Missing link primate isnt a link after all Oct 22, 2009
May 19: The American Museum of Natural History on Tuesday unveiled at 47 million-year-old fossil that could be a missing link in the study of human evolution. Nightly News. (MSNBC -- Environment)
Scientists ID fossil bones of smallest dinosaur Oct 21, 2009
Smithsonian plans to open human evolution hall. The Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History plans to open a hall next year dedicated to the story of human evolution over 6 million years, officials announced Wednesday. (Fresno Bee -- State)
Are Humans Still Evolving? Absolutely, Says A New Analysis Of A Long-term Survey Of Human Health Oct 21, 2009
Human evolution hasn't ground to a halt. In fact, we're likely to evolve at roughly the same rates as other living things, findings suggest. (Science Daily)
Grassland Toolmakers Two Million Years Ago Oct 21, 2009
Scientists as far back as Charles Darwin have thought that adaptation to grassland environments profoundly influenced the course of human evolution. This idea has remained well-entrenched, even with recent recognition that hominin origins took place in a woodland environment and that the adaptive landscape in Africa fluctuated dramatically in response to short-term climatic shifts. (Science Daily)
Oh baby, where are we going? Oct 17, 2009
"I speak to you, reader, as one who lives in another century to you, unknown friend whose face, whose form even, I cannot imagine. Can one imagine the face of a god? For that surely is what you must be at your great distance from us ''' And in his Foundation books, Isaac Asimov described a distant future that included the planet Gaia, whose inhabitants were interconnected with all living (and inorganic) matter via a telepathic group consciousness. It was an appealing, idealistic... (Sydney Morning Herald -- Opinion)
Smithsonian to open evolution hall, launch faith dialogue Oct 17, 2009
The 15,000-square-foot exhibition hall will offer visitors a "unique, interactive museum experience" that documents some of the major landmarks in human evolution. It will include several features, including a display containing more than 75 cast reproductions of skulls, an interactive human family tree illustrating 6 million years of evolutionary evidence, and an area that addresses climate change and humans' impact on the earth. (USA Today -- News)
Smithsonian Plans to Open Human Evolution Hall Oct 16, 2009
WASHINGTON -- The Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History plans to open a hall next year dedicated to the story of human evolution. The nearly $21 million Hall of Human Origins announced Wednesday will trace 6 million years of history. (Newsmax)
Chimpanzees Help Each Other On Request But Not Voluntarily Oct 15, 2009
This type of altruism may have initially driven the prevalence and development of altruism during human evolution. One important question for future research is whether high-frequency, voluntary altruism is a behaviour unique to humans. (Science Daily)
200,000-year-old Meat: Before Delicatessens Oct 15, 2009
(June 28, 2007) Foods of the kind that were consumed during human evolution may be the best choice to control diabetes type 2. A study from Lund University, Sweden, found markedly improved capacity to handle. (Science Daily)
Nobel Prize winner pauses for quick chat Oct 14, 2009
It is the Center for the Study of Institutional Diversity, and it is in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change in the College of Liberal Arts ... "That was something I thought was very exciting. And Sander van der Leeuw, (director of the School of Human Evolution) asked if I was willing to help to get it established in the first place, which I was very delighted to do," Ostrom said ... "The School of Human Evolution and Social Change is one of the more innovative in the country," she... (AZCentral -- Business)
Impossible Brings Oldest Human Ancestor 'Ardi' to Life Oct 13, 2009
According to scientists, Ardi represents a critical milestone in the chain of human evolution and creating her was a daunting undertaking, according to Steve Urbano, Vice President at Impossible ... Scientists feel their findings and the documentary are an important contribution to the study of human evolution. (Yahoo! Wire -- Entertainment News)
