ANTHROPOLOGY 103, STUDY AID #1, PART 1 LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO
DR. CALCAGNO, FALL 2017 EXAM 1: Thursday, 9/28/2017
WEEK 1:
1)​ ​What is anthropology, and what are the major “hallmarks” of the anthropological approach?
Anthropology is the study of mankind. Five hallmarks:
Holistic - Integrating diverse knowledge without compartmentalizing
Comparative
Focus on non-western/non-industrialized groups
Emphasizes culture - Learned traditions/patterns of thought/behavior
Fieldwork to collect more data
2)​ ​List the “four fields” of anthropology, and write 1-2 sentences regarding the focus of each.
Biological - Represents the role genetics, evolution, etc., has on humans.
Archaeological - Cultural remains. What is left behind from older civilizations and what it
says about their cultures.
Cultural - The study of humans and civilization today.
Linguistic - Relates to languages and how it developed
3)​ ​What is science, and scientific literacy (3 aspects)?
Science is a way of knowing.
3 Aspects
Facts - Claims about the world’s empirical content, based on experiment.
Process - Method of knowing; Scientific Method.
Note: Tests support claims, not prove. Can disprove Scientific Theories.
Impact of Science and technology on society; and vice versa
4)​ ​How does the scientific method differ from religious beliefs and philosophical ideas?
Every claim has be tested and has not been proven false. However, is testable and
could be proven false\
5)​ ​What is “scientific creationism” or “intelligent design”, and why are they not scientific
theories?
SC is the belief humans were created unchanged by God, and ID is the belief life is a
result of an intelligent “designer”. Not science because it’s not based in scientific fact, not
falsifiable.
6)​ ​How do the meanings of “facts and theories” differ between their scientific and more popular
usages?
In science, facts can change, and theories are heavily tested before being accepted as a
theory
7)​ ​Is evolution a fact or a theory, or both? What did I mean when I said, “if one doesn’t believe
in evolution, it says a lot about how one views data in general”? Do you agree, and why should
this be a concern?
Evolution is a scientific theory. The quote means if you don’t believe in evolution, you
ignore overwhelming data that supports it, leaving data as essentially irrelevant. It’s a
concern because that means one would reject science and this class in general
WEEK 2:
1)​ ​What are positive and negative correlations?
Give examples. ​Positive: two variables change in the same direction (eg. the steeper the incline
of the slide the faster you will go);
Negative: as one variable increases the other decreases (eg. the more you brush your
teeth the less plaque you will have)
2)​ ​Why is it so important to understand that a correlation is not necessarily a cause, and that
the most logical solution is not necessarily correct? Give examples illustrating those points well.
Correlation does not mean causation (eg. as ice cream sales rise so do murder rates more likely summertime is the real connection); most logical solution or explanation is
not necessarily correct (eg. lots of Jesuit schools in big cities with high crime rates does
not mean Jesuits and crime are related - it just means that big cities are a draw for both
Jesuit schools and criminals)
3)​ ​As a scientist, and as a critical thinker in general, what approaches are needed?
1) be skeptical (within reason)
2) test ideas (when possible)
3) use real evidence - not opinions (which could change)
4) be a critical thinker (by doing all of the above)
4)​ ​Why do many people think that human biology and behavior is a dangerous area of scientific
study? What is your opinion?
It is very easy to get racist and stereotypical and to make large assumptions; also
every person is different so it’s hard to generalize; not dangerous to study as long as we
are unbiased, careful ethically, and are able to analyze all angles and points of view
5)​ ​What was the nature-nurture controversy at itso extreme in the early 1900s? ​Is human nature
innate or do we develop our personalities and behaviors over time through society and
our environment
·​ ​Think about “Social Darwinism” (what was it?) ​Some people are inferior, and should die
·​ ​the eugenics movement (what was it?): ​improving humankind via ‘selective breeding’
·​ ​a “racial approach” (what is it and must it be racist?): ​typological (classifying people into
different types (races) and lists traits that typify each) gets racist real fast; static
approach (not evolutionary): change only due to ‘mixing races’ not within race itself
·​ ​biological determinism (define in your own words): ​all human behavior is innate, determined
by genes, brain size, or other biological attributes (nature)
·​ ​and other late 19th/early 20th century views and approaches (e.g., usage of craniometry and
IQ testing) regarding human variation in physical and behavioral traits. ​In late 1800’s:
craniometry used to estimate intelligence and behavioral qualities; in early 1900’s: IQ
tests designed and assume heredity/genes explain individual differences (eg. Yerkes
Beta exam for immigrants)
6)​ ​Why is it important to remember these issues throughout the course?
