abduction: Movement
of a limb away from the body's midline, or of a digit away from the
long axis of a limb.
aboriginal: Native, aboriginal.
absolute dating: Age
estimation in calendar years before the present; also known as numerical
dating, chronometric dating.
acetabulo-cristal buttress:
A bony buttress extending vertically down the iliac blade, supporting
it against the powerful muscular forces generated by the hip abductor
muscles.
acetabulum: Joint depression
in the os coxa into which the head of the femur fits, the socket
in the ball-in-socket hip joint. The three bones of the os coxa
(ilium, ischium, pubis) meet in the acetabulum.
achieved status: Social
standing and prestige reflecting the ability of an individual to
acquire an established position in society as a result of individual
accomplishments.
acrocentric chromosome:
A chromosome with a centromere near the end such that it has one
long arm plus a stalk and a satellite.
adaptation: Changing
to fit, or respond to, the requirements of the environment.
adaptive radiation:
Multiplication of species from a single phyletic line into a series
of closely related taxa occupying different niches or adaptive zones.
adaptive valleys (cf.
adaptive peaks): Stable morphological configurations based on effective
genetic compromises that maximize overall fitness in specific adaptive
niches, envisioned as a series of dips across a fitness plateau.
additive genetic variance
(VA): Genetic variance that arises from the additive effects of
genes on the phenotype.
adduction: Movement
of a body's limb towards the midline, or of a digit toward the long
axis of a limb.
adenine (A): A purine
base found in RNA and DNA; in double-stranded DNA adenine pairs
with the pyrimidine thymine.
affine: A relative
by marriage.
affinity: Relationship
by marriage. May include the relationship between corporate groups
linked by marriage between their members.
agnate: A person related
by patrilineal descent.
airorhynchy: An upward
rotation of the front of the palate (the alveolar portion of the
face under the nose).
allele: One or two
or more alternative forms of a single gene locus. Different alleles
of a gene each have a unique nucleotide sequence, and their activities
are all concerned with the same biochemical and developmental process,
although their individual phenotypes may differ.
allele frequency: The
percentage of an allele at a particular locus relative to all the
different alleles at the locus, usually calculated for a population.
allelomorph: A term
coined by William Bateson; literally means "alternative form";
later shortened by others to allele.
Allen's Rule: To retain
heat, warm-blooded animals tend to have shorter and bulkier limbs
in colder climates than their relatives in warmer regions.
alliance: A system
whereby descent groups or other kin groups or other kin groups are
linked by a rule or prescriptive or recurrent marriage so that the
groups remain in an affinal relationship to one another across generations.
allometry (allometric
scaling): Generally, the effect of size on shape. Specifically,
any relationship of anatomical variables that fits the equation
Y = AXk (A is a constant, the exponent k the coefficient of allometry).
allopatric speciation:
Species formation when there is geographical isolation (cf. sympatric
speciation).
allopatry: Non-overlapping
geographic ranges.
allopolyploidy: Polyploidy
involving two or more genetically distinct sets of chromosomes.
alternation of generations:
The two distinct reproductive phases of green plants in which stages
alternate between haploid cells and diploid cells (gametophyte cells
and sporophyte cells).
altricial: Having the
young born in an immature and helpless condition.
altruism: Behavior
that benefits another individual at a cost to the actor, where cost
and benefit are defined in terms of reproductive success.
alveolar height: The
vertical dimension of the lower part of the skeletal face, from
the lower nasal border to the bone between the upper incisors.
alveolar margin: The
rim of the alveolar process.
alveolar process: The
tooth-bearing portion of the jaw.
alveolar prognathism:
Forward projection of the portions of the jaws that hold the teeth
and their roots.
alveolus: Socket, as
in tooth socket.
Ames test: A test developed
by Bruce Ames in the early 1970s that investigates new or old environmental
chemicals for carcinogenic effects. It uses the bacterium Salmonella
typhimurium as a test organism for mutagenicity of compounds.
amino acids: The building
blocks of polypeptides. There are 20 different amino acids.
amino-acid racemization:
A method used in the dating of both human and animal bone. Its special
significance is that with a small sample (10g) it can be applied
to material up to 100,000 years old, i.e. beyond the time range
of radiocarbon dating.
aminoacyl-tRNA: A tRNA
molecule covalently bound to an amino acid. This complex brings
the amino acid to the ribosome so that it can be used in polypeptide
synthesis.
