Topic: Paleoanthropology

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In Pictures: Hobbits around the world
7 most controversial UN speeches, from Ahmadinejad to Khrushchev

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, slated to speak to the UN General Assembly today, is not the only world leader to have delivered infamous remarks.
Photos of the Day: Photos of the Day 02/25

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Were pliable heads an adaptation to walking upright?

New research relates hominin brain growth to walking on two feet.
Did a copying mistake give rise to human intelligence?

New research suggests that a copying error found in humans seems to distinguish human brains from those of primates.
Human ancestors used fire a million years ago, finds study

Ash and a charred bone unearthed in South Africa indicates that, even a million years ago, humanity's forebears had harnessed fire.
How did humans evolve to walk upright? Fossil discovery complicates the picture. (+video)

Foot bones unearthed recently in Ethiopia belonged to a contemporary of 'Lucy,' the 3.2-million-year-old early human discovered in 1974. But these bones seem to belong to a different species, one thought to have split its time between walking upright and climbing trees.
Fossil discovery could unravel mystery of how humans learned to walk (+video)

The discovery of foot bone fossils from an early hominin may help unlock the mystery of how humans learned to walk upright.
Fossil find sheds light on how humans evolved to walk (+video)

A discovery in Ethiopia of 3-million-year old foot bones that once belonged to a human relative suggests that human bipedalism evolved more than once.
New human species discovered? How China fossils could redefine 'human'

Scientists have recently dated and described fossils from what may be a new species of hominid, the Red Deer Cave people. The discovery could shed new light on emergence of humankind in East Asia.
Possible new human species unearthed in China

Scientists in China have found what may be a new species of human. Fossils show a group of people with similarities to and differences from modern humans.
In Pictures: Hobbits around the world
Australopithecus afarensis bone could change story of human evolution

Australopithecus afarensis, an ancient human ancestor who lived around 3 million years ago, spent most of its time walking, instead of climbing trees like chimps.
Mysterious X Woman finds place on humans' family tree

Genetic research shows her branch contributed to gene pool of today's Melanesians, who live on a broad arc of Pacific islands. X Woman is helping researchers grasp ancient migration patterns.
Is there a lost civilization under the Persian Gulf?

A new review of research suggests that some of the earliest humans outside of Africa lived some 75,000 to 100,000 years ago on a once-fertile landmass that is now submerged under the Persian Gulf.
7 most controversial UN speeches, from Ahmadinejad to Khrushchev

Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, slated to speak to the UN General Assembly today, is not the only world leader to have delivered infamous remarks.
Monkeys hate flying squirrels, report monkey-annoyance experts

Japanese macaques will completely flip out when presented with flying squirrels, a new study in monkey-antagonism has found. The research could pave the way for advanced methods of enraging monkeys.
Another thing humans are good at: Biting

Modern humans have surprisingly powerful bites, a new study has revealed.
Did Ardipithecus ramidus roam the woods or the grasslands?

Ardi, the 4.4 million-year-old skeleton whose discovery last year upended models of human evolution, has prompted a debate about where she lived, and whether she is indeed an ancestor of modern humans.
Global warming: Earth could become unbearably hot, researchers say

A new study found that, if greenhouse gas emissions continue at their current rate, global warming could bring potentially lethal temperatures.
Want to look like a Neanderthal? There's an app for that.

A new iPhone app just released by the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History shows what you would look like if you were a Neanderthal with an iPhone.
Cavemen among us: Some humans are 4 percent Neanderthal

A new study concludes that humans mated with Neanderthals 50,000 to 80,000 years ago, leaving traces of the Neanderthal genome in some modern humans.
Study suggests humans mated with Neanderthals

A study of DNA from humans living today has found signs of Neanderthal genes, suggesting that interbreeding occurred between the two species.
Fossils found in South Africa point to early human ancestors

The fossil, nearly 2 million years old, 'may make a very good candidate' to be a new species of early human. Found in South Africa, it has a unique combination of ape-like and human features.
The Daily Reckoning
The long and short of the 'great correction'? Real estate de-leveraging.

Amid confusing – and often seemingly contradicting – economic indicators, a simple explanation for what's going on in the economy is that the real estate market is de-leveraging. And that takes time.
X Woman: Not human, not Neanderthal, what is she?

Scientists have found evidence of what might be a 'new creature' that is neither Neanderthal nor human. X Woman could revise theories about human ancestors and when they left Africa.
New study says hobbit-like beings colonized island 1 million years ago

Researchers say ancestors of hobbit-like humans may have colonized an Indonesian island one million years ago.
Photos of the Day: Photos of the Day 02/25