Review of the evolution of humans:
How science and reason need to work together
BCB 703:
Scientific Methodology
Available at http://planet.uwc.ac.za/nisl
http://anthro.palomar.edu/hominid/australo_1.htm
Where did we evolve from?
 Hominids have been around for 8 Million years
 At least a dozen forms have evolved
 More discoveries are still to be made
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_floresiensis
 Coexisting hominids have occurred and
interacted with each other
 The last to co-exist with human lived up to 12
000 years
 Debate still reigns as to the existence of apelike men
Homo floresiensis is
remarkable for its small body,
small brain, and survival until
relatively recent times
Search words “Ape to Man”
Please make sure
you have viewed
the film Ape to
Man before going
further with this
Lecture.
Viewable at
Google Video
About Human Evolution
 Is a Process of Change and Development
 And had lead to the emergence of the species Homo sapiens
 It describes the development of Human morphology, culture and
technology
 It is multi-disciplinary (physical anthropology, archaeology, genetics
and molecular biology)
http://www.santanderciudadviva.com/fotos/cultura/neanderthal.jpg
Paleoanthropology
 Began with the
discovery of
“Neanderthal Man”
 Humans and Apes are
related
 Idea became legitimized
with Charles Darwin
publication “On the
Origin of Species”
“light will be thrown on the origin of man
and his history” (Darwin 1859)
http://www.nowhow.nl/english/portfolio/ardipithecus%20ramidus.htm
Ardipithecus
ramidus &
A. kadabba
 Proto-human since its teeth are
similar to Australopithecus.
 Shares several traits with the African
great apes (genus Pan and genus
Gorilla)
 Lived from 5.4 to 4.2 million for A.
ramidus and 5.2 to 5.8 million years
ago for A. kadabba
 They are Chimpanzee-sized
 Debate on its bipedalism - toe
structure suggests that it walked
upright but it is believed to have
lived in shady forests
 Theory of bipedalism is based on
the need to move out from forests
onto the savanna
http://www.geocities.com/palaeoanthropology/Aanamensis.html
Australopithecus anamensis
A. bahrelghazali found in 1993 by
Michel Brunet in Chad 2,500
kilometers West from the East
African Great Rift Valley. A few teeth
and a partial jaw are aged to
between 3.0 to 3.5 million years old.
Material found in 1995 had similar
dentition to A. afarensis. This is the
only australopithecine fossil found in
Central Africa.
 Fossils are 4 million years –
discovered in 1965
 Complete lower jaw found resembles
that of a Common Chimpanzee (Pan
troglodytes),
 Teeth are definitely closer to those of
Human – they had thick enamel but the
canines were relatively large
 The tibia implies that anamensis was
larger than ramidus and afarensis
 Mass was between 46 to 55 kilograms larger than other apes at the time
 Was bipedal in posture and locomotion
but could still climb trees.
Australophitecus
afarensis
http://www.nowhow.nl/english/portfolio/australopitecus%20afarensis.htm
 Lived 3 to 3.9 million years ago
 Found in the Afar Depression, Ethiopia by
Donald Johanson, Yves Coppens and Tim
White in 1974.
 40% of the skeleton is complete
 Nicknamed Lucy, after the Beatles song "Lucy
in the Sky with Diamonds".
 Lucy was only 1.2 m (3 feet 8 inches) tall and
weighed 29 kilograms (65 lbs)
 She resembled a chimpanzee except for her
pelvis which established that she could walk
upright
 This fossil puts doubt on who was the last
ancestor of humans and chimpanzees
http://www.nowhow.nl/english/portfolio/australopitecus%20afarensis.htm
Australophitecus
afarensis - bipedalism
 Savanna Theory – dwindling forests and
climate change – forced a living on the plains
 They could still possible have walked on all
fours – since the bones in the hands were
curved rather than the joints bending.
 Pelvis differs and the legs stuck out to the
side.
 Walk would be a rocking gait (how chimps
walk) rather than front-back movement of
humans
 Aquatic theory evolved from wading in
coastal/swamp forests to collect coconuts,
turtles, bird eggs, shellfish etc
Lucy’s chimpanzee-sized brain, bidealism and humanlike teeth challenged the big brain hypothesis
http://www.ica-net.it/pascal/UOMO_JPG/A.robustus.htm
It is generally
considered that
these early
hominids would
have been
peaceful plant
eaters but
there is now
evidence that
the taste for
meat was an
early feature of
their evolution!
