The Origin of Humans and Early Human Societies

Cards (35)

  • How long have anatomically modern humans been around?
    Roughly 200,000 years
  • What is the main tool historians use to study the past?
    Writing
  • How can scientists date things that happened before writing?
    Through techniques like radiocarbon dating and potassium-argon dating
  • What do archaeologists study to learn about prehistory?
    Fossils, tools, and artifacts from burial sites
  • Why is our understanding of history constantly evolving?
    Because new discoveries and techniques can challenge what we thought we knew
  • What is prehistory?

    The period before written records existed in a culture or society
  • What is history?
    The period after the invention of written records in a culture or society
  • How long have anatomically modern humans been around (estimated)?
    Between 200,000 and 300,000 years
  • What is the main tool historians use to study the past?
    Written records
  • Why do historians need to be careful with written records?
    Records may be in a dead language, or transmitted orally and changed over time
  • What do archaeologists study to learn about the past?
    Fossils, artifacts (human-made items) from ancient structures and burial sites
  • How do archaeologists estimate the age of artifacts?
    Techniques like carbon dating, stratigraphic dating, with help from linguists and geneticists
  • Why is it difficult to create detailed stories about the distant past?
    There are limited sources and uncertainty in interpreting evidence
  • How should historians approach historical evidence?
    Carefully read, source, interpret, contextualize, and compare with other sources
  • Why is history constantly evolving?
    New discoveries and tools can challenge our understanding of the past
  • When did Homo sapiens evolve?
    Between 200,000 and 300,000 years ago
  • When did Homo sapiens develop language?
    Around 50,000 years ago
  • When did Homo sapiens begin migrating out of Africa?
    Between 70,000 and 100,000 years ago
  • What is unique about Homo sapiens compared to other species?
    Successfully populated and adapted to diverse environments globally
  • What is a hominid?
    An early humanlike creature
  • When did hominids diverge from other primates?
    Between 2.5 and 4 million years ago
  • What shared trait did all hominids have?
    Bipedalism (walking upright)
  • What are two theories about why hominids evolved?
    1. Aridity hypothesis: adapted to dry climates
    2. Savannah hypothesis: adapted to living on ground due to shrinking forests
  • When did hominids start making tools?
    Approximately 2.3 million years ago (Homo habilis)
  • When did some hominids migrate out of Africa?
    Around 1 million years ago (Homo erectus)
  • What is the family that includes human beings?
    Hominidae (meaning human-like)
  • How are Hominidae further divided?
    Hominini (includes humans) and Ponginae (orangutans)
  • When did humans diverge from chimpanzees?
    About 5 million years ago
  • What were early hominins like?
    Arboreal simians (lived in trees, ate fruit, walked on four legs/knuckle-walked)
  • Why did hominins come down from the trees? (Possible reason)
    Aridity or savanna hypothesis: fewer trees due to climate change
  • Give an example of an early hominin.
    Australopithecus afarensis (Lucy)
  • How can we tell about hominin diet from their skulls?
    Size and shape of jaw muscles (e.g., sagittal crest for tough food)
  • What advancements did Homo erectus have compared to earlier hominins?
    Used fire and stone tools
  • What 3 things contributed to Homo sapiens' success?
    Tools, fire, and language
  • When did Homo sapiens start migrating out of Africa?
    Around 100,000 years ago