Understanding culture society

and politics

module 4
Looking back at Human
Bio Cultural
And Social Evolution
CULTURAL EVOLUTION
It refers to the changes or
development in cultures from a
simple form to a more complex form
of human culture.
Scientist study the cultural
evolution of human by analyzing the
changes in the latter’s way of life.
BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION
It refers to the changes,
modification, and variations in the
genetics and inherited traits of
biological populations from one
generation to another.
Scientist study the physical body
humans, the changes in the shape and
size of their bones.
CHARLES DARWIN
- The evolution of species happens through
the process of natural selection .

- the reason for occurrence of evolution

- the outcome for processes that affect the

frequency of traits in a particular
environment. Traits that enhance survival
and reproductive success increase in
frequency overtime.
3 PRINCIPLES OF NATURAL SELECTION
1. VARIATIONS – Every species is made up of
variety of individuals wherein some are
adopted to their environments compared to
others
2. HERIDABILITY – organisms produce
progeny with different sets of traits that can
inherited
3. DIFFERENTIAL REPRODUCTIVE SUCCESS
– Organisms that have traits most suitable to
their environment will survive and transfer
these variations to their offspring in
subsequent generations.
 Lesson 1:
Biological and
cultural evolution:
from homo habilis
to homo sapiens
sapiens in the
fossil record
HOMINIDS
 General term used to categorize the
group of early humans and other
human like creatures that can walk
erect during the prehistoric period
Sahelanthropus tchadensis
 6-7 million years ago
 It had both apelike and humanlike
characteristics:
 A skull similar to Australopithecus
 Height almost similar to a chimpanzee
 Brain size: 320-380cc
 Small teeth
 Had the ability to walk upright
Ardipithecus
• “Ape on the Ground” 5.6
million years ago.
Ardipithecus
“Ape on the Ground” 5.6 million years ago.
• weight about 120 pounds
• skull size similar to an ape
• small brain
• Bipedal
• Live in jungles and forests like
chimpanzees.
• height about 4 feet.
Australopithecus “The Southern Ape” (5
million-1 million years ago)
 Brain size: 500 cc or almost 1/3 size of
human brain.
 Upright
 Bipedal
 Tool users not tool makers
 Food scavengers
Homo
They are classified as humans
and not humanlike creatures
because they had bigger brains
and were bipedal.
a. Homo habilis
• 3-4 feet
• Brain size: 700cc
• “Handy man”
b. Homo erectus
• Large brain size:1000cc
• Lived in shelter
• Food gatherers
• Crafted materials
c. Homo sapiens
• Is the only extant human species. The
name is latin for “wise man” and was
introduced in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus
(who is himself the original type
specimen).
• Homo sapiens evolved in
Africa, like other early humans
that were living at this times,
they gathered and hunted
food, and evolved behaviors
that helped them respond to
the challenges of survival in
unstable environment.
 2 types of Homo Sapiens
a. Homo sapiens
neanderthelensis
- They had a brain size larger than
modern man and were gigantic in size.
Also, they had a large head and jaw and
were very powerful and muscular. They
were carnivores and the tools from the
era indicate they were hunters. They
were also caving dwellers but their caves
were more comfortable and they live in
groups and hunted for food gathering.
b. Homo sapiens sapiens
- Also known as “modern day man” is what
we are today. Compared to the homo
sapiens neanderthelensis, the brain
became smaller in size reduced to
1300cc. There was also a reduction in
the size of the jaw, rounding of the skull
and chin. Cro magnon are the earliest of
the homo sapiens they spread wider from
Europe, Australia, and the Americas.
They were omnivores, had skillful hands,
and developed the power of thinking,
producing art, more sophisticated tool
and sentiments.
LESSON 2:
CULTURAL AND SOCIO
POLITICAL EVOLUTION:
FROM HUNTING AND
GATHERING TO THE
AGRICULTURAL,
INDUSTRIAL, AND POST-
INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTIONS.
TYPES OF SOCIETY:
Sociologists have classified the
different types of societies into
six categories: each of which
possesses its own unique
characteristics.
1. Hunting and Gathering Societies
These are the earliest forms of society.
These are small and generally with less
than 50 members and are nomadic. The
members survive primarily by hunting,
trapping, fishing, and gathering edible
plants.
2. Pastoral Societies
Rely on products through the
domestication and breeding of animals for
transportation and food. These are
common in areas where crops cannot be
supported and only have to move when the
land in which animals gaze is no longer
usable.
3. Horticultural Societies
These societies rely on the cultivation of
fruits. vegetables, and plants in order to
survive. They are often forced to relocate
when the resources of the land are depleted
or when the water supplies decrease.
4. Agricultural Societies
They rely on the use of technology in
order to cultivate crops in large areas,
including wheat, rice and corn.
Productivity increases, and as long there
are plenty of food, people do not have to
move.
5. Industrial Societies
They used advanced sources of energy to
run large machinery which led people to
travel, work in factories, and live in cities.
6. Post-Industrial Societies
Their economy is based on services and
technology, not production. The economy
is dependent on tangible goods, people
must pursue greater education, and the
new communications technology allows
work to be performed from a variety of
locations.
5 CHANGES OF SOCIETY:
1. The economy undergoes a transition
from the production of goods to the
provision of services.
2. Knowledge becomes a valued form of
capital.
3. Producing ideas is the main way to grow
the economy.
4. Through processes of globalization
and automation, the value and
importance to the economy of blue
collar, unionized work, including
manual labor decline, and those of
professional workers (e.g scientists,
creative-industry profesionals and IT
profesionals) grow in value and
prevalence.
5. Behavioral and information
sciences and technologies are
developed and implemented.
(e.g., behavioral economics,
information archetecture,
cybernetics, game theory and
information theory)
How artifacts and fossils help us
understand the cultural, social, and
economic developments of modern
humans.
Fossils are information about human
biology, which include bones and other
remains of human beings. Environmental
conditions, however, affect
the preservation of fossils.
Artifacts refers to anything
modified by man or made by man
including tools, weapons and other
material creation.
ASSIGNMENT
Define the following words:
1. Socialization
2. Enculturation
3. Social Deviance
4. Human Dignity
5. Conformity
6. Ritualism
7. Retreatism