Australopithecus
africanus
 Lived between 3.3 and 2.4 million
 Slender build - 1.2 m tall and 36 kg mass
 Significantly more human than A. afarensis:
teeth, eye orbits and possession of a formen
magnum but the brain was 400-500 cc
 Fossil from Taung (Kimberley) described by
Raymond Dart in 1924
 Dart’s claims of intermediate status between
ape and man at the time were largely rejected
by most of the scientific community
The two most important
fossils were Taung Child
and Mrs Ples from
Sterkfontein. The fossilized
brain cast established a
volume of 485cc
 More fossil finds including Mrs. Ples
(originally Plesianthropus transvaalensis) at
Sterkfontein (re-classed as a young male)
 Long arms and curved
fingers still ape-like
features and would assist
in climbing trees
 Bipedalism better
developed than in A.
afarnensis
 No stone tools (except for
the 2.6 million year old
Australopithecus garhi)
Australopithecus
established an African
origin for human
evolution.
http://www.ica-net.it/pascal/UOMO_JPG/australopithecus_africanus01.htm
Australopithecus
africanus
Australopithecus was a prey item – one skull had
clear tooth marks indicating a leopard was
responsible and their bones have been found in
nest material of eagles.
Australopithecus garhi
A. garhi is now
considered the first
tool maker
Paranthropus aethiopicus
http://anthro.palomar.edu/hominid/images/A_ethiopicus_skull.gif
 Fossils between 2.5~2.7 million years –
discovered in Ethiopia 1968
 Possible descendent of A. afarensis
 Is a “robust” form with large bony ridge
on top of the skull for attachment of jaw
muscles – an adaptation for chewing
vegetation, nuts and tubers (as in
Gorillas)
 No agreement on whether P. boisei and
P. robustus were its descendents
 Lived in mixed savanna and woodland
 The bizarre, primitive skull suggests
that Paranthropus was an on its own
evolutionary branch of the hominid
family tree
Black Skull found in 1985, West Turkana, Kenya
http://www.ica-net.it/pascal/UOMO_JPG/A.robustus.htm
Paranthropus robustus
 Fossils 1.2~2.0 million years – discovered in
South Africa by Robert Broom in 1938
 Cranial modifications suggest “heavy chewing”
adaptation (nuts and tubers found in the
woodland/savanna)
 This robust line of australopithecine lead to
them being put into the genus Paranthropus
 Based on dentition P. robustus rarely lived
beyond 17 years
 This specimen clearly showed that evolution of
Homo sapiens was not on a straight path and
co-existing hominids existed
 Height 1~1.2m, mass 40-54 kg, brain size 410530 cc
http://amnh.com/exhibitions/atapuerca/gallery/africa.php?image=3&page=branches
Paranthropus boisei
 Fossils 1.4~2.6 million years –
discovered in Olduvai, Tanzania by
Mary Leakey in 1959
 Classified originally as Zinjanthropus
boisei
The average adult males were almost
twice the weight and height as the
females. This is the largest sexual
dimorphism recorded for any hominid
 Originally found with stone tools and
proposed direct human ancestry – it is
now known that it co-existed with
Homo habilis who was a tool maker,
and is not a ancestor to Homo.
 Even more specialized for “heavy
chewing” adaptation (nuts and tubers
found in the woodland/savanna*)
 Height 1.1~1.3m, mass 45-68 kg, brain
size 500-550 cc
*
High Carbon-4 signatures in the bones has
suggested that they specialized on C-4 savanna grasses
Kenyanthropus platyops
http://www.archaeologyinfo.com/kenyanthropus.htm
 Fossils 3.2~3.5 million years – discovered
at Lake Turkana, Kenya 1999 by Meave
Leakey
 Broad, flat face but the toe anatomy
suggest that it walked fully upright
 A very controversial fossil with Tim White
suggesting it is not a valid taxon
 Due to the skull fragmentation there is
considerable distortion and views vary
from it being Australopithecus afarensis
(same age and close to Ethiopia) while
others indicate the cranium is similar to
Homo rudolfensisIs
 Meave Leakey interprets this fossil as
adaptive radiation of bipedalism since it is
contemporary with other bipedals such as
Australopithecus afarensis
Homo habilis
 Fossils are 1.8~2.5 million years old –
discovered Oduvai, Tanzania between 1962
and 1964 by Mary and Louis Leakey
http://www.kenyafreak.de/News/Tansania/habilis.htm
 Oldest member of genus Homo – very short,
with disproportionately long arms
 A possible descendent of Australopithecus
they were similar in size (> 1.3 m) and even
slightly lighter in mass (34 kg).
 Their skull was more human than ape-like but
half the capacity of modern man (590-650 cc)
 One of the earliest tool-makers
 Were they a stable food item for predatory
animals. There is little evidence to suggest
that they were a master hunter since large
numbers of them appear to fall prey to
predators. Were they scavengers?
