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Lisa Mykalanne Ryther
8569 South 4590 West ◇ West Jordan, UT 84088
(801) 897-7084 ◇ lmryther@gmail.com
April 7, 2013
Attn. Shannon Wirthlin
Mountain America Credit Union
P.O. Box 9001
West Jordan, UT 84084-9001
Dear Shannon:
I have long been interested in the financial field, and am fascinated by the movement of
currency through the economy. Because of this, I am interested in pursuing a
promotion with Mountain America Credit Union as a Financial Service Representative. I
discovered this job opening through our internal website, which I found to be well
designed and easily accessible.
I am amply qualified for this position. I have excellent customer service skills, and have
been working closely with customers for the past 8 years. I have worked as a Member
Service Representative at the Quarry branch for the past 3 years. I have good written
and direct communication skills, and am a very responsible person. I take pride in doing
things the right way the first time, and believe that quality service is more important
than the quantity. I also have experience with cash handling, and am adept at using the
Microsoft Office computer software. I am a very fast learner, and catch on quickly.
I would make an excellent addition to the Jordan Valley branch team, and would like to
discuss this opportunity with you. I will be calling you within the following week to set
up a time when we can do just that.
Thank you for your time and consideration, please find my resume attached.
Regards,
Lisa Mykalanne Ryther
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Table of Contents
Technical Definition ............................................................................................ 3
The first piece of writing in this portfolio is an extended definition. In this
selection, the technical definition of the acronym NAGPRA is presented. This acronym
is important to those pursuing anthropology, particularly the sub-discipline of
archaeology.
Technical Description .......................................................................................... 4
The second piece of writing is the description of a process that is also important
to the field of anthropology. The process of finding and classifying fossils is presented
in detail. This process is very necessary to archaeologists, and should be of particular
interest to those pursuing an education in that field.
Research Essay ...................................................................................................6
The third piece is a research essay entitled, “Mutated Characteristics that Led to
the Evolution of Homo sapiens.” This essay focuses on six characteristics that promoted
the evolution of anatomically modern humans. The audience of this essay is
anthropologists, particularly physical or biological anthropologists.
Resume ............................................................................................................ 11
The final piece is my resume. Within it are found my personal work history, as
well as my education, and things that I believe qualify me for the position I am pursuing.
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What does NAGPRA stand for?
NAGPRA is an acronym, which stands for Native American Graves Protection and
Repatriation Act. This law was passed in 1990, and set forth several standards for
archaeologists as well as museums to follow. The law sets forth specific policies and
procedures as well as penalties for non-compliance.
To whom does NAGPRA apply?
NAGPRA applies to all federal agencies, as well as all public and private museums that
receive federal funds. To sole exception to this is the Smithsonian Institution, which is
governed by the National Museum of the American Indian Act circa 1989.
What does NAGPRA require?
NAGPRA requires the return of certain Native American cultural items including human
remains, funerary objects, sacred objects, and objects of cultural patrimony. (Cultural
patrimony is an object with cultural, historic, or traditional importance to a certain
group or nation.) If a museum or federal agency finds itself in possession of one or more
of these items, either intentionally or inadvertently, and the items are culturally
identifiable (meaning that the items can be linked to a specific group of people), they
are required to notify the descendants of those to whom the items previously
belonged. Only federally recognized tribes may claim items under this law.
What if items are not culturally identifiable?
Federally recognized tribes are able to put forth claims on items that are not culturally
identifiable, but they are required to provide proof of their ties to the item in question.
For example, a nine thousand year-old skeleton was found in Kennewick, Washington.
These remains were named Kennewick Man. His skeleton is one of the most complete
sets from that time period. Several different tribes came forward and attempted to
prove their cultural ties to this individual, but none have prevailed. The skeleton is
currently being held by a court-appointed institution until a final determination of
cultural affiliation can be made. The remains were found on federal land owned by the
Army Corps of Engineers, and because of that, they currently control access to the
remains.
How many items have been repatriated?
o
o
o
o
o
o
Human remains: 38,671 individuals
Associated funerary objects: 998,731 (includes many small items, such as
beads)
Unassociated funerary objects: 144,163 (includes many small items, such
as beads)
Sacred objects: 4,303
Objects of cultural patrimony: 948
Objects that are both sacred and patrimonial: 822
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Finding and Classifying Fossils
One process that is of high importance to anthropologists is the classification of fossils.
This is important because it provides evidence of food sources as well as other valuable
information. We study archaeological sites to learn about ancient peoples and how
their society functioned. There are 7 major steps to the classification of fossils.
