The History of How Cows Were Domesticated

According to archaeological and genetic evidence, wild cattle or aurochs (Bos primigenius) were likely domesticated independently at least twice and perhaps three times. A distantly related Bos species, the yak (Bos grunniens grunniens or Poephagus grunniens) was domesticated from its still-living wild form, B. grunniens or B. grunniens mutus. As domesticated animals go, cattle are among the earliest, perhaps because of the multitude of useful products they provide humans: food products such as milk, blood, fat, and meat; secondary products such as clothing and tools manufactured from hair, hides, horns, hooves and bones; dung for fuel; as well as load-bearers and for pulling plows. Culturally, cattle are banked resources, which can provide bride-wealth and trade as well as rituals such as feasting and sacrifices. Aurochs were significant enough to Upper Paleolithic hunters in Europe to be included in cave paintings such as those of Lascaux. Aurochs were one of the largest herbivores in Europe, with the largest bulls reaching shoulder heights of between 160-180 centimeters (5.2-6 feet), with massive frontal horns of up to 80 cm (31 inches) in length. Wild yaks have black upward- and backward-curving horns and long shaggy black to brown coats. The adult males can be 2 m (6.5 ft) high, over 3 m (10 ft) long and can weigh between 600-1200 kilograms (1300-2600 pounds); females weigh only 300 kg (650 pounds) on average. Domestication Evidence Archaeologists and biologists are agreed that there is strong evidence for two distinct domestication events from aurochs: B. taurus in the near east about 10,500 years ago, and B. indicus in the Indus valley of the Indian subcontinent  about 7,000 years ago. There may have been a third auroch domesticate in Africa (tentatively called  B. africanus), about 8,500 years ago. Yaks were domesticated in central Asia about 7,000-10,000 years ago. Recent mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) studies also indicate that B. taurus was introduced into Europe and Africa where they interbred with local wild animals (aurochs). Whether these occurrences should be considered as separate domestication events is somewhat under debate. Recent genomic studies (Decker et al. 2014) of 134 modern breeds supports the presence of the three domestication events, but also found evidence for later migration waves of animals to and from the three main loci of domestication. Modern cattle are significantly different today from the earliest domesticated versions. Three Auroch Domesticates Bos taurus The taurine (humpless cattle, B. taurus) was most likely domesticated somewhere in the Fertile Crescent about 10,500 years ago. The earliest substantive evidence for cattle domestication anywhere in the world is the Pre-Pottery Neolithic cultures in the Taurus Mountains. One strong strand of evidence of the locus of domestication for any animal or plant is genetic diversity: places that developed a plant or animal generally have high diversity in those species; places where the domesticates were brought in, have lesser diversity. The highest diversity of genetics in cattle is in the Taurus Mountains. A gradual decline in overall body size of aurochs, a characteristic of domestication, is seen at several sites in southeastern Turkey, beginning as early as the late 9th at Cayonu Tepesi. Small-bodied cattle do not appear in archaeological assemblages in the eastern Fertile Crescent until relatively late (6th millennium BC), and then abruptly. Based on that, Arbuckle et al. (2016) surmise that domestic cattle arose in the upper reaches of the Euphrates river. Taurine cattle were traded across the planet, first into Neolithic Europe about 6400 BC; and they appear in archaeological sites as far away as northeastern Asia (China, Mongolia, Korea) by about 5000 years ago. Bos indicus (or B. taurus indicus) Recent mtDNA evidence for domesticated zebu (humped cattle, B. indicus) suggests that two major lineages of B. indicus are currently present in modern animals. One (called I1) predominates in southeast Asia and southern China and is likely to have been domesticated in the Indus Valley region of what is today Pakistan. Evidence of the transition of wild to domestic B. indicus is in evidence in Harappan sites such as Mehrgahr about 7,000 years ago. The second strain, I2, may have been captured in East Asia, but apparently was also domesticated in the Indian subcontinent, based on the presence of a broad range of diverse genetic elements. The evidence for this strain is not entirely conclusive as of yet. Possible: Bos africanus or Bos taurus Scholars are divided about the likelihood of a third domestication event having occurred in Africa. The earliest domesticated cattle in Africa have been found at Capeletti, Algeria, about 6500 BP, but Bos remains are found at African sites in what is now Egypt, such as Nabta Playa and Bir Kiseiba, as long ago as 9,000 years, and they may be domesticated. Early cattle remains have also been found at Wadi el-Arab (8500-6000 BC) and El Barga (6000-5500 BC). One significant difference for taurine cattle in Africa is a genetic tolerance to trypanosomosis, the disease spread by the tsetse fly which causes anemia and parasitemia in cattle, but the exact genetic marker for that trait has not been identified to date. A recent study (Stock