Professor at ASU wins Nobel Prize Oct 13, 2009
Ostrom is a relative newcomer to ASU. She is a research professor and founding director of its Center for the Study of Institutional Diversity in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences ... Sander van der Leeuw, director of the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at ASU, praised Ostrom's original and interdisciplinary approach and said it opens up new perspectives on institutions and decision making. (AZCentral -- Business)
ASU's Elinor Ostrom wins Nobel Prize Oct 13, 2009
At ASU, she is the founding director of the Center for the Study of Institutional Diversity, which was established as part of the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2008 ... Elinor Ostrom is not only a brilliant and innovative scientist who, by combining in an original way approaches in economics, anthropology, political science and decision-making has opened up many new perspectives in the study of institutions and decision-making, said... (Phoenix Business Journal, AZ)
Discovery Finds 1.8 Million Viewers For 'Ardi' Special Oct 13, 2009
Orbiting around Ardipithecus ramidus (Ardi for short) a hominid that helps shed new light on human evolution, delivered 859,000 persons 25 to 54 from 9-11 p.m on Oct. 11. That compares very similarly to History's special about The Link back in May, which examined Ida, a fossil that may be man's earliest known mammalian forbear. (Multichannel News)
Do birth control pills alter mate selection? Oct 11, 2009
By Amanda Gardner, HealthDay Could birth control pills be taking human evolution in a whole new, and possibly detrimental, direction. A review of past research finds that, by altering hormonal cycles, the pill might affect choice of mates among members of both genders in a way that could hinder successful reproduction in the future. (USA Today)
Xlibris Author Revives Christian Faith -- Raymond Rosebrough Evaluates Factors Affecting Religious Belief in Today's World Oct 9, 2009
The book provides an extensive discussion on the theory of human evolution and its detrimental relationship with faith, necessarily exposing the chinks in the seemingly failsafe armor of scientific thought. Rosebrough also steers the discussion onto the truths and fallacies of atheism and humanism, two prominent philosophies considered contradictory to Christian doctrine. (Primezone Releases)
Creationists: Fossil 'Ardi' Doesn't Prove a Thing Oct 8, 2009
And so for , this latest piece in the puzzle of human evolution is just more bunk, Godless claptrap wrapped in the language of science and all too conveniently rolled out on the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin's birth and the 150th anniversary of his seminal work "On the Origin of Species.". "In 'The Year of Darwin,' this is a concerted campaign to capture the public mindset and say the 'jury is out' and relegate the Christian view to the trash bin," said Gary Bates, CEO of Creation... (ABC News)
Science | Uncovered: scientists discover a partially fossilized skeleton in Ethiopia that predates Lucy Oct 7, 2009
Ardi's full name, which literally translates to "root of the ground ape," puts her in a specific place in human evolution. The fossil skeleton reveals how an ancestor to early humanoids behaved. (Daily Orange, NY)
'Ardi' skeleton offers new clues on evolution Oct 3, 2009
Until now, Australopithecus, nicknamed "Lucy," was the oldest fossil studied by scientists seeking to explain human evolution. Lucy is believed to have lived about 3. (CNN)
The oldest known prehuman revealed Oct 3, 2009
4 million years ago during one of the earliest known periods of human evolution ... In an e-mail, Pilbeam called it "one of the most important discoveries for human evolution. The find itself is extraordinary, as were the enormous labors that went into the reconstruction of a skeleton shattered almost beyond repair." ... 4 million years ago during one of the earliest known periods of human evolution. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
A new picture of our old cousins Oct 3, 2009
The discovery of the specimen called Ardipithecus ramidus "is one of the most important discoveries for the study of human evolution," said paleoanthropologist David Pilbeam of Harvard University, who was not involved in the research. "The find itself is extraordinary, as were the enormous labors that went into the reconstruction of a skeleton shattered almost beyond repair," he said in an e-mailed statement. (Albany Times Union)
