Quiz 2

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Quiz 2

• Early Civilizations

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1. Old Stone Age people obtained their food by
all of the following means, EXCEPT a. farming b.
hunting c. scavenging d. gathering fruits,
berries, and roots
Old Stone Age people did not plant crops. That
development signals the beginning of the
Neolithic era, also known as the New Stone Age.
Scavenging means to feed on the meat that is left
behind after a predator kills an animal and feeds
until it has had enough. Some anthropologists
believe that humans relied on scavenging because
they lacked the speed and strength to hunt
successfully enough to feed their group. Others
claim that cooperation and the use of
intelligence made early humans successful
hunters.
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2. Homo sapiens were found in almost all parts of
the world by 12,000 years ago because they a.
evolved independently in different parts of the
world b. built boats to carry them across bodies
of water c. migrated widely when sea levels were
low during a glacial period d. were led by tribal
kings to conquer new territories
Homo sapiens had migrated to most parts of the
world by 10,000 B.C. because low sea levels
during the last glacial period enabled them to
cross to regions that are now islands or
separated by bodies of water. Most scholars of
the prehistoric times accept the "out of Africa"
theory that Homo sapiens evolved in Africa and
spread from there to other continents.
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3. Homo sapiens came to North America by a. a
land bridge that linked what is now Siberia to
what is now Alaska b. boat across Africa to South
America c. a land bridge that linked Europe with
Iceland, Greenland, and Canada d. rafts carried
by ocean currents from Pacific Islands to South
America
The most commonly accepted theory is that during
a glacial period Homo sapiens crossed a land
bridge that linked what is now Siberia (Asia) to
what is now Alaska (North America), sometime
around or before 15,000 B.C. North and South
American Indians are of the Mongoloid race
because they have genetic similarities more
common to the people of East Asia than to the
Negroids of Africa or the Caucasoids of Europe,
the Middle East, and northern India.
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4. The end of the Neolithic period in Southwest
Asia and Egypt is generally accepted to be
when a. the use of mathematics began b. a system
of writing developed c. tools and weapons were
made from iron d. civilizations developed
The Neolithic period is generally accepted to end
in a particular region with the beginning of the
Iron Age. The ability to extract iron from ore
and forge it into weapons and tools in ancient
times in Southwest Asia and Egypt took place more
than a thousand years after civilizations,
mathematics, and writing developed. Because of
cultural diffusion, the use of iron in other
regions began before the other cultural
characteristics became common.
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5. Which of the following animals was LEAST
likely to be domesticated in the Neolithic
period? a. water buffalo b. sheep c. goats d.
Bears
Bears were not domesticated. They are difficult
to tame. Bears are carnivores (meat eaters) and,
therefore, competed with humans for food.
Herbivores (plant eaters) such as goats, pigs,
cattle, and sheep are more docile and their flesh
is better tasting. Some herbivores can be milked
and others, such as water buffalo, can be trained
to pull plows. The only commonly domesticated
carnivores were dogs, which were commonly used in
herding.