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Tyler Gach
Study Guide 2-2 – Kottak, Chapter 8
Chapter 8: Early Hominins
1. Identify the four key human attributes and their significance for hominin evolution.
The significance of Erect Posture is that Hominin can do things properly and more accurately
because they can properly utilize their body, plus they became more efficient and effective. And
this helps their evolution. Second is their bipedal locomotion, it helps the Hominin to be able to
go to place faster, and their actions became faster. It helps them to hunt and provide food
efficiently. The third is their larger brains this really helps them to be able to think and at least
produced a sense of language though not as articulate as we are, but they have a greater way to
communicate with each other that really helps their evolution. And last is their behavioral
characteristics such as specialized tool use and, in some cases, communication through language.
These behaviors made their living easier than the earlier species.
2. Identify the earliest hominins, their approximate dates of existence, and their connection to
australopiths and to Homo.
The most popular early hominin is Ardipithecus ramidus, a 4.4-million-year-old species from
Ethiopia, which is referred to from an almost complete skeleton just as various other dental and
skeletal remaining parts. The oldest hominins currently known are Sahelanthropus and Orrorin.
Sahelanthropus, dated to somewhere in the range of 6 and 7 mya, is known from a generally
complete skull and other fragmentary remaining parts. Its mind size, 360cc, is inside the reach
found in chimpanzees, and the skull has a gigantic temple edge, comparable in thickness to male
