intro.htm
Edited by U Kyaw Tun (UKT) (M.S., I.P.S.T., USA),
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index.htm | |Top
earth-indx.htm
Collected from:
- 1. Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paleoanthropology 190428
- 2. Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_human_evolution 190428
- 3. Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_erectus 190428Since I will have to deal with the above, piecemeal probably stretching for years, they have been saved in ~~HD-MHT folder.
You don't need to go online, because they are already in my library.
#1. Paleoanthropology , #2. Timeline, #3. Homo-erectus
earth-indx.htm |Top
paleoant-indx.htm
UKT 190429: I'm collecting materials from #1, #2, #3 which will be rewritten into a seamless section as my Introduction
Source material for 1. Introduction (not finished)
Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology is a branch of archaeology with a human focus, which seeks to understand the early development of anatomically modern humans, a process known as hominization, through the reconstruction of evolutionary kinship lines within the family Hominidae, working from biological evidence (such as petrified skeletal remains, bone fragments, footprints) and cultural evidence (such as stone tools, artifacts, and settlement localities). (#1)
The timeline of human evolution outlines the major events in the development of the human species from Homo sapiens (origin: Africa), and possibly Homo erectus (origin: Asia, particularly Southeast Asia - south of Himalayas extending to mountain ranges in Myanmarpré: areas under the Tithys ocean).
See Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tethys_Ocean 190502.
"The Tethys Ocean ... before the opening of the Indian and Atlantic oceans during the Cretaceous Period."
The timeline includes brief explanations of some of the species, genera, and the higher ranks of taxa that are seen today as possible ancestors of modern humans.
We will begin our story with the hominid family which is currently considered to comprise 2 lineages: the great apes, and humans. Now, don't be intimidated by taxonomic terms: Family > Tribe > Genus > Species.
The scientific name for the modern humans is Homo sapien in which Homo is the genus, and sapien is the species. The scientific name is always written in italics, but only the Genus begins with a capital letter.
Prior to the general acceptance of Africa as the root of genus Homo, 19th-century naturalists sought the origin of humans in Asia. The first Asian find was the Peking Man.
See Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peking_Man 190502
"Peking Man Homo erectus pekinensis ... is an example of Homo erectus. Discovered in 1923–27 ... "
Following the loss of the Peking Man materials in late 1941 during the Second World War, and subsequent political turmoils, scientific endeavors slowed in Asia, and attention shifted westward to East Africa.
(UKT: I'll now begin taking materials from source #2)
(#1. Intro)
Paleoanthropology or paleo-anthropology
is a branch of archaeology with a human focus,
which seeks to understand the early development of
anatomically modern humans, a process known as
hominization, through the reconstruction of
evolutionary kinship lines within the family
Hominidae, working from biological evidence
(such as petrified skeletal remains, bone fragments,
footprints) and cultural evidence (such as stone tools,
artifacts, and settlement localities).
[1]
[2]
(#1. Hominoid taxonomies)
Hominoids are a primate superfamily, the hominid family is currently considered
to comprise both the great ape lineages and human lineages within the
hominoid superfamily. The "Homininae" comprise both the human
lineages and the African ape lineages. [What about Asian apes:
Gibbons and Orangutans ?] The term "African apes"
refers only to chimpanzees and gorillas.
[3]
The terminology of the immediate biological family is currently in flux. The
term "hominin" refers to any genus in the human tribe (Hominini), of which
Homo
sapiens (modern humans) [ What about Homo erectus ?) is the only living specimen.
[4]
[5]
UKT 190428: Read : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_erectus 190428
"H. erectus is attested with certainty in East and Southeast Asia from about 0.7 Ma, with possible early presence before 1 Ma; stone tools from Shangchen discovered in 2018 were even claimed to be older than 2 Mya. [43] [44] "
(#1. Hominoid taxonomies, cont.)
[I've regrouped Taxonomy as:] Suborder Hominoids > Family Hominids >
Subfamily Homininae > Tribes.
- 2 Tribes in the Subfamily Homininae: Tribe Gorillini and Tribe Hominini.