They are not just academic arguments without social consequences
7)​ ​What is sociobiology and when does it appear?​ To explain why animals behave the way that
they do.
8)​ ​Are concerns about past research in the late 1800s/early 1900s relevant to modern studies
of biology and behavior?
Nah. We were super racist and were categorizing people based on the color of their skin
and their ‘race’
9)​ ​Understand and be able to use the following terms: <Note: I usually don’t ask you to define
specific terms, but terms may be used on the test, so be able to apply them or recognize them
without asking what they mean.>
·​ ​holistic: ​studying human nature as a whole
·​ ​cultural anthropology: ​anthropology that deals with human culture especially with respect to
social structure, language, law, politics, religion, magic, art, and technology
·​ ​biocultural: ​combination of biological anthropology and sociocultural anthropology
·​ ​empirical: ​based on observation or experience
·​ ​testable: ​all scientific claims must be testable
·​ ​falsifiable : ​Able to be made false
·​ ​“facts”: ​claims about the world’s empirical content
·​ ​theory: ​a supposition or a system of facts intended to explain something, especially one
based on general principles independent of the thing to be explained
·​ ​“blank slate” (empiricism): ​differences in human minds/behaviors are solely due to
experience - no innate differences in human beings (LOCKE)
·​ ​“noble savage” (romanticism): ​humans in natural, pre-civilization conditions where they are
selfless, peace-loving, untroubled (ROUSSEAU)
·​ ​“ghost in the machine” (dualism): ​body and mind are separate - mind (ghost) continues
beyond death of body (machine) (DESCARTES)
·​ ​reification: ​complex qualities (eg. intelligence) can be accurately measured and ranked by a
single number
·​ ​Yerkes Beta Exam: ​immigration test given to scan and assume heredity/genes - selective
breeding
·​ ​Racism: ​prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race
based on the belief that one's own race is superior
·​ ​“survival of the fittest”: ​the idea that the fittest individuals of a population will survive - this is
not a thing - natural selection is about reproduction not survival
·​ ​1924 US Immigration Act: ​influenced by eugenics, the 1924 immigration act limits ‘racial
dilution’ especially poor and unskilled - anti catholic/jew/black
·​ ​behaviorism: ​the theory that human and animal behavior can be explained in terms of
conditioning, without appeal to thoughts or feelings, and that psychological disorders are
best treated by altering behavior patterns
·​ ​anecdote: ​a usually short narrative of an interesting, amusing, or biographical incident (only
thing in my notes about anecdotes is that science is not just anecdotes). This could be talking
about anecdotal evidence or that anecdotes dont follow the scientific method
·​ ​cross-cultural: ​u​ses field data from many societies to examine the scope of human behavior and
test hypotheses about human behavior and culture
·​ ​paradigm: ​interpretive framework to unify/interpret observations - don’t want to be data rich
but idea poor
·​ p
​ roximate & ultimate question: ​proximate - ‘how’ behavior is done; ultimate - ‘why’ behavior is
done
·​ ​species: ​Individuals who can potentially interbreed and produce FERTILE offspring
·​ ​population: ​group within a species where mates are usually found
·​ ​individual: ​one member of a species
plus connect key ideas from class to
Locke: ​blank slate - empiricism
Rousseau: ​noble savage - romanticism; strong contrast with Thomas Hobbes
Hobbes: ​believed humans were born inherently evil and would fight with one another without
proper leadership (monarchy) (asshole)
Descartes: ​the ghost in the machine - dualism
Spencer: ​supporter of the eugenics movement but less involved
Darwin: ​father of evolution; finches; natural selection
LeBon:​ sexist psychologist in 1800’s who said that female brains are the same size as gorillas
(other asshole)
Laughlin: ​in 1922, Laughlin develops ‘model eugenical sterilization law’ in us - standards to
