Chapter 2 The Evolution of Humanity and Culture
MULTIPLE CHOICE
1. Most nonhuman primate species are __________.
A) arboreal and terrestrial
B) arboreal, quadrupedal, and diurnal
C) terrestrial, bipedal, and nocturnal
D) arboreal, bipedal, and nocturnal
2. __________ is the term applied to nonhuman primates whose diet is not specialized.
A) Frugivore
B) Folivore
C) Gummivore
D) Omnivore
3. The only great ape found in Asia is the __________.
A) chimpanzee
B) orangutan
C) bonobo
D) gorilla
4. Gorillas live in what type of social group?
A) single-male, multi-female
B) male only
C) fission-fusion
D) solitary
5. A main difference between chimpanzees and bonobos is that __________.
A) chimpanzees are more social than bonobos
B) chimpanzees are more bipedal than bonobos
C) bonobos use sexual interactions to prevent conflict
D) bonobos are genetically much closer to humans than chimpanzees
6. Current paleoanthropological evidence indicates that the human ancestral line diverged from that of the living
great apes __________ million years ago.
A) 1–2
B) 2–3
C) 4–8
D) 8–15
7. An example of nonhuman primate culture is __________.
A) sign language when the group decides to migrate
B) female chimpanzees wearing leaves around their waist
C) certain forms of greeting such as the raised hand clasp
D) making musical sounds
8. The earliest known primitive hominin is __________.
A) Sahelanthropus tchadensis
B) Orrorin tugenensis
C) Homo floresiensis
D) Australopithecus afarensis
9. The fossil Lucy fits in the category of __________.
A) early hominins
B) archaic Homo
C) Neanderthals
D) Homo floresiensis
10. Homo habilis is associated with a toolset called __________.
A) microlithic
B) Oldowan
C) Acheulian
D) Mousterian
11. __________ are bifacial stone tools dating to about 1.7 million years ago and named for a site in France.
A) Riviera spear points
B) Acheulian handaxes
C) Loire axes
D) Mousterian choppers
12. Evidence suggests that the first hominins left Africa __________ years ago.
A) 10,000
B) 100,000
C) around 2 million
D) more than 20 million
13. Most known Neanderthal sites in Western Europe are located __________.
A) in caves and rock shelters
B) in open savanna areas
C) on mountain slopes
D) in forested areas
14. The most recently discovered species of Homo, a dwarfed form found on an island in the Pacific, has been
named __________.
A) H. erectus
B) H. baliensis
C) H. floresiensis
D) H. sapiens
15. Most Neanderthal fossils are found in association with toolkits referred to as __________.
A) Oldowan
B) Acheulian
C) Proto-European
D) Mousterian
16. Archaeologist Ian Gilligan differentiates between what two types of clothing and their thermal effectiveness in
situations of extreme cold in explaining Neanderthal extinction?
A) Mousterian and Oldowan
B) simple and complex
C) handmade and manufactured
D) Neolithic and Paleolithic
17. Tapeworm infections in archaic Homo likely indicate that the species __________.
A) did not have a varied diet
B) ate meat
C) cultivated food crops
D) lived in groups with at least 30 members
18. The Upper Paleolithic is characterized by what kind of technology?
A) microlithic technology
B) Levallois technique
C) projectile points
D) core and flake technology
19. __________ were the first modern humans in Europe.
A) Homo floresiensis
B) Homo habilis
C) Cro-Magnon
D) Archaic Homo
20. Cave art, wall paintings of animals, portable art, and figurine sculptures are distinguishing features of the
__________ period in Europe.
A) archaic
B) Neolithic
C) sedentism
D) Upper Paleolithic
21. Where is the earliest evidence of the Neolithic revolution found?
A) Greece
B) Kenya
C) Mesopotamia
D) China
22. A __________ is a mound created by the accumulation of generations of human occupations.
A) clovis
B) fossil
C) tell
D) ziggurat
23. Which of the following plants is the oldest known domesticate?
A) gourd
B) wheat
C) maize
D) rice
24. Evidence suggests that the most important factor leading to sedentism in the Western Hemisphere was
__________.
A) population pressure
B) climate change
C) lack of large game
D) cultivation of maize
25. The domestication of __________ was the first step in the transition to the Neolithic in Africa.
A) cattle
B) wheat
C) millet
D) goats
26. What was the most important factor leading to state formation in the Andes?
A) warfare
B) class stratification
C) population pressure
D) maize cultivation
TRUE/FALSE
27. Like humans, most primate species are highly social.
28. The most common primate social group is the multi-male/multi-female group.
29. Bonobos frequently use sexual contact, including genital–genital rubbing, to prevent and resolve social conflicts.
30. H. erectus is the first species of hominin widely distributed across the Old World.
31. Oldowan tools were probably only one of the types of tools made and used by their makers.
32. As modern humans migrated out of Africa they initially settled in the Middle East.
33. The average Neanderthal brain was about half the size of that of modern humans.
34. Analysis of Neanderthal DNA suggests that Neanderthals and modern humans interbred in the Middle East
around 100,000 years ago.
35. The first domesticated animal was the horse.
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36. Mesopotamia means “the land of high mountains.”
ESSAY
37. What characteristics distinguish the order of primates from other mammals? What are two elements of primate
morphology that enable behaviors that are characteristic of primates?
38. Define culture in a way that is relevant to nonhuman primates and discuss examples from various species.
39. Describe the work of primatologist Biruté Galdikas in terms of both her research and her advocacy on behalf of
orangutans.
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40. Describe the emergence of anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens) with a general timeline, a description
of their earliest geographical distribution, and one way they are morphologically different from other species of
Homo.
41. Discuss two major stone tool traditions, their context (hominins that used them, location), and possible functions.
42. What are the three dominant hypotheses regarding why archaic Homo left Africa?
43. Describe how the Neanderthals’ survival as a species was affected by their ability to withstand cold weather, and
how they may have died out according to Ian Gilligan’s theory.
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44. Discuss the achievements of modern humans in Europe during the Upper Paleolithic.
45. Describe the early Mesopotamian city of Uruk.
46. Describe the characteristics of early states. What is one way that states in the Old World differed from those in
the New World?