Required Textbook

Introduction to Physical Anthropology. 2013-2014/15th edition, Jurmain, Kilgore, Trevathan, & Ciochon

Directions: Answer ALL four of the following questions/prompts in complete sentences and paragraphs. Type your answers directly in the text entry box below. You will be graded on the level of detail you include in your essays and the accuracy of the information you present. This exam is open-book so I expect you to include specific details from the textbook. Do not use direct quotes from the textbook, paraphrase the information you learned from your readings while answering the questions. 

Question 1

Describe the Pleistocene epoch and its pre-modern human hominin inhabitants including anatomy, culture, and subsistence? What climatic and geographic features characterized this period of time?

Question 2

What are the origins of anatomically modern humans, Homo sapiens? Which evolutionary model for the origin of modern humans is most convincing? Discuss each of the theoretical models (the Complete Replacement Model, the Regional Continuity Model, and the Partial Replacement Model) as each relates to origin of anatomically modern humans (Homo sapiens). Please use the genetic and morphological evidence presented in the textbook to support your answer.

Question 3

What is race? How do anthropologists problematize the concept of race and biological determinism? How do anthropologists account for and explain variations between populations of anatomically modern humans, especially regarding differences in skin color? 

Question 4

Describe contemporary variations and adaptations among modern human populations beyond skin color. How do our bodies acclimatize to changes in weather (hot/cold) and altitude? What has been the impact of infectious diseases within human populations and how have they (diseases) influenced evolutionary change?