Human Variation and Race

     Heat can greatly impact the homeostasis of humans.  Although it is well known that humans deal with heat much better than they do with cold,  there can be great consequences with too much exposures to heat.  Humans who are exposed to heat run a really high risk of dehydration.  The body however does have it's mechanisms to deal with this.  Heat can impact where humans live, what they eat and what they do.  These things are some of the basic necessities of life and any imbalance can have a huge detriment in their lives.

     Short term adaptation

          An example of a short term adaptation with heat acting as an environmental stress would the the bodies ability to sweat.  This is a way a body reacts to heat as a cooling mechanism.  However as the body reacts by sweating to cool itslelf off it begins to lose plenty of fluids.  Humans need to make sure to stay very well hydrated to replenish any fluids that it loses because of its ability to sweat.

     Facultative adaptation 

          Vasodilation is a form of facultative adaptation.  This is when blood vessels expand in the skin to increase blood flow to it.  With vasodilation the body's inner heat is radiated outward towards the skin as mean to cool itself off.

     Developmental adaptation

          Human populations who are exposed to heat regularly have seen a decrease in body hair.  This change in the body allows for enhanced cooling effects for the body.  This is something that has devoloped throughout the human species.  This is also considered an evolutionary adaptation.

     Cultural adaptation

          As a culture we find ways to adapt to different things.  We found ways of cooling ourselves by developing technologies that aid us in doing so.  Air conditioning systems can be found at our work, homes and in our vehicles. We have developed clothing fabrics that protect us from the heat and cool us off at the same time.  This has made it possible for us to live in almost any type of environment. 


     Studying this information across these environmental clines helps us better understand how humans react to stresses in the environment.   By understanding each step one has a better understanding of how these stresses affect them.  We understand more of how are bodies are adapting to these stresses and we can come up with new ideas on how to understand and build more resources to help us adapt to our changing environment.   An example of this would be using fluids and different equipment to hydrate us.  As a culture we have come to learn where to push our bodies to the limits for physical gains.  Now we understand more of what is needed in fluids to keep us hydrated to help us achieve this.  We now include electrolytes to help us in replenishing our fluids.

     It would be very difficult for me to use race to understand the variation of the adaptations I listed earlier.  I think that the study of environmental influences on adaptations is a better way to understand variation than by the use of race.  After all it is the environmental influences that I believe create these races in the first place.  I believe since populations exist all over the world these races themselves have found a better understanding of their own people by studying these environmental influences. 


 
         
         

Experimenting with language.

     It sure sounds easy at first but I came to find out that this assignment was much more difficult than I originally thought.  Fifteen minutes in a conversation where only one person understands what the other is trying to communicate gets very frustrating fast.  It is like trying to play a very long session of charades.  I found it to be very difficult to try and get any point across.  I did not feel like a had any significant thing to add to the conversation in the first part of this assignment.  As the experiment continued the person who was trying to communicate with me pretty much toook control of the conversation.  It seemed to me  like it turned into a yes, no and alot of hand gestures, that the person I was trying to communicate, did not understand.  I noticed that as the conversation continued, my partner seemed a bit frustrated as well.  I noticed they too were using more hand gestures.   Maybe as a form of helping me  to try and help me communicate with them with the same type of hand gestures.  I think the culture who has a symbolic language has the edge in communicating complex ideas.  I think it is easier for a culture with a symbolic language to try and interpret things by helping tie some hand gestures or facial expressions  with an actual vocabulary word.  I believe the culture with a symbolic language might consider themselves superior to the culture without a symbolic language.  I have first hand experience with trying to communicate with language barriers.  I grew up with parents who's first language was spanish.   My father began his business in his mid 20's and most of his clientiele was solely english speaking.  I was surprised that although there was a language barrier my father and his clients always came to an understanding at the end of their conversation.  I think since these were business transactions and both the parties new there was a language barrier, there was always a friendlier approach and method to communicating with each other.  As a little kid I noticed that my father and his clients used a lot of hand gestures and facial expressions in helping understand each other.

