Interactive Demo
The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization
The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization is a free, interactive learning demo from the Anthropology course on Lykke. It helps you build intuition for Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Archaic Homo, Genomics. Play with it directly in your browser — it features 2 sliders. This demo lives in the “The Genus Homo and the Emergence of Modern Humans” section of the course.
How to use this demo
- Drag the sliders to change the inputs and watch the visualization update in real time.
- Experiment freely — there's nothing to break, and every change is reversible.
What you'll explore
- Homo habilis
- Homo erectus
- Archaic Homo
- Genomics
- Tool Technology
Frequently asked questions
What does the The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization demo do?
Metabolic Budget 100% Total energy available for expensive tissues. sapiens EQ: 2.45 Move the slider to simulate the transition from Australopithecines to the Genus Homo. The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization lets you explore this hands-on instead of only reading about it.
What Anthropology concept does The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization teach?
Traces the transition from early hominins to the genus Homo, focusing on brain development, tool use, and genomics. It focuses on Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Archaic Homo, Genomics, Tool Technology from the “The Genus Homo and the Emergence of Modern Humans” section.
What can I control in The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization?
The sliders change the key inputs. Every change updates the visualization in real time, so you can see exactly how each variable affects the outcome.
How does The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization fit into the Anthropology course?
This course provides a comprehensive introduction to anthropology, the interdisciplinary study of humanity across time and space. It explores the four primary subfields—cultural, biological, archaeological, and linguist… This demo is the interactive piece for the “The Genus Homo and the Emergence of Modern Humans” section. Open the full Anthropology course wiki at https://www.getlykke.com/explore/public/anthropology-a4bd31d3-9ba4-46c3-8304-912d8aac0a6c for notes, flashcards, quizzes and the other demos.
What will I understand better after using The Metabolic Trade-off & Encephalization?
You'll build intuition for Homo habilis, Homo erectus, Archaic Homo, Genomics, Tool Technology — and, crucially, see how they behave when you change the inputs, which is hard to get from a textbook or lecture on Anthropology alone.
From the Anthropology course
This interactive demo is part of the The Genus Homo and the Emergence of Modern Humans section. Explore the full Anthropology course wiki on Lykke — with notes, flashcards, quizzes and more interactive demos.
Open the Anthropology course →