiens; Homo technologia
E) Homo sapiens; Homo erectus/ergaster; Homo habilis; Homo ludens

Question 23

As humans evolved, our teeth and jaws got smaller because:

A) people with small teeth and jaws were less likely to die off once we figured out how to cook and prepare foods that were easier to chew.
B) we no longer needed to chew sinews and leather and branches to make tools.
C) those who could speak more clearly (i.e., who were not impeded by large teeth and jaws) had higher fertility and lower mortality.
D) when we began to cook, those with protruding jaws often burned their faces in the fire, couldn't eat, and died off.
E) small jaws and teeth provided a selective advantage.

Question 24

Which of the following lists features key human evolutionary adaptations in the order in which they happened or emerged over time?

A) tool making, language, empathy
B) tool making, empathy, language
C) empathy, tool making, language
D) language, tool making, empathy
E) The three adaptations listed likely co-evolved in a mutually reinforcing fashion.

Question 25

Toolmaking is linked with the development of human language partly because:

A) different parts of the brain appear to be involved.
B) lip/tongue dexterity is required to make tools.
C) the main use of language is to impart technical knowledge.
D) both tool making and communicating involve classifying things as well as at seeing/making connections between them.
E) All the answers are correct.

Question 26

Which of the following is a FALSE statement about culture?

A) Culture rarely changes.
B) Culture consists of shared behaviors and ideas.
C) Culture is learned or acquired by each new generation.
D) Culture is an evolved capacity.
E) Culture is habitual; we often don't even realize that we are 'doing' it.

Question 27

What is NOT true of culture?

A) Culture is learned or acquired.
B) Culture is genetically inherited.
C) Culture is sticky or habitual.
D) Culture is shared socially.
E) Culture evolves.

Question 28

Which of the following did NOT evolve more or less concurrently (together) in Homo's earliest days?

A) brain size
B) dietary needs
C) gut length
D) dentition
E) artistic capabilities

Question 29

Which of the following human traits is NOT related to the advent of cooking?

A) learning how to capture and control fire
B) smaller teeth
C) shorter intestines
D) loss of body hair
E) upright posture

Question 30

Ritual communication does NOT seek to:

A) transfer sentiments from one person to another.
B) convey technical knowledge from one person to another.
C) reduce tensions between potentially hostile persons and groups.
D) mobilize emotion toward feelings of social cohesion.
E) do any of the things listed here.

Question 31

Ritual communication does NOT seek to:

A) transfer sentiments from one person to another.
B) convey technical knowledge from one person to another.
C) reduce tensions between potentially hostile persons and groups.
D) mobilize emotion toward feelings of social cohesion.
E) do any of the things listed here.

Question 32

Which of the following is NOT used as evidence for the emergence of culture?

A) human skeletal remains
B) shell beads
C) female figurines
D) burial grave goods
E) multi-part tools

Question 33

Artifacts that provide evidence for the 'Cultural Revolution' or 'Great Leap Forward' do NOT include:

A) portable statues or figurines.
B) granaries or silos.
C) multi-piece tools
D) shell beads
E) cave paintings

Question 34

Mirror neurons have NOT been associated with:

A) motor learning.
B) emotional empathy or connectivity.
C) imitation.
D) the transfer of technical skills.
E) reflexivity.

Question 35

Which of the following provides the best definition of 'culture'?

A) shared genetic adaptations that are biologically inherited
B) a set of socially shared, socially learned habits and understandings
C) all material objects that have been altered by human behavior
D) a group of people who live in the same geographic area
E) individual preferences developed in response to one's particular upbringing

Question 36

The view that all cultures gradually progress in the same way toward one form or ideal is called:

A) unilinealism, and it is wrong.
B) relativism, and it is right.
C) historical particularism.
D) relativism, and it is wrong.
E) unilinealism, and it is right.

Question 37

Which of the following is a key function and advantage provided by 'culture'?

A) Culture provides us with the means to bypass the need for genetic evolution in many situations.
B) Culture makes social cohesion and cooperation very difficult.
C) Culture makes humans immune to biological evolution.
D) Culture functions to keep nature stable.
E) Without culture, we would be unable to make tools.

