SOCIOLOGY-ANTHROPOLOGY THE NATURE OF MAN (Inst: MSSGDolipas) There is no other science that deals more on the nature of man

than Anthropology. Anthropology is a holistic science, which emphasizes the organic or functional relation of different parts of society and the different aspects of human experiences. Anthropology encompasses a very broad spectrum touching most areas of human endeavor. It has branched out into specialized studies and areas covered by other social sciences using holistic approach. According to Ember, anthropologist insists on taking many aspects of human existence both past and present, and in all levels of complexity. (Ember and Ember, 1981) Characteristics of Anthropology One important aspect of Anthropology is its insistence that conclusions should be based on a comparative study of society all over the world. Anthropology transcends the interest of any particular culture or society. It studies their differences and similarities. All societies are evaluated on their own right to be different and unique from each other. Anthropology studies culture and societies be they primitive, preliterate or modern, past and presenting its holistic form. Anthropology tries to explain fundamental questions that usually trouble mankind like the origin of injustice, racism, sexism and the significance of mankinds animal heritage. (Harris, 1980:4) As such it encompasses the whole study of mankind, past and present. It is this claim of Anthropology which has been overlapping with areas covered by the study of other social sciences especially Sociology. Anyway, the social sciences try to utilize the findings of each other. Division of Anthropology The field of Anthropology can be divided into two main areas: the Physical and Socio-cultural Anthropology. Physical Anthropology. This area is concerned with human evolution and human variations. It deals primarily with the study of mans physical characteristics as it evolves from the different points in time. Physical Anthropology studies the emergence of man. It reconstruct various information from the physical and biological sciences to develop theories to explain changes in the fossil remains of man evaluate these theories by comparing the data gathered by different scientist (Human Paleontology). Physical Anthropology deals with the study of human differences among living populations. It attempts to explain factors that cause variations among the human population. Physical Anthropology studies heredity; how it works, how it changes and how it is modified. Physical Anthropology also studies the effects of the environment and its interaction with the population characteristics. Physical Anthropology studies primates (monkeys and apes) to understand the origin of mans social and the beginning of culture. Social and Cultural Anthropology. This area studies the origins and history of human societies and cultures. It studies societies and culture through time and at a given point of time. Socio-cultural Anthropology studies societies and cultures by looking at the similarities between different cultures that are alike or similar. Socio-cultural Anthropology is subdivided into Archeology, Ethnology, Anthropological Linguistics and Applied Anthropology. Archeology is the systematic and organized study of mans cultural past. It reconstructs the

past by arranging the artifacts chronologically through the help of the different techniques of dating from the biological and physical sciences. Archeology traces cultural changes in different societies and provides explanations for these changes. While the Archeologist is interested in knowing the past culture, Ethnology is interested in knowing contemporary societies and cultures. Ethnology seeks to understand and to explain how and why people differ in their ways of living. Ethnology studies similarities and differences between different societies and cultures at different point of time and at a given time. There are two types of ethnologists: the ethnographer and the ethno historian. The ethnographer is concerned basically in a detailed descriptive study and explanation of the many aspects of the customary behavior and practice of the different people he has observed. The ethno historian, on the other hand is more interested in studying the changes that occur in a given culture at different points of time. He studies written document, reports, accounts, diaries, writings and government records to establish sequence of events and changes in the culture of a given people. Unlike the historians, he reconstructs history of a people who might now have left written records. Anthropological linguistics is interested in knowing the origin, development and structure of the different languages of the world, past and present. It studies descriptions of a language and the ways the language develops and influences each other with the passing of time. It studies similarities and differences between languages and notes the interrelationships between language of the people and its influence on the on the other aspects of culture. Applied anthropology is a sub-area of Cultural Anthropology. It utilizes the findings of other anthropologists to solve contemp[orary socio-economic and political problems. Applied anthropology tests anthropological theories and research methods. Application of anthropological theories and research methods are usually made in underdeveloped countries where planned changes are being implemented. Most applied anthropologists involve themselves in planned changes in the areas of public health, agriculture and cultural integration of cultural minorities or migrants. EARLY HISTORY OF MAN Alexander Pope in his An Essay of Man wrote that the proper study of mankind is man. This statement would mean that if we want to learn about man, we should study man. But anthropologists believed that to know more about man and his nature, they have to study his near relatives and his ancestors. Hence the study of primates and fossils of man to throw more light about mans biological background and to seek more about pre-human roots of social and physical existence. PRIMATOLOGY The goal of Primatology, the study of primates( such as tarsiers, lemurs, monkeys, and apes), is to understand how different primates have adapted anatomically and behaviorally to their environments. All living primates including humans evolved from earlier primates that are now extinct. So by observing the living primates of today, their differences and resemblance, we may be able to infer how and why humans diverged from the other primates. GEOLOGY

Geologists are students of the earths history. Their study show that the earth is not uniform but consists of sequence of strata or layers of minerals laid down in the past by wind water or volcanoes. In an undisturbed deposit, the lowest layer is the oldest and the topmost layer, the most recent. But earthquakes may jumble the layers; rivers may cut through them, and redeposit them in a different order. On this basis geologists have set up series of periods in the history of the earth. Geologic time is the time scale that covers the earths entire geologic history from its origin to the present the earths age falls between 4.5 to 4.6 billion years. The geologic time scale breaks the age of the earth into distinct intervals of varying lengths. The longest intervals are eons. Each eon is subdivided into eras. Each era is made up of periods, which are further divided into epochs. A. PRECAMBRIAN The PRECAMBRIAN ERA lasted for about 4.5 billion years. It began with the formation of the earth and ended about 600 million years ago. B. PALEOZOIC PALEOZOIC (pay*lee*uh*ZOH*ik) means ancient life. This era began about 600 million years and ended about 230 million years ago. Its beginning is marked by the sudden appearance of abundant fossil. C. MESOZOIC

