Anthropology

Q: If you had enough time, money, and energy for three field seasons of excavation to learn about the origins of agriculture, where would you work, what would you look for, and how would you do it?

Q: Describe the nature of the transition to food production in Southwest Asia with a comparison of the Natufian and the early Neolithic.

Q: Describe three cradles of domestication and discuss the kinds of plants and animals involved and the dates for the first domesticates in each area.

Q: Cultural resource management

Q: Shell midden

Q: Postglacial sea level

Q: Multi-disciplinary

Q: Levallois technique

Q: Fluted Point

Q: Homo sapiens sapiens

Q: Venus figurines

Q: Lascaux

Q: Dolni Vestonice

Q: Homo neanderthalensis

Q: Magdalenian

Q: The Holocene in South Africa is represented by the remains found at Elands Bay Cave and De Hangen. Describe these sites and the information they provide about human groups in this area.

Q: Gatecliff Shelter required many years of excavation and analysis. Describe the site and discuss what was learned there.

Q: Mesolithic sites in Europe have certain common features. Discuss the general characteristics of the Mesolithic in the context of several of the Mesolithic sites you know.

Q: The human skeleton is a remarkable storehouse of information. Discuss some of the ways that archaeologists study the skeleton and the kinds of information they obtain.

Q: Describe some of the environmental changes that took place in Europe during the Holocene.

Q: Compare the European Mesolithic and the North American Archaic in terms of human settlement and subsistence.

Q: The term hunter-gatherer is commonly used in anthropology and archaeology. What does it mean? Define hunter-gatherer and give some examples.

Q: Archaeologists have a number of techniques for determining the season of occupation at a site. Describe some of these methods using examples from the sites of Holocene hunter-gatherers.

Q: The archaeological record for the European Mesolithic documents a number of innovations and changes from the Late Paleolithic. Outline some of these differences, using specific sites as examples.

Q: Discuss some of the recent evidence for the peopling of the New World and the primary route of the first colonists.

Q: Create a definition of language and argue that the development of language was responsible for the creative explosion of the Upper Paleolithic.

Q: Describe and discuss the two major categories of Upper Paleolithic art. Include distribution, age, and interpretation.

Q: The emergence of Homo sapiens is one of the big questions in archaeology at present. Discuss the primary evidence for this transition and the major positions involved in the argument.

Q: Upper Paleolithic mural art may have been created for a variety of reasons. What are some of these possible reasons and the evidence that suggests them?

Q: The "Mousterian Problem" is a complex question in the interpretation of archaeological remains. What caused the problem, who are the principle antagonists, and what are the possible explanations?

Q: Describe at least four major species in our evolution in terms of their physical characteristics and when they lived.

Q: Discuss the evolution of the hominins through the Pliocene and the Pleistocene.

Q: Discuss the evidence for the extinction of large mammals in the New World at the end of the Pleistocene and the role of humans in their disappearance.

Q: Discuss the major changes witnessed during the Upper Paleolithic period.

Q: Which of the following would you NOT expect to find in a Mesolithic site in southern Scandinavia? A. cemetery areas B. the bones of sea animals C. flint blades and cores D. ceramic vessels E. carbonized cereals

Q: The Mesolithic in Europe A. is an artifact used to shear sheep. B. occurs between the Lower and Upper Paleolithic. C. is a period associated with coastal settlements. D. was a time of spectacular cave paintings.

Q: The period between the end of the Pleistocene and the introduction of agriculture in Europe is called A. the Upper Paleolithic. B. the Solutrean. C. the Middle Paleolithic. D. the Mesolithic. E. the Acheulean.

Q: The earliest known pottery containers in the world are from A. Asia. B. the Western United States. C. Mexico. D. Eastern Europe. E. the Near East.

Q: The Mesolithic and the __________ are similar in age. A. late Paleolithic B. formative C. Archaic D. early Neolithic

Q: Carrier Mills is located in A. Central Europe. B. southern England. C. southern Illinois. D. Washington State.

Q: The Black Earth site at Carrier Mills does NOT A. reside in the Midwestern U.S. B. contain numerous burials. C. display early evidence of slave labor in construction. D. date to about 6000 B.C..

Q: Vnget Nord was A. a large town in the early Neolithic. B. a small island with Mesolithic activities. C. one of the earliest train stations. D. a way of producing very long blades.

Q: Carbon isotope evidence from human bone indicates that Mesolithic groups at Vedbk were A. hungry. B. older than their Paleolithic neighbors. C. getting most of their food from the sea. D. getting most of their food from the land.

Q: Vedbk is A. located in the western United States. B. a Mesolithic site in southern France. C. an area with a Mesolithic cemetery. D. a place with early evidence for the use of fire.

Q: Gatecliff Shelter was NOT A. located in the western United States. B. excavated by David Hurst Thomas. C. an Archaic period site with evidence for the use of desert resources. D. the site of the first wall paintings in North America.

Q: Faunal remains found at Mesolithic sites A. will usually be dominated by reindeer or horse. B. are likely to include domesticated wheat. C. will have Levallois points in them. D. are likely to involve a wide variety of animal species.

Q: The Mousterian lithic industry is characterized by A. many types of tools derived from the basic blade form. B. many types of tools made of flakes. C. geometric microliths made of amber. D. choppers, spheroids, and atlatls. E. handaxes, cleavers, and arrowpoints.