‘improve’ existing laws and add more states, defiles socially inadequate classes
Lombroso: ​developed ‘criminal anthropology’ in the 1870’s with craniometrics
Galton: ​coined the eugenics movement - VERY ACTIVE
Mead: ​“coming of age in Samoa”; cultural diversity shapes us - biology has no role in shaping
human behavior
Watson: ​cultural diversity shapes us; behaviorism - blank slate nurture); anti-evolutionary and
anti-hereditary
E.O. Wilson: ​“sociogiology: the new synthesis” in 1975; work called ‘paradigm-defining’;
synthesizes important research ideas in 1960’s early 70’s to bring evolutionary biology to
behavior; controversy on final chapter on humans -> labeled (UNFAIRLY) as a racist
biological determinist; simply arguing that biological universals exist
ANTHROPOLOGY 103, STUDY AID #1, PART 2 LOYOLA UNIVERSITY CHICAGO DR.
CALCAGNO, FALL 2017 EXAM 1: Thursday, 9/28/2017
Below are some basic guidelines to prepare for Exam 1 material from Weeks 3-5. Please follow
the same opening comments from Part 1 of this study aid. Be sure to complete Part 1 before
starting Part 2.
WEEK 3:
1) Define evolution. ​Evolution: Change in gene frequency over time
2) What are the 4 forces of evolution? ​Natural selection, mutation (random changes in DNA),
gene flow (interbreeding between populations), genetic drift (random changes in gene
frequencies - not DNA)
3) Explain how these 4 forces could have worked to produce the different species of finches
found on the Galapagos Islands today, and be able to recognize each of the 4 forces if given a
new example. Focus most on and understand natural selection.
Darwin noticed finches had either thick beaks or small beaks - bigger beaks could break
seeds easier but smaller beads could get berries/larvae easier
4) KNOW the 3 basic premises put forth by Darwin as presented in class, and use them to
explain an example of natural selection.
1) individuals within a species tend to over-reproduce - but not all individuals can survive
2) great variation exists among individuals within a species - with respect to certain traits,
some individuals are more ‘fit’ than others
3) the ‘more fit’ individuals reproduce more - if desired trait is genetically based, the trait
will increase in frequency over time
5) Think of other (or make up) examples and explain them in the same way.
6) How does directional selection differ from stabilizing selection?
stabilizing selection: nature pushing for middle ground (human birth weight - babies
aren’t too heavy or too light) - like Goldilocks
directional selection: nature pushing in one direction (antibiotic resistance - more
antibodies)
7) How can reproductive success (RS) be measured?
On average, how many babies do you have that survive to reproductive age
8) Why are RS and especially lifetime RS hard to measure?
Who has time to follow all of these animals around? That’s why we use birds - shorter
lifespan
9) If individuals with genotype AA average 20 offspring, AB averages 40, and BB averages 80 in
a population, what would the relative fitness values be for each genotype? Your class notes
should contain multiple questions (or relevant answers to questions) under examples about
“swifts” and “gulls”: be able to understand the answers.
¼, ½, 1; relative fitness: RS/highest RS
10) Give examples of how selection can act on behavior.
1) lovebirds (african parrots) have two closely related species - nest building - sp 1
carries things in beak to build nest and sp 2 tucks in tail feathers; hybrids are sterile
(so parents are different species) and are initially confused about how to carry things
for nest but 2 yrs later they’re 100% successful
2) closely related gulls, kittiwakes and ground-nesting gulls; ground-nesting gulls remove
shells from nest, and smells babies to recognize them
-some genetic predisposition exists for behavioral tendencies (eg. build this nest, swim
towards the ocean, etc.) THEREFORE we can’t be a total blank slate because we giggle
as babies
-predisposition can be overridden due to experience/environment (we learn not to cry in
public)
11) What are divergent and convergent evolution, and how do they help us understand the
evolution of traits?
