Nature of Humans
ANT203Y1 Lecture # January 28th, 2014
Quiz #2; 6:10-7; in class; 15% of final grade; cover ch 8-11 and tutorial worksheets 9-11
40 questions llong, multiple choice, true or false and matching
Bring a pencil for scantron ;)
Film 'becoming human' at 7:10 - 8:00pm
Lecture
Who were the earliest hominins??
Pre-australapiths; 6-7 - 4.4 mya
Very primitive; little known about them; debatable they're even hominins
Earliest ones are sahelanthropus tchadensis; found in chad in 2001; earliest known hominin; classification debatable; 6-7mya; likely lived in multiple environments (mosaic)
No post cranial remains found for this species
Small brain about 320-380 cubic centimetres, like a modern chimp
Lsrge supraorbital torus, or brow ridges,
Unlike apes, they had a flatter or orthognathic face and small canines
Lacked a sectorial premolar or honing complex, a characteristic of apes and old world monkeys, shearing tooth
Orthognathic face, small canines and no sectorial premolar are derived traits
More anteriorly positioned foramen magnum suggesting that sahelanthropus was bipedal, but there are no post cranial bones to prove this
They could possibly be the last common ancestor between us and chimps, which is significant
Orrorin tugenensis
Discovered in tugen hills, kenya
Dates to 6mya, around the same time as sahelanthropus
Woodland environment
Only found small bits of post cranium and some teeth and mandible bones
Probably the size of a chimp, which is common for this time period
Small postcanines relative to body size, may suggest direct relation to humans
Microdont, in contrast to later hominins who had relatively large canines or were megadont
Thick enamel similar to humans, but unlike modern apes, this is a derived feature
This also suggests they were probably eating harder food, as thicker enamel is an indication of diet
Ape-like canines, pretty sure this species did not have a sectorial premolar
Post cranial remains suggest orrorin was a
Quiz #2; 6:10-7; in class; 15% of final grade; cover ch 8-11 and tutorial worksheets 9-11
40 questions llong, multiple choice, true or false and matching
Bring a pencil for scantron ;)
Film 'becoming human' at 7:10 - 8:00pm
Lecture
Who were the earliest hominins??
Pre-australapiths; 6-7 - 4.4 mya
Very primitive; little known about them; debatable they're even hominins
Earliest ones are sahelanthropus tchadensis; found in chad in 2001; earliest known hominin; classification debatable; 6-7mya; likely lived in multiple environments (mosaic)
No post cranial remains found for this species
Small brain about 320-380 cubic centimetres, like a modern chimp
Lsrge supraorbital torus, or brow ridges,
Unlike apes, they had a flatter or orthognathic face and small canines
Lacked a sectorial premolar or honing complex, a characteristic of apes and old world monkeys, shearing tooth
Orthognathic face, small canines and no sectorial premolar are derived traits
More anteriorly positioned foramen magnum suggesting that sahelanthropus was bipedal, but there are no post cranial bones to prove this
They could possibly be the last common ancestor between us and chimps, which is significant
Orrorin tugenensis
Discovered in tugen hills, kenya
Dates to 6mya, around the same time as sahelanthropus
Woodland environment
Only found small bits of post cranium and some teeth and mandible bones
Probably the size of a chimp, which is common for this time period
Small postcanines relative to body size, may suggest direct relation to humans
Microdont, in contrast to later hominins who had relatively large canines or were megadont
Thick enamel similar to humans, but unlike modern apes, this is a derived feature
This also suggests they were probably eating harder food, as thicker enamel is an indication of diet
Ape-like canines, pretty sure this species did not have a sectorial premolar
Post cranial remains suggest orrorin was a