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Prehistoric Cultures

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Table of Contents Introduction to Anthropology. The Development of Evolutionary Theory. Heredity and Evolution. Modern Human Variation and Adaptation. Macroevolution: Processes of Vertebrate & Mammalian Evolution. An Overview of the Living Primates. Primate Behavior. Understanding the Past: Archaeological/Paleoanthropological Methods. Hominid Origins. The Earliest Dispersal of the Genus Homo: Homo erectus and Contemporaries. Premodern Humans. Origin & Dispersal of Modern Humans. Early Holocene Hunters and Gatherers. Food Production. The First Civilizations. New World Civilizations. Appendix A Atlas of Primate Skeletal Anatomy. Appendix B Summary of Early Fossil Finds From Africa. Appendix C Population Genetics. Glossary. Bibliography. Photo Credits. Index.

to top of page / A-Z index How the book will help you in the course: The book provides balanced coverage of physical anthropology and archaeology, including methods; human evolution; living nonhuman primates; human adaptation and variation; the origin and dispersal of modern humans; food production; and the first civilizations of the Old and New Worlds. The methods of contemporary archaeology are presented with a thorough survey of Old and New World sites within their cultural context. Boxes within chapters, called Digging Deeper, expand on and add further dimension to topics covered in the chapter. A running glossary with bolded key terms and a cumulative glossary at the end of the book provide students with key terms for understanding concepts while they are reading, as well as an easy way for students to study. End-of-chapter review tools include the Chapter Summary and Critical Thinking Questions.

.   to top of page / A-Z index Info you won't find in other editions: New co-author, Barry Lewis, has completely rewritten the section on archaeological methods, adding more archaeology to the beginning of the book. He has rewritten the chapters that cover the past 20,000 years of prehistory to update the fascinating story of human biocultural evolution through the emergence of the first civilizations. The ninth edition is more concise. The number of chapters has been reduced from 18 to 16 by combining Chapters 4 and 5 and renaming the new Chapter 4 "Modern Human Variation and Adaptation." Most of Chapter 8 (8th edition) has been moved to Chapter 5 which is now titled "Macroevolution: Processes of Vertebrate and Mammalian Evolution." Material on paleoanthropological and archaeological research methods, which was treated separately in Chapters 9 and 14 respectively, has been combined and rewritten as the new Chapter 8, "Understanding the Past: Archaeological/Paleoanthropological Methods." This change better integrates archaeology with physical anthropology and eliminates redundancies. More examples throughout the text help students better understand the work of practicing physical anthropologists and archaeologists. New Cutting Edge Research features appear between select chapters and highlight the dynamic research of contemporary anthropologists, giving students a glimpse into exciting new discoveries in molecular biology and new techniques in archaeology. Digging Deeper boxes that are new to the Ninth Edition include: "Are they Human?" (Chapter 11), a critical and integrated interpretation of premodern humans; "Maybe, You Can Take It with You" (Chapter 12), a discussion of the rich graves found in some Upper Paleolithic sites (most notably, Sungir); and "Mummies and the Archaeology of the Human Body" (Chapter 15), which describes how archaeologists are now able to answer many new questions about ancient preserved human bodies. New Focus Questions begin each chapter to highlight the chapter's central topic(s). By providing a framework for understanding the information in the chapter, the Focus Questions help students keep major concepts in mind as they read the material. The art program has been significantly re-worked, with enhanced maps and new images and photos throughout the book that include hominids, non-human primates, archaeological sites, artifacts, and much more. New tables at the end of each chapter, Most Significant Fossil Discoveries Discussed in This Chapter, and Most Significant Sites Discussed in This Chapter, help students review by briefly summarizing the most significant fossil discoveries or sites covered in the chapter. At-A-Glance Tables briefly summarize complex material to help students organize the core concepts of each chapter. Examples include: Mendelian Disorders in Humans, (Chapter 3); and Estimated Body Weights in Early Hominids, (Chapter 9). A new "Click" feature at the beginning of each chapter directs instructors and students to relevant media products, such as Kappelman's Virtual Laboratories for Physical Anthropology Online or CD-ROM; Ahern's Hominid Fossils CD-ROM: An Interactive Atlas; Basic Genetics for Anthropology CD-ROM: Principles and Applications; and the new Anthropology Resource Center. Each of these products is designed to provide visual teaching aids and they can be used for class assignments. New Critical Thinking Questions at the end of the chapters include questions that can be assigned to help students assess what they have learned. Bring your students into current activity in the field with a special 'Ancient Civilizations' edition of Scientific American magazine (ISBN: 0495008036). As an exclusive offer from Thomson, this magazine is available bundled with any Wadsworth Anthropology text at a nominal fee. This issue includes coverage by region including such topics as the Iceman, Death Cults of Prehistoria Malta, Keys to the Lost Indus Cities, Woman and Men at Catalhoyuk, Rock Art in Southern Africa, Life and Death in Nabada, Tapestry of Power in a Mesopotamian City, Daily Life in Ancient Egypt, Great Zimbabwe, Precious Metal Objects of the Middle Sican, Life in the Provinces of the Aztec Empire, Reading the Bones of La Florida, and more.

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