aminoacyl-tRNA synthetase:
An enzyme that catalyzes the addition of a specific amino acid to
a tRNA molecule. Since there are 20 amino acids, there are also
20 synthetases.
amniocentesis: A procedure
in which a sample of amniotic sac fluid is withdrawn from the amniotic
sac of a developing fetus and cells are cultured and examined for
chromosomal abnormalities.
anagenesis: Anatomical
change in a single lineage over time that is sufficient to name
a new species.
analysis of variance
(ANOVA): A series of statistical procedures for examining differences
in means and for partitioning variance.
anaphase: The stage
in mitosis or meiosis during which the sister chromatids (mitosis)
or homologous chromosomes (meiosis) separate and migrate toward
the opposite poles of the cell.
anaphase II: The second
stage of meiosis during which the centromeres (and therefore the
chromatids) are pulled to the opposite poles of the spindle. The
separated chromatids are now referred to as chromosomes in their
own right.
anatomical equivalence:
The same requirements met in different ways.
andesite: A fine-grained
igneous rock in the diorite family that is intermediate in color
between the light end of the spectrum (rhyolite) and the dark end
of the spectrum (basalt).
aneuploidy: The abnormal
condition in which one or more whole chromosomes of a normal set
of chromosomes either are missing or are present in more than the
usual number of copies. Aneuploidy also refers to the abnormal condition
in which a part or parts of a chromosome or chromosomes are duplicated
or deleted.
angular torus: A raised
and thickened ridge at the back of the posterior temporalis muscle
attachment, where the line marking the furthest backward extent
of its fan-shaped fibers angles downward and forward.
angular trigone: A
backward-facing triangular form to the lateral-most part of the
supraorbital torus. The apex is created by a prominent temporal
ridge, and the torus is thicker at the trigone than it is more medially.
To be distinguished from frontal trigone.
anterior: Frontal portion.
anterior iliac spines:
In hominids, two bony projections (superior and inferior) for muscles
to attach that extend the leg, protruding from the front edge of
the ilium. Sartorius attaches on the anterior iliac spine and rectus
femoris (one of the quadriceps) on the anterior inferior spine.
anterior pillars (of
the maxilla): Two vertical columns of bone, on either side of the
nasal aperture, extending above and lengthening the pilaster of
bone surrounding the canine roots.
anterior tooth loading:
Forces placed on the front teeth when an object is held between
them. The source of the force on the teeth of each jaw is the opposite
jaw and the force applied to the object.
anthropithecine: A
member of the subfamily Anthropithecinae, the group including the
African apes and the hominids.
anthropology: The study
of humanity - our physical characteristics as animals, and our non-biological
characteristics collectively referred to as culture. The subject
is traditionally broken down into four sub-disciplines: biological
(physical) anthropology, cultural (social) anthropology, archaeology,
and linguistics.
antibody: A protein
molecule that recognizes and binds to a foreign substance introduced
into the organism.
anticodon: A three-nucleotide
sequence that pairs with a codon in mRNA by complementary base pairing.
antigen: Any large
molecule that stimulates the production of specific antibodies or
that binds specifically to an antibody.
antimeres: Equivalent
teeth from opposite-sides of the jaw (i.e., as in left and right
M1).
apes: The large hominoid
arboreal primates, based on similarity and not common descent (apes
are not a monophyletic group).
apical: Toward or at
the far end.
apical ancestor (ancestress):
The ancestor or ancestress from which descent is traced (the "apex"
of the triangle of descendants).
apomorphy: A derived
character, a feature whose state is unlike the ancestral condition.
If it is a unique variation it is an autapomorphy, if shared by
more than one taxon, it is a synapomorphy.
appendicular skeleton:
The bones of the limbs and the shoulder girdle.
applied research: Research
done with an eye towards making products that can be commercialized,
or at least made available to humankind for practical benefit.
arboreal: Living mainly
in trees; for instance, arboreal quadrupeds are animals that use
all four limbs in walking and running on trees limbs.
