Summer is coming to a close, giving us a great excuse to reflect on the incredible announcements that have been recently made in paleoanthropology. From footprints to new fossils, these discoveries have definitely altered the ways I think about many hominin species, so I’m counting down my favorites. This time, I polled a bunch of you…
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
It’s only March (on a related note–how is it already March?!), and already a TON has happened in paleoanthropology this year. So far in 2016, we’ve seen announcements on everything from teeth to DNA. I thought I’d recap some of the big finds, but as always, I have to include the disclaimer that these announcements are…
Inventing a Southern Ape In early February 1925, Raymond Dart announced his discovery of the Taung Baby fossil to the world. I recently wrote about how Nature was scooped on the announcement, but I now want to focus on how the scientific world reacted to Taung’s discovery. In his paper, Dart argued that Taung represented a new…
Dart and his Taung Baby Raymond Dart and his Taung child fossil are well known in the history of paleoanthropology. The story goes: the fossil came from a limestone quarry near the town of Taungs, South Africa. It fell into the hands of Dart, an anatomist at the nearby University of Witswatersrand. Recognizing that he…
In 1887, a Dutch physician named Eugene Dubois set sail halfway around the world to look for the missing link. A fossilized link between humans an apes, which would prove once and for all that humans evolved. The only thing crazier than this mission was the fact that the physician actually found what he was looking for (sort of). For…
In the study of human evolution, 2015 was an insane year. Paleoanthropologists made discoveries that increased our knowledge about everything from stone tools to Neandertal ancestry. The announcements were surprising, enlightening, and drawn from all corners of the scientific discipline. Some discoveries were those of new fossils, while others drew from ancient DNA, and others still reconstructed…
There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
Many hominin species have been named throughout history. Whether it’s a name that sticks–like Australopithecus africanus, or one that fades–like Homo gardarensis, new names carry interesting meanings and stories. Out of all the hominin species names throughout history, I find one especially interesting. In my opinion, the first new hominin species that was named, Homo neanderthalensis, is also the coolest.…
It seems as though every time a hominin fossil is discovered, sensational headlines follow. Major news sources claim that a discovery is unprecedented, or that some new fossil rewrites everything we know about human origins. So is this excitement warranted? Should we be making such a big deal over the fossils? In the case of the Homo…
Fossil History 