View Notes - 17. Review - Early Hominids from ANTH 222 at University of Maryland. Lecture 17 Review: Early Hominids: the Bipedal, the Mental & the Dental ANTH222 Lecture Objectives Identify and. 21 pages Study Guide 3B. Tci History Alive Ch 2 Study Guide Early Hominids Tci History Alive Ch 2 Study Guide Early Hominids book, Tci History Alive Ch 2 Study Guide Early Hominids.

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The people who study the past of humans are called. Archaeologists study the recent past of our planet and the evolution of physical human beings and their behaviors. Those archaeologists who study the very earliest human beings specialize in the Paleolithic; scientists who study the periods prior to the Paleolithic are paleontologists. The Paleolithic period begins in Africa with the earliest human-like behaviors of crude stone tool manufacture about 2.7 million years ago and ends with the development of fully modern human. Domestication of plants and animals marks the beginning of modern human society. In Africa, where the earliest humans arose, the Early Stone Age begins some 2.7 million years ago, with the earliest stone tools recognized to date in the of East Africa. These tools were simple fist-sized cores and whole flakes created by two ancient hominids (human ancestors), Paranthropus boisei and Homo habilis.

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The earliest hominids left Africa about 1.7 million years ago, arriving at sites such as in Georgia, where hominids (probably Homo erectus) made stone tools suggestive of those from Africa.

Chapter 10 Early Hominid Origins and Evolution: the Roots of Humanity Chapter Study Outline. What Is a Hominid?. Bipedal Locomotion: Getting Around on Two Feet. Walking on two limbs (with associated skeletal changes). Evolved before large brain size. Nonhoning Chewing: No Slicing, Mainly Grinding. Refers to the way the mouth processes food.

Lack of projecting canine, diastema. More pressure on front portion of chewing muscles. Why Did Hominids Emerge?

Three Hypotheses. Charles Darwin’s Hunting Hypothesis. Bipedalism had freed the hands for carrying weapons.

Intelligence increased; size of canines diminished. Tool production and use essential for development of human intelligence. New evidence shows this not to be the case.

Peter Rodman and Henry McHenry’s Patchy Forest Hypothesis. Human origins and bipedalism related to the greater efficiency in some habitats of moving on two limbs rather than four. Bipedalism arose in areas where forests were fragmented and food resources also became scattered. As forests fragmented, bipedalism freed the hands to pick up food allowing for both tree and ground food resources to be exploited.

Owen Lovejoy’s Provisioning Hypothesis. Freeing the hands was important in allowing males to assist females more efficiently in procuring food; thus “provisioning” acted as a form of sexual competition among males for females. Birth spacing would also be reduced, since females would have to move around less and would have access to greater food resources.

Lovejoy’s hypothesis makes the argument for monogamous fathers. Sexual Dimorphism and Human Behavior. Many primate species are highly sexually dimorphic, with males larger than females. Some scientists see little sexual dimorphism in early hominids; therefore males would have been more cooperative and less competitive.

Bipedality Had Its Benefits and Costs: An Evolutionary Tradeoff. Bipedalism was a clear advantage to early humans. It allows for a better view of the horizon, but also exposes the individual to predators. Walking while carrying heavy loads can cause back injury. The circulatory system also faces a greater burden. Who Were the First Hominids?