Assignments

Article 27 Response Paper

*Need 400 words

Daniel Contreras
Professor Osborne
Anthropology
Mon & Wed 4:00-5:30pm
November 28, 2011

Art. 27 "The Birth of Childhood" Response Paper

In the article titled "The Birth of Childhood" Ann Gibbons explains that the modern human has a profoundly longer period of development than any other species. The author asks when and how did this prolonged development start. They begin searching for the answer by looking at our closest relatives: the chimpanzees. Gibbons notes that the modern human takes approximately twice as long as chimpanzees to reach adulthood; however, modern humans are plentiful and long living. She further evaluates the techniques used by researchers that study the fossilized bones from H.erectus and Australopithecus afarensis hominins.
The researchers use methods requiring the study of the fossilized teeth to figure out what age the children were. Surprisingly, they discovered that the early hominin children grew at a much faster rate than the modern child do. Studies revealed that these early children grew close to the rate of chimpanzees. The article begins with an anecdote explaining the unfortunate circumstances of an infant chimpanzee who is left without a family. However, the infant did manage to survive with aid from other chimpanzee youth, on the other hand, if it were a human child getting aid from other human children the family-less infant would not have survived. Although humans tend to take longer to reach adulthood, we generally live one or two decades longer than chimpanzees.
After reading this article I read it again because some parts were unclear. Then I reread it a third time to figure out the author's overall point and purpose of the article.

Works Cited
Gibbons, Ann. "The Birth of Childhood." Ed. Elvio Angeloni. Physical Anthropology 11/12. New York: McGraw-Hill/Contemporary Learning Series, 2011. 144-47. Print.

Labels: Anthropology

Article 9 Response Paper

Daniel Contreras
Professor Osborne
Anthropology
Mon & Wed 4:00-5:30pm
October 26, 2011

Art. 9 "Got Culture?" Response Paper

Societies all around the world contain a culture. Groups within a culture share traditions that are passed along from one generation to the next. Craig Stanford argues in his article titled "Got Culture?" that our closest relatives, the chimpanzees, share culture just as we humans do. However, there are a few who believe that associating animals with culture is nonsensical. Opponents of Stanford's argument stress that culture is exclusive to humans and that animals do not have the capability to hold such significant and "symbolic traditions" (par.2). Extensive research on wild African chimpanzees hints that culture within animals is and has been existent. Various tribes of chimpanzees, separated by geographic locations, were examined and some previously unknown facts emerged. The chimpanzee groups differed in several ways: Each developed their own tools to access food, ways of hunting and dividing prey, and indications on availability to mate.

In one group, the use of stone based tools was commonplace. Meanwhile, in another tribe, wooden tools were preferred over stone tools. The stone tools were used to break open nuts and the wooden tools to quickly collect insects from the large mounds. Interestingly, each tribe stuck to their own tools and different customs not attempting to adapt both. The differences in tools used between chimpanzee tribes is accompanied by the way they share their meals. In one chimpanzee group, only the few that hunt and kill the prey get to eat regardless of any differences between any of the chimpanzees. In contrast, some tribes distribute the food between the friends and relatives of the hunter(s).

Stanford suggests that the definition of culture be modified to include these previously shunned species. However, not all creatures have the appropriate requirements to sustain a culture. Other creatures such as dolphins and whales do not have the abilities to manipulate tools to their advantage because of their lack of "grasping appendages" that allow chimpanzees to use tools (par. 21). Along with these anatomical traits a big brain is also necessary.

After watching most of the Jane Goodall video in class this article made clear sense to me. While reading this article, I was surprised to find how much each group of chimpanzees differs even if they live near each other. Stanford's article is nicely written and I agree with his standpoint that the chimpanzees share culture just humans do within their societies.

Labels: Anthropology

Article 41 Response Paper

Daniel Contreras
Professor Osborne
Anthropology
Mon & Wed 4:00-5:30pm
September 21, 2011

Evolution occurs not only in animals and humans but also in bacteria and diseases. In the article titled "Curse and Blessing of the Ghetto" by Jared Diamond it is explained that certain diseases have evolved and continued to exist for various centuries. The author mainly focuses on various possible explanations on why the disease has continued to exist within Eastern European Jews whom are also known as Ashkenazim. The most credible explanation, according to Diamond, to why these diseases are passed on involves natural selection.

Tay-Sachs is common amongst the Jewish population from Eastern Europe. This group of people were forced to lived in unsanitary circumstances for many generations were tuberculosis was prominent. Eventually, this population were more genetically protected from TB but simultaneously affected by various genetic diseases. Those that possessed Tay-Sachs would pass it on to their offspring; as a result, the child would be either heterozygous or homozygous of the gene depending on the other parent. Because more heterozygous individuals survive, this genetic disease continues to pass on.

This author's article is well written. It immediate catches one's attention and it goes into detail about this genetics's origins. I didn't know anything about Tay-Sachs disease until I read Diamond's entry. The screen testing sounds like quite the advancement. Hopefully that becomes common practice in finding all of the other genetic diseases.

Labels: Anthropology

Anthropology Review

What is natural selection?
It is Charles Darwin's theory that refers to genetic changes which are results of the frequency of certain traits in reproductive successes.

Labels: Anthropology