Hominid Evolution - 2435 Words

Hominid Evolution The evolution of hominids has been and still is a heated topic of debate. Many scientists debate over which species can be classified as â€Å"human†. The root hominid refers to members of the family of humans, Hominidae, which consists of all species on our side of the last common ancestor of humans and living apes. The time split between humans and living apes used to be thought of fifteen to twenty millions of years ago, but now the time period has shifted to around five million years ago. Ardipithecus ramidus is said to have live around 4.4 million years ago. The original fossils from this species were placed with the Australopithecus genus; however, a new genus was designated to this group by Tim†¦show more content†¦Australopithecus robustus is a hominid species that was first discovered by Dr. Robert Broom in 1938. Dr. Broom had a habit of collecting fossils from a lime quarry worker. He came across a skull with a molar still in it on June 8, 1938. He began working on a monograph of the australopithecines, and it was published in 1946. This book had such a contribution to the understanding of australopithecines that it was given a U.S. National Academy of Sciences award. The A. robustus remains generally are from three sites: Swartkrans, Dreimulen, and Kromdraai and can safely be dated to 2.0 to 1.0 million years ago. The massive face is flat or dished, with no forehead and large brow ridges. It has relatively small front teeth, but massive grinding teeth in a large lower jaw. Its diet would have been mostly coarse, tough food that needed a lot of chewing. Bones excavated with A. robustus skeletons indicate that they may have been used as digging tools. This is a significant change in behavior and once again shows evolution to the modern day human. It was a great discovery when Zing, the Australopithecus boisei was found by Mary Leakey in Olduvai in 1959. A. boisei was very important in clearing up a controversy that occured in the 1960s over the idea of the Single Species Hypothesis. The single species hypothesis states that each individual environment can only support one species, and that in hominids, monkey-see monkey-do holdsShow MoreRelatedEvolution of the Hominids1290 Words   |  5 PagesModern humans are the only remaining species of the hominids, a branch of great apes which characterized by posture, dexterity, sociality and uses tools which trend towards larger and more complex brains. Early hominids, for example the australopithecines had more apelike brains and skulls, are less often thought to as human than hominids of the genus of Homo. Homo heidelbergensis are considered to be the most likely to form the line of ancestry of modern humans. Homo sapiens began to reach theirRead MoreThe History of Hominid Evolution Essay1049 Words   |  5 PagesWhat evidence shows the changing from the early hominids to the modern humans? Throughout the human evolution body parts like legs and harms have changed for the better. By the early hominids being biped, meaning they are able to stand and even walk on two feet, it helped them to be able to do more things like gett ing around more and help with their tool making and hunting. A lot of the fossils discovered were found in the Great Rift Valley in East Africa, which contained many different lakesRead MoreHominids Development of Bipedalism Essay616 Words   |  3 Pagesevolutionary phenomenon was happening in Africa. Early hominids, man’s ancestors, were beginning a giant leap in their evolution. These hominids were moving out of the forest and beginning to walk upright, out on the open plains (Fagan, 98). This change from quadrupedalism was the most significant adaptation that ever happened to these early hominids. It caused many adaptations that make man what he is today. This process occurred in early hominids for many different reasons, each reason helping toRead MoreWhy Do Primates Free Their Hands? How Is Walking Upright More Energy Efficient?806 Words   |  4 Pages Walking upright with two legs is a common daily phenomenon, however, the ability of moving with only two legs is the result of millions of years of evolution and adaptation. During the process of human evolution, the appearance of bipedalism, which describes the terrestrial locomotion where animals move with their rear limbs in the form of walking, hopping or running, is considered as one of the major steps that sets Hominin group apart from other primates. Even though the transition from quadrupedalismRead MoreThe Evolution Of Human Animals1744 Words   |  7 Pageschimpanzees. This transition to bipedalism was facilitated by structural changes comprised of an angled thigh bone, a more sturdy and broad pelvis, a wider patella, an S-shaped spine, and long femurs. The compilation of all of these adaptations allowed hominids to not only support their entire body weight while standing upright, but efficiently take long strides, therefore allowing them to travel greater distances. Though much is known about the implications for the transition to bipedality, the exact reasonsRead More evolution89 8 Words   |  4 Pagesreligions and cultures believe the universe was created by a creative hand, either a sky god or some other physical objectquot; (Encarta 1). Think of it, as a trial to see which will win, creation or evolution. It has been the most argued debate in all of history, but creationism is more logical than evolution. To first understand what creation is about, we have to know what creation is. The Bible defines creation as the action by God that brought the universe and all its contents into being. The BibleRead MoreEssay on Your Inner Fish1056 Words   |  5 Pagesis an interesting novel that shows the evolution of some of our major structures through time. We all know about evolution and the monkeys but we never really looked in on evolution through â€Å"our inner fish†. The book was appealing because it helps to understand how we have come to be with some of the parts of our bodies we take for granted, like how we got our developed smell or our advanced color vision. Your Inner Fish is a good way to jump into the evolution of our ancestors and become more knowledgeableRead MoreCreationism Vs. Evolution Essay1318 Words   |  6 Pagespublished his book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, which proposed the theory of evolution. This book, along with others that followed, began the long dispute between evolutionist and creationist. Were we created by a supernatural Supreme Being, or did our creation occur purely by chance? First, lets look at the two conflicting theories. Common usage of the term â€Å"evolution† is that living things in our world have come into existence through unguided naturalistic processesRead MoreEvolution And Evolution Of Evolution1079 Words   |  5 Pageslike this. The process of evolution brought us to humans. According to Evolution: The Human Story, evolution is the process by which organisms change over the course of generations. It is also compelling because ancestors can give rise to other relatives or descendants. Archeologists now know that not only humans evolved because paleontologists discovered a bird that lived up to 1.5 million years ago. Scientists have been studying the past and they discovered ape-like hominids evolved into humans. ManyRead MoreEssay about Evolution and Christianity1845 Words   |  8 Pages These two beliefs, Evolution and Christianity, have driven a riff through the American populace and fueled several debates and conflicts over which is the truer theory. Incidents such as the decision of the Kansas school board to ban schools from including the Evolution Theory from their curri culum are becoming a tragically frequent and threaten to escalate if not checked soon. However, there is a growing belief in America today in the possibility of believing that evolution is an inescapable fact