ANTHR1 Fa04 Hominid Evolution - Practice Exam
Below for you studying enjoyment are some questions related to hominid evolution. The subject matter they deal with WILL be on your exam although I do NOT know if it will appear in the form found in Questions 1 through 11, or as multiple choice. SO BE PREPARED FOR EITHER (OR BOTH) TYPES.
1. You've discovered a 4.5 million year old fossil that you
believe to be an obligatory biped, i.e., a hominid. List 6 physical
features that your fossil MUST HAVE to be considered a hominid.
2. Below are pictures of 10 hominid species. Place them in the correct evolutionary sequence. (A = Australopithecus; H = Homo).
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3. I will give you a bar graph on which there will be a number of time span, each representing a particular hominid species. Some of the time-bars will be labeled according to a species (e.g., Ardipithecus); other time-bars will not be labeled according to species. Your job will be to correlated the hominids from Question #2 above with their time-bar like I did in class on the chalk board.
4. Below is a list of several "firsts" in hominid evolution. Place them in the correct chronological (evolutionary) sequence, beginning with the "first" first and ending with the most recent "first." Indicate your sequence using the numbers from Chuck's list. In other words, if you feel that Chuck's #4 came BEFORE everything else then your list should start with #4. Also, you should be able to associate a hominid species with each of the "firsts."
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Chuck's list |
My list |
Associated hominid species |
| 1. average brain size less than 500 ml 2. brain size between 800 1200 ml 3. burial of the dead 4. controlled use of fire 5. earliest stone tools 6. hunting of large mammals 7. leaving Africa 8. movable art like jewelry 9. movement into Europe 10. obligatory bipedalism 11. occupation of Asia 12. painting on cave walls 13. possible language centers in the brain 14. scavenging meat 15. seeds, nuts, roots as a dietary specialization |
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5. Who are Sahelanthropus and Orrorin and of what importance are they in terms of this class?
6. Who is Homo floresiensis and of what importance is it in terms of this class?
7. List three significant physical features that clearly differentiate the gracile australopithecines from the robust ones.
8. List two significant physical and two significant behavioral features that clearly differentiate all the australopithecines from the earliest forms of Homo, such as H. habilis.
9. Why did I suggest that the robust australopithecines may have used tools?
10. Who is Ardipithecus and of what importance is it in terms of this class?
11. List three significant physical and two significant behavioral features that clearly differentiate the Neanderthals from Homo sapiens.
IT'S QUITE POSSIBLE THAT I'LL DECIDE
TO GIVE YOU A STRAIGHT-FORWARD MULITPLE CHOICE EXAM. IF THAT'S
THE CASE, THE QUESTIONS WILL BE VERY SIMILAR TO THOSE BELOW. FOREWARNED
IS FOREARMED. OF COURSE, SINCE YOU KNOW JUST HOW PERVERSE I CAN
BE, I MIGHT GIVE YOU AN EXAM WITH QUESTIONS FROM ABOVE AND QUESTIONS
FROM BELOW.
1. Which species listed below was the first to use fire?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
2. Which species listed below was the first to occupy areas
outside of Africa?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
3. Which species listed below was the first to add to its diet
meat obtained by scavenging?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
4. Which species listed below is the to appear in the evolutionary
record?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
5. Which species listed below was the first to make stone tools?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
6. Which species listed below was the first to occupy the country
of Georgia?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo sapiens
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
7. Which species listed below was the first to occupy Australia
and the Americas?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
8. Which species listed below was the first to bury their dead?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
9. Which species listed below was the first to paint on the
walls of caves?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
10. Which species listed below was the first to hunt medium
to large game animals?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
11. Which species listed below was the first to paint on the
walls of caves?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
12. Which species listed below was the first to occupy Europe?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo habilis
13. Which species listed below was the first to paint on the
walls of caves?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo erectus
14. Which species below is claimed by its finders to be a hominid
dating to more than 6 million years?
a. Ardipithecus ramidus
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo neanderthalensis
d. Australopithecus robustus
e. Sahelanthropus tchadensis
15. While excavating in 8 million year old geological beds
in southern Kenya you unearth a primate fossil unlike any seen
before. After detailed examination, you feel it represents a new
species of hominid and announce to the world that you've found
the oldest known hominid. Your arch rival, Dr. Carlos de los Huesos,
disagrees and demands evidence in support of your claim for hominid
status. Which of the following pieces of evidence would be most
likely to persuade Dr. de los Huesos that your claim is valid?
a. a foramen magnum centered directly underneath the braincase
b. the presence of a small sagittal crest
c. a cranial capacity in excess of that know for modern apes
d. the presence of stone tools
e. all of the above
16. In the following list of paired traits which appear first
in the history of the hominids?
a. cranial capacities larger than modern apes / the manufacture
of stone tools
b. bipedalism / language abilities
c. language / cranial capacities larger than modern apes
d. bipedalism / the manufacture of stone tools
e. crudely made brush shelters / bipedalism
17. Which species listed below may have been the first to have
language capabilities somewhat like ours?
