Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Women And Warfare: How Human Evolution Excluded Women, Brett Kennedy

Nebraska Anthropologist

In 1983, David B. Adams published "Why are there so few Women Warriors? " This important paper brought to light the traditional coriflict between marriage and war. Going against the classical "men are more aggressive" theory, Adams presented the conflict of interest a wife might experience in a patrilocal, exogamous society that would necessitate her removal from the warfare complex. However, even in those societies that there is no coriflict of interest, the woman warrior is almost unheard of Furthermore, even within those societies that allow women to participate in war, they are always the rarest exception. To answer this …

Postpartum Depression: An Evolutionary Perspective, Mark Tracy

Nebraska Anthropologist

There is no common consensus among theorists regarding the nature and purpose of postpartum depression. Evolutionary theorists have proposed that the onset of postpartum depression is an adaptive function that signals a potential fitness cost to the mother i. e. the investment in the child will be cost more than the evolutionary benefits to be gained from rearing this child Many studies have shown that there is a strong correlation between postpartum depression and lack of paternal or social support indicating that when these two variables are absent the mother is more likely to experience postpartum depression. In this paper …

Foraging Behaviors Of Alouatta Palliata, Mantled Howling Monkeys, Jeffrey A. Baum

Nebraska Anthropologist

Research was conducted at the EI Zota biological field station to determine the amount and type of food processing exhibited by mantled howling monkeys (Alouatta palliata) prior to consumption. Mantled howling monkeys have been labeled as behavioral folivores with limited morphological adaptations for foliage digestion. The purpose of this study was to determine if A. palliata displayed any food manipulations and how food was selected by the species. Breakdown of the data was done to evaluate differences based on sex for these feeding and foraging behaviors. Results showed no behaviors that could be classified as manipulating food items …

Native Americans In Prison: The Struggle For Religious Freedom, Stephanie Beran

Nebraska Anthropologist

Native peoples account for a disproportionate number of inmates in the current American prison population. Due to differences in the character of practice between Native and Judeo-Christian religions, it has been suggested that Native inmates face challenges that other prisoners do not because their religious needs are poorly understood. In the course of this paper I will discuss the disparities in the religious accommodation of Native inmates, explore how the religious rights of imprisoned Natives have been violated, and present arguments concerning the validity of spirituality as a means of inmate therapy and rehabilitation.

Punitive Behavior In Ebay Auctions, Kyle Gibson M.A.

Nebraska Anthropologist

EBay employs a system known as "feedback" to assure trust between those buying and selling items using its service. Feedback information on past auctions is available for all to see; a positive reputation is likely to increase a seller's business just as a negative reputation can harm it. The importance of a good eBay reputation (i.e., highfeedback score) may lead members of the eBay community to react harshly if they receive neutral or negative feedback. Here, the hypothesis that negative feedback is reciprocated/punished with negative feedback is supported The feedback system eBay uses does not serve the best interests of …

Omaha Metals, Coinage, And Syntax: Outside Influence?, Rory Larson

Nebraska Anthropologist

A study of acculturation terms for metals and money in Omaha and some of the neighboring native languages related to it sheds light upon the historical circumstances in which these terms were coined

Bone Dispersion, Weathering, And Scavenging Of Cattle Bones, Melinda Potmesil

Nebraska Anthropologist

In this research project, the goal was to study the pattern of disbursement of cattle bones from the site of death, observe any signs of scavenger marks and categorize the degree of weathering on the bones. In order to have a comparative data set, three sites with different characteristics were chosen. The three sites were chosen because of the ability to date the death of each cow, the length of time between each death, and the different locations, which each animal died The oldest site was a one-year-old yearling heifer which died in May of 1992. The next site was …

Theory Of Mind In Chimpanzees: A Rationalist Approach, Benjamin Grant Purzycki

Nebraska Anthropologist

The question of whether or not chimpanzees possess the ability to mentally represent others' mental states has been a popular question since Premack and Woodruff (1978) originally asked the question. It is well established that humans have a theory of mind (ToM), but extending this psychological faculty to our evolutionary cousins has created a massive amount of literature and research attempting to resolve this issue. Such a resolution is arguably not possible given the nature of the debate. An Either/Or approach to chimpanzee theory of mind both ignores the essential components of ToM as well as foreclosing on the possibility …

Female And Male Perceptions Of Attractiveness: What Is Attractive And Why?, Ryan Schacht

Nebraska Anthropologist

The goal of mate selection is to choose a partner that will contribute to one's reproductive success. This contribution can be found in two possible ways: either through genetic quality or parental investment. These qualities are generally visible by the expressed phenotype of an individual and found to be more or less attractive based on their value to reproduction. Those features found to be attractive between the sexes are generally the same although, their proportions may vary. Indicators of attractiveness include waist-hip ratio, body mass index, facial and bodily symmetry, as well as other physical attributes. These phenotypic markers indicate …

Romantic Love And Marriage: An Analysis Of The Concept And Functionality Of Romantic Love As A Marital Stabilizing Agent, Emily Sorrell

Nebraska Anthropologist

When identifying the central components that constitute general social structures, one cannot overlook the integral role that marriage, in its many manifestations, plays in the make-up of human societies. Marriage, or the ultimate extension of pair bonding, developed largely as a cultural adaptation to the reproduction of slowly developing human offspring and hence can be viewed as a method of maximizing reproductive fitness. If this assumption is correct, then one may presume that it would be beneficial to humans and their reproductive success to engage in marriages of relative stability. Hence, it would be reasonable to assume that there must …

Analysis Of Quartz In Northern Wisconsin: Deficiencies, Misconceptions And Goals, Elizabeth Spott

Nebraska Anthropologist

Quartz is a common mineral found in archaeological lithic assemblages from sites around the globe, however, little analysis and interpretation of these assemblages has been conducted Quartz debitage can make up nearly the entire lithic assemblage and can total hundreds to thousands of pieces. Valuable information can be attained by studying the debitage in these assemblages, such as the type of reduction technique, stage of reduction, and the relative distance to different lithic sources. Archaeologists have avoided quartz assemblages due to some misconceptions: it is impossible to analyze quartz reduction sequences, it is difficult to work and control and it …

Nebraska Anthropologist Volume 20: 2005 Table Of Contents

Nebraska Anthropologist

Women and Warfare: How Human Evolution Excluded Women (Brett Kennedy)

Romantic Love and Marriage: An Analysis of the Concept and Functionality of Romantic Love as a Marital Stabilizing Agent (Emily Sorrell)

Bone Dispersion, Weathering, and Scavenging of Cattle Bones (Melinda Potmesil)

Omaha Metals, Coinage, and Syntax: Outside Influence? (Rory Larson)

Native Americans in Prison: The Struggle for Religious Freedom (Stephanie Beran)

Punitive Behavior in eBay Auctions (Kyle Gibson)

Female and Male Perceptions of Attractiveness: What is Attractive and Why? (Ryan Schacht)

Theory of Mind in Chimpanzees: A Rationalist Approach (Benjamin Grant Purzycki)

Postpartum Depression: An Evolutionary Perspective (Mark Tracy)

Analysis …