Earliest Human Remains Outside Africa Were Just Discovered in Israel
For decades, scientists have speculated about when exactly the bipedal apes known as Homo sapiens left Africa and moved out to conquer the world. That moment, after all, was a crucial step on the way to today’s human-dominated world. For many years, the consensus view among archaeologists placed the exodus at 60,000 years ago—some 150,000 years after the hominins first appeared.
But now, researchers in Israel have found a remarkably preserved jawbone they believe belongs to a Homo sapiens that was much, much older. The find, which they’ve dated to somewhere between 177,000 and 194,000 years, provides the most convincing proof yet that the old view of human migration needs some serious re-examination.
The new research, published today in Science [DOI: 10.1126/science.aap8369] [DX], builds on earlier evidence from other caves in the region that housed the bones of humans from 90,000 to 120,000 years ago. But this new discovery goes one step further: if verified, it would require reevaluating the whole history of human evolution—and possibly pushing it back by several hundred thousand years.
Also at Binghamton University, BBC, and The Guardian.
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These Tools Upend Our View of Stone-Age Humans in Asia
Long ago in what's now southern India, early humans showed a knack for disruption that would've made Silicon Valley tech wizards envious. Over time, the ancient innovators rejected bulky hand-axes and cleavers, instead opting for sleek flakes of stone meant for cutting and tipping spears.
Similar disruptions occurred in Africa among the forebears of modern humans around the same time. But the timing of the Indian transition, spotted in the soil layers of a site called Attirampakkam, is eye-popping. At 250,000 years old—and possibly up to 385,000 years old—this tool transition occurred far earlier than it did at other sites in India.
The discovery, described in Nature on Wednesday [DOI: 10.1038/nature25444] [DX], pushes back the start of what's called the Middle Paleolithic culture in the region by more than a hundred thousand years. That, in turn, could reshape how scientists view the global spread of hominins—humans and their ancient relatives—before modern humans migrated out of Africa some 60,000 years ago.
Also at The Verge.
Related: Earliest Human Remains Outside of Africa Discovered
(Score: 2) by Arik on Friday January 26 2018, @10:13AM (6 children)
This does not challenge the later departure date!
The later date applies to the ancestors of living non-african humans. That doesn't mean there weren't already humans out of africa - only that their descendents have not survived to the present day.
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @10:33AM (2 children)
for some reason the summary author defines "human" as homo sapiens.
it was believed that homo sapiens left Africa some 60000 years ago.
now they found a homo sapiens jaw outside africa from 180000 years ago.
I personally dislike the restriction of the word "human", but I understand what they are saying.
(Score: 2) by Arik on Friday January 26 2018, @10:43AM (1 child)
If laughter is the best medicine, who are the best doctors?
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @11:13AM
The headline in Science is "The earliest modern humans outside Africa"; "modern humans" is a synonym for H. sapiens.
(Score: 2) by opinionated_science on Friday January 26 2018, @12:31PM (2 children)
Agreed. In act the "out of africa" hypothesis should probably be named "out of africa enough to notice".
The geographic barriers available to our ancestors were probably the major limit to migration, as H.sapiens is a pretty efficient walker.
It is likely (and this is supported by the genetics), that there were many continuous waves and then H.sapiens out competed H.neanderthalis.
It has always astounded me (even at school many years ago), the patronizing prevailing modern view that "ancient humans were less smart/motivated than modern humans".
Probably the most amazing example of human expansion is the polynesian islands - we evolved to walk, but not swim oceans...
(Score: 1) by khallow on Friday January 26 2018, @06:46PM (1 child)
Modern civilization could have happened any time in the last 50k years. So why didn't it? It may be patronizing, but it is an explanation.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @08:29PM
DNA suggests that the neanderthals were good at visual tasks and probably a bit autistic. They were likely superior at solving puzzles. They could tolerate the cold. They had brains that would grow for longer amounts of time after birth.
On the other hand... They seem to have suffered from a lack of social ability. Speech was probably poor. They had shoulder joints that were not great for throwing spears. The females could not birth large heads.
So then alone comes the humanish creatures from Africa. Working as a group, they kick ass, then winter comes and they freeze their ass. After a bit of fucking to make hybrids and a bunch of death, we get the best of both groups. Neanderthal women were victims of this, with large babies getting stuck inside them.
(Score: -1, Troll) by Ethanol-fueled on Friday January 26 2018, @11:11AM (3 children)
So does the discovery mean that the Jews are the "new niggers?"
(Score: 2, Funny) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @11:26AM (2 children)
Seams more like everyone outside of Africa is actually a Jew.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @12:05PM
pdnftt.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @03:18PM
Then kick some Palestinian off my god given land stat!
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday January 26 2018, @12:45PM (4 children)
I don't want my corpse in a museum
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 1, Touché) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @01:54PM (3 children)
why not? you certainly won't be using it for anything.
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday January 26 2018, @02:06PM (2 children)
I intend to donate my body to science. I found an organization in Portland that can make the arrangements.
Should I die before my mother and aunt, I expect they will be greatly dismayed that I don't show up to my own funeral. That's why I'm going to inform them after I've made all the arrangements.
The reason I'm doing this is that I know a little girl with a horrible genetic disease. Likely she would have died before her first month was out had Lucille Packard Children's Hospital not been the maternity ward that the mother was closest to when she went into labor.
She got her kidney transplant at 3 1/2. I think she'd be about nine now.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Friday January 26 2018, @03:22PM (1 child)
You are aware that your body will likely end up in a parts yard, with pieces sent out to do explosive tests for the military, rather than used to find the cure for cancer?
(Score: 2) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Friday January 26 2018, @07:32PM
My greatest worry is that some medical student will be careless when he dissects me. I don't want my one chance at death to go to waste.
Yes I Have No Bananas. [gofundme.com]