ANTH 1, Section 6 
Introduction to Physical Anthropology

Last Updated: May 7, 2006

Welcome to the Dr. M. Elizabeth Strasser's ANTH 1 home page on the World Wide Web. These electronic pages provide information for the course Introduction to Physical Anthropology taught at California State University, Sacramento.

Class Time and Location: TR, 10:30-11:45, MND-4008

*Course Syllabus:

Course Description
Learning Objectives
Texts
Academic Honesty
Course Requirements
Course Schedule
Dates to Remember (including dates to hand in assignments and of exams)

 

*Official Study Guide for First Exam
*Official Study Guide for Second Exam
*Official Study Guide for Third Exam
*A Painting by Francine West of the Course Topics
*Course Contacts (Office hours: Tues. 9:30-10:30. Thurs.1:00-2:00; or by appt.)
*Links to Course Related-Sites

Send problems/comments/suggestions to: strasser@csus.edu
Return to CSUS Home Page, Anthro. Dept. Phys. Anthro. Home Page ,  Strasser Home Page.

Course Description

Introduction to Physical Anthropology fulfills the Area B2 (Life Forms) requirement for the General Education Program.  Covers the concepts, methods of inquiry, and theory of biological evolution and their application to the human species. There is a specific focus on molecular, Mendelian and population genetics, mechanisms of evolution, primatology, paleoanthropology, biocultural adaptations, and human variation. The scientific method serves as the foundation to the course. 3 units. (CAN ANTH 002)

 

Learning Objectives

By the end of the course, students should understand: the Scientific Method; elementary Mendelian genetics, cytogenetics, molecular genetics and population genetics; aspects of evolutionary theory, including the mechanisms of evolutionary change,  the process(es) of speciation; basic taxonomy and systematics; the place of humans within the order Primates and the place of primates within higher taxa as evidenced by comparative anatomy and genetic data; the classification and characteristics of the major taxa within the order Primates; the  paleontological context and fossil record of major taxa within the order as well as of our own lineage; and adaptive (or not) explanations for modern human variation.

Texts

Required:

Stein, Philip L., and Bruce M. Rowe

             2006  Physical Anthropology, 9th edition.  New York: McGraw-Hill.

Hens, Samantha, editor

2004    Supplemental Readings for Physical Anthropology.  Dubuque: Kendall/Hunt Publishing Company.

 

Recommended:

Zihlman, Adrienne

2000 The Human Evolution Coloring Book, 2nd edition.  New York: Barnes & Noble Books.

 


Academic Honesty1 If a student is found cheating in any of the assignments/exams of this class, the student will receive an F for that assignment/exam.

 1Modified from the CSUS University Manual.

Course Requirements

EXAMS

  • Seventy-five percent (75%) of the course grade will be based on the arithmetic average of three exams.
  • The student is responsible for providing a General Purpose NCS Answer Sheet Form (no. 4521) for each exam.
  • Class attendance is strongly recommended since the exam material will come directly from the lectures.
  • Study guides will be provided for each exam. The study guides will be updated the week before the exam. Copies of older versions of the Study Guides are also available on-line.
  • The exams are not cumulative. The exams are objective, i.e., in the format of multiple-choice questions, true/false and matching.

HOME-WORK

  • Twenty-five percent (25%) of the course grade will be based on the completion of 10 Article Review Forms (ARFs).
  • The readings are not included in the exams, but enhance the students' understanding of the material covered in lecture.
  • Completion of the ARFs fulfills the Writing Requirement for lower division GE courses.
  • Writing rubric used to grade ARFs

MAKE-UP EXAM POLICY

  • Taking the exams is mandatory for earning a grade in this class.
  • Students who miss exams must have documentation for their absence (e.g., a court summons, a doctor's note, a note from an employer) in order to take a make-up exam.
  • Students must inform the instructor about missing an exam before the time the exam is given.  The student must arrange to take the make-up test with the Testing Center (Lassen Hall, Monday through Thursday, 5:00-8:00 p.m.) by making an appointment (278-7870) and paying by check (no cash) a $3 charge.
  • The student must provide their own NCS Answer Sheet (#4521) for the make-up exam.
  • The Testing Center will return the completed exam and Answer Sheet to the instructor.
  • Make-up exams must be taken the same week that the exam is given.

EXAM REVIEWS

  • The only certain extra credit points that can be earned in this class are for reviewing the exams.
  • Each exam review is worth 5 percentage points.
  • Exam reviews are only possible for exams 1-2; no review is possible for the final exam. Exam reviews involve:
    1. writing down the questions you got wrong,
    2. why you chose the wrong answer, and
    3. giving the correct answer.
  • The exam review must be handed in at the class period following the return of the corrected exams.
  • No late reviews will be accepted.

EXTRA CREDIT

If any extra credit assignments are to be given, aside from the Exam Reviews, they may be used only to improve a grade by 1/3 (e.g., from A- to an A or D to D+ or C+ to B-), if and only if the numerical score allows for such a change.  In other words, Extra Credit points are not equivalent to Exam Review points.


 

GRADE CALCULATION

  • The final grade is calculated as follows:
    • 0.75((sum 3 Exams + sum Exam Reviews)/3) + 0.25 (sum 10 ARFs/10)
      • Required
        • 3 Exams                 @100 pts. each        75%
        • 10 ARFs                                                 25%
      • Extra Credit
        • 2 Exam Reviews    @ up to 5% each
  • Letter Grade distribution as follows:
    • A    92-100%
    • A-   90-91%
    • B+   88-89%
    • B     82-87%
    • B-    80-81%
    • C+   78-79%
    • C     72-77%
    • C-    70-71%
    • D+   68-69%
    • D     62-67%
    • D-    60-61%
    • F      <60%

NO INCOMPLETES ARE GIVEN IN THIS COURSE

ATTENDANCE

  • Class attendance is mandatory for the first two weeks of classes and a roll call will be conducted in each class.
  • Two absences from class during the first two weeks is sufficient reason to drop the student from the class list and to add another student from the waiting list.
  • After the first two weeks of classes attendance is not mandatory but class attendance is strongly recommended since the exam material will come directly from the lectures.

DROP POLICY

The last day that you can drop this course using CASPER is February 3rd. The last day that you can drop this course with a department approved petition is March 3rd.
 
 

Dates to Remember

  DATE

EVENT

  

March 7

FIRST EXAM

 

March 14

ARFs 1,3,5,6 DUE

 

April 18

SECOND EXAM

 

April 20

ARFs 9,12,14 DUE

 

May 11

ARFs 20,21,22 DUE

 

May 18

THIRD EXAM  10:15-11:15

 


Links to Course-Related Sites
A useful Mendelian Genetics Page (needs Shockwave) (click on DNA from the Beginning)
National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution
Primate Gallery (pictures & info on primate species)
The Talk. Origins Archive (e.g., creationist arguments; info on various hominid species, etc.)
Kuban's Paleo-Place (various bits about paleontology)
UC Berkeley's Museum of Paleontology
American Museum of Natural History, New York
The National Center for Science Education
Radiometric Dating: A Christian Perspective (A useful explanation)
 

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