ANT 100 - Introduction to Anthropology

1. Explain the basic history of science in interpreting human biological and cultural existence
   1. Identify the main elements of scientific inquiry and explanation
   2. Explain the five subfields of anthropology in North America and how each addresses questions of biology and culture
2. Demonstrate an anthropological understanding of human beings both as biological and organisms and as culture-creating and bearing members of the animal kingdom
   1. Identify and explain what humans share with other animals
   2. Identify shared features of Primates and humans as a primate that distinguishes this taxonomic order from other mammals
   3. Explain how biological development and cultural adaptation are interrelated 
3. Explain the major features of the Theory of Evolution using its historical development and present formulations
   1. Describe Darwin’s major contributions to evolutionary science and his impact on the sciences and society of his day
   2. Describe the major processes or “forces of evolution”: mutation, genetic drift, gene flow, natural selection, artificial selection
4. Recognize the basic principles of genetics as they apply to human and primate evolution.
   1. Understand the difference between Genotype and Phenotype. 
5. Explain the major techniques of dating used to determine the age of fossils and the archaeological record.
   1. Understand the difference between Genotype and Phenotype
   2. Understand the basic functions and processes of the DMA code and it’s replication
6. Explain current anthropological thinking regarding the concepts of biological diversity, population genetics and the social construction of “race”.
   1. Distinguish absolute from relative dating techniques, and apply their use to the dating key events in human evolution
7. Identify basic trends in the evolution of the Primate order
   1. Identify the locations and environments in which major groups of primates evolved.
8. Identify basic trends in the evolution of Hominids
   1. Explain current evidences for the timing of the chimpanzee-human split.
   2. Explain current evidences for the appearance the early genus Homo and the appearance of tool-making and other behaviors.
   3. Identify major developments in the evolution of genus Homo, including locations, time periods, major sites and discoveries and probable migration routes.
   4. Explain the appearance of the Neanderthals, along with their reconstructed cognitive and physical abilities, material culture and hypothesis for their disappearance.
9. Explain various theories of the origins and development of culture and civilization, along with related concepts
   1. Define culture and society as a feature of human development and evolution.
   2. Compare/contrast culture and society as a complementary term with different histories in the social sciences
   3. Explain the concepts of ethnocentrism, cultural relativism, cultural universals, cultural change, cultural integration, acculturation and enculturation.
   4. Explain ethnography, participant observation and ethnographic interviewing.
   5. Explain the evolutionary appearance of the anatomically modern Homo sapiens (AMHS) and interpretations of skeletal variations in different regions
10. Describe the basic adaptive strategies and related fields of the organization of work and social status
    1. Outline gender relations, the division of labor, rights to property and inheritance, and control of resources among foragers (hunter-gatherers), horticulturalist, pastoralist, intensive agriculturalist, and industrial societies.
    2. Explain anthropological understandings of technology and cultural and environmental adaptation
    3. Describe the major developments of the Upper Paleolithic in Europe and the Later Stone Age in Africa
    4. Explain the concepts of ethnocentrism, cultural relativism, cultural universals, cultural change, cultural integration, acculturation and enculturation
    5. Explain qualitative and quantitative approaches to sociocultural fields of research, including ethnography, participant observation and ethnographic interviewing
11. Explain the basic concepts and examples in the organization of social/cultural life.
    1. Describe the basic forms of nuclear family.
    2. Define marriage inclusively and identify basic forms of marriage: monogamy, polyandry and polygyny
    3. Define the differences among major types of descent (unilineal, bilateral) and kinship (affinal/consanguinal, lineal/collateral, generational).
12. Understand the basic concepts in human communication and language systems.
    1. Differentiate between animal signals and human uses of signs and symbols.
    2. Identify the major features of human languages, including signed languages, that separate them from other forms of communication
    3. Understand the significance of the Sapir-Whorf Theory.
13. Compare and contrast major forms of political organization, associated social stratification and organized violence, and their integration with adaptive strategies and social organization
    1. Identify the types of leadership associated with each form
    2. Describe ethnographic examples of social stratification.
14. Compare/contrast different religious forms and their associated adaptive strategies, social organization and political forms
    1. Contrast art as a culturally integrated and meaningful symbol system in other societies with modern Euro-American concepts of art.
    2. Discuss the role of religion in modern, scientific/materialist societies and the resurgence of religion in politics and societies cross culturally.
15. Explain how any of the four subfields of anthropology has application outside academic research and describe how applied anthropology is considered a fifth sub-discipline.
    1. Discuss the usefulness of applied sociocultural anthropology to major global issues and problems
    2. Identify historical processes that have led up to global issues
    3. Describe ethical problems that sociocultural anthropologist may confront.
16. Understand the nature of work in the areas of Applied and Medical Anthropology.
    1. Provide an example of the work of an applied anthropologist.
    2. Provide an example of the work of a medical anthropologist.
    3. Have a general familiarity with Cultural Resource management.