MESOZOIC ( mez*uh*ZOH*ik), meaning, middle life. It lasted for about 160 million years. During this vast time span, great changes occurred in the earths plants and animals. D. CENOZOIC The CENOZOIC (see*nuh*ZOH*ik), meaning recent life, began about 70 million years ago and has not yet ended. It is the era in which you live. Fossils and the rock record show that many of todays mountain ranges and plateaus were lifted up during this era. The MIOCENE, PLIOCENE, and PLIOTOCENE epochs are of critical importance of mans immediate past history and Pleistocene geology is crucial for the study of man for this is the period in which the hominoid finally evolved. It is the time that tested and stimulated the adaptive capabilities of man and hastened his evolutionary development.

MAJOR MECHANISMS OF EVOLUTION How do species originate through the gradual process of evolution over generation of time. The answer to this question can shed fundamental insights concerning the origin of man. The answers can be found in Mendellian genetics, Darwins study of natural selection and adaptation and cellular reproduction studies. All living things begin life as a single cell. Higher animals (man) do not develop unless the sperm to produce a fertile cell called zygote fertilizes the ovum. Ova and sperm are sex cells and they are found in specialized body organs called gonads (testicle & ovary) when the sperm fertilizes the ovum, it begins to divide into two first, then four, and eventually thousand of cells. When a zygote or fertilized cells to begins to divide, the colored materials in the cells nucleus begin to condense into rod-like bodies called chromosomes. Each specie of animal has a fixed number of chromosomes ranging from 2 to 200. In man the normal number is 46. The structures that transmit single characteristics are sections of chromosomes called genes. The characteristics of genes are 1) to control a single chemical synthesis in a cell, 2) to alter just one trait of a cell when its own molecular changes or mutates, 3) to cross over to the other chromosomes in the pair in a reproductive cell. In 1865, an Austrian monk, Gregor Mendel explained the way in which physical heredity is transmitted- that it is transmitted through the germ-plasm of

reproductive material. He found that some organisms reproduce by blending inheritance and others by dominant-recessive inheritance. This means that when two organism of one specie but opposite sex and different appearance are crossbred, they may have offspring that seems to be even blend of the two parents or they may have offsprings most of which resemble one parent more than the others. In 1882, Charles Darwin explained natural selection. Later, Alfred R. Wallace also reached the same conclusion that matched that of Darwin. They demonstrated that the environment in which population lives differentially affects inheritable variations. They also asserted that those who possess adaptively valuable qualities in their particular environment will be at an advantage in comparison with those who do not possess such qualities and the former are likely to flourish than the later. Genes are subject to occasional-unpredictable alteration called mutations. Sometimes mutation may be due to cosmic radiation or chemicals. Most mutations are disadvantage to survival and so the specie may be eliminated by the early death of the individuals. But sometimes, a mutated gene proves beneficial and so gives the individual possessing it an advantage over those not possessing it. Its characteristics will become prevalent in the specie. Tree of Human Evolution The first humans evolved from ape ancestors between 5 million and 8 million years ago. Many species of homos followed but only some left descendants on the branch leading to Homo sapiens ( Encarta Encyclopedia)

THE REAL EVE: The film The Real Eve will highlight the history of man from 150,000 years ago, when the undisputed forms of homo sapiens sapiens evolved from the homo erectus. The film will answer questions about; who we are and where we come from? After the film showing you should be able to answer the following;

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How did the early men survived? What was the early mans key to survival 150,000 years ago? How can we trace the relationship of humans all around the world? Where was the birthplace of homo sapiens? Who was the African eve? What are the jobs of paleanthropologists, archeologists, and geologists? Where was the survival of the early homo sapiens depends on? How many attempts were made by the early modern men in moving out of Africa? When was the attempt to move out of Africa became successful? Was there a time that man was an endangered species? Explain. What drives the early men to move out of Africa? How important are the sea coasts to the success of man in moving out of AFRICA? What was the 1st route of men in moving out of Africa? Where was the 1st destination of the early men when they came out of Africa 80,000 years ago? What was the most crucial trek out of Africa that was important in the survival of mankind? How large should the group be in numbers to ensure their survival? What is Genetic Drift? Describe the survival of the 1st people in Asia ( Malaysia). What was the impact of the eruption of the volcano in Sumatra to the history of the Asian Man? What tribe is the oldest living group in Asia? What were the reasons why the modern man did not migrate to Europe right away? When was the 1st burial ground become evident? What was the evidence? Compare the Neanderthals and the homo sapiens. Describe the life of the Neanderthals. What caused the extinction of the Neanderthals? Were the Neanderthals the same as us? What were the early sign of culture sophistication of the early humans in Europe? When? What was the last frontier in populating the world? When did the worst ice age occur? When did the 1st Americans arrived in America? What was the oldest skeleton found in America? Was there a single group of American ancestors? Explain. What are the reasons why men look differently? Explain the differences in skin color. What was the significance of the discovery that we all come from the same woman, the African Eve? Prepared by;

Sheila G. Dolipas Instructor (Sociology-Anthropology) Sources: 1. Carol R. Ember, Melvin Ember & Peter Peregrine; Anthropology 10 th Edition, 2002 2. Eric W. Danielson & Edward J. Denecke Jr. Earth Science 1986 3. Microsoft Encarta Reference Library 2003 4. Phylogenetic Time Lines (Source: Adapted from New York Times,995, p.c9 Maeve Leakey, Ian Tattersall, The Fossil Trail)

5. The Real Eve, Discovery Channel