When examining the skull of the gorilla, it is established that there are many similarities and differences between their skulls and the skulls of the spider monkey and humans. With the gorilla skull that was on display many of the skull characteristics were pronounced. When observing the lower jaw or mandible of the gorilla it is shown that the molar teeth are very similar to that of a human. However, the front teeth are more outward and significantly larger compared to humans, especially the canine teeth which are used as a defense mechanism. Unlike humans, the gorilla contains a sagittal crest that connects the mandible to the skull and creates a stronger jaw for the gorilla for the grinding of their food. The nasal passage of the gorilla …show more content…
The main characteristic that the gorilla’s parietal skull has that the spider monkey and human skull do not have is the sagittal crest. As stated above, the sagittal crest is the point at which the muscle from the mandible is connected and creates a stronger jaw. This sagittal crest creates the large protruding part of the skull for the gorilla which can be seen with the naked eye. Unlike humans, the parietal skull of the gorilla is not very “flexible”, meaning that when the brain develops it cannot expand as much as the human brain can because of this lack of flexibility. Finally, the orbital bones of the gorilla are very protruding when related to the spider monkey and human skull. The gorillas have a large brow ridge over the eyes. This protruding bone is to protect the eyes from branches and other debris that the gorillas might face in the wild. Like the spider monkeys, the gorillas have a very large and wide eye sockets and, as a result, the gorillas have slightly larger eyes. The skull of the Western Lowland gorilla is very extraordinary and shares many characteristics with the human and spider monkey
Human are the most clever animals in the world. As the society developed, they are more concerned to seek for a harmony relationship with nature. The article “In the Forests of the Gombe” written by Jane Goodall describes the relationship of science and religious and the new understanding of humans through the forest. After Goodall’s husband died, she went through the Gombe jungle and found the new world by observing chimpanzees and staying in the quiet forest. Even though there are no communication between Goodall and chimpanzees in the forest, she still gets inner peace and enlightenment of science and religious.
They have wide chests and their arms are longer than their legs. Chimpanzees’ hands have four long fingers plus an opposable thumb. Their feet have five toes which includes an opposable big toe. Chimpanzees’ can grasp things with both their hands and their feet. Male chimpanzees are larger than female chimpanzees and are slightly sexually dimorphic. Chimpanzees are quadrupeds that typically walk using the soles of feet and the knuckles of their hands. They sometimes walk upright only when they need to use their arms to carry things but this is a rare occurrence. Chimps are also good at brachiating and climbing trees which is where they spend most of their time even when they sleep. Their dental formula is 2.1.2.3. Chimpanzees’ have y5/x4 molars, making them frugivores, and a diastema to fit their upper canines. Their diet includes fruit, leaves, flowers, seeds, smaller mammals, birds, insects, and grubs. When chimps aren’t resting, they can be very active. I enjoyed watching the Chimpanzees’ swing on the ropes and climb up and down the trees. Chimpanzees are
Vision plays a huge role in the lives of non-human primates. Non-human primates have exceptional binocular vision, due to forward-facing eyes with overlapping visual fields (Prescott). This binocular stereoscopic color vision allows primates to see the world in terms of height, width, and depth, also known as three-dimensional vision (Haviland et al. 2010). Highly developed vision allows the later arboreal primates to judge depth, distance, and location when moving at speed from branch to branch (Haviland et al. 2010). This bino...
5.) Primates and all mammals share a series of characteristics such as: body hair, long gestation and live birth, mammary glands, different types of teeth, ability to maintain a constant body temperature, increased brain size and a considerable capacity for learning. Scientists created a special order called primates, because they share many characteristics unique to their order: a tendency toward erect posture, a flexible, generalized limb structure, hands and feet w/ a high degree of apprehensibility, retention of 5 digits on hands and feet, an opposable thumb, nails instead
The cranium has two temporal bones located to the base and side of the skull, and two parietal bones that make up the top of the skull.