1. Survey and select a site
Selecting a site can be a difficult, and arduous process. Finding a location that
contains fossils is not an exact science, and some fossils appear in unexpected
places. When selecting a site, it is important that you are willing to dedicate as
much of your time as is necessary to complete the excavation. Most sites take
years to clear, and removing the layers of earth that protect a site from damage
is unconscionable if you aren’t willing to catalog all of the evidence and
complete the project.
2. Excavate
When an archaeologist begins the excavation of a site, a numbered grid is set up
to make it easier to pinpoint later exactly where an artifact was found. The
context an object is found in is nearly as important as the object itself. For
example, a spearhead found in a dwelling has different connotations than a
spearhead found in the remains of an animal. Excavation is a slow process, and
every square inch of the soil is examined for evidence.
3. Assign each fossil an individual number
Each fossil that is found is assigned its own individual number. The number is
specific to the site, so in larger catalogs, the site name appears before the
number of the fossil. This procedure enables scientists to cross-reference their
finds with the findings of others.
4. Clean, study, and describe
Once the fossil has been assigned a number, it is cleaned, and studied closely. A
detailed description of its location as well as the features it displays is written.
Some fossils are easily described, while others, like fragments, are more difficult
to identify.
5. Compare with other fossils
The fossil is then compared with other fossils that have been found to see if it
closely identifies with any of them. Many databases are available to be searched
for this purpose. This step helps to eliminate giving one species more than one
taxonomic name, and causing confusion.
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6. Compare variation with known living organisms
Next, the fossil is compared with known living organisms to provide the
observer with information on the variation found within a species. This step also
helps to prevent the assignment of multiple taxonomic names to one species.
7. Assign taxonomic name
Finally, the scientist assigns a taxonomic name to the fossil. The taxonomic
name consists of the Genus and species of an organism. Once this task has been
accomplished, the results are subject to peer review.
After the peer review process is completed, the results are published and added to the
database. This is a long process, and must be completed for each fossil that is
discovered. The gathering of this type of information is vital to anthropologists. This
process helps to determine if the fossil is a known or previously unknown species, and is
an effective way to deal with the possibility that one species receives two different
names.
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Mutated Characteristics that Led to
the Evolut ion of Homo sapiens
By: Lisa Ryther
What made us human?
Several genetic mutations may be to blame. There are an estimated 15 million differences
between human and chimpanzee genomes. Out of these 15 million changes, only about ten
thousand were acted upon by natural selection. This paper will focus on six specific changes:
weakened jaw muscles, increased energy supplied to the brain, brain expansion, hand
development, dietary changes, and enhanced ability to communicate. All of these changes
played a role in the evolution of modern humans.
Jaw muscles
Jaw muscles may play a bigger role in the evolution of modern humans than one might
think. A chimpanzee can bite off a human finger in one go. Compared to chimps, human
jaw muscles are quite weak. This may have been caused by the mutation of a single gene.
The gene in question encodes a muscle protein. The mutation inactivates the gene, which
forces jaw muscles to be produced by a different version of the protein. This alternate
protein causes jaw muscles to be much smaller.
“This finding, which came in 2004, caused a stir when the researchers
argued that smaller jaw muscles could have allowed the growth of a bigger
skull. Primates with big jaw muscles have thickened supporting bone at
the back of their skull, which arguably constrains skull expansion, and
therefore that of the brain too. ‘We are suggesting this mutation is the
cause of the decrease in muscle mass and hence the decrease in bone,’
says Hansell Stedman, a muscle researcher at the University of
Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, who led the work. ‘Only then do you lift the
evolutionary constraint that precludes other mutations that allow your
brain to continue growing.’”(Wilson, 2012, p. 35)
One research team dated this mutation to 2.4 million years ago, while another estimated that
the change occurred closer to 5.3 million years ago. Either way, the mutation occurred after
humans split from their last common ancestor with the chimps. The weakened jaw muscles
were obviously not impairing our ancestors to the point that natural selection was acting
against them.
“Why would our ancestors switch to a weaker bite? Steadman speculates
that rather than changes in diet being the catalyst, it could be that our
ancestors no longer used biting as a form of attack. ‘At some point,
perhaps through social organization, this form of weaponry became more
optional for our ancestors,’ he says.”(Wilson, 2012)
Energy supply
The brains of most primates require about 8% of their total energy at rest, whereas human
brains require 20% of their total energy at rest. The ability to support that level of energy
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consumption was an important mutation. When researchers attempt to isolate a beneficial
mutation, they often start out by looking at mutations that have a negative impact on the
same function. The blood supply to our brain is organized differently than most other
primates, which led researchers to study diseases related to blood flow. One disease, called
moyamoya, involves the narrowing of arteries in the brain. The disease is caused by a
mutation to the gene called RNF213. Scientists believe that other changes to that gene may
positively influence blood flow.
