ANT 3101 Study Guide - Spring 2018, Comprehensive Midterm Notes - Neolithic Revolution, Natural Selection, Mesopotamia
ANT 3101
MIDTERM EXAM
STUDY GUIDE
Fall 2018
Chapter 1
January 9th
Anthropology
• The study of all people in all times and in all places
• The study of humankind
Archaeology
• One of the four subcategories of anthropology
• Deals with humans in the past
• Focus on long time spans and social change
• Rely strongly on material remains
Summary of Human History
1. Early Prehistory 2.5 mya-200 kya
2. Origins and Spread of Modern Humans 200 kya-15 kya
3. Origins of Food Production 15 kya-ca. 3 kya
4. Origins of Civilizations ca. 3 kya-1400 AD
5. European Expansion
January 11th
Why Archeology Matters
1. Engages with the needs and interest of communities, some of whom are marginalized
otherwise
i. (focuses on the living and the deceased)
ii. Marginalized: not as important as others, minority populations
2. Combats the use of the past as a political tool
i. Example: Climate Change
3. Allows us to learn from the mistakes of others
i. Societies that collapse: why and how (Mesopotamia)
4. Re-discover environmentally and socially sustainable practices
i. Why it worked, how it worked
The Ancient Maya
1. Pre-Classic Period (400 BC- AD 250)
2. Classic Period (AD 250- 900)
*TWO Collapses*
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
Chapter 1
Ancient Maya Pre-Classic Collapse
El Mirador (collapse)
• Deforestation
o To beautify city and build more pyramids to appeal to the gods (fix issues)
• Erosion
o Deforestation led to increased erosion
• Drought
Lessons Learned:
• Environmental problems are inked to social practice
• Normal problem solving does not always lead to good solutions
• Technological solutions do not always emerge to rescue people
Tamarandito (success)
• Fallow Period reduced
o Turning over crops too quickly
• Soil Erosion up to 25 times
• Waterholes filling in with dirt
Solutions:
• Terrace hillsides to minimize erosion and allow runoff
Late Classic/ Terminal Classic Period
Caracol
• Garden City Extraordinaire
• 600 BC-1100 AD
• 177 km2, 150k people
Solutions:
• Created terraces to grow food (food self-sufficiency)
• State-level response after city center was abandoned
find more resources at oneclass.com
find more resources at oneclass.com