     The second part of the experiment was very difficult as well.  I honestly did not last the full 15 minutes in trying to not use and form of physical or vocal experession.  I knew what was being asked in the experiment but through old habits I could not get myself to not use and physical expression.  I would catch myself using my eyebrows or taking deep breaths in frustration.  I couldn't even keep the conversation in a monotone voice.  My partner explained to me that the believed the conversation was a little more on the boring side.  The lack of expression made it  a less appealing conversation.  I have taken speech courses before and I think physical experessions is the key in keeping your audience in tune to what you are speaking about.  It is possible to communicate with just language but when mixed in physical expression, it gives our conversations a different life.  I think that people who can read body language have a better understanding of conversations.  I think being able to read body language plays a key role in helping people work together in life or in a working environment.   The benefit in reading body language would be a great help in ameliorating situations that might need it.  For example a person in a sales enviornment would thrive in being able to read body language.  They would have a  better understanding  in meeting their customers needs by reading facial expressions and body language.  They would know what direction to steer a customer before they even had a chance to communicate through language.  I think children also have a great understanding of body language.  I for one knew when I was younger, what not to do just by looking over at my parents facial expressions..  They never had to say a word and I understood exactly what they were thinking.  =)  

        

The Piltdown Hoax

1.  The Piltdown hoax occured in 1912 in the village of Piltdown, England.  Charles Dawson made a claim that he had discovered what seemed to be the ancient remain of a human skull.  With the assistance of Arthur Smith Woodward and few other scientists they began excavating around these remains.  They managed to discover a few other remains during these excavations.  These were said to be the first ancient human remains that were found in the country of England.  The fossil resembled that of an ape like skull and was said to be a huge missing link in the connection between humans and apes.  The scientific community in England was filled with great excitement and curiosity.  They were mostly excited because they believed that their country had what seemed to be the oldest discovered human remains.  Years after the Piltdown discovery scientists had developed better methods of dating fossils.  The Piltdown fossils were tested for dated accuracy and it was then discovered that the fossil was actually about 100 years old and that of an Orangutan.  The scientific community was destroyed, not only because of the find but also that there was significant evidence that the fossils had been tampered with.  Someone had actually filed down and stained pieces of the fossils to make them appear older and resemble that of humans.  They felt betrayed that their colleagues that were held with such high revere, would have the audacity to try and fool the scientific community.

2.  The scientist were guilty of being gulllible and believing their colleagues at the time without testing these fossils further.  This impacts the scientific process significantly because it is based on the ability to test things over and over until it is proven to be accurate.  Scientists can not believe the claims of other people without there being documented tests to prove the accuracy and validity of someone's claims. 

3.  Because of the Piltdown hoax the scientific community has learned to believe their on tests and not the claims of other people.  Science is always finding new ways of doing things better such as the discovery of the flourine test that proved the remains to be a hoax.  The flourine test was used to provide a more accurate reading of the age of the fossils.  The microscope also proved to be useful in viewing the marks that were found on the remains.   

4.  It is not possible to remove the human factor from science.  Science is based on the curiosity of the mind.  Without humans the curiosity that makes scientist wonder how things came to be would not exist.  As I was coming up with this answer I came to realize that human factor in no way could be completeley removed from the scientic process.

5.  The life lesson is to make sure you get your answers from verified sources.  In science one cannot go by instinct or claims alone.  It has to find methods of testing the validity of these claims.  Someone along time ago once said "I won't believe it until I see it with my own to eyes." 

   

                                   Locomotor Patterns.

