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09 May 2008
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Pelvic bones of Homo sapiens, Australopithecus, and Chimpanzee.

Ossa coxae. (a) Homo sapiens.
(b) Early hominid (Australopithecus) from South Africa.
(c) Chimpanzee.

 

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Week 08

Hominid Origins

(Orrorin
/ Ardipithecus / Australopithecines / Early Homo)

CEE

Read:
Ch. 10, "The Earliest Dispersal of the Genus Homo: Homo erectus and Contemporaries," pp. 221-244
Post: PCforum

Text Resources

 

Hominid footprint from Laetoli, Tanzania 3.7 m.y.a.
Hominid footprint
from Laetoli, Tanzania
3.7 m.y.a.

 
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Tuesday 23 October 2007

Week 08 Day 15

nlt 2:50 The Making of Mankind: One Small Step
(55 min., 1981, VC 398)



Announcements

  • "Tlingit tribes to get ancient remains," Rachel D'Oro, Associated Press, Reprinted in the Duluth News Tribune, Sunday, October 21, 2007, p. A12

    • "...A lengthy process ... included scientific analysis that determined the remains were 10,300 years old. Through DNA and other testing, researchers identified the remains as belonging to an indigenous man in his early 20s who subsisted primarily on seafood."


  • Cave clue to 'first beachcombers' -- BBC News ( Wednesday, 17 October 2007) and the Duluth News Tribune ( Thursday, 18 October 2007)

Curtis Marean examines a cave in South Africa.      Ochre specimens with scrape marks (Scale bars: 1cm)

Ochre specimens with scrape marks (Scale bars: 1cm)

 Ochre specimens with scrape marks (Scale bars: 1cm)

When did modern humans evolve sophisticated behaviour?

 

Features of the Day

The Making of Mankind, Richard Leakey.


Laetoli footprints, artist's reconstruction.

Laetoli hominids, Tanzania
3.7 m.y.a.

  Week
CEE
Day
Early Hominids Slides
      Major Discoveries slides: Prehistoric Primates -- Pre Homo sapiens sapiens
  08 15
Introduction to Early Hominids (slides 17A)
     
A Walk Through Hominid Evolution (slides 17B)
     
"Putting it all Together" (slides 17C)
     
Lucy, The First Family, and Friends (slides 18)
     
Australopithecus Hunting and Foraging (slides 19)
       
     

 

Old Business

 

Assignments

Read:
Ch. 10, "The Earliest Dispersal of the Genus Homo: Homo erectus and Contemporaries," pp. 221-244
Post: PCforum
 

Notes

  • Ended Thursday, 18 October 2007, with end of slides 07A, Modern Physical Anthropology. Next: Culture and Human Breeding Patterns, Characteristic #7 (slides 07B)
  • Ended Tuesday, 23 October 2007, with end of slides 07A, Modern Physical Anthropology. Next: Population Studies,  Characteristic #8 (slides 07C)
 
 
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Thursday 25 October 2007

Week 08 Day 16

nlt 02:57 Origins of Homo Sapiens: East African Roots
(47 min., 1997, VC 3641, part 2)



Announcements

 

Features of the Day

As you view the videos over the remainder of the semester pay attention to

  1. the actual content of the various finds
  2. archaeological field methods and techniques
  3. laboratory methods and techniques
    • including reconstruction techniques, and . . .
  4. archaeological dating techniques
  5. theoretical / interpretative approaches
    • including logic of analysis

More information on methods is contained in the text and in the methods slides

  Week
CEE
Day
  07 13
Some Important Concepts (slides 11B)
   
Special Skills: In the Field (slides 10A)
     
Special Skills: In the Lab (slides 10B)
     
Special Skills: In the Field and Lab (slides 10C)
       
  12 24
Archaeological Dating Methods (slides 10D)
     
Other Methods of Analysis (slides 10E)


  Week
CEE
Day
Early Hominids Slides
      Major Discoveries slides: Prehistoric Primates -- Pre Homo sapiens sapiens
  08 15
Introduction to Early Hominids (slides 17A)
     
A Walk Through Hominid Evolution (slides 17B)
     
"Putting it all Together" (slides 17C)
     
Lucy, The First Family, and Friends (slides 18)
     
Australopithecus Hunting and Foraging (slides 19)
       
     

 

Old Business

 

Assignments

Read:
Ch. 10, "The Earliest Dispersal of the Genus Homo: Homo erectus and Contemporaries," pp. 221-244
Post: PCforum
 

Notes

  • Ended Tuesday, 23 October 2007, with end of slides 07A, Modern Physical Anthropology. Next: Population Studies,  Characteristic #8 (slides 07C)
  • Thursday, 25 October 2007, finished introduction to Handout: Fossil Hominids in the Pleistocene.
 
 
 
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Pelvic bones of Homo sapiens, Australopithecus, and Chimpanzee.

Ossa coxae. (a) Homo sapiens.
(b) Early hominid (Australopithecus) from South Africa.
(c) Chimpanzee.

