God-apes and Fossil Men


Book Description

Provides the first comprehensive study of the ancient peoples of south Asia




The Evolution and History of Human Populations in South Asia


Book Description

This is the first volume of its kind on prehistoric cultures of South Asia. The book brings together archaeologists, biological anthropologists, geneticists and linguists in order to provide a comprehensive account of the history and evolution of human populations residing in the subcontinent. New theories and methodologies presented provide new interpretations about the cultural history and evolution of populations in South Asia.




Why I Am a Five Percenter


Book Description

A thoughtful, insider view of The Five Percenters-a deeply complex and misunderstood community whose ideas and symbols influenced the rise of hip-hop. Misrepresented in the media as a black parallel to the Hell's Angels, portrayed as everything from a vicious street gang to quasi- Islamic revolutionaries, The Five Percenters are a movement that began as a breakaway sect from the Nation of Islam (NOI) in 1960s Harlem and went on to impact the formation of hip-hop. References to Five Percent language and ideas are found in the lyrics of wide-ranging artists, such as Nas, Rakim, the Wu-Tang Clan, and even Jay-Z. The Five Percenters are denounced by white America as racists, and orthodox Islam as heretics, for teaching that the black man is Allah. Michael Muhammad Knight ("the Hunter S. Thompson of Islamic literature" -The Guardian) has engaged this culture as both white and Muslim; and over the course of his relationship with The Five Percenters, his personal position changed from that of an outsider to an accepted participant with his own initiatory name (Azreal Wisdom). This has given him an intimate perch from which to understand and examine the controversial doctrines of this influential movement. In Why I Am a Five Percenter, Knight strips away years of sensationalism to offer a serious encounter with Five Percenter thought. Encoded within Five Percent culture is a profound critique of organized religion, from which the movement derives its name: Only Five Percent can act as "poor righteous teachers" against the evil Ten Percent, the power structure which uses religion to deceive the Eighty- Five Percent, the "deaf, dumb, and blind" masses. Questioning his own relationship to the Five Percent, Knight directly confronts the community's most difficult teachings. In Why I Am a Five Percenter, Knight not only illuminates a thought system that must appear bizarre to outsiders, but he also brilliantly dissects the very issues of"insiders" and "outsiders," territory and ownership, as they relate to religion and privilege, and to our conditioned ideas about race.




50 Great Myths of Human Evolution


Book Description

50 Great Myths of Human Evolution uses common misconceptions to explore basic theory and research in human evolution and strengthen critical thinking skills for lay readers and students. Examines intriguing—yet widely misunderstood—topics, from general ideas about evolution and human origins to the evolution of modern humans and recent trends in the field Describes what fossils, archaeology, and genetics can tell us about human origins Demonstrates the ways in which science adapts and changes over time to incorporate new evidence and better explanations Includes myths such as “Humans lived at the same time as dinosaurs;” “Lucy was so small because she was a child;” “Our ancestors have always made fire;” and “There is a strong relationship between brain size and intelligence” Comprised of stand-alone essays that are perfect for casual reading, as well as footnotes and references that allow readers to delve more deeply into topics







War, Peace, and Human Nature


Book Description

"The chapters in this book [posit] that humans clearly have the capacity to make war, but since war is absent in some cultures, it cannot be viewed as a human universal. And counter to frequent presumption, the actual archaeological record reveals the recent emergence of war. It does not typify the ancestral type of human society, the nomadic forager band, and contrary to widespread assumptions, there is little support for the idea that war is ancient or an evolved adaptation. Views of human nature as inherently warlike stem not from the facts but from cultural views embedded in Western thinking"--Amazon.com.




Emergence and Diversity of Modern Human Behavior in Paleolithic Asia


Book Description

Despite the obvious geographic importance of eastern Asia in human migration, its discussion in the context of the emergence and dispersal of modern humans has been rare. Emergence and Diversity of Modern Human Behavior in Paleolithic Asia focuses long-overdue scholarly attention on this under-studied area of the world. Arising from a 2011 symposium sponsored by the National Museum of Nature and Science in Tokyo, this book gathers the work of archaeologists from the Pacific Rim of Asia, Australia, and North America, to address the relative lack of attention given to the emergence of modern human behavior as manifested in Asia during the worldwide dispersal from Africa.




