Biological Anthropology: The Natural History of Humankind (4th Edition)

Description

Biological Anthropology: The Natural History of Humankind combines comprehensive coverage of the foundations of the field with modern innovations and discoveries, helping students understand and get excited about, the discipline. Because the authors conduct research in three of the main areas of biological anthropology the human fossil record (Susan Anton), primate behavior and ecology (Craig Stanford) and human biology and the brain (John Allen) they offer a specialist approach that engages students and gives them everything they need to master the subject.

The Fourth edition continues to present traditional physical anthropology within a modern Darwinian framework and includes coverage of contemporary discoveries to highlight the ever-increasing body of knowledge in biological anthropology.

Key Features

• Introduction Learning Objectives at the start of each chapter provide a road map for students to flesh out the outline of important concepts and key ideas.
• Addition of Insights and Advances boxes in each chapter which expand on text material or call attention to current events connected to the subject, to emerging debates or sometimes just to fascinating side stories.
• Increase in the number of Innovations feature which provide an intense visual presentation of new, burgeoning areas of research in this field.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction: What Is Biological Anthropology?
2. Part I – Mechanisms of Evolution
   1. Origins of Evolutionary Thought
   2. Genetics: Cells and Molecules
   3. Genetics: From Genotype to Phenotype
   4. the Forces of Evolution and the Formation of Species
   5. Human Variation: Evolution, Adaptation and Adaptability
3. Part II – Primates
   1. The Primates
   2. Primate Behavior
4. Part III – Paleontology and Primate Evolution
   1. Fossils in Geological Context
   2. Origin of Primates
5. Part IV – The Human Fossil Record
   1. Early Hominins
   2. Origin and Evolution of the Genus Homo
   3. Archaic Homo sapiens and Neanderthals
   4. The Emergence and Dispersal of Homo sapiens
6. Part V – New Frontiers in Biological Anthropology
   1. Evolution of the Brain and Language
   2. Biomedical Anthropology
   3. The Evolution of Human Behavior
   4. Bio-archaeology and Forensic Anthropology.