Jump to content

New species of hominid found


The Peon

Recommended Posts

Surprised no one posted this yet...

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-19184370

 

What does this mean for current human evolutionary models? They mention "the research adds to a growing body of evidence that runs counter to the popular perception that there was a linear evolution from early primates to modern humans". Explain please.

Edited by The Peon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

They mention "the research adds to a growing body of evidence that runs counter to the popular perception that there was a linear evolution from early primates to modern humans". Explain please.

 

I guess they mean that from the earliest primates, multiple lines have branched off, and only one of those branches became us (humans). There may have been other humanoid species in the past that didn't make it. They've died out. Sounds like a reasonable assumption to me.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Surprised no one posted this yet...

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk...onment-19184370

 

What does this mean for current human evolutionary models? They mention "the research adds to a growing body of evidence that runs counter to the popular perception that there was a linear evolution from early primates to modern humans". Explain please.

 

I believe you have it spot on. It's not that surprising, given extant species are a product of both diversification and extinction - while phlyogenetic trees are a great way to visualize species, in reality through time they by rights should look more like this - red being the "linear" evolution of extant taxa and the black lines representing lineages which have since become extinct:

 

nrg999-i1.gif

Link to comment
Share on other sites

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue.