Anthropology And Archeology

[bipedalist]

http://www.plosone.o...al.pone.0020162

For the folks looking into the tongue-clocking phenom.

Clicks can be produced in various ways, but it has been suggested that the palatal click, produced by quickly moving the tongue backwards and downwards from the palatal region directly behind the teeth, is best for natural human echolocation [9]. For the skilled echolocator, the returning echoes can potentially provide a great deal of information regarding the position, distance, size, shape and texture of objects [3].

Very insightful, guess I missed this one buried in the arch/anthro thread.

Might move this one over to another of the sound production threads on BF if I can find my recording of an example of three such "clicks" produced at varying distances from the recorder all within a very short time interval..... clearly produced by three individuals.

I've got to dig through some archives after I fix the wiring on a backup external drive that I chewed through with a chair. Hope I can post up that audio tomorrow.

[Guest]

http://www.scienceda...20503125720.htm

Scientists Show How a Gene Duplication Helped Our Brains Become 'Human'

Brain development - - humans v. primates, genetic change 2.4 million years ago

Edited May 4, 2012 by Kings Canyon

[Guest]

I found a new source of information, so I will post some more recent finds from that source. http://www.sci-news.com/

129,000 Years Ago: Evidence of Violence in China

http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/129000-years-ago-evidence-of-violence-in-china.html

The study of the late Middle Pleistocene archaic human cranium found in Maba, China, brings new evidence of interhuman aggression occurred 129,000 years ago, stated in a press release from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

This is from a few weeks ago, but I don't recall seeing it. Hope I didn't already post it.

Mystery Human Fossils Unearthed in China

An international team of researchers has discovered fossils of a previously unknown Stone Age people in southwest China.The fossils are of a people with a highly unusual mix of archaic and modern anatomical features and are the youngest of their kind ever found in mainland East Asia.

http://www.sci-news....ticle00210.html

Scientists Suggest Human Ancestors Used Fire One Million Years Ago

An international team of scientists has found the earliest known evidence of the use of fire by human ancestors at the site of Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape province, South Africa. View from the bottom of the excavated More... http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/article00243.html

Edited May 5, 2012 by Kings Canyon

[Guest]

http://www.scienceda...20508124500.htm

Rare Glimpse of World's Rarest Gorilla

ScienceDaily (May 8, 2012) — Conservationists working in Cameroon's Kagwene Gorilla Sanctuary have collected the first camera trap video footage of the Cross River gorilla. With fewer than 250 individuals remaining, Cross River gorillas are the world's rarest gorilla and a notoriously elusive species rarely observed directly by field researchers.

http://www.scienceda...20508094358.htm

Refugees from the Ice Age: How Was Europe Repopulated?

ScienceDaily (May 8, 2012) — Scientists have used DNA analysis to gain important new insights into how human beings repopulated Europe as the Ice Age relaxed its grip.

Edited May 9, 2012 by Kings Canyon

[Guest BFSleuth]

The story about the Cross River Gorillas is very interesting. I thought this quote sounds a lot like our predicament with BF:

"Running at almost two minutes in length, the video begins with the entry of one gorilla, which sits at the base of a tree while others emerge from the dense forest. At one point, a male silverback appears, surveying the area (and perhaps aware of the camera) before running past the camera lens giving a classic "chest-beating" display."

Here is a link to the actual video. They don't move quietly. Also, notice what sounds like a tree break at 0:26 and the quick response of the female sitting with her back to the tree, how quickly she moves her head to see where the tree break is (and the silverback moving quickly into position between his group and the source of the noise):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7MwhG73erc

National Geographic has this video showing these large gorillas way up in a fig tree, eating:

And who said BF was too big to climb trees?

[Guest poignant]

Excellent videos! Now if only those were sasquatches moving around and a large male bluff charges the camera... #wishfulthinking

[bipedalist]

http://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/2012/06/14/oldest-cave-paintings-may-be-creations-of-neandertals-not-modern-humans/

[Guest]

http://www.sci-news.com/archaeology/article00592.html

Between 1994 and 1998, Dr Hartmut Thieme of the Lower Saxony State Service for Cultural Heritage found the spears and other artifacts dating back 400,000 years in a open-cast lignite mine in Schöningen, Germany. The finds were described in the journal Nature.

One of the eight perfectly-preserved spears found in a coal mine in Schöningen (Nicholas J. Conard / University of Tübingen)

Now, the team led by Prof Nicholas Conard and Dr Jordi Serangeli, both from the University of Tübingen’s Institute of Prehistory, continues the excavations at the site.

The archaeologists suggest that users of these artifacts were highly skilled craftsmen and hunters, well adapted to their environment – with a capacity for abstract thought and complex planning comparable to our own, and speculate that the most likely species was Homo heidelbergensis.

The bones of large mammals – elephants, rhinoceroses, horses and lions – as well as the remains of amphibians, reptiles, shells and even beetles have been preserved in the brown coal. Pines, firs, and black alder trees are preserved complete with pine cones, as have the leaves, pollen and seeds of surrounding flora.