Divergent evolution: different traits/behaviors in closely related species in different
environments
Convergent evolution: similar traits/behaviors in unrelated species in similar
environments
Evolutionary principles help explain/predict behavior - answer the ‘ultimate questions’
and aren’t just descriptive
12) How does haplodiploid reproduction differ from our own?
Males develop from unfertilized eggs and are haploid, females develop from fertilized
eggs and are diploid. Therefore, males half half the number of chromosomes that
females do.
13) What is implied by: P1 + G1 + E1 = P2.
Current phenotype + genetic makeup + current environment = biological phenotype
14) Although your genetic make-up (DNA) doesn’t change in your lifetime, does “G” change
over time in the previous equation?
The genes themselves don’t change but the genetic influence/activation will. Eg. humans
are born with puberty genes at birth but they’re not activated until we turn 12 or 13. Once
they’re activated, hormones in the bloodstream can activate a sequence of biological
changes.
15) Explain how the honeybee example helps us answer the question: If two individuals are
biologically different, must they be genetically different?
You can be biologically different but genetically the same. Queen bees and worker bees
are both diploid females who are genetically the same. The queen bee is fed a special
food (an outside force acts upon her) and she grows bigger, has fertile eggs, and
reproduces. These genes were present in the worker bees as well, but they were
activated in the Queen Bee.
16) What is “nature vs. nurture” problematic, and what is meant by “nature via nurture”?
Nature vs nurture is problematic because they both play into who we are - they are not
mutually exclusive. Nature via nurture is better because they are an interacting blend.
WEEKS 4 and 5:
1) What is the difference between single-gene, polygenic, and pleiotropic inheritance?
Single-gene: one gene influences one trait (height in pea plants)
Polygenic inheritance: one trait influenced by multiple genes (human height, skin color,
etc.)
Pleiotropic inheritance: one gene affecting multiple traits (PKU - disorder caused by
deficient enzyme - causes diminished mental capacity, eczema, lighter pigmentation)
2) If there are complex human social behaviors under genetic influence, are they likely to be
under single-gene or polygenic influence?
“If a complex behavioral trait in humans has a ‘genetic predisposition’ it is most likely
polygenic.”
3) How does polygenic inheritance affect our ability to try to understand the genetic basis of
human traits (i.e., think about the complex interactions of genotype and environment on the
phenotype).
Genetic influence is very hard to comprehend. The environment is also very important in
determining the phenotype - eg. children who grow up in poverty are likely to be shorter
4) What is group selection and why is it not favored by many evolutionary biologists today?
Group Selection: Individuals will act ‘selflessly’ for the better of the group (super
controversial because when deer are being hunted the slowest one doesn’t sacrifice
itself it’s just too slow - similarly the wolves don’t take turns eating the deer they all go at
it at once)
Why not favored: animals don’t act for the good of the group - they behave to maximize
the number of copies of their genes passed onto the next generation
5) What is kin selection, and how does it differ from group selection while also helping solve
Darwin’s dilemma regarding altruism?
Kin Selection: Individuals will act ‘selflessly’ if it will help their kin survive to reproduce
Group Selection: Individuals will act ‘selflessly’ for the better of the group (super
controversial because when deer are being hunted the slowest one doesn’t sacrifice
itself it’s just too slow - similarly the wolves don’t take turns eating the deer they all go at
it at once)
Help solve: kin selection is better than group selection because Darwin believes that
animals act selfishly to pass on their own genes. It wouldn’t make sense for an individual
to help the group because their genes won’t get passed on but it would make sense for
them to help kin because they share genes.
6) What is inclusive fitness?
Inclusive fitness: personal RS plus enhancing RS of close biological kin (the likelihood
that your genes will be passed on)
7) Why do some behaviors that once seemed "altruistic" appear to be "selfish" using a kin
selection model? Give examples.
