CARTA Glossary

The ensemble of biological phenomena that supports and makes enculturation possible (e.g., cortical plasticity of the human brain and configuration of motor programs that make culturally invented practices, such as reading and writing, possible).

The necessary conditions for the manifestation of a behavioral or cognitive ability which, although having evolved via natural selection, do not constitute precursors of such abilities (e.g., human balance mechanisms are BEPs for learning how to snowboard, but they are not precursors or proto-forms of it).

A form a locomotion involving only an animal’s rear, or hind, limbs for propulsion.

A form of petroleum, a naturally- occurring organic by-product of decomposed plants, that is waterproof and flammable. Prehistoric humans used bitumen as an adhesive for hafting points to spears and for many other tasks and tools. Compare with Birch Tar.

The specific pattern of reaction to antisera within a blood group.

A pattern of links between distinct units within the nervous system.

A light-based therapy to treat both seasonal affective disorder (SAD) and non-seasonal depression.

A joint collaboration between researchers at Tulane University, University of Maryland, and Boston Children’s Hospital. The study, which began in the fall of 2000, seeks to examine the effects of early institutionalization on brain and behavior development, and to examine the impact of high quality foster care as an intervention for children who have been placed in institutions.

Background: Nicolae Ceausescu, general secretary of the Romanian communist party from 1965-89, instituted pro-natalist policies (banning abortion, outlawing contraception, and imposing a tax on families with fewer than five children) to increase the Romanian population in an effort to create more workers to bolster the economy. Correspondingly, the birth rate climbed but the poor were unable to afford larger families. It became acceptable to give infants and children to state-run child-rearing institutions, which spawned one of the largest per capita orphanage systems in history. By 1989, more than 170,000 Romanian children were living in institutions. Even ten years after the overthrow of Ceausescu, the rate of child abandonment did not diminish.

C₄ Plants: Plants that use a supplementary method of CO₂ uptake to form a four-carbon sugar compound. Photosynthesis in these plants involves the reaction of CO₂ with C₃ phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) to form C₄ oxaloacetatic acid (OAA), which is converted into malic acid. Malic acid is then broken down into CO₂ (which enters the Calvin Cycle to form sugars and starch) and pyruvic acid (3-carbon molecule), which is then converted back to PEP. C₄ plants are well adapted for habitats with high daytime temperatures and intense sunlight. The ¹²C/¹³C ratio of C₄ plants is distinct and can be determined from masspectrometry. C4 plants have less ¹²C but more ¹³C compared to C₃ Plants. The ¹³C in C₄ tissue is still less than what naturally occurs in the atmosphere. e.g. Tropical grasses, including crabgrass, corn, sugarcane, sorghum.

The set of chemical reactions that take place in chloroplasts of plants during photosynthesis. This light-independent process converts carbon atoms from the atmosphere into three-carbon sugars.

A type of cancer that starts in cells that make up the skin or the tissue lining organs, such as the liver or kidneys. Carcinomas are abnormal cells that divide without control and can spread to other parts of the body.

Conditions of the heart that include diseased vessels, structural problems, and blood clots (sometimes used synonymously with Atherosclerosis).

A build-up of mucus in an airway or body cavity caused by inflammation such as that associated with respiratory illnesses.

A Siglec that functions as a transmembrane receptor on myeloid cells and some lymphoid cells.

A neural circuit that regulates fearful, defensive and/or aggressive behavioral responses to aversive stimuli.

The outer layer of the cerebrum, composed of folded gray matter, and plays an important role in consciousness.

A clade of aquatic mammals consisting of whales, dolphins, and porpoises.

A biological junction between neurons where signals are sent from cell to the next via release of chemicals (neurotransmitters).

A RNA virus that belongs to the genus Alphavirus that is primarily transmitted by two species of Aedes mosquitoes, although the virus can also be transmitted from mother to child during delivery. Before 2013, the virus was found only in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Indian and Pacific islands. In late 2013, outbreaks occurred for the first time in the Americas in the Caribbean Islands. Chikungunya (pronounced “chik-en-gun-ye”) comes from the Kimadonde verb meaning “bent over in pain” or “contorted.”