A Companion to South Asia in the Past


Book Description

A Companion to South Asia in the Past provides the definitive overview of research and knowledge about South Asia’s past, from the Pleistocene to the historic era in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal, provided by a truly global team of experts. The most comprehensive and detailed scholarly treatment of South Asian archaeology and biological anthropology, providing ground-breaking new ideas and future challenges Provides an in-depth and broad view of the current state of knowledge about South Asia’s past, from the Pleistocene to the historic era in India, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Nepal A comprehensive treatment of research in a crucial region for human evolution and biocultural adaptation A global team of scholars together present a varied set of perspectives on South Asian pre- and proto-history




Archaeological Human Remains


Book Description

This volume addresses the directions that studies of archaeological human remains have taken in a number of different countries, where attitudes range from widespread support to prohibition. Overlooked in many previous publications, this diversity in attitudes is examined through a variety of lenses, including academic origins, national identities, supporting institutions, archaeological context and globalization. The volume situates this diversity of attitudes by examining past and current tendencies in studies of archaeologically-retrieved human remains across a range of geopolitical settings. In a context where methodological approaches have been increasingly standardized in recent decades, the volume poses the question if this standardization has led to a convergence in approaches to archaeological human remains or if significant differences remain between practitioners in different countries. The volume also explores the future trajectories of the study of skeletal remains in the different jurisdictions under scrutiny.




Agroecosystems of South India


Book Description

Agroecosystems of South India is a unique treatise that deals with the relevance of natural resources, genetic stocks, fertilizers, and agronomic practices on the productivity of agroecoregions. Within the context of this book, an agroecosystem has been defined as a conglomerate of small cropping zones, which may be mono-cropping expanses or intercrops that occur in various geographic regions of South India. South India abounds with several such agroecosystems that encompass field crops, vegetables, cash crops, plantations, and forest species. However, the main emphasis within this volume is restricted to agroecosystems that include major cereals, legumes, and oil seed crops. There are 10 chapters in this volume. The first, on historical aspects, traces important events related to domestication, introduction of crop species, agricultural implements, development of soil fertility and crop husbandry procedures. An introductory chapter on Agroecosystems delineates various agroecoregions of South India. Their classification based on physiography, soils, and climatic parameters have been dealt with in great detail. Descriptions on natural resources such as soils and their fertility conditions; water resources; climatic conditions including precipitation patterns; and crops and their genotypes are available in chapter 2. The impact of soil fertility and nutrient dynamics on ecosystematic functions and productivity of crops in an agroecosystem forms the central piece of discussions within chapters 3 to 9. Historical background, geographical settings, agroclimate, soils, cropping systems, and productivity trends have been provided for each cropping ecosystem. Recent advances and details on aspects of nutrient dynamics, such as soil nutrients, their availability, physico-chemical transformations, nutrient fluxes, inorganic fertilizer supply, organic manures, crop residue recycling, nutrient carry over and nutrient balances/imbalances form the core of each chapter. The impact of beneficial soil microbes such as Rhizobium, Plant Growth Promoting Rhizobacteria and Arbuscular Mycorrhizas, on nutrient dynamics in soil has also been discussed. More recent developments dealing with modeling nutrients in cropping ecosystems, computer based-simulations, precision farming and site-specific nutrient management have been emphasized. Forecasts on the impact of nutrient dynamics on the future course of agroecosystems are also available. Overall, this book is a scholarly edition that aims at providing an excellent exposition of recent developments within various agroecosystems of South India to a global audience. It highlights the importance of soil fertility and nutrient dynamics within agroecosystems to total food grain and fodder production in South India. It will be a useful book to researchers, professors, and students dealing with agriculture, environmental science, ecology, and plant science.