Even if they are sacrificing themselves, they may protect others of their species. Many
species have an alarm call that will alert other members of their species of a predator or
danger in the area. While this may seem selfless, within these species, one gender
tends to leave the group which would mean that all of the women or men leftover are
related. When one female bird calls an alarm, she is warning all of her female kin which
thus insures that her genes will continue to be spread.
8) What are coefficients of relatedness (r), and know some basic examples (grandparents,
parents, children, aunts/uncles to nieces/nephews, and first cousins).
Coefficients of relatedness: How related you are/how many genes you share with kin
Examples: parent/offspring: r=½
Siblings: r=½
Stepsiblings: r=¼
Grandparent/grandchild: r=¼
Aunt or uncle/niece or nephew: r=¼
First cousins: r=⅛
Unrelated: r=0
9) What are the major differences between these and haplodiploid organisms regarding
relatedness?
Queen/offspring: r=½
Sisters/workers (sterile): r=¾
Queen/workers: r=½
Workers/males: r=¼
Inclusive fitness for workers based entirely on kin RS because personal RS = 0
10) How might that help us understand worker bee behavior and how sterile castes continue?
-​Inclusive fitness for workers based entirely on kin RS because personal RS = 0
-some of the ¾ related larvae will become queen
-all of dads contributions are identical
-sisters are more related than they would be to their own offspring
11) What is the “Green Beard Effect”? ​Someone with a green beard saves you. Then you meet
other people with a green beard maybe. Then you have a good feeling and can trust
people with green beards because one time someone with a green beard saved you.
12) Why is Group Selection making a comeback, especially with human behavior (also see
Chap 10 on “Neo-Group Selection” and reciprocal altruism)? ​Some people don’t pick the cake
for the recipe (genotype) or the taste (phenotype) but for the advertising/ideologies of the
company; humans are the species with unprecedented cooperation among unrelated
individuals - we work together to help each other after natural disasters and do the wave
at football games; LARGER POPULATIONS TAKE ON A KIN GROUP MENTALITY
(motherland, brotherhood, etc)
13) What are ethnic markers?: ​eg. green beard - things we look for in people that will allow us to
trust them or not
14) What is sexual selection?: ​selects traits that attract mates
15) How does it differ from natural selection?: ​selects traits that enhance the passing on of
copies of genes through any other route
16) What is the difference between intrasexual and inter-sexual selection? Give examples.
Intraexual (within one sex): competition within one sex for access to the opposite
“choosier” sex - male-male competition
Intersexual (between sexes): sex having a greater evolutionary investment in individual
gametes/offspring should be “choosier” when mating - female choice
17) Do animals have to know why a behavior is beneficial in order to perform a particular
behavior? - explain.
No. Birds who don’t fly into brick walls continue to carry on that gene but don’t realize
they’re surviving because they’re not running into walls
18) What important cautions must be kept in mind when noting general ideas about sexual
selection and how males and females behave?
1) argument that males mate with many females and females are choosy ONLY applies
to situations where paternal investment needed to successfully raise offspring is
negligible
2) females still compete with each other and fend for themselves (especially in humans)
3) it’s not really about ‘male or female’ but about who has the most limited resources
(often females) eg. decorated cricket males produce big spermatophore which is partly
eaten by the female and partly fertilized - this is costly for males and reduces weight by
25-40% - now males must be choosy for good females and females compete
19) How does evolutionary theory help us understand animal behavior, beyond just the
description of behavior?
Correlate - find patterns
Evaluate - adaptive significance
Predict - under what circumstances will we find this behavior
20) Do animals need to be aware of how their behavior affects their RS?
Nope. The bird who guards his mate doesn’t think ‘hmm I should sit here for 10 minutes
to make sure that no one else fucks my gal’
Terms for Weeks 3-5:
Neo-group Selectionism: ​The idea that some heritable traits may be maladaptive for the
individual but adaptive for the group - When A dominates B but a group of B’s dominate
a group of A’s. eg. Put a group of the most fertile chickens together and they will lay less
eggs than the less fertile chickens. Many people see room for this in humans but it is
controversial because it is usually connected with group selection.