and Gifford-Gonzalez 2013) found that although genetic evidence for African domesticated cattle is not as comprehensive or detailed as that for  other forms of cattle, what there is available suggests that domestic cattle in Africa are the result of wild aurochs having been introduced into local domestic B. taurus populations. A genomic study published in 2014 (Decker et al.) indicates that while considerable introgression and breeding practices have altered the population structure of modern day cattle, there is still consistent evidence for three major groups of domestic cattle. Lactase Persistence One recent strain of evidence for the domestication of cattle comes from the study of lactase persistence, the ability to digest milk sugar lactose in adults (the opposite of lactose intolerance). Most mammals, including humans, can tolerate milk as infants, but after weaning, they lose that ability. Only about 35% of people in the world are able to digest milk sugars as adults without discomfort, a trait called lactase persistence. This is a genetic trait, and it is theorized that it would have selected for in human populations that had ready access to fresh milk. Early Neolithic populations who domesticated sheep, goats and cattle would not have yet developed this trait, and probably processed the milk into cheese, yogurt, and butter prior to consuming it. Lactase persistence has been connected most directly with the spread of dairying practices associated with cattle, sheep, and goats into Europe by Linearbandkeramik populations beginning about 5000 BC. And a Yak (Bos grunniens grunniens or Poephagus grunniens) The domestication of yaks may well have made human colonization of the high Tibetan Plateau (also known as Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau) possible. Yaks are extremely well adapted to the arid steppes at high elevations, where low oxygen, high solar radiation, and extreme cold are common. In addition to the milk, meat, blood, fat, and pack energy benefits, perhaps the most important yak byproduct in the cool, arid climate is dung. The availability of yak dung as a fuel was a critical factor in allowing for the colonization of the high region, where other fuel sources are lacking. Yaks possess large lungs and hearts, expansive sinuses, long hair, thick soft fur (very useful for cold-weather clothing), and few sweat glands. Their blood contains a high hemoglobin concentration and red blood cell count, all of which make cold adaptations possible. Domestic Yaks The main difference between wild and domestic yaks is their size. Domestic yaks are smaller than their wild relatives: adults are generally no more than 1.5 m (5 ft) tall, with males weighing between 300-500 kg (600-1100 lbs), and females between 200-300 kg (440-600 lbs). They have white or piebald coats and lack gray-white muzzle hairs. They can and do interbreed with wild yaks, and all yaks have the high altitude physiology they are prized for. There are three types of domestic yaks in China, based on morphology, physiology, and geographical distribution: a valley type distributed in the valleys of north and east Tibet, and some parts of Sichuan and Yunnan provinces;a plateau grassland type mainly found in the high, cold pastures and steppes that maintain an annual average temperature below 2 degrees centigrade;and white yaks found in almost every region in China. Domesticating the Yak Historical reports dated to the Chinese Han Dynasty state that yaks were domesticated by the Qiang people during the Longshan culture period in China, about 5,000 years ago. The Qiang were ethnic groups who inhabited the Tibetan Plateau borderlands including Qinghai Lake. Han Dynasty records also say the Qiang people had a Yak State during the Han dynasty, 221 BC-220 AD, based on a highly successful trade network. Trade routes involving domestic yak were recorded beginning in the Qin dynasty records (221-207 BC)--predating and no doubt part of precursors to the Silk Road--and cross-breeding experiments with Chinese yellow cattle to create the hybrid dzo are described there as well. Genetic (mtDNA) studies support the Han Dynasty records that yaks were domesticated on the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau, although the genetic data does not allow definitive conclusions to be drawn about the number of domestication events. The variety and distribution of mtDNA are not clear, and it is possible that multiple domestication events from the same gene pool, or interbreeding between wild and domesticated animals occurred. However, the mtDNA and archaeological results also blur the dating of the domestication. The earliest evidence for domesticated yak is from the Qugong site, ca. 3750-3100 calendar years ago (cal BP); and the Dalitaliha site, ca 3,000 cal BP near Qinghai Lake. Qugong has a large number of yak bones with an overall small stature; Dalitaliha has a clay figurine thought to represent a yak, the remnants of a wood-fenced corral, and fragments of hubs from spoked wheels. The mtDNA evidence suggests domestication took place as early as 10,000 years BP, and Guo et al. argue that the Qinghai lake Upper Paleolithic colonizers domesticated the yak. The most conservative conclusion to draw from this is that yaks were first domesticated in northern Tibet, probably the Qinghai Lake region, and were derived from wild yak for the production