Until the mining started at the site 30 years ago, these finds were below the water table. The archaeologists say they are now carrying out “underwater archaeology without the water.†Work continues almost all year round, and every day there is something new to document and recover.

Some of the most important finds from the site have been remains of a water buffalo, an almost completely preserved aurochs – one of the oldest in central Europe – and several concentrations of stone artifacts, bones and wood.

The scientists say Schöningen is an exciting location and global reference point not just for archaeology, but also for quaternary ecology and climate research.

[Guest]

I will be adding more and including the article text in future. Subscribe!

http://popular-archa...n-human-origins

September 2012, Cover Stories, Daily News Extensive DNA Study Sheds Light on Modern Human Origins Thu, Sep 20, 2012

DNA analysis of southern African groups shows an early diversification with implications for the evolution of early modern humans.

A new study of human genetic variation in sub-Saharan Africa, where modern Homo sapiens are believed to have originated, helps to reveal the region's rich genetic history, with implications for understanding the complexity of early modern human evolution.

The largest genomic study ever conducted among the Khoe and San population groups in southern Africa reveals that these groups are descendants of the earliest diversification event in the history of all humans - some 100,000 years ago, well before the largely accepted 'out-of-Africa' migration date range of modern humans.

Some 220 individuals from different regions in southern Africa participated in the research, leading to the analysis of around 2.3 million DNA variants per individual – the largest such study ever conducted.

The research was conducted by a group of international scientists, including Dr. Carina Schlebusch and Assistant Professor Mattias Jakobsson from Uppsala University in Sweden and Professor Himla Soodyall from the Human Genomic Diversity and Disease Research Unit in the Health Faculty at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg.

"The deepest divergence of all living people occurred some 100,000 years ago, well before modern humans migrated out of Africa and about twice as old as the divergences of central African Pygmies and East African hunter-gatherers and from other African groups," says lead author Dr Carina Schlebusch, a Wits University PhD-graduate now conducting post-doctoral research at Uppsala University in Sweden.

According to her colleague Matthias Jakobsson, these deep divergences among African populations have important implications and consequences when the history of all humankind is deciphered. The deep structure and patterns of genetic variation suggest a complex population history of the peoples of Africa. "The human population has been structured for a long time," says Jakobsson, "and it is possible that modern humans emerged from a non-homogeneous group."

The study also found surprising stratification among Khoe-San groups. For example, the researchers estimate that the San populations from northern Namibia and Angola separated from the Khoe and San populations living in South Africa as early as 25,000 – 40,000 years ago.

(my emphasis)

"There is astonishing ethnic diversity among the Khoe-San group, and we were able to see many aspects of the colorful history that gave rise to this diversity in their DNA", said Schlebusch.

The study further indicates how pastoralism first spread to southern Africa in combination with the Khoe culture. From archaeological and ethnographic studies it has been suggested that pastoralism was introduced to the Khoe in southern Africa before the arrival of Bantu-speaking farmers, but it has been unclear if this event had any genetic impact.

The Nama, a pastoralist Khoe group from Namibia showed great similarity to 'southern' San groups. "However, we found a small but very distinct genetic component that is shared with East Africans in this group, which may be the result of shared ancestry associated with pastoral communities from East Africa," says Schlebusch.

With the genetic data the researchers could see that the Khoe pastoralists originated from a Southern San group that adopted pastoralism with genetic contributions from an East African group – a group that would have been the first to bring pastoralist practices to southern Africa.

The study also revealed evidence of local adaptation in different Khoe and San groups. For example, the researchers found that there was evidence for selection in genes involved in muscle function, immune response, and UV-light protection in local Khoe and San groups. These could be traits linked with adaptations to the challenging environments in which the ancestors of present-day San and Khoe were exposed to that have been retained in the gene pool of local groups.

The researchers also looked for signals across the genome of ancient adaptations that happened before the historical separation of the Khoe-San lineage from other humans. "Although all humans today carry similar variants in these genes, the early divergence between Khoe-San and other human groups allowed us to zoom-in on genes that have been fast-evolving in the ancestors of all of us living on the planet today," said Pontus Skoglund from Uppsala University.

Among the strongest candidates were genes involved in skeletal development that may have been crucial in determining the characteristics of anatomically modern humans.

The researchers are now making the genome-wide data freely available: "Genetic information is getting more and more important for medical purposes. In addition to illuminating their history, we hope that this study is a step towards Khoe and San groups also being a part of that revolution," says Schlebusch. Another author, Professor Mike de Jongh from University of South Africa adds, "It is important for us to communicate with the participants prior to the genetic studies, to inform individuals about the nature of our research, and to also go back to not only share the results with them, but also to explain the significance of the data for recapturing their heritage, to them."