Lemurs are known to live in areas with heavy rain forests.  Being arboreal primates they thrive in this type of habitat.  At one point the lived throughout the world.  However now they mainly live in Madagascar amd the islands that surround it off the coast of east Africa.  Athough most live in rain forests some types of lemurs have managed to survive in drier climates.  Lemurs are know as quadrupedal meaning they use their four limbs to navigate through the rain forest.  They are also excellent climbers and leapers.  It is clear that it's locomotor skills are a product of its environment.  It is a perfect environment  because of its ability to find food and travel across the arbors with the greatest of ease. 

Spider Monkeys are also arboreal primates.  Their habitat is heavy rain forests and they rarely touch the floor surface.  They are mostly found in the region from Mexico to the northern part of South America.  They are quadrupedal, climb, swing through the trees.  Although they use their four limbs for navigating through the arbors they also use their tail as a fifth limb to help in their movement.  Since these primates do se well with movement in the arbors they thrive in this environment.  Since they hardly touch the ground spider monkey's have found a way to live on the tops of trees in a less competitive environment.  Their tales adapting to climbing shows that the spider monkey is adapting to its environment. 

Baboons however are not arboreal primates, instead they are known as terrestrial.   These animals are found mostly in east Africa.  Their habitats are areas such as savannas and woodlands.  They thrive in areas with a good supply of food and water.  Baboons are normally found in areas with cliffs and trees.  They use cliffs and trees for sleeping as way to protect themselves from their enemies.  These primates are quadrupedal.  However they do not walk on their heels but on the their digits(fingers).  Their heels hardly touch the ground.  The ability to live on hunt and gather on the surface ground and use its ability to climb to protect itself have allowed it to survive in their environment. 

Gibbons are generally found in southeast Asia.  These are areas with heavy tropical rain forests. They are very small and lightweight which allow them to swing form branch to branch with the greatest of ease.  These primates are also quadrupedal.   Because of their size they have the ability ot walk and leap to most branches.  This great ability to travel from tree to tree has helped the Gibbons adapt to its environment by being able to search out food that would be difficult for other primates to reach.

Chimpanzee's are mostly found in wet savannas, rain forest and can be found throughout Africa.  However, these primates are able to adapt to different types of environments.  Their locomotor skills include quadrupedal knuckle walking and some bipedalism.  Since they are able to do both they are considered to be terrestrial and arboreal.  Although most of their time is spent on the surface ground they do generally sleep in the trees.  Their long arms have helped them become great tree climbers.  Their ability to travel well on ground and trees gives them a great advantage in finding sources of food and protecting it from harm.


I believe the locomotor skills of the primates have helped them survive and thrive in their habitats.  The ability to climb trees and in some primates the ability to walk have helped them take full advantage of their environment.  It has helped them find sources of food and and water amongst the trees and on surface ground.  It has also helped protect them from harm by being able to use these traits.   The ability to move more effectively, surely does work to their advantage.   

  

Homologus and Analogous Traits

                                     Homologus Traits

Cats and Humans do share a homologus trait.  The cats front paw is similar to that of the human hand.  The human hand shares the same amount of digits as the front paws of the cat.  Although they both look similar in bone structure the paw and hand are used in different ways.  The cat uses its phalanges primarily for walking where as a human uses its phalanges for climbing and grabbing.  At the end of the phalanges the cat has claws and the human has nails.  The claws and nails at the end of each of their phalanges are used in different ways.  The claw which is used for self defense, hunting, and climbing has a different shape to that of a human nail.  It is pointy and curved whereas the human nail is flat.  The most common suited ancestor of these species is the placental mammal. 

                                       Analogous Traits

Cats and insects also share an analogous trait.  Their appendages are used primarily for mobility.  The legs of insects and cats have limbs and are able to move at the joints.  Besides walking both insects and cats can use their legs for swimming and jumping.  Most insects also have claws located somewhere on their appendages.  You would have to go way back to try and find the most common ancestor of these two species.  The closest ancestor to them would be the velvet worm and this trait would be present since the velvet worm is a worm with appendages.    

Hope I did this correct.  Good Luck!

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