Question 38

How is 'culture' passed to the next generation?

A) Culture is genetically inherited.
B) Culture is partly inherited genetically.
C) Culture is entirely learned from other people.
D) Culture is inborn.
E) Culture is passed along in the blood.

Question 39

Back when anthropology emerged (in B. Tylor's day, in the 1800s), most anthropological theorists thought that all cultures:

A) passed through the same evolutionary stages on their way to becoming civilized.
B) were on different evolutionary trajectories.
C) were equal.
D) would eventually become chaotic.
E) were civilized.

Question 40

Back when anthropology emerged (in B. Tylor's day, in the 1800s), most anthropological theorists defined 'civilization' as (or using the yardstick of):

A) their own culture.
B) Adam and Eve's culture.
C) American culture.
D) Roman culture.
E) an unattainable, utopian ideal.

Question 41

Because 'culture' becomes so routine and automatic once internalized:

A) members of a given culture are ethnocentric (at least initially).
B) relativism is not really possible.
C) people never judge others' cultures by their own standards.
D) it is easy to forget the cultural practices you grew up with.
E) ethnocentrism is impossible.

Question 42

The term 'historical particularism' applies to the theory or viewpoint that:

A) different societies have different histories but uniform (equivalent) cultures.
B) different societies represent different stages of progress in history.
C) different societies have different histories and their cultures are therefore unique and particular.
D) different societies have the same history but different and unique particular cultures.
E) particular cultures all share the same histories.

Question 43

The idea that each culture has its own special history is called:

A) progressive unilineal evolutionism.
B) regressive multilineal evolutionism.
C) historical particularism.
D) cultural determinism.
E) relativism.

Question 44

'Ethnocentrism' entails the belief that:

A) all cultures pass through a particular progression of evolutionary stages
B) one's own way of life is the human 'standard' and all other cultures are inferior to one's own).
C) technologically simpler societies are inferior.
D) one is, oneself, the center of the universe ("it's all about me").
E) ethnic groups are superior to non-ethnic groups.

Question 45

Changing the way in which museum artifacts were grouped from presenting sets of similar objects together (e.g., hats with hats) to placing artifacts from the same culture together coincides with a shift in early 1900 anthropology from:

A) relativism to natural selection.
B) unilinear evolutionary thinking to relativist thinking.
C) cultural anthropology to biological anthropology.
D) Lamarckism to Darwinism.
E) biological determinism to cultural determinism.

Question 46

A display of Inuit baskets would be most meaningful, according to the 'relativist' position, if the baskets were displayed:

A) in the context of other Native American or First Peoples artifacts.
B) with other Inuit artifacts used in the same context as the baskets would be.
C) with other tools from Northern territories.
D) with baskets from around the world so that one might compare them all.
E) with excellent lighting.

Question 47

The idea that cultural practices (or artifacts or ideas) must or can only be understood in their own context is called:

A) relativism.
B) ethnocentrism.
C) progressivism.
D) unilinealism.
E) reflexivity.

Question 48

The following is true of 'historical particularism':

A) It was developed in Europe.
B) It adopts or requires a determinist perspective.
C) It positions cultures on a continuum representing the particular progression of natural evolutionary stages.
D) It ranks different cultures as inferior and superior.
E) It adopts or requires a relativist perspective.

Question 49

Which of the following scholars played a fundamental role in establishing US anthropology by instigating a major paradigm shift in museum display curation (among other things)?

A) Margaret Mead.
B) Jared Diamond.
C) Louis Leaky.
D) Matt Ridley.
E) Franz Boas.

Question 50

Franz Boas was a proponent of (promoted):

A) racism.
B) unilineal evolutionary thinking.
C) relativism.
D) ethnocentrism.
E) biological determinism.

Question 51

Although some cultural traditions may be longstanding, cultures are always:

A) evolving.
B) exactly the same from generation to generation.
C) extinguished (destroyed) by globalization.
D) without history until discovered.
E) static.

