(a) Mendelian and non-Mendelian traits. (10 marks) (b) Theoretical significance of Purum kinship-system. (10 marks) (c)…

(a) Mendelian and Non-Mendelian Traits

Mendelian traits follow Gregor Mendel’s laws of segregation and independent assortment, where single genes with distinct dominant and recessive alleles determine phenotypes. Examples include the ABO blood groups (multiple alleles with codominance of A and B), sickle-cell anaemia, cystic fibrosis, albinism and PTC tasting; earlobe attachment, once taught as a Mendelian trait, is now known to be polygenic. In contrast, non-Mendelian inheritance involves complex mechanisms that deviate from simple dominance. Polygenic inheritance, such as skin color or height, results from the cumulative effect of multiple genes. Mitochondrial DNA is inherited strictly maternally, bypassing paternal contribution. Genomic imprinting renders a gene active or silent depending on whether it is inherited from the mother or father, as seen in Prader-Willi syndrome. Epistasis occurs when one gene masks the expression of another, such as in coat color in mice (and the Bombay phenotype in ABO). Linkage of genes on the same chromosome prevents independent assortment, and X-linked traits such as haemophilia and red–green colour blindness show sex-biased patterns. Most normal human variation (stature, skin colour, cephalic index) is polygenic and multifactorial, so it shows continuous distribution and is shaped by environment, whereas Mendelian traits fall into discrete classes that can be traced in pedigrees.

(b) Theoretical Significance of Purum Kinship

The Purum of Manipur, studied by T.C. Das (1945), provide a critical case for kinship theory. Their society is divided into five exogamous patrilineal sibs (Marrim, Makan, Kheyang, Thao and Parpa), linked by matrilateral cross-cousin marriage. This structure challenges the binary of descent versus alliance. While descent theorists like Fortes and Evans-Pritchard emphasized unilineal groups, and alliance theorists like Levi-Strauss focused on marriage exchanges, the Purum system complicates both. Each group's wife-givers are distinct from its wife-takers, so women flow in one direction only, forming a cycle of asymmetric exchange. Wife-givers are ritually superior to wife-takers, and prestations of goods move in the opposite direction to women. Rodney Needham's structural analysis (1958) and his Structure and Sentiment (1962) used the Purum to defend Lévi-Strauss's theory of generalised exchange against Homans and Schneider (1955), who had explained the matrilateral preference by sentiments generated in a patrilineal family. Charles Ackerman (1964) then showed statistically that many recorded Purum marriages did not follow the prescribed direction, which opened the debate on prescriptive versus preferential marriage rules and on the gap between a structural model and actual practice.

(c) Osteodontokeratic Culture and Its Makers

Raymond Dart coined the term "osteodontokeratic" to describe the tool use of Australopithecus africanus, referring to implements made of bone (osteo), tooth (odonto), and horn (kerato). This hypothesis suggested that early hominins used natural materials as tools before mastering stone technology. The evidence came mainly from the Makapansgat Limeworks cave, where Dart argued that the over-representation of certain skeletal parts (such as antelope humeri and jaws) showed deliberate selection of bones as clubs, daggers and scoops. However, the theory was refuted by C.K. Brain's taphonomic studies, which showed the bone accumulations were largely the work of carnivores, while Louis Leakey argued that true tool-making (Oldowan) was the defining feature of the genus Homo. The debate highlighted the criteria for hominin identification: whether tool use or brain size was the primary differentiator. Later work has partly revived the idea in a different form: worn bone tools used for digging termite mounds at Swartkrans and Sterkfontein (associated with Paranthropus robustus and early Homo), cut-marked bones at Dikika (about 3.4 million years ago) and the Lomekwi 3 stone tools (about 3.3 million years ago) suggest tool use before Homo. Thus, the osteodontokeratic culture remains significant in illustrating the gradual transition from natural object use to manufactured technology, bridging the gap between animal behavior and human culture.

(d) Smell as a Signal Among Non-Human Primates

Olfaction is a primary communicative channel in strepsirrhine primates, such as lemurs and lorises, which possess a well-developed vomeronasal organ. They use scent glands, like the brachial gland in slow lorises, for territorial marking and reproductive signaling. Males often rub their arms on trees to deposit chemical cues indicating presence, dominance, and mating status. In contrast, haplorhine primates (tarsiers, monkeys, apes, and humans) have reduced olfactory capabilities, relying more on vision. However, smell still plays a role in predator avoidance and social recognition. Ring-tailed lemur males anoint their tails with secretions from wrist (antebrachial) and brachial glands and wave them at rivals in "stink fights"; marmosets and tamarins use circumgenital and suprapubic scent marks, and the scent of dominant females helps suppress ovulation in subordinates; owl monkeys and titis rub subcaudal glands; mandrills have a sternal gland whose odour reflects rank; and chimpanzees and gorillas sniff genital swellings and use odour in individual recognition, with silverback gorillas emitting a strong odour when excited. The evolutionary shift from olfactory to visual dominance in haplorhines correlates with diurnal activity and complex social structures. Studying primate olfaction provides insights into the sensory trade-offs in primate evolution and the origins of human social communication, highlighting how sensory modalities shape behavioral ecology.

(e) Culture and Embodiment

Embodiment theory posits that culture is not just mental but physically inscribed in the body. Marcel Mauss’s "techniques of the body" demonstrated how social norms shape bodily practices, such as posture and movement. Pierre Bourdieu’s concept of habitus describes how social structures are internalized as "bodily hexis," influencing unconscious dispositions and tastes. Thomas Csordas ("Embodiment as a Paradigm for Anthropology", 1990) took a phenomenological approach, treating the body as the existential ground of culture rather than an object on which culture acts. Scheper-Hughes and Lock (1987) distinguished the individual body, the social body and the body politic. Foot binding in China, scarification and tattooing (godna) among Indian tribes, and dietary and purity rules of caste show how social identity is literally written onto bodies. In India, classical dance forms like Bharatanatyam and yoga exemplify embodied culture, where rigorous training transforms the body into a site of spiritual and aesthetic expression. These practices illustrate how cultural values are stored and transmitted through physical discipline. Understanding embodiment challenges the mind-body dualism, showing that social identity is performed and maintained through the body, offering a holistic view of cultural transmission and socialization.