- 5 Genus in Tribe Hominini:
Ardipithecus , Australopithecus , Paranthropus ,
Kenyanthropus , Homo
(#1. History: 19th century)
The modern field of paleoanthropology began in the 19th century with the
discovery of "Neanderthal man" (the eponymous skeleton was found in 1856,
but there had been finds elsewhere since 1830), and with evidence of so-called
cave men. The idea that humans are similar to certain great apes
had been obvious to people for some time, but the idea of the biological
evolution of species in general was not legitimized until after Charles
Darwin published
On the Origin of Species in 1859.
Though Darwin's first book on evolution did not address the specific question of
human evolution -- "light will be thrown on the origin of man and his history,"
was all Darwin wrote on the subject -- the implications of evolutionary theory
were clear to contemporary readers.
UKT 190429: On the Origin of Species - by Charles Darwin, 1859, is in TIL HD-PDF and SD-PDF libraries:
- CDarwin-OriginOfSpecies<Ô> / Bkp<Ô> (link chk 190429)
"In the distant future I see open fields for far more important researches. Psychology will be based on a new foundation, that of the necessary acquirement of each mental power and capacity by gradation. Light will be thrown on the origin of man and his history." - p432
(#1. History: Asia)
Prior to the general acceptance of Africa as the root of genus Homo,
19th-century naturalists sought the origin of humans in Asia. So-called "dragon
bones" (fossil bones and teeth) from Chinese apothecary shops were known, but it
was not until the early 20th century that German paleontologist,
Max
Schlosser, first described a single human tooth from Beijing. ... Yet
within a little more than two years, in the winter of 1929,
Pei
Wenzhong, then the field director at Zhoukoudian, unearthed the first
complete calvaria of
Peking Man.
Twenty-seven years after Schlosser’s initial description, the antiquity of early
humans in East Asia was no longer a speculation, but a reality.
Following the loss of the Peking Man materials in late 1941, [Second World War]
scientific endeavors at Zhoukoudian slowed, primarily because of lack of
funding. Frantic search for the missing fossils took place, and continued well
into the 1950s. After the establishment of the People’s Republic of China in
1949, excavations resumed at Zhoukoudian. But with political instability and
social unrest brewing in China, beginning in 1966, and major discoveries at
Olduvai Gorge and East Turkana (Koobi
Fora), the paleoanthropological spotlight shifted westward to East Africa.
(#1. Timeline)
[ A graphical frame is given. It is of poor quality: I can only get that the
split between chimpanzee and human should be traced to :
7000 yr. ago starting from Miocene - Pliocene - Pleistocene.]
------ UKT 190429: the above is all I need from source #1.
Now to source #2.
(#2. Intro)
The timeline of human evolution outlines the major events in the
development of the
human
species,
Homo
sapiens, and the
evolution
of the human's ancestors. It includes brief explanations of some of the
species,
genera, and the
higher ranks of taxa that are seen today as possible ancestors of modern
humans.
(#2. Taxonomies of Homo sapiens : Hominidae)
One of several possible lines of descent, or taxonomic ranking, of Homo
sapiens is shown below.
-- Rank -------- Name / Common name
¤ Superfamily: Hominoidea / Apes: great apes and lesser apes (gibbons)
---------------------------------------------------------------- - 28 Ma
¤ Family: ------ Hominidae / Great apes: humans, chimpanzees, gorillas, and orangutans - the
hominids -------------------------- - 20-15 Ma
¤ Subfamily: -- Homininae / Humans, chimpanzees, and gorillas (the African apes)
[1] ------------------------------------------------ - 14-12 Ma
¤ Tribe: -------- Hominini / Includes both Homo, Pan
(chimpanzees), but not Gorilla. --------------------------------------------------- - 10-8 Ma
¤ Subtribe ----- Hominina / Genus Homo and close human relatives and
ancestors after
splitting from Pan - the
hominins
[2]
- 8–4 Ma
¤ Genus ------- Homo / Humans
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 2.5 Ma
¤ Species ------ Homo sapiens / Anatomically modern humans
[3] ------------------------------------------------------------------------
- 0.8–0.3
UKT 190430: Be careful of repetitions in the following sections, e.g. compare 800-300 Ka in Hominidae and in Homo . You'll see the same opening statement: "Divergence of Neanderthal and Denisovan lineages from a common ancestor. [39] Homo heidelbergensis (in Africa also known as Homo rhodesiensis) had long been thought ..."
