SC216 syllabus

SC216--Anthropology--Spring 2012
Tuesday, Thursday, Period P (12:35-1:50 PM), Room 122

The Textbook

Course Description

Course Objectives

Course Policies

Grading System

Course Schedule

Prof. Thomas A. Easton

Photo of Professor Easton

OFFICE: Rm. 108

OFFICE HOURS: 12-3 PM MW, 11-12 AM TTh

OFFICE PHONE: 859-1331

HOME PHONE: 338-1074

CANCELLATION PHONE NUMBER: 859-1140

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THE TEXTBOOK

Campbell, Loy, & Cruz-Uribe, HUMANKIND EMERGING, 9th ed., Pearson/Allyn & Bacon, 2006 (ISBN: 0-205-42380-9).

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COURSE DESCRIPTION

This course is designed to acquaint students with the origins of the human species. It covers basic evolution and genetics, population biology, primate anatomy and behavior, and the sequence of forms which marked the transformation of apelike creatures to ourselves.

See "Course policies" below for details on testing and grading.

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COURSE OBJECTIVES

After completing this course, students will be able to:

Explain how evolution works
Describe the ways in which humans differ from other animals
Describe the ways in which humans resemble other animals
Explain why scientists found hard to accept the early discoveries of human ancestors
Describe how the precursors of human beings differed from and resembled modern humans
Describe how the precursors of human beings lived and adapted to their environment
Summarize the evolution of humanity

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COURSE POLICIES

Four quizzes will be given at the beginning of class, covering the previous week's material. They will count in grading as one quarter of the final grade.

There will be one 10-page term paper, typed, double-spaced, with references, with accompanying presentation to the class, which will count for one quarter of the final grade. It should extend a topic chosen from among the many covered in the course beyond--in detail, depth, and currency--the coverage in the text. Topics must be chosen by January 24. Papers will be presented to the class AND ARE DUE April 26. See this file for general specifications.

Possible topics include but are not limited to: The Dmanisi hominins, recent evidence for interbreeding between Neandertals and moderns, the earliest migrations (by Homo erectus), Homo floresiensis, the future evolution of humanity: natural or technological?

There will be four exams, as noted in the schedule. They will count as one quarter of the final grade. The final quarter of the grade will come from the final exam.

There will be no make-ups on quizzes. Make-ups on exams are allowed only in case of illness. The only make-up time is during the instructor's office hours on the next class day.

Students who plagiarize tests and papers will receive zeros for the work in question, with no makeup opportunities.

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GRADING SYSTEM

A (94 - 100)      A- (90 - 93)
B+ (87 - 89)     B (83 - 86)    B- (80 - 82)
C+ (77 - 79)     C (73 - 76)     C- (70 - 72)
D+ (67 - 69)     D (63 - 66)    D- (60 - 62)
F (below 60)

COURSE SCHEDULE

CAUTION: COURSE SCHEDULE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT WARNING!

DATE	TOPIC	ASSIGNMENT

T 1/10	Introduction
	Ch. 1	Search for Human Origins

Th 1/12	Ch. 2	Evolutionary Mechanisms

T 1/17	Ch. 2 cont.	Populations and species

Th 1/19	Quiz #1, on chapters 1 & 2
	Ch. 3	Humans among the Primates

T 1/24	Ch. 3 cont.	Humans among the Primates

Th 1/26	Ch. 4	Behavior of Living Primates

T 1/31	Exam #1 (Chh. 1-4)

Th 2/2	Ch. 5	Apes & Other Ancestors: Prehominin Evolution
	Announcement and discussion of paper topics (see above for some possible topics)

T 2/7	Ch. 6	The South African Hominins

Th 2/9	Quiz #2, on chapters 5 & 6
	Ch. 7	East Africa and the Sahel: A Multitude of Australopiths

T 2/14	Ch. 8	East Africa: The Advent of Homo

Th 2/16	Exam #2 (Chh. 5-8)

2/20-2/24	WINTER BREAK

T 2/28	Ch. 9	Evolution of Hominin Behavior

Th 3/1	Ch. 9 cont.	Brain Expansion

T 3/6	Ch. 10	Discovering Homo erectus

Th 3/8	The very latest--the Dmanisi hominins (handouts)

T 3/13	Quiz #3 -- on chapters 9 & 10
	Ch. 11	Environment, Technology & Society of Homo erectus

Th 3/15	Ch. 12	Homo heidelbergensis and the Advent of the Hunting Way of Life

T 3/20	Exam #3 (Chh. 9-12)

Th 3/22	Ch. 13	Evolution of Language and the Brain

M 3/26 - F 3/30	SPRING BREAK

T 4/3	Ch. 14	The Neandertal Enigma--Discoveries

Th 4/5	Ch. 14	The Neandertal Enigma--Surviving in an Ice Age World

T 4/10	Quiz #4 (Chh. 13, 14)
	Ch. 15	The Final Transformation: The Evolution of Modern Humans

Th 4/12	Exam #4 (Chh. 11-15)

T 4/17	Ch. 16	The Advent of Modern Culture

Th 4/19	Cave Paintings video

T 4/24	Ch. 17	The Human Condition

Th 4/26	Paper Presentations

T 3/20	FINAL EXAM

Syllabus last modified October 31, 2011.