Africa’s DNA Mystery: Tracing Humanity’s Forgotten Lineages in the Namib Desert
DNA research from human populations believed to be uncontactable or extinct helps probe the deep genetic structure of Africa. Africa is the birthplace of modern…
Evolutionary Anthropology News
Evolutionary anthropology is a subfield of anthropology that focuses on the biological and behavioral evolution of humans, their fossil relatives, and related primates like chimpanzees and gorillas. This discipline combines aspects of biological anthropology, archaeology, and comparative anatomy to study the changes in human anatomy and behavior over time. Researchers in this field investigate various topics including the origins of bipedalism, brain expansion, technological and cultural development, and how these factors influenced the survival and reproduction of human ancestors. By analyzing fossil records, genetics, and the behavior of modern humans and other primates, evolutionary anthropologists seek to understand the evolutionary processes that shaped humanity. This comprehensive approach provides insights into both the physical and social aspects of human evolutionary history, helping to explain how evolutionary pressures and adaptations have led to the diversity of human life seen today.
New Hybrid Hypothesis Shakes Up Indo-European Language Origin Theories
Linguistics and genetics combine to propose a new hybrid theory regarding the origin of the Indo-European languages. For over two centuries, the question of where…
Scientists Uncover Evolutionary Origins of Masturbation
Masturbation is a widespread phenomenon in the animal kingdom but is especially prevalent amongst primates, including humans. In the past, this activity was viewed as…
Scientists Discover Surprising Similarities in Stone Tools of Early Humans and Monkeys
Macaques unintentionally created stone fragments that bear a resemblance to some of the earliest stone artifacts crafted by early hominins. The study focuses on fresh…
Scientists Reveal How a Fatty Diet Helped Develop Bigger Brains
Long before human ancestors began hunting large mammals for meat, a fatty diet provided them with the nutrition to develop bigger brains, posits a new…
Drying, Less Predictable Climate May Have Spurred Human Evolution
A progressively drying climate punctuated by variable wetter episodes may have precipitated the transition from our hominin ancestors to anatomically modern humans, according to research…
6,500 Year-Old Human Remains Point to Origin of Ancient Culture
Skeletons buried in Israel’s Upper Galilee reveal migration from ancient Turkey and Iran, TAU researchers say. An international team of researchers from Tel Aviv University,…
Scientists Show Laziness Lead to the Extinction of Primitive Humans
New archaeological research from The Australian National University (ANU) has found that Homo erectus, an extinct species of primitive humans, went extinct in part because…
Scientists Reveal Homo Sapiens’ Secret of Success
A new study argues that the greatest defining feature of our species is not ‘symbolism’ or dramatic cognitive change, but rather its unique ecological position…
Hepatitis B Was Circulating in Europe 7,000 Years Ago
An international team of scientists led by researchers at the Max Planck Institute for the Science of Human History and the University of Kiel has…
Why Expressive Eyebrows Mattered in Human Evolution
New research from the University of York suggests that highly mobile eyebrows, which can be used to express a wide range of subtle emotions, may…
New Dating Techniques Show Germany Was Covered by Glaciers 450,000 Years Ago
Using state-of-the-art dating techniques researchers of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology in Leipzig, Germany, have obtained new chronological data for the timing of…
New Evidence of Early Human Innovation Pushes Back Evolutionary Timeline
An international collaboration, including the Natural History Museum of Utah at the University of Utah, has discovered that early humans in eastern Africa had—by about…
Scientists Reveal the Genetic Timeline of Ancient Vanuatu People
Researchers from The Australian National University (ANU) have helped put together the most comprehensive study ever conducted into the origins of people in Vanuatu –…
Study Shows 300,000-Year-Old South African Hominin Ate a Lot of Dust
Homo naledi’s relatively taller and more wear-resistant molars enabled it to have a much more abrasive diet than other South African hominins. This is the…
Ancient DNA Study Reveals the Genomic History of Southeastern Europe
In an ancient DNA study published this week in the journal Nature, scientists and archaeologists from over 80 different institutions lift the veil on the…
Scientists Reveal the Complex Story Behind the Beaker Phenomenon
In the largest study of ancient DNA ever conducted, an international team of scientists has revealed the complex story behind one of the defining periods…
Neanderthals Produced Symbolic Objects More than 115,000 Years Ago
At least 70,000 years ago Homo sapiens used perforated marine shells and color pigments. From around 40,000 years ago he created decorative items, jewelry, and…