(Timeline: Date/ Event : Hominidae)
¤ 13 Ma - Pierolapithecus catalaunicus is thought to be a common ancestor of humans
and the other great apes, or at least a species that brings us closer to a
common ancestor than any previous fossil discovery. It had the special
adaptations for tree climbing as do present-day humans and other great apes: a
wide, flat rib cage, a stiff lower spine, flexible wrists, and shoulder blades
that lie along its back.
¤ 10 Ma - The clade currently represented by humans and the genus Pan
(common chimpanzees and bonobos) splits from the ancestors of the
gorillas.
¤ 10-4 Ma - The latest common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees
is estimated to have lived between c. 10 and 4 Ma. Both chimpanzees and humans
have a larynx that repositions during the first two years of life to a
spot between the pharynx and the lungs, indicating that the common
ancestors have this feature, a precondition for vocalized speech in humans.
...
¤ 3.6 Ma - A member of the Australopithecus afarensis left human-like
footprints on volcanic ash in Laetoli, Kenya (Northern Tanzania), providing
strong evidence of full-time bipedalism. ...
¤ 3.5-3.3 Ma - Kenyanthropus platyops, a possible ancestor of Homo,
emerges from the Australopithecus. Stone tools are deliberately
constructed.
[29]
¤ 3 Ma - The bipedal australopithecines (a genus of the Hominina subtribe)
evolve in the savannas of Africa being hunted by
Dinofelis. Loss of
body hair occurs from 3 to 2 Ma, in parallel with the development of full
bipedalism.
¤ 2.5-2.0 Ma - Homo appears in East Africa; with most
Australopithecines they are considered the first hominins -- that is,
they are designated (by some) as those earliest humans and human relatives or
ancestors to rise after splitting from the lineage of Pan, the
chimpanzees. Others consider the genus Pan as hominins also, and perhaps
the first hominins.
Sophisticated stone tools mark the beginning of the
Lower Paleolithic.
... Stone tools found at the
Shangchen
site in China and dated to 2.12 Ma are considered the
earliest known evidence of hominins outside Africa, surpassing Dmanisi in
Georgia by 300,000 years.
[30] [UKT 190430: the dating for Chinese, 2.12 Ma, shows that East Africa
cannot be the sole place for human ancestry.]
¤ 1.9-0.5 Ma - Homo erectus derives from early Homo or late
Australopithecus. From its earliest appearance, H. erectus (in
Africa also known as Homo ergaster) is distributed in East Africa
and Southwest Asia. H. erectus later migrates throughout Eurasia,
and is described in a number of subspecies.
[31]
H. erectus is also the first known species to develop
control of fire, by about 1.5 Ma. Evolution of
dark skin [I take this to be the black skin of the Africans and
South Indians] at about 1.2 Ma.
[32] Homo antecessor may be a common
ancestor of humans [Cro-magnon ? ] and Neanderthals.
[33]
[34]
At present estimate, humans have approximately 20,000–25,000
genes and share
99% of their DNA
with the now extinct [UKT ?] Neanderthal
[35] and 95–99% of their
DNA with their
closest living evolutionary relative, the
chimpanzees.
[36]
[37]
The human variant of the
FOXP2 gene
(linked to the control of speech) has been found to be identical in
Neanderthals.
[38]
¤ 800–300 Ka [UKT: I've capitalized the usual ka to be in
conformity with Ma.) - Divergence of Neanderthal and Denisovan lineages from a
common ancestor.