CEE  Week: 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

CEE Week 08

Hominid Origins

(Orrorin
/ Ardipithecus / Australopithecines / Early Homo)

Monday 29 October 2007

1. 6:10 The Making of Mankind: One Small Step
(55 min., 1981, VC 398)

2. 07:38 Origins of Homo Sapiens: East African Roots
(47 min., 1997, VC 3641, pt. 2)

 

Read:
Ch. 10, "The Earliest Dispersal of the Genus Homo: Homo erectus and Contemporaries," pp. 221-244
Post: PCforum

Text Resources

 

Hominid footprint from Laetoli, Tanzania 3.7 m.y.a.
Hominid footprint
from Laetoli, Tanzania
3.7 m.y.a.

 

Announcements

  • "Major archaeological find in Puerto Rico," LAURA N. PEREZ SANCHEZ, Associated Press, Duluth News Tribune, Monday, October 29, 2007, p. A6.

    Viewable on-line at Yahoo News, <http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071028/ap_on_re_la_am_ca/puerto_rico_archaeological_find>
    :

    • the best-preserved pre-Columbian site in the Caribbean

    • may have belonged to the Taino or pre-Taino people that inhabited the island before European colonization, although other tribes are a possibility

      • The Tainos were a subgroup of the Arawak Indians, who migrated to the Caribbean from Mexico's Yucatan centuries before European colonizers arrived

    • It contains stones etched with ancient petroglyphs that form a large plaza measuring some 130 feet by 160 feet, which could have been used for ball games or ceremonial rites....

    • The plaza may contain other artifacts dating from 600 A.D. to 1500 A.D.

    • Jose Oliver, a Latin American archaeology lecturer at University College London, said that archeologists make discoveries of this significance every 50 or 100 years — if they are lucky
 

PCforum: Topic 7 -- Prehistoric Redheads

Neanderthals 'were flame-haired'

"Neanderthal genetics is revealing surprises"

"Neanderthals 'were flame-haired'"

Reports the BBC News, Thursday, 25 October 2007

Read the article at

<http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7062415.stm>

Question:

Of what use is information like this in the study of Prehistoric Cultures?


Set Folder Selector to Topic 7

REM: Set PCfolder to curent topic.

 

PCforum Topic 8 -- Human Species to Split?

Species evolving from classic development diagram.

A major UK newspaper reports:

"Human race will 'split into two different species'"

 

"The human race will one day split into two separate species, an attractive, intelligent ruling elite and an underclass of dim-witted, ugly goblin-like creatures, according to a top scientist."

(Friday, 26th October 2007)Daily Mail (UK)

<www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=489653&in_page_id=1965>


Humanity may split into an elite and an underclass, says Dr. Curry.

Humanity may split into an elite and an underclass, says Dr. Oliver Curry

"Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the London School of Economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge."

"... Curry ... says that the human race will have reached its physical peak by the year 3000."

"People would become choosier about their sexual partners, causing humanity to divide into sub-species, he added."

"The descendants of the genetic upper class would be tall, slim, healthy, attractive, intelligent, and creative and a far cry from the 'underclass' humans who would have evolved into dim-witted, ugly, squat goblin-like creatures . . ."

. . . read the rest at
<www.dailymail.co.uk/pages/live/articles/technology/technology.html?in_article_id=489653&in_page_id=1965>

Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time
as predicted by HG Wells...


H G Wells' Science Fiction novel The Time Machine (which was later adapted into two films - this picture is from the 2002 version) the human race has evolved into two species, the highly intelligent and wealthy Eloi...

H G Wells' Science Fiction novel The Time Machine (which was later adapted into two films - this picture is from the 2002 version) the human race has evolved into two species, the highly intelligent and wealthy Eloi...

..and the frightening, animalistic Morlock (as seen in the 1960 film version of the classic book)

...and the frightening, animalistic Morlock (as seen in the 1960 film version of the classic book)

 

Related Stories:

Bad Science: Oliver Curry from the Darwin@LSE research centre -- Ben Goldacre, The Guardian (21 October 2006)

Human species 'may split in two -- Dienekes' Anthropology Blog

Oliver Curry -- Wikipedia


Other Species Splits:

Neanderthal DNA Illuminates Split with Humans New Scientist (10/11/06)

Evolution's human and chimp twist (18 May 06)

Questions:
1. What do you think about evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry's theory that humanity will evolve into two separate species?

2. Why?


Set Folder Selector to Topic 8

REM: Set PCfolder to curent topic.

 

Features of the Day

 

  1. 6:10 Video: The Making of Mankind: One Small Step
    (55 min., 1981, VC 398; ends at 08:15)

The Making of Mankind, Richard Leakey.


Laetoli footprints, artist's reconstruction.

Laetoli hominids, Tanzania
3.7 m.y.a.

 

  1. 07:38 video: The Story of Hominid Evolution: Part 2: "Origins of Homo Sapiens: East African Roots"
    (47 min., 1997, VC 3641, pt. 2)

 

As you view the videos over the remainder of the semester pay attention to