Makenzie Matthews

ANTH-1020-001-Sp16
Before taking this class I knew that humans and primates had a common ancestor.
However, I was unaware of microevolutionary forces and the processes of macroevolution and
how they applied to the evolution of hominids. To discuss this more, the microevolutionary
forces are mutation, gene flow, genetic drift, nonrandom mating, and selection. These forces
over a long time lead to large mutations, macroevolutionary forces. In this course, I often looked
back on this concept thinking about how these microevolutionary forces lead to such large
changes in the genotypes of life. At some point in the evolutionary lineage, a series of mutations
had to occur that rose in frequency which lead to new species. Neanderthal DNA being found in
modern humans is another thing that I contemplate often. In order for such a large amount of
modern humans to have this DNA in their genome a large of interbreeding would have had to
occur. But how much would that be? What was the interaction between species like? What was
their language like? These are questions that interest me greatly.
Out of the activities, the overview of the primates was most beneficial to me. It helped
me apply how to recognize primate fossils in a realistic context. For example, heterodont teeth
indicate a mammal while forward facing eyes and orbital eye closures further indicate primates.
To go even further the dental formula of a fossil can reveal the difference between
catarrhines(2.1.2.3.) and platyrrhines(2.1.3.3.). This activity has allowed me to reflect on the
differences of primates in general, which I had previously never done.
I have enjoyed this class a lot which has convinced me to take further anthropology
courses in the future. Anthropology has many debates and advancements, which require
knowledge of the field to understand. I expect the information I learned here to be a good
background in what I need to know for future classes.