Arboreal theory: A
theory that many of the cranial and post-cranial adaptations found
in primates are actually exaptations for life in the trees.
archaeobotany: See
paleoethnobotany.
archaeological culture:
A constantly recurring assemblage of artifacts assumed to be representative
of a particular set of behavioral activities carried out at a particular
place and time.
archaeological sequence:
Regular stratigraphic variation within a deposit reflecting the
appearance of new tool types, changes in toolmaking technologies,
or changing frequencies of tools.
archaeology: A subdiscipline
of anthropology involving the study of the human past through its
material remains.
archaeology of cult:
The study of the material indications of patterned actions undertaken
in response to religious beliefs.
archaeozoology: Sometimes
referred to as zooarchaeology, this involves the identification
and analysis of faunal species from archaeological sites, as an
aid to the reconstruction of human diets and to the understanding
of the contemporary environment at the time of deposition.
archaic: Ancient.
articular eminence:
The articular surface is in front of the mandibular fossa, where
the mandibular condyle is located when it transmits force during
mastication. The eminence may be expressed as anything from a straight,
angled, plane to vertical and horizontal surfaces that meet along
an edge. The back side of the eminence is the front side of the
fossa.
articular surface:
Portion of a bone that is linked to another bone through an intervening
joint of cartilage.
articulation: Joint
between two or more bones.
artifacts: Humanly
modified objects.
artificial selection:
Human determination as to which individuals will survive and reproduce.
If the selected traits have a genetic basis, they will change and
evolve.
ascending ramus: Vertical
portion of the mandible, extending from the corpus to the condyle.
ascribed status: Social
standing or prestige which is the result of inheritance or hereditary
factors.
asexual (vegetative)
reproduction: Reproduction in which a new individual develops either
from a single cell or from a group of cells in the absence of any
sexual process.
assemblage: All the
artifacts, fauna, and other debris found in a single layer or excavation
unit at a side.
association area: One
of the many regions of the cerebral cortex not devoted exclusively
to either primary sensory perception such as vision and audition,
or to motor movement, but rather to more complex association between
these modalities. There are frontal, parietal, and temporal association
areas.
asterion (ast): A point
on the back of the skull at which the lambdoidal, parietomastoid,
and occipital sutures meet.
asterionic notch: The
notch at the bottom-rear of the parietal bone, located over the
mastoid process.
astragalus (talus):
Ankle bone.
asymmetrical alliance:
In alliance theory, a marriage system involving indirect exchange.
atlas: Most superior
of the cervical vertebrae, supporting the cranial articulation.
atomic absorption spectrometry
(AAS): A method of analyzing artifact composition similar to optical
emission spectrometry (OES) in that it measures energy in the form
of visible light waves. It is capable of measuring up to 40 different
elements with an accuracy to approximately one percent.
attentuation: A regulatory
mechanism in certain bacterial biosynthetic operons that controls
gene expression by causing RNA polymerase to terminate transcription.
attribute: A minimal
characteristic of an artifact such that it cannot be further subdivided;
attributes commonly studied include aspects of form, style, decoration,
color, and raw material.
attritional age profile:
A mortality pattern based on bone or tooth wear which is characterized
by an overrepresentation of young and old animals in relation to
their numbers in live populations. It suggests either scavenging
of attritional mortality victims (i.e. those dying from natural
causes or from non-human predation) or the hunting by humans or
other predators of the most vulnerable individuals.
auditory meatus: External
opening of the ear canal.
auditory tube: The
tube of the bone holding the tympanic part of the temporal, the
passage leading to the tympanic membrane.
auricular point (au):
A point often used for measurements, particularly projected into
the sagittal plane, located vertically above the center of the auditory
meatus and porion, on the root or base of the zygomatic arches.
This point is located a few millimeters above, and lateral to, the
porion.
australopithecine:
Referring to members of the genus Australopithecus.
Australopithecus: A
collective name for the earliest known hominids emerging about 5
million years ago in East Africa.
autapomorphy: An apomorphy
unique to a single species.
autonomously replicating
sequences (ARS elements): Specific sequences (e.g., in baker's yeast,
Saccharomyces cerevisiae) that, when included as part of an extrachromosomal,
circular DNA molecule, confer on that molecule the ability to replicate
autonomously.
autopolyploidy: Polyploidy
involving more than two chromosome sets of the same species.
autosome: A chromosome
other than a sex chromosome.
auxotroph: A mutant
strain of a given organism that is unable to synthesize a molecule
required for growth and therefore must have that molecule supplied
in the growth medium in order for it to grow.
auxotrophic mutation:
A mutation that affects an organism's ability to make a particular
molecule essential for growth.
avunculocal: Postmarital
residence of a person with their mother's brother.
axial skeleton: The
part of the skeleton along the central axis of the body: vertebral
column, pelvis, and thorax.
axillary: Of or pertaining
to the armpit.
axion: The nerve fiber
extending away from the nerve cell body to meet the axion of another
nerve cell.
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