Kin Selection: ​Individuals act selflessly for the better of their kin
Group Selection: ​Individuals act selflessly for the better of their species/group
multi-level selection (see p.362): ​A cake recipe is a genotype and how the cake tastes is the
phenotype. ‘Genotype’ people say that the recipe is what is passed on but ‘phenotype’
people say that people select the cake for its taste. There are recipe/environment
interactions where bakers differ in their skill levels, cakes bake differently at various
altitudes, etc. Your cake company isn’t selling enough cakes. Do you change the recipe
or the baker? IS EVOLUTION BEST UNDERSTOOD BY FOCUSING ON THE
GENOTYPE OR THE PHENOTYPE?
Pairbonded vs tournament
Pair-Bonded
Tournament
Male parental behavior
extensive
minimal
Male mating pickiness
high
low
Variability in male reproductive
success
low
high
Testes size, sperm count
small/low
large/high
Levels of male-male aggression
low
high
Degree of sexual dimorphism in
body weight, physiology, coloration,
and life span
low
high
Females select for
parenting skill
good genes
Rates of cuckoldry
high
low
Evolution: ​change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive
generations
natural selection: ​the differential survival and reproduction of individuals due to differences in
phenotype
differential fertility (differential RS): ​the fertility rate of one group compared to the fertility rate of
another
Mutation: ​random changes in DNA - sometimes beneficial, sometimes not
gene flow: ​the transfer of genetic variation from one population to another through interbreeding
between populations; has a homogenizing effect; if red rhinos mate with a bunch of blue
rhinos, then you’ll have a bunch of purple rhinos
genetic drift: ​the change in the frequency of an existing gene variant (allele) in a population due to
random sampling of organisms (random changes in gene frequencies - not DNA)
stabilizing selection: ​nature pushing for middle ground (human birth weight - babies aren’t too
heavy or too light) - like Goldilocks
directional selection: ​nature pushing in one direction (antibiotic resistance - more antibodies)
relative fitness: ​the survival and/or reproductive rate of a genotype (or phenotype) relative to the
maximum survival and/or reproductive rate of other genotypes in the population
convergent & divergent evolution: ​convergent - similar traits/behaviors in unrelated species in
similar environments; divergent - different traits/behaviors in closely related species in
different environments
Genes: ​codes for a protein - located on a chromosome, which is part of entire DNA of genome
Alleles: ​alternate forms of same gene (eg. two for height in humans - tall or short)
Genotype: ​genetic makeup (TT, Tt, tt)
Phenotype: ​physical expression of genetic makeup (tall, medium, short)
DNA: ​a molecule that carries the genetic instructions used in the growth, development,
functioning and reproduction of all known living organisms and many viruses
homologous chromosomes: ​diploid, 2N - both pairs of chromosomes where genes match
antagonistic pleiotropy: ​traits that increase reproductive fitness early in life yet decrease life
span
Meiosis: ​production of gametes, making haploid sperm and eggs from diploid cells
Mitosis: ​duplication of cells, making 2 diploid cells from one diploid cell
Diploid: ​each cell has 23 chromosome pairs (46 total)
Haploid: ​each cell has 1 of each pair of chromosomes (23 total)
Haplodiploid: ​the males develop from unfertilized eggs and are all haploid while the females
develop in fertilized eggs and are diploid
Gametes: ​sex cells - haploid cells
genetic predisposition: ​genetic​ characteristic which influences the possible ​phenotypic
development of an individual organism within a species or population under the influence
of ​environmental​ conditions
sperm competition: ​in many insects, females have a sperm storage organ used at different
times, good for females but not necessarily for males
Anisogamy: ​unequal gametes - eggs much larger and fewer than sperm
Sociobiology: ​use of natural selection to explain the relationship of animal behavior and
morphology to reproduction
alliances/friendships/paternal certainty: ​reproduction is not the only reason why females mate they mate to make alliances and friendships with one another and form bonds so that
the
males won’t later eat them or their children