of wool, milk, meat and manual labor, at least 5000 cal bp. How Many Are There? Wild yaks were widespread and abundant in the Tibetan Plateau up until the late 20th century when hunters decimated their numbers. They are now considered highly endangered with an estimated population of ~15,000. They are protected by law but still illegally hunted. Domestic yaks, on the other hand, are abundant, an estimated 14-15 million in central highland Asia. The current distribution of yaks is from the southern slopes of the Himalayas to the Altai and Hangai Mountains of Mongolia and Russia. Approximately 14 million yaks live in China, representing about 95% of the worlds population; the remaining five percent are in Mongolia, Russia, Nepal, India, Bhutan, Sikkim and Pakistan. Sources à lvarez I, Pà ©rez-Pardal L, Traorà © A, Fernà ¡ndez I, and Goyache F. 2016. Lack of specific alleles for the bovine chemokine (C-X-C) receptor type 4 (CXCR4) gene in West African cattle questions its role as a candidate for trypanotolerance. Infection, Genetics and Evolution 42:30-33. Arbuckle BS, Price MD, Hongo H, and Ãâ€"ksà ¼z B. 2016. Documenting the initial appearance of domestic cattle in the Eastern Fertile Crescent (northern Iraq and western Iran). Journal of Archaeological Science 72:1-9. Cai D, Sun Y, Tang Z, Hu S, Li W, Zhao X, Xiang H, and Zhou H. 2014. The origins of Chinese domestic cattle as revealed by ancient DNA analysis. Journal of Archaeological Science 41:423-434. Colominas, Là ­dia. The impact of the Roman Empire on animal husbandry practices: study of the changes in cattle morphology in the north-east of the Iberian Peninsula through osteometric and ancient DNA analyses.  Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences, Angela Schlumbaum, Maria Saà ±a, Volume 6, Issue 1, SpringerLink, March 2014. Ding XZ, Liang CN, Guo X, Wu XY, Wang HB, Johnson KA, and Yan P. 2014. Physiological insight into the high-altitude adaptations in domesticated yaks (Bos grunniens) along the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau altitudinal gradient. Livestock Science 162(0):233-239. doi: 10.1016/j.livsci.2014.01.012 Leonardi M, Gerbault P, Thomas MG, and Burger J. 2012. The evolution of lactase persistence in Europe. A synthesis of archaeological and genetic evidence. International Dairy Journal 22(2):88-97. Gron KJ, Montgomery J, Nielsen PO, Nowell GM, Peterkin JL, Sà ¸rensen L, and Rowley-Conwy P. 2016. Strontium isotope evidence of early Funnel Beaker Culture movement of cattle. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 6:248-251. Gron KJ, and Rowley-Conwy P. 2017. Herbivore diets and the anthropogenic environment of early farming in southern Scandinavia. The Holocene 27(1):98-109. Insoll T, Clack T, and Rege O. 2015. Mursi ox modification in the Lower Omo Valley and the interpretation of cattle rock art in Ethiopia. Antiquity 89(343):91-105. MacHugh DE, Larson G, and Orlando L. 2017. Taming the Past: Ancient DNA and the Study of Animal Domestication. Annual Review of Animal Biosciences 5(1):329-351. Orlando L. 2015. The first aurochs genome reveals the breeding history of British and European cattle. Genome Biology 16(1):1-3. Orton J, Mitchell P, Klein R, Steele T, and Horsburgh KA. 2013. An early date for cattle from Namaqualand, South Africa: implications for the origins of herding in southern Africa. Antiquity 87(335):108-120. Park SDE, Magee DA, McGettigan PA, Teasdale MD, Edwards CJ, Lohan AJ, Murphy A, Braud M, Donoghue MT, Liu Y et al. 2015. Genome sequencing of the extinct Eurasian wild aurochs, Bos primigenius, illuminates the phylogeography and evolution of cattle. Genome Biology 16(1):1-15. Qanbari S, Pausch H, Jansen S, Somel M, Strom TM, Fries R, Nielsen R, and Simianer H. 2014. Classic Selective Sweeps Revealed by Massive Sequencing in Cattle. PLoS Genetics 10(2):e1004148. Qiu, Qiang. Yak whole-genome resequencing reveals domestication signatures and prehistoric population expansions. Nature Communications, Lizhong Wang, Kun Wang, et al., Volume 6, Article number: 10283, Decemeber 22, 2015. Scheu A, Powell A, Bollongino R, Vigne J-D, Tresset A, Çakirlar C, Benecke N, and Burger J. 2015. The genetic prehistory of domesticated cattle from their origin to the spread across Europe. BMC Genetics 16(1):1-11. Shi Q, Guo Y, Engelhardt SC, Weladji RB, Zhou Y, Long M, and Meng X. 2016. Endangered wild yak (Bos grunniens) in the Tibetan plateau and adjacent regions: Population size, distribution, conservation perspectives and its relation to the domestic subspecies. Journal for Nature Conservation 32:35-43. Stock, Frauke. Genetics and African Cattle Domestication. African Archaeological Review, Diane Gifford-Gonzalez, Volume 30, Issue 1, SpingerLink, March 2013. Teasdale MD, and Bradley DG. 2012. The Origins of Cattle. Bovine Genomics: Wiley-Blackwell. p 1-10. Upadhyay, MR. Genetic origin, admixture and population history of aurochs (Bos primigenius) and primitive European cattle. Heredity, W Chen, J A Lenstra, et al., Volume 118, Nature, September 28, 2016. Wang K, Hu Q, Ma H, Wang L, Yang Y, Luo W, and Qiu Q. 2014.  Genome-wide variation within and between wild and domestic yak. Molecular Ecology Resources 14(4):794-801. Zhang X, Wang K, Wang L, Yang Y, Ni Z, Xie X, Shao X, Han J, Wan D, and Qiu Q. 2016. Genome-wide patterns of copy number variation in the Chinese yak genome. BMC Genomics 17(1):379.

