The arrival of the horse in the 1600s dramatically changed Plains Indian life. Larger groups could be supported by mounted hunting of the vast bison herds, and by 1750 many groups like the Cheyenne and Kiowa had migrated into the Plains to take advantage of the new subsistence opportunities. This is a broad area, and many other disciplines such as psychology, sociology, biology, and medicine also have an interest in humans. American Anthropology has had a unique perspective on the human experience for over a century.
Anthropologists look at people across a broad spectrum of space and time.
Bioanthropologists examine our human biological and behavioral heritage over millions of years, and consider human physical variations across the world's populations. Archaeologists study the development and distribution of cultural patterns in past groups and civilizations, and seek to understand the ecological and social forces affecting these patterns over thousands of years. Cultural anthropologists examine human behaviors in contemporary groups in every setting across the world, and seek to understand the ecological and social forces that shape these behaviors. Anthropologists in every field are also concerned with change, biological and sociocultural, and how change impacts upon the human experience of us all. Anthropologists also look at the human experience in terms of holistic integrated systems.