Question 52

A 'genus' is:

A) an individual whose traits enable them to outperform other individuals.
B) a grouping of various species that have similar characteristics.
C) a type of archaic human.
D) a word that refers to all humans and their ancestors.
E) a group of organisms that can interbreed.

Question 53

The scientific name for the humans of today (anatomically and behaviorally modern humans) is:

A) Homo sapiens.
B) Homo sapiens sapiens.
C) Homo sapiens habilis.
D) Homo erectus.
E) Homo erectus sapiens.

Question 54

Which species was the first to optimize bipedalism or make walking a habitual practice?

A) Homo sapiens
B) Homo sapiens sapiens
C) Homo habilis
D) Homo erectus/ergaster
E) Homo sapiens erectus

Question 55

Homo habilis is known for:

A) ritualized burial for the dead, indicating a belief in the afterlife.
B) making and using stone tools (being a 'handy man').
C) creating the first forms of cave art.
D) being smart or wise.
E) being the first of our ancestors to walk or stand in upright posture habitually (all the time).

Question 56

The term 'sapiens' means:

A) wise and knowing.
B) standing upright.
C) handy or able to use tools.
D) animal.
E) with flowing blood.

Question 57

Which of the following distinguishes Homo sapiens sapiens from other Homo sapiens?

A) Only Homo sapiens sapiens show signs of fully-fledged culture (i.e., are fully behaviorally modern)
B) It is a separate species completely.
C) Homo sapiens sapiens is the only sub-group to give the dead funerals.
D) No other group made tools before Homo sapiens sapiens emerged.
E) Homo sapiens sapiens is the only sub-species to walk upright.

Question 58

An increase in brain size among our early ancestors, and therefore bigger skulls, meant that:

A) babies began to be born headfirst.
B) babies began to be born less mature so that their heads would not get stuck.
C) the time a fetus was in the womb had to increase.
D) babies became independent earlier.
E) birth became easier.

Question 59

What effect(s) did cooking have on early human ancestors?

A) It stressed our digestive systems very badly.
B) It supported a reduction in tooth size.
C) It led to malnourishment.
D) Our jaws had to become stronger.
E) All of the answers are correct.

Question 60

What is one reason that scientists believe that the emergence of our tool-making capabilities and the emergence of language mutually reinforced one another?

A) Tools have been found with books at archaeological sites.
B) The same brain parts are involved in the controlled movement of hands, fingers, lips, teeth, breath, and tongue .
C) We make tools with our hands.
D) Without verbal instructions we cannot make tools.
E) All of the answers are correct.

Question 61

In humans, 'mirror neurons':

A) make it hard to learn motor skills.
B) are entailed in self-reflection.
C) help us to place ourselves in another's shoes.
D) undermine community bonding by fostering self-centeredness.
E) block the transfer of emotions from one person to another.

Question 62

Mirror neurons fire in a person's brain:

A) when that person does a particular action.
B) when that person wants to learn something.
C) when that person watches an action and thinks about doing that action while watching.
D) when that person does a particular action and then another person does the same action a few seconds later.
E) They do not fire in humans; they work only in monkeys.

Question 63

Full-fledged human cooperation is distinguished from basic, minimal cooperation (as seen in non-human primates) by the specific existence of:

A) shared intentionality.
B) self-interest.
C) big bright eye whites.
D) foraging in a group instead of alone.
E) eating in a group instead of alone.

Question 64

Shared intentionality:

A) is seen in all primates.
B) is a new form of artificial intelligence modeled on human thinking patterns.
C) entails being able to form with others shared objectives and to feel 'we-ness.'
D) is beyond (not within) human capability at this point in time.
E) is something that all great apes, including humans, can attain or engage in but monkeys are still unable to achieve.

Question 65

Big, bright whites of the eyes:

A) make one's eyes less visible.
B) provide better eyesight.
C) make it easier to follow other people's eye movements.
D) provide no selective advantage.
E) evolved at the same time as white skin.

Question 66

Among our ancestors, when babies began to emerge from their moms rear-facing what happened?

