Some 60 years ago, two researchers, Joe Hin Tjio and Albert Levan, discovered that the number of chromosomes (karyotype) in humans was 46 chromosomes, that is, 23 pairs
Anthro Blog
Did Humanity Really Arise in One Place?
New evidence is prompting researchers to rethink Homo sapiens’ origin story—and what it means to be human. ✽ AS A UNIVERSITY STUDENT in the early 2010s, I
The “Robust” Australopiths
The “robust” australopiths are a group of hominins with large cheek teeth and strongly built jaws that lived alongside the earliest members of our own
Y Chromosome from Early Modern Humans Replaced Neanderthal Y
A selective advantage may have led the modern human Y chromosome to sweep through the Neanderthal population after it was introduced via interbreeding more than
Fossil DNA Reveals New Twists in Modern Human Origins
Modern humans and more ancient hominins interbred many times throughout Eurasia and Africa, and the genetic flow went both ways. Introduction Humans today are mosaics,
Discovered: The earliest known common genetic condition in human evolution
Genetic diseases are fairly common today, with more than one in 25 children being born with one. But the evolutionary history of such conditions is mysterious. Which
Team publishes study of the brain of the Homo erectus fossil with the lowest cranial capacity
The paleoneurologist Emiliano Bruner and the archaeologist Sileshi Semaw, both from the Centro Nacional de Investigación sobre la Evolución Humana (CENIEH), have published a paper
Human-specific genetics: new tools to explore the molecular and cellular basis of human evolution
Abstract Our ancestors acquired morphological, cognitive and metabolic modifications that enabled humans to colonize diverse habitats, develop extraordinary technologies and reshape the biosphere. Understanding the
Eastern Africa’s oldest human fossils are more ancient than we realized
Ash traced back to an Ethiopian volcano suggests the remains are at least 233,000 years old. Ethiopia’s Kibish Formation was home to some of the
One pedigree we all may have come from – did Adam and Eve have the chromosome 2 fusion?
Background In contrast to Great Apes, who have 48 chromosomes, modern humans and likely Neandertals and Denisovans have and had, respectively, 46 chromosomes. The reduction