Primate
The order of animals that includes lemurs, tarsiers, monkeys, apes and humans
Hominoidea
The taxonomic group(family) that includdes the human and ape members of the primates, both fossil and modern forms
Dryopithecine
The genetic term for the Miocene fossil ancester of both the living apes and modern humans, found in africa, asia and europe.
Paleoanthropology
The branch of anthropology that combines archaeology and physical anthropology to study the biolofical and behavioral remains of the early homonins
Fossil
The mineralized bone of an extinct animal.
Bonobo
A small species of chimpanzee, closely related to humans
Homonoid
A descriptive term for any human or ape, past or present, characterized by teeth shape, the absence of a tail and swinging arms.
Homonid
An obsolete term that refers to the human members of the primates, both modern and fossil forms
hominin
A current term that refers to the human chimp and gorilla members of the primates, both fossil and modern forms
Sexual dimorphism
A difference in size between the male and female members of a species.
Austalopithecine
The generic term for the various species of the genus Australopithecus, including A. Ramidus, A. afarensis and A. africanus
Locomotion
A method of animal movement, such as bipedalism.
Plio-Pleistocene
A generic term for the period of the Pliocene and early Pleistocene, used to describe the age of fossil finds, approximately 3-1 m.y.a.
Paranthropus
Genus of early hominins, contemporary with Australopithecus, that includes boisei and robustus as species.
Polygynous
Having more than one mate.
Relative dating
A technique used to extimate the antiquity of archaeological materials, generally based on association with materials of known age or simply to say that one item is younger or older than another.
Association
The relationship between items in an archaeological site. Items in association are found close together and/or in the same layer or deposit.
Absolute dating
A method of assigning archaeological dates in calander years so that an age in actual number of years is known or can be estimated
Isotope
One of the several atomic states of an element.
Isotopic technique
A method for absolute dating that relies on known rates of decay in radioactive isotopes expecially carbon, potassium and uranium
Radiopotassium dating
an absolute dating technique based on the principle of decay of the radioactive isotope of potassium. Also called radiocarbon dating.
Half-life
A measure of the rate of decay in radioactive materials; half radioactive material will disappear within the period of one half-life.
Argon-argon dating
A more accurate method of potassium argon dating that involves converting potassium to argon before the isotope ratios are measured
bipedalism
The human method of locomotion, walking on two legs.
Breccia
The accumulated materials from cave deposits that harden into a conglamorate rock, including sediments, rocks, and animal bones
cutmark
A trace left on a vone by a stone or metal tool used in butchering a carcass
Oldowan
The name given to the assemblages of early pebble tools and flakes belonging to the basal paleolithic, derived from Olduvai
percussion flaking
A technique for producing stone artifacts by striking or knapping crystalline stone with a hard or soft hammer.
Flake
A type of stone artifact produced by removing a piece from a core through chipping
Core
The stone from which other pieces or flakes are removed. Core tools are shaped by the removal of flakes.
Hammerstone
A stone used to knock flakes from cores
Debitage
A term referring to all the pieces of shatter and flakes produced and not used when stone tools are made.
Flint
A fine-grained, crystalline stone that fractures in a regular pattern, producing sharp-edged flakes
Flintknapping
The process of making chipped stone artifacts; the striking of stone with a hard or soft hammer.
Assemblage
The set of artifacts and other remains found at an archaeological site or within a specific level of a site.
lithic
pertaining to stone or rock
Unifacial
A term describing a flaked stone tool in which only one face or side is retouched to make a sharp edge.
Bifacial
A flaked stone tool in which both faces o sides are retouched to make a thinner tool.
Retouching
The shaping or shrpening of stone artifacts through percussion or pressure flaking
Handedness
Preferential use of the right or the left hand
Tools
Any equipment, weapn, or object made by humans to change their environment
Estrus
The cycle of female sexual receptivity in many species of animals
Extrasomatic
"outside the body", nonbiological or genetic