This is a 25 point quiz to be given along with Exam IV. There will be 15 multiple choice questions and a 10 point open-ended question.

1. Carefully reflect on the exchange between Johanson and White on the analysis and interpretation of the Australopithecus afarensis (on the page following the table of contents). Understand precisely what they concluded about the genus and species status of this fossil following their analysis (see Ch. 13-15).

2. Johanson and White went through several processes in drawing their conclusions about A. afarensis. For this question, know exactly what LeGros Clark’s method was used for, and what it demonstrated, and why it was significant.

3. Johanson and White used a method known as allometry. What is allometry and what exactly did it prove?

4. Understand Richard and Mary Leakey’s reaction to Johanson and White’s
analysis of the A. afarensis fossils at Hadar and Laetoli. What was the Leakey’s position on these fossils and why?

5. You need to know about the dating methods used by Johanson’s team. For this question, focus on the dating of the KBS tuff and why that was significant. Understand the date assigned to Homo habilis by Richard Leakey, how that related to the dating of A. afarensis, and how Basil Cooke’s pig fossils (biostratigraphy) were used. What did all this prove about the relationship of A. afarensis, and Homo habilis?

6. Pay close attention to the team’s use of paleomagnetism and what it implied about A. afarensis in relation to the normal and reversed periods; know the names of significant periods.

7. This question covers biostratigraphy, potassium argon, stratigraphy, and fission track dating. Know the date ranges for A. afarensis.

8. Understand the significance of Johanson’s model of evolution based on the new fossils of A. afarensis. Note what Johanson has to say about the transition from Miocene apes and Pleistocene hominids, compare his model to Brace’s, and pay attention to how his analysis affected the Leakey’s interpretation.

9. This question covers differences between South African and East African fossil sites. Understand the nature of these sites, how they were formed, and how they were dated, in a general way.

10. Johanson discussed three important developments in paleoanthropology in the 1950s. Know the significance of each of these. :

11. Johanson presented three well-known family trees for hominid evolution in his book. You should know precisely the phylogenies of each one and which hominids were ancestral to others in each (Brace, Robinson, the 1970s model). Select the correct statement:

12. Know exactly how Johanson constructed his own phylogeny, which fossil hominids were ancestral to others.

13. Carefully review pp. 18-19. Johanson discusses the problems of defining what a hominid is—this question is based on that discussion..

14. Know about Johanson’s discoveries during his first field season at Hadar. What did he find, and why was it significant?

15. In the last chapter of the book, Johanson discusses the morphology and adaptations of A. afarensis. Know in detail his assessment of the skull, pelvis, and limb bones of these fossils and what capabilities are associated with them.

I am providing the open-ended question in full so that you can prepare it ahead: Refer to Ch. 6 in preparing your response.

KNM-ER 1470

Short answer (10 points)
In Chapter 6 of his book, Johanson describes an examination he gave to his students. The question, in part, stated, “Assume a new skull is found in East Africa where robust australopithecines were found previously. All you know about it is that it is large-brained, with an estimated cranial capacity approaching 800 cc.; that the cranial vault is not thick; that the brow ridges are not prominent; that the fossil is bipedal; that the skull comes in several hundred pieces; that the pieces were found below the 2.6 million-year-old marker tuff.” In fitting this fossil into a model of Plio-Pleistocene evolution, what questions would you raise and what conclusions would you draw (note: this means to ask questions AND to discuss them) about this specimen (make sure you know WHICH fossil KNM-ER 1470 represents) in regard to:

1) its genus and species designation, with reference to the single species and two species interpretation;

2) its morpohology;

3) its relationship to earlier hominids such as gracile and robust australopithecines,

4) its association with the robust austraopithecine and stone tools found at the same site; and

5) the dating of the fossil?