Why and How Is the Brain Fooled by the Placebo Effect Essay

â€Å"The more you think of an imaginary problem, the more you feel as though it’s real.† (Panova) Our brain is known to work in mysterious ways, and the placebo effect acts is a prime example of exactly that. The concept of this phenomenon is known to confuse the average person, but it should not. Nevertheless, those unaware of it are still affected on a regular basis. In fact, every time a pill is taken, half of its power comes from just thinking and expecting it to work. All humans are gullible, each to a certain extent. Even the most clever individuals would succomb to the sheer power of placebos in, for example, a life-or-death situation. The placebo effect fools our brain effectively because of the trust we put into doctors and medicine,†¦show more content†¦The majority of the people in the group with valid medicine were healed. Surprisingly, around 379 people were cured by the placebo effect alone (Beecher). There is a distinct difference between the ef fects of medicine given to you by certified doctors and medicine given to you by your co-workers. Extravagant credentials at the beginning of a name or a convincing advertisement of a pill is all it takes for the placebo effect to break through our defenses. Another reason for why our brains are so easily fooled by the placebo effect is the feeling of safety, which makes us believe that the placebo effect cured our issues. To illustrate, a child is hit in the shin with a baseball, hard. His friend, who accidentally kicked the ball with too much force, excuses himself, but goes back to playing, leaving the sobbing victim alone. His favorite teacher sees what is going on and goes over to the child. She tells him that everything will be fine, that his injury is just a bruise, and that she will guide him to the nurse. The victim suddenly feels safer as a result of the social support he received from the teacher. He nearly forgets about his pain and smiles as he limps towards the nurse’s office (Humphrey). This is a fantastic example of how social support can lead to the placebo effect. Physically, there were no major changes in the condition of the child’s shin from when his friend apologized to when hisShow MoreRelated_x000C_I ntroduction to Statistics and Data Analysis355457 Words   |  1422 PagesExperimental Design 51 2.5 More on Observational Studies: Designing Surveys (Optional) 56 2.6 Interpreting and Communicating the Results of Statistical Analyses 61 Activity 2.1 Designing a Sampling Plan 63 Activity 2.2 An Experiment to Test for the Stroop Effect 64 Activity 2.3 McDonald’s and the Next 100 Billion Burgers 64 Activity 2.4 Video Games and Pain Management 65 Graphing Calculator Explorations 69 3 Graphical Methods for Describing Data 75 3.1 Displaying Categorical Data: Comparative BarRead MoreLogical Reasoning189930 Words   |  760 Pagesrelevancy should attract readers. Stanley Baronett. Jr., University of Nevada Las Vegas Far too many authors of contemporary texts in informal logic – keeping an eye on the sorts of arguments found in books on formal logic – forget, or underplay, how much of our daily reasoning is concerned not with arguments leading to truth-valued conclusions but with making choices, assessing reasons, seeking advice, etc. Dowden gets the balance and the emphasis right. Norman Swartz, Simon Fraser University Read MoreDeveloping Management Skills404131 Words   |  1617 PagesRating Scale 166 Comparison Data 166 Source of Personal Stress 166 3 SOLVING PROBLEMS ANALYTICALLY AND CREATIVELY 167 SKILL ASSESSMENT 168 Diagnostic Surveys for Creative Problem Solving 168 Problem Solving, Creativity, and Innovation 168 How Creative Are You ? 169 Innovative Attitude Scale 171 Creative Style Assessment 172 SKILL LEARNING 174 Problem Solving, Creativity, and Innovation 174 Steps in Analytical Problem Solving 174 Defining the Problem 174 Generating Alternatives 176 EvaluatingRead MoreMarketing Mistakes and Successes175322 Words   |  702 Pagesunsuccessful practices are not unique. Information Boxes and Issue Boxes are included in each chapter to highlight relevant concepts and issues, or related information, and we are even testing Profile Boxes. Learning insights help students see how certain practices—both errors and successes—cross company lines and are prone to be either traps for the unwary or success modes. Discussion Questions and Hands-On Exercises encourage and stimulate student involvement. A recent pedagogical feature

Ethics in Religion free essay sample