The study has been selected for early online publishing in the renowned scientific journal, Science, on Thursday, 20 September 2012.*

Article adapted and edited from the University of Witwatersrand press release, "Khoe-San peoples are unique, special - largest genomic study finds".

Edited September 22, 2012 by Kings Canyon

[Guest BFSleuth]

I tell you what, the advances in DNA research is sure opening doors to really understanding our origins.

[Guest]

I am just going to post these links.....Four Species of Homo You've Never Heard Of, parts 1 and 2 from Smithsonian mag

http://blogs.smithso...never-heard-of/

http://blogs.smithso...d-of-part-ii-2/

Edited December 16, 2012 by Kings Canyon

[Guest]

http://popular-archa...ed-for-a-living

The results of recently conducted field studies on modern human groups in the Philippines and Africa are suggesting that humans, among the primates, are not so unique to walking upright as previously thought. The findings have implications for some of our earliest possible ancestors, including the 3.5+ million-year-old species Australopithecus afarensis, thought by many scientists to be the first known possible human predecessor to have forsaken arboreal life in the trees and live a life walking upright (bipedalism) on the ground.

Associate professor of anthropology Nathaniel Dominy of Dartmouth College, along with colleagues Vivek Venkataraman and Thomas Kraft, compared African Twa hunter-gatherers to agriculturalists living nearby, the Bakiga, in Uganda. In the Philippines, they compared the Agta hunter-gatherers to the Manobo agriculturalists. They found that the Twa and the Agta hunter-gatherers regularly climbed trees to gather honey, an important element in their diets. More specifically, they observed that the climbers "walked" up small trees by applying the soles of their feet directly to the trunk and progressing upward, with arms and legs advancing alternately. To do this successfully, they said, required extreme dorsiflexion, or bending the foot upward toward the shin to a degree not normally possible among most modern humans. "We hypothesized that a soft-tissue mechanism might enable such extreme dorsiflexion," wrote the authors in their study report.

________________________________________________________________________________

A Twa hunter-gatherer in Uganda climbing a tree to gather honey. Credit: Nathaniel Dominy

__________________________________________________________________________

They tested their hypothesis by conducting ultrasound imaging of the fibers of the large calf muscles of individuals in all four groups. The results showed that the Agta and Twa tree-climbers had significantly longer muscle fibers than those of their agricultural counterparts and other "industrialized" modern humans.

"These results suggest that habitual climbing by Twa and Agta men changes the muscle architecture associated with ankle dorsiflexion," wrote the authors of the study. It demonstrated that a foot and ankle bone structure adapted primarily for walking upright on land does not necessarily exclude climbing as a behaviorally habitual means of mobility for survival.

The implications for our possible early human ancestors, such as the species Australopithecus afarensis, are significant. "Australopithecus afarensis possessed a rigid ankle and an arched, nongrasping foot," wrote Dominy and his co-authors in the report published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS). "These traits are widely interpreted as being functionally incompatible with climbing and thus definitive markers of terrestriality." But now, the research shows that bone structure alone is not an indisputable indicator that an ancient Homo (which includes the modern human species Homo sapiens), either as a direct ancestor or indirectly through an unknown earlier ancestor.

The detailed study report can be found in the publication, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

Edited January 1, 2013 by Kings Canyon

[bipedalist]

Interesting report ...... Thanks!

[Guest]

Peking Man' Was a Fashion Plate http://news.yahoo.com/peking-man-fashion-plate-191530302.html

Rapid environmental changes in East Africa roughly 2 million years ago may be responsible for driving human evolution http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/12/121226080906.htm 1

http://www.sci-news.com/othersciences/anthropology/article00776.html Face of the Hobbit hominid

Edited January 1, 2013 by Kings Canyon

[Guest]

whoa.

http://www.dailymail...o=feeds-newsxml

Wanted: 'Adventurous woman' to give birth to Neanderthal man - Harvard professor seeks mother for cloned cave baby

They're usually thought of as a brutish, primitive species. So what woman would want to give birth to a Neanderthal baby?

Yet this incredible scenario is the plan of one of the world’s leading geneticists, who is seeking a volunteer to help bring man’s long-extinct close relative back to life.

Professor George Church of Harvard Medical School believes he can reconstruct Neanderthal DNA and resurrect the species which became extinct 33,000 years ago. His scheme is reminiscent of Jurassic Park but, while in the film dinosaurs were created in a laboratory, Professor Church’s ambitious plan requires a human volunteer.

He said his analysis of Neanderthal genetic code using samples from bones is complete enough to reconstruct their DNA. He said: ‘Now I need an adventurous female human.

‘It depends on a hell of a lot of things, but I think it can be done.’

Professor Church’s plan would begin by artificially creating Neanderthal DNA based on genetic code found in fossil remains. He would put this DNA into stem cells.

These would be injected into cells from a human embryo in the early stages of life. It is thought that the stem cells would steer the development of the hybrid embryo on Neanderthal lines, rather than human ones.

Edited January 21, 2013 by Kings Canyon