The green pigment that captures light energy and is essential for photosynthesis in cyanobacteria, algae, and plants.

A complex of DNA and proteins (histone and adaptor proteins) forming chromosomes.

Discrete strands of tightly packaged chromatin.

Receptors expressed on a cell surface that bind ligands on the same cell surface.

A branching diagram used to show hypothetical relations among groups of organisms and their hypothetical most common ancestors. It is not an evolutionary tree as it does not show how ancestors are related to descendants, nor does it show evolutionary distance or time.

Making a copy of an organism or sequence.
Organisms are cloned by moving an entire genome from a cell into an egg. DNA sequences are cloned by moving copies into a bacteria using a vector.

Time since common ancestor.

At least two or more individuals jointly direct aggression at one or more conspecific targets. In humans coalitionary aggression is socially organized.

A natural alkaloid and insecticide produced by the South American coca plant that also acts as a natural stimulant.

A form of genomic inheritance in which both inherited alleles (one from each parent) are expressed and contribute to the phenotype.

The mental action or process of acquiring knowledge and understanding through thought, experience, and the senses.

As proposed by Tetsuro Matsuzawa, postulates that a trade-off between superior language facility at the expense of memory ability based on social life occurred during human evolution.  In comparison to chimpanzees, who possess superior short-term memory  abilities and no known language, humans de-emphasized short term memory for extraordinary language capacity, which may be one mechanism for increased collaboration and altruism in humans.

A relationship between organisms where one derives food or other benefits from the other without hurting or helping it.

A method of evolutionary analysis that uses comparisons across independently evolved species, as a means for studying historical and physical constraints.

A phenotypic trait with variability influenced by numerous genes (each with small effects).

A disease or physical abnormality present from birth.

The waking state and awareness of existence.

Infectious diseases that can be spread from organism to organism by direct or indirect contact. Contagious disease is a subset of communicable, infectious, and transmissible.

An evolutionary model in which change occurs gradually over time. Compare with Punctuated Equilibrium.

A social system in which parents and other individuals within the group provide care for offspring.

Blockage of blood flow to the heart, caused by atherosclerosis and blood clotting in a coronary artery. The most common kind of heart attack.

An infectious disease caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that was first identified in December 2019 in Wuhan, China, and then spread globally, resulting in a pandemic. Common symptoms include fever, cough, fatigue, shortness of breath, loss of appetite, sputum production, and muscle and joint pains, and loss of smell and taste. Severe cases may progress to acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), multi-organ failure, septic shock, and blood clots. Spread of the virus occurs between people during close contact, most often via small droplets produced by coughing, sneezing, and talking. Less commonly, people may become infected by touching a contaminated surface and then touching their face.

A class of steroid hormones. E.g., cortisol.

The family of stout-billed passerine birds (an order of birds characterized by an arrangement of toes with three forward and one backward to facilitate perching) including the crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs, and nutcrackers.

How much energy it takes to move from point A to point B.

Locus where a cytosine nucleotide is followed by guanine nucleotide in the linear sequence of bases. Cytosines in CpG dinucleotides can be methylated to form 5-methyl cytosine, a common epigenetic mark.

Clustered regularly interspaced short palindromic repeats. A method that can mutate a specified locus.

In human culture, the accumulation of cultural modifications over time (“ratchet effect”) resulting from social learning, active teaching, social motivations for conformity, and normative sanctions against non-conformity.

An enzyme encoded by the CMAH gene that modifies sialic acids in most mammals by modifying N-acetylneuraminic acid (Neu5Ac) into N-glycolylneuraminic acid (Neu5Gc). The enzyme modifies sialic acid in its sugar nucleotide form (CMP-Neu5Ac to CMP-Neu5Gc).

A severe immune reaction in which the body releases too many cytokines into the blood too quickly. Signs and symptoms include high fever, inflammation, severe fatigue, and nausea. This may be severe or even life- threatening, leading to multiple organ failure.