â€Å"If there is no God, then everything is permitted† – Dostoyevky If there is no God, then surely everything is permitted and there will be situation of moral chaos. This is because people will try to define what is moral by themselves and people somehow will define it differently according to their internal and external factors. Without God, there is no good and evil, there are only subjective opinions that we then label â€Å"good† and â€Å"evil. † RELIGION MUST BE THE BASIS FOR MORALITY. No doubt religion must be the basis of ethics and it is undeniable. Why it is because religion is the most solid basis to explain morality. All religions have moral components and religious approach to ethical issues supported by divine teaching. With the clear guidelines that has been underline in holy books, revelations that mostly come from supernatural and divine teaching is not something man-made. For example, divine book of Islam Al-Quran lays the principles that help Muslims achieve salvation, become better individuals and useful members of society. We will write a custom essay sample on Ethics in Religion or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page The book has underlined almost everything from how one should serve Allah to even how to do business. Next, God’s law is not only meant to create harmonious environment but also to test His believers’ upon their loyalty. Most religions always discuss about life after death. Human are accountable to all their action during their lifetime and it will be paid in hereafter. The concept of paradise and hell in Islam can be a motivational and sanction factors to Muslims to perform a good and avoid bad conducts. The concept of God’s existence will make belief that everything that you do will be paid, definitely. For example, the concept of karma in Buddhism and the concept of Judgement Day, Paradise and Hell in Islam. Besides that, the reason why religion is must be the basis of morality is because there will be no conflict of interest in defining what is right or wrong. The secular point of view on what can be classified as a moral conduct is based on only motive, act and consequences, which is somehow, may be biased. It only depends on the result and consequences of their conduct such as the famous quote by Machiavelli – â€Å"the ends justify the means†. What is morally right to do is based on what they think is right eventhough they may discriminate other people. For instance, the apartheid issue in United States is the question of moral. The forth reason why religion must be the basis of morality is that the view of God commands is good and what has been prohibited is evil. It has been explained by Divine Command Theory. The Divine Command Theory is the view on morality that what is right is whatever God commands. We know the sets of what is good and what is bad through religion, and their content are whatever our religion says it is. The believers hold that values come from some higher power or supernatural being. It shows that the determinant of what is good or bad is not based on normal human thinking by themselves as what has been practise by atheist but rather by some higher power or supernatural being. For example, the Universal Declaration Of Human Rights by United Nation that uphold the concept of LGBT is contradict with Islam that surely will lead to destruction of mankind. Lastly, no doubt that religious sanction has harmonious relationship between reasons and revelation. Most religions have certain sanction to their believers and the relevance of the sanctions is definitely has solid reasons. The atheists may argue with this sanctions but what they don’t understand is the ultimate reason it been introduced. Through the concept and belief in the existence of God, the believers will follow those sanctions for the reasons of their God will watch and judges every action and there will be rewards and punishments. For example, in pre-Islamic Arabia killing of female infants was very common and very often, the moment a female was born, she was buried alive. However, after the spread of Islam in Arabia, this evil practice has been discontinued for a good reason. CONCLUSION The argument that does we need to subscribe to a religion in order to be a good person is never ending. Obviously, people can certainly maintain ethical perspectives and subscribe to ethical principles and behaviour without engagement in religious or spiritual beliefs, institutions, or practices. Religious engagement and practices encourages and supports clean living. Research has consistently found that religious people are less likely to engage in criminal behaviour, marital infidelity, alcoholism, unprotected sexual activity as well as being more likely to engage in good social behaviours such as volunteerism and charity. REFERENCES * Stephen Satris, CLASHING VIEWS IN MORAL ISSUES, McGrawHill * Regina Wentzel Wolfe, ETHICS AND WORLD RELIGIONS, Orbis Books. * Joe Jenkins, ETHICS AND RELIGION, Heinemann.