Apes, like humans, are catarrhines and part of the superfamily hominoidea. Apes started to appear in the Miocene about 20 million years ago(lecture notes, week 10), under this category there are many primates that are distinguished as apes, such as, orangutans, gibbons, chimpanzees, and gorillas. These particular primates are from the old world and are native to Africa and Asia. Apes can be distinguished by the foramen magnum towards the back of the skull, having no tail, and having a hook nose (Larsen 2013, p. 150). Another characteristic of apes is that they have large brains for their body size, this is important because it shows they have a higher intelligence than other animals, and this can be connected to the relationship shared with humans.
The “Monkey’s Paw” reveals an intriguing story of destiny and death. The Theme challenges the classical ideas of destiny and fate.
Our earliest ancestors are primates. They are our closest relatives which is why we can see our behavior’s and practices in them. If we observe them we can get a better understanding of them and us, human beings. But unfortunately we all don’t get the chance to see a Primate right in our backdoor. So the best thing I could do for my observation was to visit them at the zoo.
The evolution of apes was a possibility in the 19th century. Although religion had been cherished for centuries, the doubts in people’s mines began to express many uncertainties about the bible and started to question their own beliefs. The issue of evolution was a huge concern in the 19th century as it was destroying the view of god and how he made the world; this caused many people to either change their views on life or their religion which had a huge part in resolving people’s beliefs in their own culture. This has had a huge impact on today’s society due to the involvement of Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution. In the 19th century people believed that we came/ were made by Adam & Eve, but through Darwinism there was a controversy between churches and peoples beliefs.
There is great debate over the concept of primate evolution. Some research supports the idea that evolution occurred linearly as a continuum while other research supports the idea that fossils found to date should be separated into individual species. Through morphological, and geological evidence this paper explores this topic and provides concise arguments to further develop the understanding of human primate evolution.
All primates have essentially the same kinds of specialized mammalian teeth adapted to eating a wide variety of foods. Beginning at the front, each quadrant of the mouth has 2 incisors, 1 canine, and varying numbers of premolars and molars. The incisors are used like scissors for nipping off pieces of food. The pointed canines are for piercing and tearing. The premolars and molars, with their cusps, are used to grind and smash food. In platyrrhine species, there are 3 premolars and 2 or 3 molars. This results in a dental formula of 2.1.3.2 or 2.1.3.3. In contrast, all of the catarrhines have 2 premolars and 3 molars, making a dental formula of 2.1.2.3. The chimpanzee shown below is an Old World anthropoid species and, therefore, has a catarrhine dental formula.
It is a structure which consists of several bones which help protect the brain. It also helps support the structure of the face. There are two sections of the skull which enable this to take place and they are called the cranium and mandible. The cranium consists of 22 facial bones which are tightly compact with the mandible bones, giving the skull a strong structure. Small holes in the skull which are called foramina allow nerves and blood vessels to enter and leave the cranium.
Susan Lindee and Ricardo Santos’ goal was to understand the contexts of genesis and development of biological anthropology around the world from an international standpoint, focusing on engagement with living human populations. Their contributors, scholars in history of science, science studies, and anthropology, were guided by key questions about national histories, collections, and scientific field practice.
Great Apes are at the brink of extinction due to deforestation, hunting, and bushmeat trade. Our closest cousins are now viewed as economic commodities rather than valuable agents to the environment and humanity. In order to explore this issue, there must be an examinitation of why primate populations are dwindling, if these populations can replenish themselves, and what measures the international community is taking to alleviate the problem.
The increase in brain size may be related to changes in hominine behavior (See figure 3). The third major trend in hominine development is the gradual decrease in the size of the face and teeth. According to the Microsoft Encarta Encyclopedia ’98, the fossil evidence for direct ancestors of modern humans is divided into the category Australopithecus and Homo, and begins about 5 million years ago (See figure 1). Between 7 and 20 million years ago, primitive apelike animals were widely distributed on the African and, later, on the Eurasian continents (See figure 2). Although many fossil bones and teeth have been found, the way of life of these creatures, and their evolutionary relationships to the living apes and humans, remain matters of active discussion among scientists.