how biological anthropology started. . .
how biological anthropology started. . .
Biological anthropology first started to be called physical anthropology, it first started with revealing man as an integral part of the animal kingdom, they realized that humans are subject to same laws and mechanisms that govern other forms or living organisms. This was very revolutionary in the past because they were anchored in beliefs that man was linked to the gods, and was considered apart from all other living things. To be able to bridge the gap between man and all the other animals that have been subject to evolution, and the unity of man and his organic life.
Only when Tyson gave a suggestion that a human being might be closely related to an orangutan and was not persecuted for it, was when the intellectual climate became more receptive. Although the main definition of physical anthropology was still blurred, only when the travelers and explorers became interested with the different kinds of people they traveled with and the different cultures they had to experience and get to know.
Soon, culture became a significant component in the biological evolution and history of man. The concept of evolution provided biology with fundamental orientation that it lacked in the past.
some of our discoveries in the past 10,00 years
How human societies adapted to the challenges of living in different places was a vital part of their survival. The environment and what was made available was also valuable on how it shaped each human community, and how these communites grew over time. The importance of domestication for human evolutionary history cannot be overestimated. Domestication was a big part of humans’ population growth, and it helped in forming the foundations for the rise of complex societies, cities, and increasingly sophisticated technology.
No complex society in the world would be possible without learning agricultural practices. Although the rise for agriculture did come with difficulties, part of this was because their diets shifted from solid food to a more carbohydrate based and a source of poor quality protein. The involvement of agriculture also contributed to the change in biology of humans, the size of our facial bones began to decline and decrease in workload and activity resulted in a general tendency toward increased gracilization of the skeleton.
much of what biological anthropologist has shown to us is focused on the evolutionary processes that operates on primates and hominins in the past. These findings contribute to contemporary issues involving our questions for our population and forces that will soon affect the future of humanity. Humans will always subject to adapting to the different circumstances and challenges that we are born to go up against.
The past holds a great story to be able to contribute to the questions of the present. There are times that students like us are inclined to question why we need to study findings in the past and a big part of this is because they hold information in regards to what humanity can further face in its future. Biological anthropology has made it clear how revolutionary its own concept in history became. It is our job to further make this part of science flourish and alive, so that humanity in the future can enjoy the findings we enjoy reading about today and to continue studying and discovering how humanity lives and evolves through time.