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Homo rudolfensis
(Skull 1470)
 Fossils are 1.9 million years old –
discovered Lake Turkana in 1972 by
Bernanrd Ngeneo (on team dig with
Richard Leakey)
 Co-existed with Homo habilis and
indeed originally was thought to
belong to this species – it has a
distinct and larger cranial capacity
(752cc)
 Some researchers still consider it to
be more ape-like than human-like,
but was a tool-maker
Homo rudolfensis made and used tools
 Uncertain as to whether it is
ancestral to Homo erectus
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Do Homo habilis & rudolfensis
justify inclusion in the genus Homo?
 They appeared to have lacked slim
hips for walking long distances, a
sophisticated sweating system
(inferred), narrow birth canal and legs
longer than arms – all considered to
mark Homo-sapien evolution
 Consequently it is argued that these
two species are more similar to
Australopithecus than Homo
 Many of the features used to put them
into the genus Homo are inferred
characters that cannot be known for
certain.
 Tool-making was considered but
Australopithecus gahri had them.
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Homo ergaster
Homo georgicus (below) found in Dmanisi, Georgia
in 1999 and 2001 seems to be intermediate
between Homo habilis and H. erectus and is 1.8
million years old. Discovered by David
Lordkipanidzeis and represents the oldest hominoid
in Europe and were found in association of
implements and animal bones.
 Fossils found in East and South Africa.
Fossil found in Lake Turkana, Kenya in
1984 was called Turkana Boy”
 They appeared 1.9 to 1.4 million years.
 Tool use belongs to the Acheulean
industry
 Distinguished from H. erectus by its
thinner skull bones
 Reduced sexual dimorphism, a smaller
face but a larger (700 and 850cc) brain
and was up to 1.9m in height
 Made hand axes and cleavers
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Homo erectus
The oldest representation
of early human migration
 Fossil discovered by Eugène Dubois in
Indonesia in 1891. Despite Darwin’s prediction
that human’s ancestors were probably African
most people at the time believed in Asian
origins
 Homo erectus originally migrated out during
the Pleistocene glacial period in Africa roughly
2.0 million years ago
 Relatively tall at 1.79 m, had a brain capacity of
950 to 1100cc and fairly modern appearance.
 Was once considered the first maker of tools:
Oldowan style (chipped from one side) and
Acheulean style (chipped on both sides to
form the cutting edge)
Found in India, China and
Indonesia but some researchers
suggest that they were an Asian
H. neanderthalensis
 Hunter/gatherer community
 Homo erectus near the Solo River in Java
existed up to 50,000 years ago
http://www.elmundo.es/elmundolibro/2004/09/08/no_ficcion/1094661510.html
Homo antecessor
 One of the earliest known hominins in Europe
with the oldest being 780 000 years found in
Spain (oldest fossil is H. Georgicus)
 Average brain was 1000 - 1150cc. Fossils have
numerous cuts of the bones that indicated
cannibalism
 Are either a descendent or a form of early Homo
heidelbergensis. Gran Dolina and Sima de los
Huesos are famous fossil sites
 Earliest hominins found in England found
between 478,000 and 524,000 years old together
with signs of cannibalism.
 Up to 1.83 m and 91 kg H. antecessors was
relatively large
 Facial features were a protruding post-cranium,
absence of forehead and lack of a chin
Homo antecessor were probably
the first Europeans
Homo heidelbergensis
http://www.evolutionnyc.com/
 In the fossil record from 600,000 to 250,000 years ago
throughout Europe.
 Descended from African H. ergaster but is similar to
Homo rhodesiensis found in Zambia
Homo cepranensis is a
homind some 800,000
to 900,000 years.
Found in Italy it may
be a cross between H.
erectus and H.
heidelbergensis
 Tall at 1.8 plus height and with a mass
of up to 91 kg – bigger and more
muscular than modern humans.
Brains were from 1100 – 1400cc.
 Serious hunters and killed and ate
animals the size of mammoths
 May be the first species to bury
their dead, and might have had a
language, but no art exists
 Made considerable quantities
of stone tools – far more than
needed – first species to have
possessions?
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Homo neanderthalensis
 Discovered in Forbes' Quarry, Gibraltar in 1848, eight
years prior to the "original" discovery in a limestone
quarry of the Neander Valley by Johann Karl Fuhlrott.
 Inhabited Europe and parts of western Asia from about
230,000 to 29,000 years ago, during the Middle
Paleolithic period.
 Considered to be cold adapted – short, robust bodies,
large noses and the largest Homo brains (1200 1700cc). Height is 1.53-1.65m and mass is 76 kg
Mousterian tool case consisted of sophisticated stone-flakes,
task-specific hand axes, and spears.