Q: Late Paleolithic hunting groups in northern Europe mainly hunted the A. wild boar. B. reindeer. C. mammoth. D. wooly rhino. E. seal.

Q: Which of the following would you not expect to find at a Mousterian site? A. Neanderthal burials B. prepared cores C. sidescrapers-on-flakes D. atlatl E. evidence of hunting large game

Q: During the interglacial periods of the Pleistocene A. the Bering Land Bridge was exposed. B. sea levels dropped because it was hot and dry. C. rhinoceros and elephants inhabited Europe. D. ice sheets and glaciers advanced. E. many hominin populations retreated from far northern areas.

Q: One of the most important and most famous Upper Paleolithic cave art sites is called A. Lascaux. B. Le Moustier C. Shanidar Cave. D. Torralba.

Q: Upper Paleolithic lithic industries are most notably characterized by the presence of A. cores. B. flakes. C. blades. D. side scrapers.

Q: Mousterian tools are characteristic of the A. Magdalenian. B. Middle Pleistocene. C. Middle Paleolithic. D. Mesolithic.

Q: Ninety-nine percent of all known Upper Paleolithic cave art sites are A. in Africa. B. along the Seine River near Paris. C. in Spain and France. D. closed to the public. E. thought to have been exclusively used for the practice of hunting magic.

Q: Innovations in the techniques of stone tool manufacture gradually increased A. the size of tools being produced. B. the quantity of cutting edge per pound of stone. C. the use of poorer raw materials. D. the intricacy of ritual decorations.

Q: Solutrean leaf-shaped "points" were made by the _______ method. A. hard hammer percussion B. soft hammer percussion C. pressure flaking D. indirect percussion

Q: A diverse range of blade tools is common to the A. Mousterian. B. Pleistocene. C. Acheulean. D. Upper Paleolithic. E. Oldowan.

Q: The following term does not belong with radiocarbon dating A. isotope B. argon C. Accelerator Mass Spectrometer D. calibration

Q: AMS in archaeology stands for A. American Meteorological Society. B. Ancient Metals and Structures. C. Accelerator Mass Spectrometer. D. Antiquity Made Simple.

Q: Radiocarbon dating can be used to obtain the age of all of the following except A. wood. B. shell. C. bronze. D. charcoal. E. bone.

Q: The half-life of carbon-14 is A. around 5,700 years. B. around 2,000,000 years. C. close to 1,000 years. D. infinite.

Q: Which of the following is NOT true of Homo neanderthalensis? A. The remains of this species are found throughout the Old World and in some parts of the New World. B. The Mousterian tradition is associated with this hominin. C. The Neanderthals sometimes buried their dead. D. Neanderthals were first replaced by modern humans in Southwest Asia.

Q: Which of the following are caves with Upper Paleolithic paintings? A. Lascaux and Torralba B. Lascaux and Altamira C. Lascaux and Terra Amata D. Lascaux and Dolni Vestonice E. Lascaux and Pincevent

Q: Venus figurines are probably A. net weights used in fishing. B. abstract female statuettes, part of a fertility cult. C. good luck charms carried by hunters. D. small sculptures with markings of calendrical significance.

Q: The functions of Upper Paleolithic cave paintings may have been all of the following except A. hunting magic. B. a way male hunters attracted mates. C. to assure the reproduction of animals for food. D. records of events.

Q: Which of the following would you expect to find at a Folsom site? A. domesticated squash, gourd, and beans B. mammoth remains and platform pipes C. shell-tempered pottery and obsidian D. fluted points and bison bones E. war-clubs and bison snares

Q: The first colonists of the New World A. probably crossed the Pacific in reed boats. B. were Homo neanderthalensis. C. are difficult to recognize archaeologically because they probably had only bone and wood tools. D. probably followed big game across Beringia from Siberia. E. were escaping from the Neolithic revolution in the Old World.

Q: If you were interested in Upper Paleolithic cave paintings, you would probably travel to A. Olorgesailie. B. SW France. C. Eastern Europe. D. the Balkans.

Q: Bordes has explained the variability in Middle Paleolithic stone tool assemblages as a reflection of A. different types of raw material. B. different cultural traditions among tribes of Neanderthals. C. random variation. D. different functions.

Q: The site of Monte Verde is all of the following except A. located in Chile, South America. B. one of the oldest sites in the New World. C. a settlement with dwelling structures. D. famed for its impressive stepped pyramids.

Q: Artifacts at the site of Lindenmeier did not include A. a variety of stone tools. B. Paleoindian projectile points. C. animal bones. D. bows and arrows.

Q: The site of Lindenmeier is A. the oldest habitation site in the New World. B. a Paleoindian settlement in Colorado. C. an Upper Paleolithic site in northern Germany. D. a painted cave in northern Spain.

Q: The earliest Australians arrived on the continent "down under" around A. the beginning of the Holocene. B. 15,000 years ago. C. the beginning of the Pleistocene. D. 40,000 years ago.

Q: The peopling of the New World A. occurred first in South America B. was accomplished via the Bering Strait land bridge. C. certainly occurred prior to 20,000 BP. D. was accomplished via boats from Egypt.

Q: The Levallois technique is A. the early French style of cave painting. B. a tool tradition associated with Homo habilis. C. a method of producing flakes from prepared cores. D. a method of getting bone marrow from mammoths.

Q: Soft hammer technique

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