Before Lucy came Ardi, new earliest hominid found Oct 3, 2009
This older skeleton reverses the common wisdom of human evolution, said anthropologist C. Owen Lovejoy of Kent State University ... "This is not that common ancestor, but it's the closest we have ever been able to come," said Tim White, director of the Human Evolution Research Center at the University of California, Berkeley ... "This is one of the most important discoveries for the study of human evolution," said David Pilbeam, curator of paleoanthropology at Harvard's Peabody Museum of... (Chippewa Falls Chippewa Herald, WI)
Ardi Is a New Piece for the Evolution Puzzle Oct 2, 2009
"This skeleton flips our understanding of human evolution," says Kent State University anthropologist C. Owen Lovejoy, a member of the Middle Awash team. "It's clear that humans are not merely a slight modification of chimps, despite their genomic similarity.". (Time.com)
Before 'Lucy,' There Was 'Ardi': First Major Analysis Of Early Hominid Published In Science Oct 2, 2009
"These articles contain an enormous amount of data collected and analyzed through a major international research effort. They throw open a window into a period of human evolution we have known little about, when early hominids were establishing themselves in Africa, soon after diverging from the last ancestor they shared with the African apes," said Brooks Hanson, deputy editor, physical sciences, at Science ... This special issue of Science includes an overview article, three articles that... (Science Daily)
4.4-Million-Year-Old Fossil Brings Huge Surprises About Human Origins Oct 2, 2009
She's full of surprises for people who thought they understood human evolution ... "A porcupine, a mongoose, a bunch of birds," says Tim White, a professor of human evolution and integrative biology and the University of California, Berkeley, pointing out the bones of animals that were found in the same geological layer with Ardi. (W-USA News, DC)
4.4-million-year-old fossil could reshape human origins Oct 2, 2009
"With Ardipithecus, we have to bear in mind this was a species that lived 4.4 million years ago, and a lot has happened since then in human evolution, when it comes to behavior," White says. Still, he says, the finds point to humans originating from a primitive ape, one that moved to broken woodlands, rather than the jungle today ruled by chimps and gorillas, and then evolved to a walking hominid that favored open terrain, eventually spreading throughout Africa and today, worldwide. (USA Today -- Tech)
Ardi's Secret: Did Early Humans Start Walking for Sex? Oct 2, 2009
More Human Evolution News Coverage. LATEST NEWS VIDEOS. (National Geographic)
Humans didn't evolve from chimpanzee-like ancestors: study Oct 2, 2009
Until the discovery of Ardi, the earliest well-known stage of human evolution was Australopithecus, the small-brained, fully bipedal "ape man" that lived between four million and one million years ago. The most famous Australopithecus fossil is the 3. (Xinhuanet, China)
Oldest pre-human revealed Oct 2, 2009
Her bones were found in a trove of fossils just as old, revealing the earliest known stage in the long drama of human evolution ... David Pilbeam, a noted Harvard anthropologist who was not connected with the research teams, told The Chronicle that the discoveries were "one of the most important discoveries for human evolution." ... "This is absolutely central to human evolution," Lovejoy said in a phone interview this week. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
Ardi displaces Lucy as oldest hominid skeleton Oct 2, 2009
Ethiopian desert yields fossils that paint new picture of human evolution. Nearly 17 years after plucking the fossilized tooth of a new human ancestor from a pebbly desert in Ethiopia, an international team of scientists today (Thursday, Oct. 1) announced their reconstruction of a partial skeleton of the hominid, Ardipithecus ramidus, which they say revolutionizes our understanding of the earliest phase of human evolution ... "Ardi was not a chimpanzee, but she wasn't human," stressed White, who... (EurekAlert!)
