Eastlake High School Anthropology Questions

1. Which set of shared derived homologies separate the Tribe Hominini from the Tribe Panini?

a. prehensile tails

b. habitual erect bipedalism  

c. large brain to body size

d. opposable thumbs

e. mammary glands

2. Paleoanthropologists believe the task of interpreting early hominin evolution is __________.

a. is still not complete

b. is complete

c. does not require a chronological framework

d. does not require assigning taxonomic names to fossil materials

3. According to the fossil record, hominins have been evolving over the last 6 million years, spanning two epochs, which are marked by climate ___________.

a. fluctuations

b. neither of these; past climates cannot be determined

c. stability

4. The first concrete evidence of stone tool manufacture comes from a site in Ethiopia dated at 2.6 million before the present (BP).

a. true

b. false

5. Which two of the following are the earliest species of the genus Homo?

a. homo erectus 

b. homo habilis

c. Homo sapiens

d. Homo neandertalensis

e. Homo rudolfensis

6. The genus Homo differs from the australopithecines in several ways, including _____________. (mark all that apply)

a. greater cranial capacity and no sagittal crests

b. habitual erect bipedalism

c. pentadactylism

d. smaller premolars and molars

7. Which of the following characteristics are associated with genus Homo, as compared to the genera Australopithecus and Paranthropus? (mark all that apply)

a. canines that hone with the lower third molars

b. larger cranial capacity

c. less sexual dimorphism

d.  habitual erect bipedalism

8. The earliest species to be found outside of the African continent is _________.

a. Australopithecus afarensis

b. homo habilis

c. homo erectus

d. homo sapiens

9. Fossilized remains of Homo erectus have been found in ________. (mark all that apply)

a. Europe

b. Southern, Northern, and Eastern Africa

c. Western and Eastern Asia

d. South America

10. The cranial capacity of Homo erectus was __________.

a. greater than the average neanderthal

b. within chimp range

c. within the lower range of variation of modern humans

d. greater than the average modern human

11. Evidence of meat-eating is widespread across Homo erectus sites.

a. true

b. false

12. The Smithsonian Institution timeline says that Homo erectus was able to control fire, beginning about ____________ . (http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-evolution-timeline-interactive (Links to an external site.))

a. none of these

b. 1.89 million years ago

c. 143,000 years ago

d. 800,000 years ago

13. Control of fire by hominins would have ___________. (mark all that apply)

a. allowed for the cooking of food

b. provided warmth necessary to move into cooler regions

c. increased the intensity of social interactions

d. extended their niche by providing light in the evening

14. Fossil evidence suggests that Homo erectus was the most successful species in the genus, having survived for at least 1.5 million years.

a. true

b. false

15. Fossils found on the island of Flores, Indonesia suggest that descendants of Homo erectus, or a closely related species known as Homo floresiences, may have lived up to 18,000 years ago.

a. true

b. false

16. According to the Smithsonian Institutions’ timeline, Neandertals are a highly variable population of the genus Homo, that lived throughout Europe from about 400,000 to 40,000 years ago. (http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-family-tree (Links to an external site.))

a. true

b. false

17. Although local populations varied, Neandertals were on the average ____________ than modern humans.

a. physically weaker

b. shorter and more muscular

c. taller and more muscular

d. more gracile

18. Neandertals are the first hominin species known to bury their dead in individual graves.

a. true 

b. false

19. Michael White (Pacific Standard, 2015), reviews recent genomic research, which suggests that Anatomically Modern Humans and Neanderthals interbred in some regions.

a. true

b. false

20. Evidence suggests that Neandertals ___________ . (mark all that apply)

a. experienced injuries while hunting

b. adapted to a cold environment

c. were capable of symbolic behavior

d. buried their dead and cared for the infirm 

http://humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/homo-neanderthalensis