Deck 1: Introducing World Prehistory

Question 1

Archaeology and biological anthropology provide an intricate account of human evolution and cultural development that extends back how many years?

A) 10,000 years.
B) 500,000 years.
C) 1,000,000 years.
D) 2,500,000 years.

Answer 1

2,500,000 years.

Question 2

Origin myths facilitate relationships between members of a human society with all of the following except for …

A) plants and animals.
B) competing societies.
C) celestial beings.
D) spirits.

Answer 2

competing societies.

Question 3

Which of the following provides simple, convenient explanations of complex event?

A) Quasi-archaeology.
B) Pseudoarchaeology.
C) Interpretive archaeology.
D) Cultural anthropology.

Answer 3

Pseudoarchaeology.

Question 4

Which of the following do archaeologists use to study prehistoric human societies?

A) Material remains.
B) Legends.
C) Agriculture.
D) Records and archives.

Question 5

Prehistory can be divided into how many major stages?

A) Two.
B) Six.
C) Four.
D) Five.

Question 6

The oldest written records were from how many years ago?

A) 3,000 years ago.
B) 5,000 years ago.
C) 10,000 years ago.
D) 25,000 years ago.

Question 7

All of the following are basic steps of archaeological research except for …

A) investigation of creation myths.
B) discovery and research design.
C) artifact and data collection.
D) laboratory analysis and interpretation.

Question 8

Which of the following sources do archaeologists find the most objective?

A) Archaeological data.
B) Oral histories.
C) Written records.
D) Publicly sanctioned histories.

Question 9

Archaeologists and local communities see the past through different lenses. Archaeologists see the past as scientific data to be studied; local people view their past as …

A) a prophecy of the future.
B) myth and legend.
C) belonging to their ancestors.
D) something to exploit.

Question 10

An appropriate analogy for the study of prehistory would be a …

A) flowing river.
B) branching tree.
C) repeating circle.
D) diminishing spiral.

Question 11

Archaeologists studying spatial locations examine the distances between …

A) objects or dwellings.
B) entire settlements.
C) settlements and agricultural zones.
D) All of these.

Question 12

Ethnoarchaeology is the study of the material culture of whom?

A) Prehuman populations.
B) Neanderthals.
C) Prehistoric peoples.
D) Living peoples.

Question 13

When archaeologists use the term "ethnographic present" to describe a prehistoric society, what are they referencing?

A) The culture that existed before contamination by Western civilization.
B) The remnants of a prehistoric culture in modern society.
C) The culture that presently exists in a specific region.
D) The culture that existed at the height of a prehistoric society.

Question 14

Which of the following methods would an archaeologist use to date a house timber from a recent prehistoric site in the American Southwest?

A) Potassium-argon dating.
B) Dendrochronology.
C) Radiocarbon dating.
D) Uranium series.

Question 15

Which of the following dating methods would be the most accurate to use on a sample of charcoal?

A) Potassium-argon dating.
B) Dendrochronology.
C) Radiocarbon dating.
D) Uranium series.

Question 16

If an archaeologically trained fossil hunter located a hominid bone embedded in lava, which of the following methods would be the best way to finds its age?

A) Potassium-argon dating.
B) Dendrochronology.
C) Radiocarbon dating.
D) Uranium series.

Question 17

Multilinear cultural evolution uses which of the following to explain prehistory?

A) Long-term equilibrium.
B) Cycles of change.
C) Population growth.
D) Environmental limitations.

Question 18

When archeologists divide prestate societies into smaller units, they use the following categories except for …

A) tribes.
B) bands.
C) chiefdoms.
D) extended families.

Question 19

Which of the following items do archaeologists not consider to be intangibles?

A) Mythical beliefs.
B) Societal motivations.
C) Artistic drawings.
D) Ancient ideologies.

Question 20

Star Wars featured the character Scotty.

Question 21

Define and then discuss the differences between history and prehistory. What are some of the challenges archaeologists face in studying ancient prehistory?

Question 22

Discuss the various ways that people connect to the past and how these differ from the scientific approach used by archaeologists.

Question 23

Discuss the many elements that contribute to a society's culture. What are the limitations to understanding a prehistoric culture from only artifacts and other physical remains?

Question 24

Select one of the descriptive models for culture change (inevitable variation, invention, diffusion, migration). Explain how the change is created, transmitted, and the effect the change could have on a prehistory culture.

Question 25

Explain briefly the culture-as-adaptation model of human prehistory.