'Ardi' research scrambles evolution ideas Oct 2, 2009
One of the project's principal investigators, C. Owen Lovejoy, associate professor of biological anthropology at Kent State University, said 17 years of much anticipated research to describe Ardipithecus ramidus provides a fresh line of information with which to better understand human evolution ... "It has been a popular idea to think humans are modified chimpanzees. From studying Ardipithecus ramidus, or 'Ardi,' we learn that we cannot understand or model human evolution from chimps and... (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, PA)
Ardi the Ethiopian fossil 'earliest human ancestor' Oct 2, 2009
It had been thought that early human evolution was driven, if only in part, by the disappearance of trees - encouraging our ancestors to walk on the ground. "These creatures were living and dying in a woodland habitat, not an open savannah," said Professor White. (BBC News -- Africa)
Oldest hominid skeleton sheds light on human origins Oct 2, 2009
4 million year old skeleton of a female "ground ape" shows signs of the first stage of human evolution better than anything seen to date, according to research out Thursday in the journal Science ... Before Ardi's discovery, the earliest well-known stage of human evolution was Australopithecus, a small-brained, bipedal "ape man" species that lived between four million and one million years ago ... But the Ardipithecus ramidus fossils do not support that hypothesis, said White, a professor at... (Yahoo! Asia News)
Oldest "Human" Skeleton Found--Disproves "Missing Link Oct 2, 2009
But Ardipithecus appears to have already embarked on a uniquely human evolutionary path, with canines reduced in size and dramatically "feminized" to a stubby, diamond shape, according to the researchers ... More Human Evolution News Coverage. (National Geographic)
Pre-human ancestor lived 4.4 mil years ago Oct 2, 2009
"Ardi is not a chimp. It's not a human. It's what we used to be," said paleontologist Tim White, an authority on human evolution at the University of California-Berkeley ... The discovery sheds new light on human evolution during a previously little-known epoch. (AZCentral -- News)
Will the Manhattan Project Always Exist? by Sam Kean, 3 Quarks Daily Oct 1, 2009
Theres about only one thing that could unequivocally prove to people that we did possess nuclear weapons at such an early stage in human evolution: a nuclear holocaust. Probably better to be forgotten, even snickered at. (Harper's Magazine)
Nigeria: As Obama Scraps Missile Shield Plan in East Europe Oct 1, 2009
As such technology breaks down more national barriers, the interdependence of the world community will become a categorical imperative in practical terms, rather than a choice, and simultaneously armed conflicts and wars will become anachronistic - the vestiges of a more barbarous era in human evolution. We recall that in his inaugural address as the 44th President of the USA last January, Mr. Obama had said: "As for our common defence, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our... (allAfrica.com)
Newsweek: Why do women really have sex? Sep 30, 2009
Many of those complexities, say the authors, can be explained by human evolution: stealing a friend's lover (something 53 percent have done) can be viewed as an effort to win a partner with the most desirable genes; jealousy functions to alert a person to a threat; women who have sex out of a duty to please are "mate-guarding." And while the notion that sexual decisions are tethered to our caveman (or cavewoman) past has come under , it seems just as reasonable that the myriad of female... (MSNBC -- Health)
International scientists set boundaries for survival Sep 24, 2009
"On a finite planet, at some point, we will tip the vital resources we rely upon into irreversible decline if our consumption is not balanced with regenerative and sustainable activity," says co-author Sander van der Leeuw who directs the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University. Van der Leeuw is an archaeologist and anthropologist specializing in the long term impacts of human activity on the landscape. (EurekAlert!)