Either invented the Chatelperronian themselves or "borrowed"
elements from the incoming modern humans
Ritual burials include
grave goods (bison
bones). Pollen found at
the sites are from
known medicinal plants
Homo neanderthalensis & H. sapiens
A Neanderthal artifact,
but is it a bird?
http://www.neanderthalerart.com/
 A Neanderthal hyoid bone (responsible
for voice) and a shorter and stouter
larynx suggest that Neanderthals had a
high pitched and sharp voice but did
they have a language?
 They constructed complex shelters,
controlled fire, and skinned animals. A
hollowed-out bear femur with four
strategically placed holes plays the Do,
Re, Mi scale – the first musical
instrument?
 Mitochondrial DNA suggest that
Neanderthals were not a sub-species of
H. sapiens. Nevertheless other
researcher argue that that they interbred
with H. sapiens, and are the same
A Neanderthal flute?
species as us.
Homo sapiens idaltu
 Lived almost 160,000 years ago the fossil first
found in Ethiopia in 1997 by Tim White
http://www.bradshawfoundation.com/africa-theory.html
 Three well preserved skulls with the adult
having a brain of 1450cc
 Has more archaic features than Cro Magnon
and represents the oldest H. sapiens – they are
slightly larger, longer and have more
pronounced brow ridges
 Name idaltu is an Amharic word for "elder".
 Direct ancestors of modern Homo sapiens but
evolved in East Africa
All the skulls had cut marks indicating
they had been de-fleshed in some kind
of mortuary practice. The polishing on
the skulls, however, suggests this was
not simple cannibalism but more
probably some kind of ritualistic
behaviour.
 Oldest modern humans
living in Europe
 Lived 35 000 to 10 000
years ago
 Anatomically modern
 Physiologically more
robust with slightly
larger brains than
modern humans
 Fossils first found in
1868 in France
 Surviving Cro-Magnon artifacts include
huts, cave paintings, carvings and
antler-tipped spears.
 The remains of tools suggest that they
knew how to make woven clothing.
 They had huts, constructed of rocks,
clay, bones, branches, and animal
hide/fur.
 Used manganese and iron oxides to
paint pictures
 Created the first calendar around 15,000
years
http://hjem.get2net.dk/giver/man/man.htm
Cro Magnon
Homo floresiensis
 Remarkable for its small body < 1m and about 25 kg
Who is its closest
mass, small brained (380 cc), but survived until 12 000
relative? Some
years ago
researchers have
 Contemporary with modern humans (Homo sapiens)
argued that they
represents an extreme
on the Indonesian island of Flores
form of Island Dwarfism
 Fossils found in 2003 with suitably small-sized stone
of Homo erectus, but
others argue its derived
artifacts providing evidence that hunted animals such
from Australopithecus
as dwarf elephants (Stegodon) and the giant lizards
that got to Asia.
 Used fire for cooking.
 Can be considered a species of diminutive
human.
 Nicknamed the "hobbit"
 Is it the small furry man called Ebu Gogo
described living up to the 19th century?
Source of the legends of the little People?
Modern man
 The human brain is capable of thought, reason,
speech, language and introspection
 As a result modern humans have developed art,
culture, religion, philosophy and technology to a
higher level than any other species
 While appearing diverse in form and structure
from light-skinned to dark-skinned and from >1.4m
height (Zaire Pygmies) to >1.83m the Tutsi of
Burundi and Rwanda – genetically humans are
incredibly similar (Chimps have more diversity)
Eoanthropus dawsoni (Piltdown)
 This fake fossil cranium and lower jaw was
presented to the world in 1912 by Charles
Dawson and Arthur Smith Woodward and
accepted as the missing link
http://www.3d-art.co.uk/3dpages/3ded/king-4.html
 Having a large brain but ape-like jaw it was
dated at 500 000 years based on sediments and
other genuine fossils introduced to the site.
 Exposed in 1953 as a forgery – Radio carbon
dating showed the cranium was less than 1,000
years old. Its unusual thickness suggests
Paget's disease, a hereditary thickening of
bone
 The lower jaw was some 500 years old orangutan and the teeth had been filed down.
 The bones had been chemically hardened,
stained and burnt to appear older.
Next
Chapter 1 Review of Human Evolution
Chapter 2 History and Civilization
Chapter 3 Philosophy of Science
Chapter 4 Weblogs
Chapter 5 Scientific Writing & CSE Style
Chapter 6 Library Methods
Chapter 7 Spreadsheets
Chapter 8 Presentations (posters and talks)
Chapter 9 Information Society
I hope that you found chapter 1
informative, and that you enjoy chapter 2.