Origins of hominid bipedalism Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 500 words

Origins of hominid bipedalism - Essay Example The other great apes for example chimpanzees do not have a straight gait and human straight gait is much more efficient than their bipedalism and quadrapedalism. Fossil evidence of hominid ancestor’s bipedalism is constructed to imply that it existed about 3.5 million years ago. This essays objective is therefore aimed at looking at two distinct hypotheses that attempt to provide explanations to the origins of hominid bipedalism. The first hypothesis (from empirical evidence) to propose is that bipedalism evolved because of energetic efficiency needed by the hominid for travel and that the need was key to the origin of bipedalism. To accept the hypothesis above, first the comparisons should be made at constant speeds of travel and given that bipedal hominids descended from quadrapedal hominids the comparison should be between bipedal hominids and quadrapedal hominids. Rodman and McHenry( 104) observed that male chimpanzees traveled a median speed traveled a median speed of 3.8, 4.2 and 6.4 km each day in three different seasons and took 59 minutes, 105 minutes, and 148 minutes respectively to travel those distances. On average, the male chimpanzees travelled at a speed of 2.9 kilometers per hour, a normal human being walks at an average speed of 4.5 kilometers per hour. Modern hominids through adaptive features evolved bipedalistic tendencies to suit their current environment this explanation is provided wit hout reference to any empirical observation. The result show that there was no energetic difference separating hominid quadrapedal adaptation from hominid bipedalism. It is widely accepted that bipedalism arose because the hominid ancestors moved from living less on the trees to be more comfortable on the ground this was because of hominid dietary divergence (Lewin 113). The Lovejoy hypothesis postulates that the primates underwent evolution to achieve reproductive success through reduced parental care, pregnancy and maturation period. As the

Elisa - Pure Or Not Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Elisa - Pure Or Not - Research Paper Example nes, in which Elisa is â€Å"crying weakly – like an old woman.† Filled with pure intentions, Elisa’s actions as she tends her chrysanthemums, talks with the tinker and in her relationship with Henry are all the result of an overpowering sense of isolation and desperate need for a human connection. Elisa’s isolation is quickly discovered as she works on her flower garden. In every way, she is enclosed – physically in her garden space, symbolically away from everyone else around. â€Å"The second noticeable aspect of Elisa Allen is her curiosity. Elisa sees the men talking to her husband and wonders what they are talking about† (Berry, 2007). The affection and tension given to her chrysanthemums indicates the need to connect and the frustration of no connection. Steinbeck tells us, â€Å"The chrysanthemum stems seemed too small and easy for her energy,† yet she has the nicest flowers around. Symbolism also suggests isolation since even the weather creates a closed space: â€Å"The high grey-flannel fog of winter closed off the [valley] from the sky and all the rest of the world.  Ã‚  On every side it sat like a lid on the mountains and made of the great valley a closed pot.† Elisa’s extreme isolation is also seen as she desperately talks with the tinker, trying to stretch the connection of their conversation as long as she can. The tinker has only stopped at the ranch because he is lost, but she grabs at his feigned interest in her flowers as something to connect her with the outside world. As she kneels on the ground at the tinker’s feet, she seems to be begging for attention more than she is begging for sexual favors. She provides the tinker with some of her precious chrysanthemum shoots and she hurries to dress in â€Å"the dress which was the symbol of her prettiness. She worked carefully on her hair, penciled her eyebrows and rouged her lips.† These are behaviors that Louis Owens (1992) describes as manifestations of her wish to leave the