Problem 1: Describe three cranial features that differentiate the robust australopithecines from gracile australopithecines. What do these cranial features tell us about robust australopithecines' diet?
Problem 2: Based on your book and this week's video "Discovery of Lucy", what was the significance of Lucy's discovery to paleoanthropology? How did the size of Lucy's brain size challenge the idea of the "Big Brain Theory"?
Problem 3: Tool use was transformative to hominin evolution. For this question, please observe your behavior for one activity during the day (e.g., preparing and eating a meal; going somewhere; completing a chore; doing school work). Briefly state what the activity was and list all of the tools (or things) that you used to complete that task. Would you have been able to complete that task without tools? Do you think humans would be able to survive today without material culture?
Problem 4: List three cranial differences differentiate the genus Homo from Australopithecus (bullet points are fine).
Problem 5: Pick one famous Homo erectus discovery from your text and explain why it is important to our understanding of the species.
Problem 6: Homo naledi is one of the most important scientific discoveries of the last decade. Part of what makes its discovery so significant is the sheer inaccessibility of where the fossils have been found. Based on the video you watched for class, do you think you would want to do the kind of scientific research? Why or why not?