[39]
Homo heidelbergensis (in Africa also known as
Homo rhodesiensis) had long been thought to be a likely candidate for
the last common ancestor of the Neanderthal and modern human [Cro-magnon ?] lineages. However,
genetic evidence from the
Sima de los Huesos [in Spain] fossils published in 2016 seems to suggest that H.
heidelbergensis in its entirety should be included in the Neanderthal
lineage, as "pre-Neanderthal" or "early Neanderthal", while the divergence time
between the Neanderthal and modern lineages [ modern lineages: Black, Brown,
White, Yellow ?] has been pushed back to before the
emergence of H. heidelbergensis, to about 600,000 to 800,000 years ago,
the approximate age of
Homo antecessor.
[40]
[41] Solidified footprints dated to about 350 ka and
associated with H. heidelbergensis were found in
southern Italy in 2003.
[42]
(Timeline: Date/ Event : Homo)
¤ 2.5 to 2.0 Ma - Homo appears in East Africa; with most
Australopithecines they are considered the first hominins -- that is,
they are designated (by some) as those earliest humans and human relatives or
ancestors to rise after splitting from the lineage of Pan, the
chimpanzees. Others consider the genus Pan as hominins also, and perhaps
the first hominins. Sophisticated stone tools
mark the beginning of the
Lower Paleolithic. ... Homo habilis appears -- the first, or one of
the first, hominins to master stone tool technology. Stone tool implements also
found along with Australopithecus garhi, dated to a slightly earlier
period. Homo habilis, although significantly
different of anatomy and physiology, is thought to be the ancestor of Homo
ergaster, or African Homo erectus; but it is also known to have
coexisted with Homo erectus for almost half a million years (until about
1.5 Ma). Stone tools found at the
Shangchen
site in China and dated to 2.12 million years ago are considered the earliest
known evidence of hominins outside Africa, surpassing Dmanisi in Georgia by
300,000 years.
[30] Further information:
Homo
naledi and
Homo rudolfensis
¤ 1.9-0.5 Ma - Homo erectus derives from early Homo or late
Australopithecus. From its earliest appearance, H. erectus (in
Africa also known as Homo ergaster) is distributed in East Africa and
Southwest Asia. H. erectus later migrates
throughout Eurasia, and is described in a number of subspecies.
[31]
H. erectus is also the first known species to develop
control of fire, by about 1.5 Ma.
Evolution of dark skin at about 1.2 Ma.
[32] Homo antecessor may be a common
ancestor of humans and Neanderthals.
[33]
[34]
At present estimate, humans [Cro-magnons ?] have approximately 20,000–25,000 genes and share
99% of their DNA with the now extinct
Neanderthal
[35] and 95–99% of their
DNA with their
closest living evolutionary relative, the
chimpanzees.
[36]
[37]
The human variant of the
FOXP2 gene
(linked to the control of speech) has been found to be identical in
Neanderthals.
[38]
¤ 800–300 Ka - Divergence of
Neanderthal and
Denisovan
lineages from a common ancestor.
[39]
Homo heidelbergensis (in Africa also known as
Homo rhodesiensis) had long been thought to be a likely candidate for
the last common ancestor of the Neanderthal and modern human lineages. However,
genetic evidence from the
Sima de los Huesos fossils published in 2016 seems to suggest that H.
heidelbergensis in its entirety should be included in the Neanderthal
lineage, as "pre-Neanderthal" or "early Neanderthal", while the divergence time
between the Neanderthal and modern lineages has been pushed back to before the
emergence of H. heidelbergensis, to about 600,000 to 800,000 years ago,
the approximate age of
Homo antecessor.
[40]
[41] Solidified footprints dated to about 350
ka and associated with H. heidelbergensis were found in southern Italy in
2003.
[42]
(Timeline: Date/ Event : Homo sapiens)
¤ 300–130 Ka - Fossils attributed to H. sapiens, along with stone tools, dated to approximately 300,000 years ago, found at Jebel Irhoud, Morocco [43] yield the earliest fossil evidence for anatomically modern Homo sapiens. Modern human presence in East Africa (Gademotta), at 276 Ka. [44] A 177,000-year-old jawbone fossil discovered in Israel is the oldest human remains found outside Africa. [45] Neanderthals emerge from the Homo heidelbergensis lineage at about the same time (300 Ka). Patrilineal and matrilineal most recent common ancestors of living humans roughly between 200 and 100 ka [46] with some estimates on the patrilineal mrca [Most Recent Common Ancestor] somewhat higher, ranging up to 250 to 500 kya. [47] Homo sapiens (Homo sapiens idaltu) in Ethiopia, Awash River (near present-day Herto village) practiced mortuary rituals.