a. Ardipithecus ramidus
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo heidelbergensis
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo habilis
18. Which of the following food getting patterns was most likely
used by Homo habilis?
a. hunting medium-size game animals
b. trapping and fishing
c. foraging and scavenging
d. scavenging and trapping
e. all of the above
19. Which species listed below probably had a diet consisting
mainly of hard to chew items, such as seeds, nuts and roots?
a. Ardipithecus ramidus
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Australopithecus robustus
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo habilis
20. The first stone tools
a. were probably the invention of either Australopithecus afarensis
or A. africanus
b. usually occur in association with hunting activities
c. consist of flakes and the cores remaining from making the flakes
d. date to no more than 1.5 million years ago
e. were nearly always made to a standardized pattern
21. Why does the fossil hominid known as "Lucy" get
mentioned so often in textbooks and lectures on hominid evolution?
a. She's the oldest known hominid ever found
b. She lived millions of years before modern hominids and yet
looked very much like moderns in terms of her skull size and shape
c. She's the most complete pre-modern hominid skeleton ever found
d. At the time she was found, anthropologists thought humans had
evolved only about 1.75 million years ago. But Lucy was at least
twice that age and she was definitely a hominid.
e. Because her species gave rise to all later hominid species
22. To which species of hominids would the song "Come
On Baby Light My Fire" most accurately apply?
a. Homo habilis
b. Australopithecus africanus
c. Homo erectus
d. Australopithecus afarensis
e. Ardipithecus ramidus
23. In what ways are Homo erectus and the earliest anatomically
modern humans most similar?
a. brain size and cultural achievements
b. postcranial skeleton
c. the controlled use of fire and the hunting of large game animals
d. language capabilities
e. all of the above
24. Which hominid species is often said to be the first to
believe in a soul and an afterlife?
a. Homo erectus
b. Homo sapiens
c. Homo habilis
d. Homo antecessor
e. Homo neanderthalensis
25. Which of the following traits can be attributed to the
Neanderthals?
a. a wandering way of life
b. a brain larger than modern Homo sapiens
c. cave people
d. a hunting lifestyle
e. all of the above
26. The first tools to be made to a standardized pattern (i.e.
show an intentional similarity in design across time and space)
were made by
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo sapiens
d. Homo habilis
e. Homo erectus
27. The Neanderthals' skeletal morphology is most likely the
result of
a. a diet high in meat and low in vegetables
b. abnormalities due to inbreeding
c. a diet high in vegetables and low in meat protein
d. a response to their environment
e. all of the above
28. Neanderthals had a broad nasal opening and large sinus
cavities for the purpose of
a. distinguishing themselves from Homo heidelbergensis
b. taking in more oxygen to run faster and farther
c. providing increased surface area to warm and moisten air
d. smelling danger
e. finding each other in the dark
29. The earliest fossils with anatomically modern human traits
are found in
a. Africa
b. Europe
c. Australia
d. North America
e. Asia
30. Members of the genus Australopithecus are considered hominids
because
a. of their language skills
b. they made stone tools on a regular basis
c. they were habitual upright bipeds
d. they had cranial capacities within the modern range of variation
e. they made tools, controlled fire, and may have had spoken language
31. When did fully modern-looking hominids first appear in
the fossil record?
a. more than 500,000 years ago
b. 250,000 300,000 years ago
c. 150,000 200,000 years ago
d. 90,000 - 100,00 years ago
e. 50,000 - 60,000 years ago
32. Why did you instructor refer to the earliest australopithecines
as bipedal apes?
a. Because they behaved like modern chimpanzees
b. Because they resembled modern chimps in their face and skull,
but were habitual upright bipeds
c. Because they made tools very similar to modern chimpanzees
d. Because they had brains the same size as modern chimpanzees
e. All of the above
33. Your instructor has suggested that anatomically modern
humans
a. evolved simultaneously in a number of world areas out of pre-existing
Homo erectus populations
b. evolved only once, in Africa, and then spread into the rest
of the world and replaced older hominid populations
c. replaced older, pre-modern populations through a process of
warfare
d. are the result of hybridization between moderns and Neanderthals
e. are no longer evolving biologically
34. The endocasts of Homo habilis suggest that this species
a. could make wooden and bone tools
b. had extremely poor dental hygiene
c. suffered from a variety of internal parasitic infections
d. may have been capable of rudimentary human speech
e. was a dead end in human evolution
35. With reference to habitat and behavior, what do the physical
characteristics of the Neanderthals suggest?
a. They were biologically adapted to extremely cold climates
b. They were essential unchanged from Homo erectus
c. They were basically foragers and gatherers who did some scavenging
d. They were the descendants of the Paranthropus hominids
e. Both A and C
36. Early forms of the genus Homo used the long bones from
various animal species as
a. supports for crude houses
b. ornaments
c. food - they cracked them open and ate the marrow
d. weapons
e. all of the above
37. Which hominid species may be defined as a small-brained
gracile hominid with a mixed diet of fruits, new leaves, flowers,
possibly insects and scavenged meat?
