Introduction
Introduction
The word "hominid" refers to members of the family of humans, Hominidae, which consists of all species on our side of the last common ancestor of humans and living apes. (Some scientists use a broader definition of Hominidae which includes the great apes.) Hominids are included in the superfamily of all apes, the Hominoidea, the members of which are called hominoids. Although the hominid fossil record is far from complete, and the evidence is often fragmentary, there is enough to give a good outline of the evolutionary history of humans.
The time of the split between humans and living apes used to be thought to have occurred 15 to 20 million years ago, or even up to 30 or 40 million years ago. Some apes occurring within that time period, such as Ramapithecus, used to be considered as hominids, and possible ancestors of humans. Later fossil finds indicated that Ramapithecus was more closely related to the orang-utan, and new biochemical evidence indicated that the last common ancestor of hominids and apes occurred between 5 and 10 million years ago, and probably in the lower end of that range (Lewin, 1987). Ramapithecus therefore is no longer considered a hominid.
The field of science which studies the human fossil record is known as paleoanthropology. It is the intersection of the disciplines of paleontology (the study of ancient lifeforms) and anthropology (the study of humans).
Task
Task
1. Watch the video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JLblq9ZvutE.
2. With the information from the video, fill out the following chart:
Evaluation
Evaluation
1. Students must have correct each area of the chart, every area will be evaluated as follows:
a. Nicknames 4%
b. Physical Characteristics 4%
c. Tools and Technology 4%
d. Culture and Daily Life 4%
e. Time and Location 4%
TOTAL: 20%
Conclusion
Conclusion
The evolution of our species from an ape-like Miocene ancestor was a complex process. Our lineage is full of side branches and evolutionary dead ends, with species like the robust austral piths that persisted for over a million years before fading away. Some human traits, like bipedalism, evolved very early, while others, like large brains, did not evolve until relatively recently. Still other traits, like molar size, evolved in one direction only to be pushed back later by changing ecological pressures. Rather than a powerful ship charting a straight course toward some pre-determined destination, the evolution of our lineage — indeed, of any species' lineage — fits the image of a lifeboat tossed about by the shifting seas of environmental change, genetic luck, and geological chance. One wonders where the next six million years might take us.
Credits
References and Recommended Reading
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Brunet, M. et al. New material of the earliest hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad. Nature 434, 752-755 (2005)
Dart, R.A. Australopithecus africanus: the southern ape-man of Africa. Nature 115, 195-199 (1925)
DeGiorgio, M. et al. Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: explaining worldwide patterns of human genetic variation using a coalescent-based serial founder model of migration outward from Africa. PNAS USA 106, 16057-16062 (2009)
Falk, D. et al. Early hominid brain evolution: a new look at old endocasts. Journal of Human Evolution 38, 695-717 (2000)
Green, R.E. A draft sequence of the Neandertal genome. Science 328, 710-722
Harcourt-Smith, W. E. & L.C. Aiello. Fossils, feet and the evolution of human bipedal locomotion. Journal of Anatomy 204, 403-416 (2004)
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Kimbel, W. H. et al. Systematic assessment of a maxilla of Homo from Hadar, Ethiopia. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 103, 235-262 (1997)
Kunimatsu, Y. et al. A new Late Miocene great ape from Kenya and its implications for the origins of African great apes and humans. PNAS USA 104, 19661-19662. (2007)
McHenry, H. M. Body size and proportions in early hominids. American Journal of Physical Anthropology 87, 407-431 (1992)
Pickford, M. et al. Bipedalism in Orrorin tugenensis revealed by its femora. Comptes Rendus Palevol 1, 1-13 (2002)
Relethford, J. H. Genetic evidence and the modern human origins debate. Heredity 100, 555-563 (2008)
Rightmire, G. P. Out of Africa: modern human origins special feature: middle and later Pleistocene hominins in Africa and Southwest Asia. PNAS USA106, 16046-16050 (2009)
Rightmire, G.P. Homo in the Middle Pleistocene: Hypodigms, variation, and species recognition. Evolutionary Anthropology 17, 8-21 (2008)