Psychology 190 -- Freshman Seminar

Evolution and Behavior

 

David M. McCord, Ph.D.

Department of Psychology

Killian 301

227-7361

mccord@email.wcu.edu

 

Textbooks

Robin McKie, Dawn of Man, 2000 (required, rental)

D. Evans and O. Zarate, Introducing Evolutionary Psychology, 1999 (required, purchase)

 

Course Web Page

http://paws.wcu.edu/mccord

 

Course Objectives

This course examines the origins of homo sapiens, our history as a species, our basic nature, and, ultimately, the impact our evolutionary history continues to have on our modern lives, behavior, thinking, feeling, relationships, and so forth. The course will begin with a very quick review of cosmology from the “big bang” through the formation of the earth, the oceans and continents, the formation of the atmosphere, and the beginnings of life. The first half of the course will focus on hominid evolution, from ardipithecus ramidus through the australopithecines to early homo. We will read about and discuss all of the major hominid fossils, such as the Taung baby, Mrs. Ples, Lucy, Turkana Boy, Peking Man, Java Man, Rhodesian Man, the Piltdown Fraud, and others. We will also discuss the human side of paleoanthropology, reading about Louis and Mary Leakey, Richard and Meave Leakey, Raymond Dart, Don Johanson, Tim White, and more. The second section of the course will examine the evolutionary environment and adaptation of our own species, homo sapiens. In particular, we will consider how many of the most important human characteristics are best seen as adaptations to ancestral environments, rather than to our current technological world. We will study human sexual attraction, mate selection, jealousy, male-female differences, communicating with others, helping relatives, eating the right foods, and so forth, from an evolutionary perspective.

 

Goals

1.                  To gain an understanding of how humans came to exist on the earth, as a product of natural and sexual selection.

2.                  To realize that all homo sapiens are descended from the same fairly small  root population in eastern Africa, not long ago at all in evolutionary terms, that we are all very much alike, that the differences between us are relatively trivial.

3.                  To gain a deeper understanding of our own basic nature by considering our key characteristics as adaptations to an ancestral environment.

4.                  To understand how our evolutionary heritage influences major choices we make in our own current lives.

5.                  To understand our close kinship with others species and the interconnectivity of all life on earth.

 

Course Requirements

1.                  Attendance is mandatory (see specific policy below). The format of the class will be varied, including some lecture and some video presentations, but the primary format will be group discussion. Thus, to be successful in this class, you must be present, prepared, and actively participate in discussion.

 

2.                  There will be three unit examinations and a comprehensive final exam. The 1st and 2nd  unit exams will cover human evolution, and the 3rd unit exam will cover evolutionary psychology. All exams will be of mixed format, including short-answer and essay questions.

 

3.                  Class presentation. During the last half of the semester, when we are studying evolutionary psychology, there will be 9 topical discussions led by students in groups of 2 or 3. Your group will be assigned one of these 9 topics, and you will be expected to lead an interesting class discussion on it. Your classmates will have read the basic text on this topic, but you and your group members are expected to go to additional sources and learn more about the topic, so you can teach the rest of us more than what is in our book. You will be given an individual grade based upon the time and effort, degree of understanding, and effectiveness of communication of your part of the presentation. Early in the semester we will choose groups and topics so you can begin preparation.

 

4.                  Reflections. About once a week, at least 10 times during the semester, students will submit (on Monday morning) a short paper expressing their reflections on the recent course material, readings, videos, discussions, etc. Generally speaking, reflections should be about a page in length. Please submit these on paper rather than through email so that I can read them and make comments directly on them. I will return them to you at the next class period. Think of how you would answer your parent asking, “What did you learn in school this week?” Don’t summarize the material. Instead, describe what thoughts the material has evoked in your mind. A thoughtful reflection. Not graded. If you do a careful, thoughtful job, and hand them in on time, you will receive the points allotted. These reflections will be accepted ONLY at the beginning of class on Mondays. Note that there are 14 opportunities to turn in reflections, for 10 points each. Any that you turn in over the minimum of 10 will contribute bonus points to your total.

 

5.                  Optional Book Review. Some students have more difficulty than others in expressing what they know through formal examinations. Thus, a “book review option” is provided, with the choice entirely up to the student. Each student who elects this option will select a book on human origins from the annotated list I will provide (on class website). They will read the book and prepare a 3-5 page review, following a relatively structured outline I will also provide (on the website). The focus will be on summarizing key points, highlighting controversial issues, and relating the author’s points to the flow of our class.

 

6.                  Reading Notes Quizzes. To reward your reading the material, there will be 11 RNQ’s during the semester, indicated on the schedule below. These are short little quizzes based directly on the reading assignment. You can have your own handwritten notes in front of you, but you cannot use the textbooks or other materials. Thus, if you take good notes, you should get all of the RNQ points. These points are BONUS points for your grade. They are simply added to the point total in determining your final grade. So, this is a great way for you to have some direct control over the grade you get in this course.

 

Grades: Your final grade will be computed as follows –

 

3 unit tests                    100 pts. ea.      300

Class presentation         100 pts.            100

Reflections                      10 pts. ea.      100

Final Exam                   200 pts.            200

Total                                                    700

 

Your grade will be computed as a percentage of the total possible points (after first adding any bonus RNQ points you have earned), and letter grade will be assigned according to the following system:

 

A         94% and higher

A-        90.00% through 93.99%

B+       87.00% through 89.99%

B          84.00% through 86.99%

B-        80.00% through 83.99%

C+       77.00% through 79.99%

C         74.00% through 76.99%

C-        70.00% through 73.99%

D+       67.00% through 69.99%

D         64.00% through 66.99%

D-        60.00% through 63.99%

 

Attendance policy: Attendance is mandatory. Each unexcused absence will reduce your final grade by 2 points. Three tardies is the same as one absence. You will be allowed two “free” absences with no penalty, which should cover things like illness, family emergencies, and so forth. Beyond these two, all other absences will be penalized, regardless of the reason. I will gladly recognize and support all official university activities that may involve missing class, such as athletic participation. Otherwise, exam dates and due dates for major projects will not be modified.

 

Final exam: This will be a comprehensive final exam, mixed format (multiple choice, short answer, and essay) covering the entire semester. It will be given at the formally established date and time for this class: Monday, December 10th, 12:00 – 2:30 p.m.

 

Schedule of class activity: What follows is a projected outline of what we will do throughout the semester. This is overly detailed, and we may become so involved in one content area that we take more time with it than the schedule shows. Thus, you may anticipate some flexibility with regard to the actual content of each class period. The exam dates, though, are firm, and you may count on them as you plan your semester. We may change what material is covered on an exam, but the exam will be on the date specified.