UKT 190430: Mortuary rituals means religion of some kind and prayers and incantations similar to the oldest layer of the Rigveda . My estimate of timeline is approx. 300 Ka which should be compared to 2.5 Ka - the appearance of Gautama Buddha and his scientific views: the Four Noble Truths and Anatta Principle.
130–80 Ka - Marine Isotope Stage 5 (Eemian). Modern human presence in Southern Africa and West Africa. [48] Appearance of mitochondrial haplogroup (mt-haplogroup) L2.
- UKT 190430
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dinofelis 190430
Dinofelis is a genus of extinct sabre-toothed cats belonging to the tribe Metailurini. They were widespread in Europe, Asia, Africa and North America at least 5 - about 1.2 Ma (Early Pliocene to Early Pleistocene). Fossils very similar to Dinofelis from Lothagam range back to the Late Miocene, some 8 Ma.
In size they were between a modern leopard and a lion, with most about the size of a jaguar (70 cm tall and up to 120 kg), they were medium-sized but powerful cats with a pair of prominent saber teeth. ...
Dinofelis prey likely included mammoth
calves, young and old mastodons, and Homo habilis
(an ancestor of modern humans).
[4]
However, examination of carbon isotope ratios in specimens from
Swartkrans
indicates that they probably did not hunt hominids, instead preferring grazing
animals. The main predators of hominids in the environment at that time were
most likely leopards and fellow machairodont Megantereon, whose
carbon isotope ratios showed more indication of preying on hominids.
[5]
UKT: More in the Wiki article
Go back Dinofelis-note-b
- UKT 190430
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/FOXP2 190420
Forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2) is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the FOXP2 gene, also known as CAGH44, SPCH1 or TNRC10, and is required for proper development of speech and language.[3] FOXP2 is a transcription factor, meaning that it encodes for a regulatory protein. The gene is shared with many vertebrates, where it generally plays a role in communication (for instance, the development of bird song).
Go back FOXP2-note-b
- UKT 190430
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lower_Paleolithic 190430
The Lower Paleolithic (or Lower Palaeolithic) is the earliest subdivision of the Paleolithic or Old Stone Age. It spans the time from around 3.3 million years ago when the first evidence for stone tool production and use by hominins appears in the current archaeological record,[1] until around 300,000 years ago, spanning the Oldowan ("mode 1") and Acheulean ("mode 2") lithics industries.
In African archaeology, the time period roughly corresponds to the Early Stone Age, the earliest finds dating back to 3.3 million years ago, with Lomekwian stone tool technology, spanning Mode 1 stone tool technology, which begins roughly 2.6 million years ago and ends between 400,000 and 250,000 years ago, with Mode 2 technology.[1][2][3]
The Middle Paleolithic followed the Lower Paleolithic and recorded the appearance of the more advanced prepared-core tool-making technologies such as the Mousterian. Whether the earliest control of fire by hominins dates to the Lower or to the Middle Paleolithic remains an open question.[4]
Go back LowerPaleolithic-note-b
- UKT 190430
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marine_Isotope_Stage_5 190430
A Marine Isotope Stage in the geologic temperature record, between 130-80 Ka.
Marine Isotope Stage 5 or MIS 5 is a Marine Isotope Stage in the geologic temperature record, between 130,000 and 80,000 years ago.[1] Sub-stage MIS 5e, called the Eemian or Ipswichian, covers the last major interglacial period before the Holocene, which extends to the present day.[2] Interglacial periods which occurred during the Pleistocene are investigated to better understand present and future climate change. Thus, the present interglacial, the Holocene, is compared with MIS 5 or the interglacials of Marine Isotope Stage 11.
Go back MIS5-note-b
End of TIL file