UC Berkeley Extension Announces Free Humanities Lecture Series Starting September 22 Sep 22, 2009
From human evolution and ancient Roman history to the changing face of journalism and the future of California, these lectures offer new perspectives on the economic, political, and cultural challenges the world faces today. Rome and Teutoburger Wald, AD 9: How a Battle 2,000 Years Ago Changed Your Life. (PR Newswire)
Short Cuts, Michael Wood, London Review of Books Sep 17, 2009
95), thinks what he calls biological forgetting (built into our human physiology, down through the millennia of human evolution) is a perfectly functioning mechanism, or was until we started replacing it with digital remembering. Mayer-Schnberger has a revealing dilemma. (Harper's Magazine)
Evolution Coup: How Plants Protect Their Genes Sep 11, 2009
"Our results open new research avenues for the study of similar mechanisms of gene repair in humans that might be important for human evolution, our responses to stress and the prevention of devastating diseases.". How do plant genes mutate. (Science Daily)
Ancient Fossils Shed New Light on Evolution of Humans Sep 10, 2009
A key stage in human evolution may have taken place on the fringes of Europe and not in Africa as has generally been thought, scientists said yesterday. Fossils of an ancient human relative, or hominin, from Georgia dated from 1. (Fox News)
NOT FROM AFRICA: SKULL THAT REWRITES THE HISTORY OF MAN... Sep 9, 2009
It has long been agreed that Africa was the sole cradle of human evolution ... The conventional view of human evolution and how early man colonised the world has been thrown into doubt by a series of stunning palaeontological discoveries suggesting that Africa was not the sole cradle of humankind. (The Drudge Report)
Humans may have reached Europe far earlier Sep 6, 2009
Geologists at a Berkeley research center have muddied the already murky waters of human evolution by showing that our early human ancestors and their stone tools must have reached Western Europe from Africa a full half-million years earlier than anthropologists have thought. Images. (San Francisco Chronicle)
Endless forms most beautiful Sep 6, 2009
In the minds of the public, Darwin is closely identified with the concept of humans descending from apes, and the exhibitions The Descent of Mankind section examines the artistic responses to this theory of human evolution. Normal anxieties and irrational fears are played out among the dark, sometimes hilarious and often fantastical depictions of human prehistory by such artists as Britons G.F. Watts (1817-1904) and Odilon Redon (1814-1916). (The Star Online, Malaysia)
Piece from childhood virus may save soldiers' lives Sep 6, 2009
In human evolution, complement provided an essential natural defense. "Up until 100 years ago, the vast majority of humans died from infectious diseases," said Cunnion. (EurekAlert!)
We Are All Mutants: Measurement Of Mutation Rate In Humans By Direct Sequencing Sep 2, 2009
Understanding mutation rates is key to many aspects of human evolution and medical research: mutation is the ultimate source of all our genetic variation and provides a molecular clock for measuring evolutionary timescales. Mutations can also lead directly to diseases like cancer. (Science Daily)
* Wiggling their toes at the shoe giants Sep 1, 2009
Theres not a lot of evidence that running shoes have made people better off, said Daniel E. Lieberman, a professor of human evolutionary biology at Harvard, who has researched the role of running in human evolution. Makers of athletic shoes have grown and prospered by selling a steady stream of new and improved models designed to cushion, coddle and correct the feet. (Taipei Times, Taiwan -- Business)
Tiny Ancient Shells -- 80,000 Years Old -- Point To Earliest Fashion Trend Aug 28, 2009
Yet this changed with the 2006 discovery of shell beads in Africa and the Near East dating back 35,000 years earlier, showing that symbolic thinking emerged more gradually through human evolution. Curiously, shell beads disappear from the archaeological record in Africa and the Near East 70,000 years ago, along with other cultural innovations such as engravings on ochre slabs, and refined bone tools and projectile points. (Science Daily)
Brain changes may have led to Stone Age tools Aug 27, 2009
It was "a breakthrough adaptation in human evolution," reports an international group of archaeologists and anthropologists. And it may have come about because of changes in those early human's brains, other scientists say. (San Francisco Chronicle -- Science)
Gaping Gila Monsters, Buzzing Insects, Clambering Ungulates: New Finds From Germany's Messel Pit Aug 26, 2009
Discovered in Germany, the fossil is 20 times older than most fossils that explain human evolution. Known as "Ida," the fossil is a. (Science Daily)
Early Human Hunters Had Fewer Meat-sharing Rituals Aug 19, 2009
28, 2006) A new study of the Hadza population in Tanzania, forthcoming in the April 2006 issue of Current Anthropology, explores the role of hunting in human evolution. Researchers have long tried to locate. (Science Daily)