“There are more ways to boost the brain’s energy supply than just replumbing its blood vessels, though. The organ’s main food source is
glucose and this is drawn into the brain by a glucose-transporter-molecule
in the blood vessel walls. Compared with chimpanzees, orangutans and
macaques, humans have slightly different ‘on switches’ for two genes that
encode the glucose transporters for brain and muscle, respectively. The
mutations mean more glucose transporters in our brain capillaries and less
in our muscle capillaries.”(Wilson, 2012, p. 36)
That means that more of the available glucose can be sent to power the brain, which means
that the human body is wired to promote intelligence over athleticism.
Brain size
Brain size is thought to have increased through a ‘snowball effect’. Each small change
compounds with its predecessor, sometimes causing the next change. This process
continued until our brains reached their current size.
“Initial mutations caused changes that were not only beneficial in
themselves but also allowed subsequent mutations that enhanced the
brain still further.”(Wilson, 2012, p. 37)
The brain increased in complexity as well as size. A large brain is not necessarily complex.
Increasing the size and not the complexity of the brain of any creature would not match the
results of human evolution.
“It has become increasingly clear that the human brain is not simply a large
ape brain: Important qualitative and quantitative changes occurred as well.
Some of these changes are a result of broad patterns of adaptation that are
inherent in the nature of life. Some are presumably the result of direct
selection for specific behavioral abilities of various kinds.”(Schoenemann,
2006)
Hand development
It is unclear how exactly humans managed to evolve the fully opposable thumb, and the
shortened, straight fingers, but there is a general consensus among scientists that tool use
played a large role. The ability to grip and manipulate objects in different ways is very
valuable. This ability adds to the versatility of the hand, and we are, as a result, able to
manipulate objects in a more complex manner than our predecessors.
“Although no comprehensive account has been offered, there is general
agreement that the anatomical reconstruction of the hand during human
evolution was somehow linked with tool behaviour. This approach is consistent
with evidence that an elderly hominid (hominin) behaviour was bipedal gait,
which would have ‘freed the hands’ for greater use of tools.”(Young, 2003)
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Some of the specific changes to the hand include the lengthening of the thumb, and
the shortening of the palm and fingers. The fingers also lost their natural curvature,
which diminished the efficiency of brachiation, but increased overall versatility.
“The human thumb is longer, the palm and fingers are shorter, and the
fingers have lost their curvature. The distal phalanges have gained large apical
tufts which support broad, palmar, fibrofatty pads that distribute pressure
during forceful grasping and whose deformation accommodates the pads to
uneven surfaces. Apart from thickening of the fifth metacarpal and
enlargement of its base, the balance of strength and robusticity has shifted
radically, to the thumb, second and third fingers.”(Young, 2003)
These changes enabled them to utilize effectively two unique grips: the precision
grip, and the power grip.
“ ‘In spite of the multiplicity of activities of the hand’, he wrote, ‘…there are
only two prehensile actions: these are called the precision grip and the power
grip’. These two patterns of movement, which are anatomically and
physiologically distinct, provide the basis for all prehensile activities. The
precision grip is employed where precision of movement is required, whereas
the dominant characteristic of the power grip is application of force.”
(Young, 2003)
The wrist also adapted to allow freer movement, which improved their ability to
throw and club. Throwing and clubbing were very useful for hunting and led to
significant changes in diet.
Dietary changes
“Meat eating has always been considered one of the things that made us
human, with the protein contributing to the growth of our
brains.”(University of Colorado Denver, 2012)
Rather than continuing as opportunistic meat eaters, humans began to actively hunt and eat
meat. The brain requires a lot of energy, and one way to obtain the necessary energy is
through the consumption of protein. Another dietary change may have contributed toward
increasing their energy supply: the consumption of starch. Most primates subsist on fruit and
leaves. These are lower calorie foods, which require them to spend most of their time
foraging for food. Evidence for the addition of starch in the human diet is found on the
genetic level.
