Race Race
Is race a biologically accurate way to classify people? Explain
How much genetic variation exists within the human species? How is that variation distributed among different local populations?
Why do we see variation in human skin color (i.e., dark and light skin pigmentations are adaptations to what?)?
What does it mean to say that race has been reified (definition of reify: to make something abstract more concrete or real)? What are some biological or social examples of the way that race has been reified?
What do we know about the connections between race and health/disease?
What do you find interesting about the way race is defined in other cultures (refer to the Global Census activity)?
Sample Solution
Race Race
A race is a group of humans based on shared physical or social qualities into categories generally viewed as distinct by society (Barnshaw, John, 2008). The term was first used to refer to speakers of a common language and then to denote national affiliations. By the 17th century the term began to refer to physical (phenotypical) traits. Modern science regards race as a social construct, an identity which is assigned based on rules made by society. Race does not provide an accurate representation of human biological variation. It was never accurate in the past, and it remains inaccurate when referencing contemporary human populations. Humans are not divided biologically into distinct continental types of racial genetic clusters.