A) There was an increase in overall fertility.
B) It was easier for babies to come out alive.
C) Successful birthing became harder, giving those who sought help (cooperation) during labor and delivery a selective advantage.
D) The birth canal widened, making birth an easier prospect.
E) This is a bad question because human babies are always born facing forward.

Question 67

Which of the following behaviors gave humans a selective advantage in the face of the rigors (hardships) of human birth?

A) the tendency to seek help and companionship during labor and delivery
B) a desire for solitude during labor and delivery
C) a competitive nature
D) a fear of other people
E) the capacity for hunting

Question 68

The most common pattern of childrearing among our ancestors was:

A) mother-child based.
B) father-child based.
C) group-based or cooperative.
D) negligent (infants had to raise themselves by themselves).
E) where the mother cared for the child and the father brought home food.

Question 69

Which of the following is an example of 'allocare'?

A) An individual babysits a child once for an hour.
B) A nanny is arranged to take care a child three times every week.
C) A non-relative breastfeeds another person's child.
D) An older brother takes care of a younger sister while their mother is at work.
E) All of the answers are correct.

Question 70

Cooperative breeding or 'allocare' is:

A) a reproductive strategy in which mothers are assisted by others (both sexes) who help care for and feed the young.
B) a reproductive strategy in which mothers are assisted by their babies' fathers, who help care for and feed the young.
C) a pattern of promiscuity practiced by our Neanderthal cousins.
D) seen in non-human primates but not among humans.
E) a strategy in which high status females command less powerful females to breed so that they don't have to.

Question 71

Our emergent capacity for 'ritual' served as an important 'bridge to humanity' because the language of ritual:

A) expresses an engineer's logic.
B) serves as an arbitrary aesthetic device.
C) lends a seriousness to human concerns.
D) makes us feel connected, motivating in us a sense of social and cultural commitment.
E) is instructional; it can convey technical knowledge necessary for survival.

Question 72

What is most important about ritual communication?

A) the explicit message
B) the logic of the message
C) The feeling of connectedness that the message conveys or provokes.
D) the technical information in the message
E) the financial costs (conspicuous consumption)

Question 73

The 'Upper Paleolithic Revolution' was marked in the archaeological record by:

A) evidence of the initial emergence of fire use.
B) many archaeological artifacts including artistic figurines and shell beads.
C) Homo pergolis's extinction.
D) the emergence of agriculture.
E) the beginning of cooking.

Question 74

The Upper Paleolithic Revolution:

A) is also called the Cultural Revolution.
B) occurred first in America.
C) marks the emergence of agriculture.
D) marks the emergence of the capacity for language.
E) happened about 200,000 years ago.

Question 75

When we find beads and little sculptures in the archaeological record, we know that:

A) the individuals who lived at that site had culture.
B) the site was occupied by Homo habilis.
C) people who used to live at that site must have eaten corn.
D) the site was occupied by Homo erectus.
E) the site must have been occupied and abandoned before the human capacity for culture emerged.

Question 76

What percent of all talk is actually social gossip?

A) about 50%
B) about 25%
C) about 70%
D) about 90%
E) 100%

Question 77

The human capacity for full-fledged culture emerged about:

A) 1 million years ago.
B) 75 thousand years ago.
C) 20 thousand years ago.
D) 6 thousand years ago.
E) 10 thousand years ago.

Question 78

Where do the majority of scholars believe fully-fledged culture first emerged?

A) Europe
B) Africa
C) Fertile Crescent
D) New Guinea
E) The Andes

Question 79

Culture had a 'creative explosion' during the Upper Paleolithic Revolution about when?

A) 10,000 years ago.
B) 75,000 years ago.
C) 200,000 years ago.
D) 500,000 years ago.
E) 1 million years ago.

Question 80

What do rituals express that spoken language alone cannot?

A) the feeling of 'we' or group connectivity
B) technical information such as regarding how to carve a turkey
C) instructions imperative for survival in harsh environments
D) ideas about our creation
E) the importance of the individual