SARS spurs China to act on AIDS Aug 14, 2009
A brain area crucial for language ballooned during human evolution. 16:00 12 August 2009 16 comments. (Yahoo News -- SARS)
Imitation Promotes Social Bonding In Primates Aug 14, 2009
"It has been argued that the link between behavior matching and increases in affiliation might have played an important role in human evolution by helping to maintain harmonious relationships between individuals," the study authors wrote. "We propose that the same principle also holds for other group-living primates.". (Science Daily)
Early Humans Used Fire To Make Tools From Stone Aug 14, 2009
Marean is a paleoanthropologist with the Institute of Human Origins and a professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change at Arizona State University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences ... They work together on the South African Coast Paleoclimate, Paleoenvironment, Paleoecology, Paleoanthropology Project, known as SACP4, which is directed by Marean, funded by the National Science Foundation and the Hyde Family Foundation, and supported by Arizona State University research and... (Science Daily)
Survey: School standards on human evolution 'abysmal' Aug 12, 2009
Survey: School instruction on human evolution 'abysmal' - Science Fair - USATODAY.com ... Survey: School instruction on human evolution 'abysmal ... More state school standards include evolution, finds a nationwide report card, but coverage of human evolution is "abysmal.". (USA Today -- Tech)
The Structure of Scientific Evolutions Aug 11, 2009
Instead of attacking religion, some Darwinists have embraced it as a product of human evolution. Now they're debating to what extent this evolution was biological. (Slate)
Stone carving may be 13,000-year-old map Aug 11, 2009
In the current Journal of Human Evolution, a team led by Pilar Utrilla of Spain's University of Zaragoza report the find of engraved blocks from Abauntz Cave near. A two-pound block depicts ibex herds, but also "mountains, rivers, and ponds," according to the study. (USA Today -- Tech)
Primate Archaeology Sheds Light On Human Origins Aug 10, 2009
9, 2009) A University of Calgary archaeologist who is one of the few researchers in the world studying the material culture of human beings' closest living relatives the great apes is joining his colleagues in creating a new discipline devoted to the history of tool use in all primate species in order to better understand human evolution ... "There is a need for systematic collaboration between diverse research programs to understand the broader questions in human evolution and primatology,"... (Science Daily)
Looking At Language: Eye Movements Of Parkinson’s Disease Patients During Sentence Comprehension Support Subcortical Role In Processing Syntax Aug 8, 2009
7, 2009) The study of the neural basis of language has largely focused on regions in the cortex the outer brain layers thought by many researchers to have expanded during human evolution. Research at Brown University s Department of Cognitive and Linguistic Sciences, reported in the September Issue of Cortex, adds to evidence that deeper, subcortical regions are also critical by pinpointing when Parkinson s disease patients have difficulty while processing grammatically complex sentences. (Science Daily)
Unlocking The Key To Human Fertility Aug 4, 2009
The research team believes that the same mechanism must also have played a role during human evolution. In the ancient history of mankind, Neanderthals co-existed with modern humans over many thousands of years. (Science Daily)
Secrets of the Phallus: Why Is the Penis Shaped Like That? Aug 4, 2009
But according to evolutionary psychologist of the State University of New York at Albany, the human penis is actually an impressive tool in the truest sense of the word, one manufactured by nature over hundreds of thousands of years of human evolution. You may be surprised to discover just how highly specialized a tool it is. (Scientific American)
Help yourself Jul 30, 2009
He investigates an old mystery of human evolution: why have we evolved positive emotions like gratitude, amusement, awe, and compassion that promote ethical action and are the fabric of cooperative societies. By combining stories of scientific discovery, personal narrative, and Eastern philosophy, Keltner illustrates his discussions with more than fifty photographs of human emotions. (Lihue Garden Island, HA)
Social Scientist Suggests New Research Framework To Study Complex Systems Jul 28, 2009
The center, established in 2008, is nestled in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change in ASU's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. At Indiana University, Ostrom and her colleagues at the Workshop in Political Theory and Policy Analysis developed the institutional analysis and development framework that provided a common structure for research on both urban and environmental policy issues over many decades. (Science Daily)
