Where do we come from?

Fig 34.37 DNA is passed from generation to generation, and therefore can tell us about relationships between species.

The earth is covered in humans. How did this occur?

Only the egg provides mitochondria to the offspring. Fig 47.3 mitochondria

Mitochondrial DNA comparisons can be used to trace ancestry:

Non-Coding DNA is used for comparisons between individuals

Only DNA that is successfully passed on can be used to trace the past. Fig 1

As DNA is passed on mutations take place Fig 1 and 4

Fig 4

By determining the average time between mutations, we can estimate the time of the last common ancestor. Fig 4

The mutation rate in human mtDNA is one nucleotide change per 20,000 years. OR A difference of one nucleotide between two people indicates a common relative 10,000 years ago. Fig 4

Relationships of different populations using mtDNA ~150,000ya 7 Daughters of Eve, fig. 1

The data by populations show that H The data by populations show that H. sapiens emerged from Africa about 150,000 y.a.?

Relationships of different people using mtDNA. 7 Daughters of Eve, fig. 2

Relationships of different people using mtDNA. 7 Daughters of Eve, fig. 2

Relationships of different people using mtDNA. 7 Daughters of Eve, fig. 2

The data by individual show that people have been constantly migrating and moving?

“Man’s Most Dangerous Myth: the Fallacy of Race” by Ashley Montagu (1942)

Input to brain is filtered. What are you paying attention to? We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

Are humans better at detecting certain threats vs non-threatening objects? We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

Emotion Drives Attention: Detecting the Snake in the Grass Journal of Experimental Psychology: General 2001, Vol. 130, No. 3, 466-478 Arne Ohman, Anders Flykt, and Francisco Esteves We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

Ability to detect snake or spider versus flower or mushroom by grid position We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested. Fig 1. Emotion Drives Attention: Detecting the Snake in the Grass (2001) J. of Ex. Psy., Vol. 130, No. 3, 466-478

We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested.

Ability to detect snake or spider versus flower or mushroom by grid position We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested. Fig 1. Emotion Drives Attention: Detecting the Snake in the Grass (2001) J. of Ex. Psy., Vol. 130, No. 3, 466-478

Ability to detect snake or spider versus flower or mushroom is relatively quicker in a larger grid We did not cover this in class, but I am including the information in case you are interested. Fig 2. Emotion Drives Attention: Detecting the Snake in the Grass (2001) J. of Ex. Psy., Vol. 130, No. 3, 466-478

The Role of Social Groups in the Persistence of Learned Fear (2005) SCIENCE 309 pg 785 Andreas Olsson, Jeffrey P. Ebert, Mahzarin R. Banaji, Elizabeth A. Phelps http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/309/5735/785 This perspective accompanies the article and has some useful background and further discussion: http://www.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/309/5 735/711

Conditioned fear: snakes/spiders http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xU_5s3O2iM (Start at 2:15) Fig 1. The Role of Social Groups in the Persistence of Learned Fear (2005) SCIENCE 309 pg 785

Conditioned fear: snakes/spiders Fig 1. The Role of Social Groups in the Persistence of Learned Fear (2005) SCIENCE 309 pg 785

Conditioned fear: race Fig 1. The Role of Social Groups in the Persistence of Learned Fear (2005) SCIENCE 309 pg 785

Conditioned fear: snakes/spiders race Fig 1. The Role of Social Groups in the Persistence of Learned Fear (2005) SCIENCE 309 pg 785

Is Race Necessarily a Defining Characteristic? Can race be erased? Coalitional computation and social categorization (December 18, 2001) PNAS vol. 98 no. 26 pg 15387–15392 Robert Kurzban, John Tooby, and Leda Cosmides http://www.pnas.org/cgi/content/full/98/26/15387

Random Statements My birthday is in April. My birthday is in June. My birthday is in August. My birthday is in January. My birthday is in February. My birthday is in July. My birthday is in October. My birthday is in May. Can race be erased? Coalitional computation and social categorization (December 18, 2001) PNAS vol. 98 no. 26 pg 15387–15392

Coalition Membership I like orange. Hook em’. I like to wear overalls. Gig em’. Go Aggies. I like to wear chaps. I like Maroon. Go Horns. Can race be erased? Coalitional computation and social categorization (December 18, 2001) PNAS vol. 98 no. 26 pg 15387–15392

When alternate coalition membership information is introduced, race is ignored. I like orange. Hook em’. I like to wear overalls. Gig em’. Go Aggies. I like to wear chaps. I like Maroon. Go Horns.

Despite a lifetime's experience of race as a predictor of social alliance, less than 4 min of exposure to an alternate social world was enough to deflate the tendency to categorize by race. These results suggest that racism may be a volatile and eradicable construct that persists only so long as it is actively maintained through being linked to parallel systems of social alliance. Can race be erased? Coalitional computation and social categorization (December 18, 2001) PNAS vol. 98 no. 26 pg 15387–15392

Humans are highly skilled at grouping objects (like people). How we group people is largely determined by our environment.

Where do we come from?