a. Australopithecus africanus
b. Australopithecus robustus
c. Homo habilis
d. Homo erectus
e. Australopithecus afarensis
38. To illustrate cranial capacities of hominid species, I've
often used 500 ml water bottles. Which of the following hominid
species average cranial capacity is equal to two water bottles?
a. Australopithecus africanus
b. Australopithecus robustus
c. Homo habilis
d. Homo erectus
e. Australopithecus afarensis
39. To illustrate cranial capacities of hominid species, I've
often used 500 ml water bottles. Which of the following hominid
species average cranial capacity is equal to one and a half water
bottles?
a. Australopithecus africanus
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus afarensis
e. Homo erectus
40. To illustrate cranial capacities of hominid species, I've
often used 500 ml water bottles. Which of the following hominid
species average cranial capacity is equal to about 2/3rds of a
water bottle (or about 350 ml)?
a. Homo heidelbergensis
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Homo habilis
d. Australopithecus afarensis
e. Homo erectus
41. What is the function of the sagittal crest in the early
hominids?
a. Help maintain balance during tree climbing
b. p rovide stability to the hips during walking
c. a Anchor jaw muscles
d. signify sexual readiness during ovulation
e. none of the above
42. In the video In Search of Human Origins the narrator
suggests that with the evolution of Homo erectus major changes
in social relationships were required. What specific feature(s)
did the narrator say precipitated these social changes?
a. Hunting of large game animals which required the coordinated
effort of many males with one male becoming the leader
b. Overall increase in adult height and weight of males, leading
to male-dominated societies
c. Population density increased which lead to more frequent and
more violent encounters between groups
d. Increase in infant dependency which lead to a need for more
high quality food and the formation of male-female cooperative
units to supply food and take care of the babies
e. All of these
43. At the beginning of the twentieth century, human evolution
was believed to have begun in Asia. Then in 1925 Dr. Raymond Dart
announced the find of a fossil hominid that challenged the Asian-origin
idea. What name did Dr. Dart give to his find?
a. Australopithecus afarensis
b. Homo ergaster
c. Australopithecus robustus
d. Australopithecus africanus
e. Homo habilis
44. Why is the site of Laetoli important?
a. It has stone tools dated to more than 3.5 million years ago,
thus proving the presence of hominids in Africa at that time.
b. It contained pelvic bones in a geological context providing
the presence of hominids in Africa more than 3.5 million years
ago.
c. Because of the fossilized human footprints dated to more than
3.5 million years ago
d. There's evidence of hominid hunting behavior, especially large
game animals
e. All of the above
45. What factor led to some ape-like creatures becoming habitual
upright bipeds
a. They started standing upright to free the hands for carrying
objects and making tools
b. Being bipedal reduced the amount of solar radiation hitting
the skin and preventing them from overheating
c. They stood upright to get a view over tall grasses of the savanna
to see predators
d. To walk about on the savanna to hunt game animals.
e. We do not know what the initiating factor for habitual bipedalism
was
46. Which of the following species is the most primitive (farthest
back in time)?
a. Homo habilis
b. Australopithecus afarensis
c. Homo antecessor
d. Australopithecus robustus
e. Ardipithecus ramidus
47. Early Homo is distinguished from the australopithecines
largely by
a. Larger cranial capacity
b. Shorter stature
c. Larger noses and large sagittal crests
d. Flatter faces
e. A and D
48. You have measured the cranial capacity of an East African
hominid from around 1.6 million years ago. The measurement you
obtained is approximately 775 ml (using the analogy of the water
bottles, about 1 and 1/2 water bottles). To which species below
does your specimen most likely belong?
a. Australopithecus robustus
b. Homo neanderthalensis
c. Australopithecus africanus
d. Homo habilis
e. Homo erectus
49. The heaving pitting and scratching on Australopithecus
robustus teeth indicates they
a. Used their teeth as tools during the production of leather
items
b. Ate fruit and insects
c. Were a dead end, evolutionarily speaking
d. Ate seeds, nuts and tough vegetation, perhaps roots and bulbs
e. had a wide variety of dental problems
50. Which of the following sequences of species best reflects
the evolutionary record?
a. Homo sapiens; Homo heidelbergensis; Homo erectus; Homo habilis;
Australopithecus africanus; Australopithecus afarensis; Ardipithecus
ramidus
b. Homo sapiens; Homo erectus; Homo heidelbergensis; Australopithecus
africanus; Homo habilis; Australopithecus afarensis; Ardipithecus
ramidus
c. Homo sapiens; Homo heidelbergensis; Homo erectus; Homo habilis;
Australopithecus africanus; Ardipithecus ramidus; Australopithecus
afarensis
d. Homo sapiens; Homo neanderthalensis; Homo heidelbergensis;
Homo erectus; Homo habilis; Australopithecus africanus; Australopithecus
afarensis; Ardipithecus ramidus
e. Homo sapiens; Homo neanderthalensis; Homo heidelbergensis;
Homo habilis; Homo erectus; Australopithecus africanus; Australopithecus
afarensis; Ardipithecus ramidus
