Concept explainers
Introduction: The coal serves as the major source of the fuel. However, the coal burning has many cumulative effects that causes many long-lasting environmental change. Thus scientist has named a new geological epoch termed as Anthropocene.
Explanation of Solution
Correct answer: Option b. The humanity’s role in changing the land and air of the planet.
Reasons for the correct answer:
The Anthropocene is the geological epoch that describes the alteration in the atmospheric, hydrologic, geological processes by the activity of humans.
Option b. is given as “humanity’s role in changing the land and air of the planet.”.
Hence the correct option is option b.
Reasons for the incorrect answers:
Option a. is given as “the industrialization of agriculture”. The Anthropocene does not describe the industrialization of agriculture instead it deals with the impact of human activity on environment. Hence, option a. is incorrect.
Option c. is given as “a natural warming of Earth’s atmosphere unrelated to human activity”. The Anthropocene deals with the impact of human activity on environment instead of natural warming. Hence, option c. is incorrect.
Option d. is given as “an end to the continued biological evolution of humans”. The Anthropocene deals with the impact of human activity on environment. Hence, option d. is incorrect.
Therefore, options a., c., and d. are incorrect.
Thus the Anthropocene is defined by humanity’s role in changing the land and air of the planet.
Want to see more full solutions like this?
Chapter 14 Solutions
Our Origins: Discovering Physical Anthropology (Fourth Edition)
- Through _______, a body part of an ancestor is modified differently in different lines of descent. a. homologous evolution c. adaptive divergence b. morphological convergence d. morphological divergencearrow_forwardWhich of the following was not present by the end of Precambrian? a. archaea c. fungi b. bacteria d. fisharrow_forwardThe term “Cambrian explosion” refers to (a) an increase in biodiversity. (b) a mass extinction. (c) an atmospheric detonation due to increasing gas concentrations. (d) an oceanic eruption caused by underwater volcanic activity.arrow_forward
- The fossil record shows that in just the last 600 million years, there have been five instances of sharp decreases in the diversity and abundance of living organisms. what are these events? a. droughts b. mass extinctions c. reversals of the earth's magnetic field d. great migrationarrow_forwardwhich statement about macroevolution is true? a. The history of life on Earth follows a general trend toward increasing diversity marked by rare mass extinction events. b. The theory of punctuated equilibrium proposes that most evolutionary changes occur over long periods of time. c. The theory of gradualism proposes that major evolutionary changes happen relatively rapidly and are then followed by long periods of little change. d. All scientific understandings are complete, as scientific investigations have now filled in all remaining gaps.arrow_forwardWhich of the following is characteristic of the end of the Paleozoic Era? a There was a mass extinction that eliminated 70% of marine life. b All of Earth's landmasses are joined together in a supercontinent called Pangaea. c Mountains began to form. d The supercontinent Pangaea separated into present-day continents.arrow_forward
- Energy, the absence of molecular oxygen, chemical building blocks, and time were the requirements for (a) chemical evolution (b) biological evolution (c) the Cambrian radiation (d) the mass extinction episode at the end of the Cretaceous period (e) directed evolutionarrow_forwardWhich factor most likely caused animals and plants in India todiffer greatly from species in nearby southeast Asia?(A) The species became separated by convergent evolution.(B) The climates of the two regions are similar.(C) India is in the process of separating from the rest of Asia.(D) India was a separate continent until 45 million years ago.arrow_forwardDescribe a scientific hypothesis to explain the mass extinction of dinosaurs and many other organisms at the end of the Cretaceous Period.arrow_forward
- A. The principle that human biology and culture evolved together and are intertwined makes anthropologists refer to humans as: a. biocultural organisms. b. an holistic species. c. human agents. d. co-specific organisms. B. Oldowan tools can be described as a. exceptionally small flint tools used in making other tools. b. polished, ground stone tools that look like teardrops. c. thin, symmetrical tools made from stone, bone, and antler. d. tennis ball sized rocks with a few flakes knocked off.arrow_forwardList the four large time periods into which biologists divide the earth’s pastarrow_forwardThe biome in which anatomically modern Homo sapiens probably initially evolved was the: A. Asian steppe. B. Tropical rainforest. C. African savanna. D. Australian desert. E. North American steppe.arrow_forward