Ejercicio Option A - I * COMPREHENSION · Inglés PAU Andalucía Extraordinaria Reserva B 2013

OPTION A: “Atapuerca, the Great Discovery”

1 Today's society has a deep interest in the origins and evolution of our species. Scientists have come a long way since

2 the discovery of the Neanderthals, more than 150 years ago. They now have much more complex theories in which genetic

3 studies play a central role.

4 We can certainly situate our ancestors in Africa and relate them to other primates from whom they diverged about 7

5 million years ago. This evolutionary process was marked by the physical signs of adaptation to climate and environmental

6 changes: upright position and mobility based on back legs, which freed arms and hands. But the most important adaptation

7 was the change of their brains, which grew and became the body's main energy consumer. With roughly a 600 cm 3 brain,

8 this Homo habilis developed the ability to produce simple tools for the first time in the history of humankind. After many

9 repeated experiments, another ancestor, Homo ergaster, whose brain was probably around 1000 cm 3, began to make sets of

10 symmetrical tools called “bifaces”. The production and use of these tools constantly reinforced their cognitive skills. They

11 were also able to create artefacts composed of different materials by using different techniques. All this finally led to changes

12 in their social organization.

13 The best evidence of human life from more than a million years ago has been discovered in Atapuerca. Several

14 species have been reconstructed thanks to the remarkably good state of the unearthed human skulls and bones. They have

15 been used as a basis for studies on human evolution. However, two things remain unclear: how they migrated and extended

16 throughout the different areas and how they communicated.

I * COMPREHENSION (4 points: questions 1-3, 1 point each; 4-5, 0.5 points each)

ANSWER QUESTIONS 1-3 ACCORDING TO THE INFORMATION GIVEN IN THE TEXT. USE YOUR OWN WORDS.

1.

What physical changes did our ancestors go through to adapt to the environment?

2.

What were the great advances of Homo ergaster ? Mention two.

3.

Which two aspects of human evolution have not been clarified yet?

ARE THESE STATEMENTS TRUE OR FALSE? JUSTIFY YOUR ANSWERS WITH THE PRECISE WORDS OR PHRASES FROM THE TEXT, OR USE YOUR OWN WORDS.

4.

There is no difference between Homo habilis and Homo ergaster 's brain.

TRUE

FALSE

5.

Various species are being reconstructed because of the excellent condition of the bones.

TRUE

FALSE