“A digestive enzyme called salivary amylase plays a key role in breaking down
starch into simple sugars so it can be absorbed in the gut. Humans have
much higher levels of amylase in their saliva than chimpanzees.” (Wilson,
2012)
Chimps only have two copies of the salivary amylase gene, while humans have an average of
six copies. Interestingly, the duplication of the genes appears to have occurred within the last
100 thousand years. Some believe that this was a natural byproduct of the dawn of
agriculture.
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“The biggest change in that period was the dawn of agriculture, so Dominy
thinks the duplications happened when we started farming cereals.
‘Agriculture was a signal event in human evolution,’ he says. ‘We think
amylase contributed to it.’ ”(Wilson, 2012)
Communication ability
Nonhuman primates maintain order and peace in their social groups through grooming.
Grooming is a one-on-one activity and promotes good relations between participants.
Humans typically maintain their relationships through communication. In a sense, humans
have replaced the need for grooming with communication, which has been beneficial in
several ways.
“This increased efficiency arises from at least three key features of language.
One is that several individuals can be ‘groomed’ at once, in contrast to
conventional grooming where only one individual can be groomed at any one
time (a problem we still encounter when we resort to the human equivalent
of grooming, namely cuddling and petting). The second is that it is possible
to timeshare with speech in a way that is not possible with grooming: We can
talk and walk or feed, whereas grooming is an exclusive activity (even in
modern humans). Third, language allows us to exchange information about
events within our social network that happened during our absence: For
nonhuman primates, what they do not themselves see, they never know
about.”(Dunbar, 2003)
Their enhanced ability to communicate enabled our ancestors to form larger social groups,
and spend less time grooming, which freed up a significant portion of their time. The extra
time helped them to develop ever-improving tool technology, and may have led to the
advent of agriculture itself. Communication is an integral part of what makes us human.
Conclusion
“If we consider all the mutations that led to these pivotal points in our
evolution, human origins begin to look like a trail of unfeasible coincidences.
But that is only because we do not see the harmful mutations that were
weeded out, points out John Hawks at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
‘What we’re left with is the ones that were advantageous.’ It is only from
today’s viewpoint that the mutations that give us our current physical form
appear to be the ‘right’ ones to have. ‘ It’s hindsight,’ says Hawks. ‘When we
look back at the whole process, it looks like a stunning series of accidents.’ ”
(Wilson, 2012)
So many changes were required to make Homo sapiens the species they are today. Even
changes that seem infinitesimal can make monumental differences. Some of the most pivotal
changes included smaller jaw muscles, improved energy supply, increased brain size, altered
hand structure, changes in diet, and communication ability. These changes and many more
made us what we are today. What will we be in another 15 thousand years?
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References:
Dunbar, R. (2003). The Social Brain: mind, Language, and Society in Evolutionary Perspective.
Annual Review of Anthropology , 163-181.
Schoenemann, P. T. (2006). Evolution of the Size and Functional Areas of the Human Brain.
Annual Review of Anthropology , 379-406.
University of Colorado Denver. (2012 йил 3-October). Anthropologist Finds Evidence of
Hominin Meat Eating 1.5 Million Years Ago: Eating Meat May Have 'Made Us Human'. Science
Daily , p. Web 30 October 2012.
Wilson, C. (2012 йил 9-June). LUCKY YOU! New Scientist , pp. 34-39.
Young, R. W. (2003). Evolution of the human hand: the role of throwing and clubbing. Journal of
Anatomy , 165-174.
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Lisa Mykalanne Ryther
8569 South 4590 West
West Jordan, UT 84088
(801) 897-7084
lmryther@gmail.com
EDUCATION
Associates of Applied Science, Salt Lake Community College, May 2012
Major: Business Management
Associates of Science, Salt Lake Community College, expected December 2013
Major: Anthropology
Courses include: Windows and MS Suite 2007, Survey of Financial Accounting,
Managerial Accounting, Financial Math
WORK EXPERIENCE
Mountain America Credit Union, Head Teller, March 2010 to present
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Order cash and balance the vault
Receive high scores on customer service surveys
Create teller schedules
Support management
Schmidt’s Pastry Cottage, Sales Clerk, August 2008 to January 2010
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Wait on customers and run the cash register
Take and put together orders for customers
Prepare products for display and keep cases stocked
Life Care Center of Bountiful, Lead Cook, June 2005 to August 2008
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Manage budget using Excel
Supervise evening staff
Prepare and serve dinner to 90+ residents with special diet needs
Clean and sanitize kitchen
QUALIFICATIONS
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Integrity Service Training
Microsoft Office Suite 2007
Learning Ability and Self Motivation
Customer Service and Satisfaction
Time Management and Communication
New Account and Loan Training