8.7 Human Evolution

Pages 358-365

Our uniqueness

• Complex reasoning abilities• Enormous aptitude for learning• Design and use of tools• Language

Physical

• Large brain• Fine motor skills• Bipedal

Examples

• Prosimians

• Anthropoids

• Hominoids

Cladogram

DNA

• Humans and chimpanzees share 98.8% of their DNA

Primates

• Large brains• Forward looking eyes• Arms that rotate• Flexible hands and feet• Opposable thumbs• tails

Early ancestor

• 60-70 mya

Fossils

• Skull size• Hips, feet, leg bones, insteps• Tools and burial sites

Timeline

• 6-7mya Sahelanthropus walked upright

Timeline

• 3.4 mya• Australopithecus aferensis

Timeline

• 3.6 mya

Timeline

• 2mya• Homo habilis (handy man)

Out of Africa

• 1.9 mya• Homo erectus wanders throughout Europe

and Asia

Timeline

• 200 000-800 000 ya• Homo heidelbergensis

Timeline

• 500 000 ya• Homo neanderthalensis• Europe

Timeline

• 100 000 ya• Homo sapiens

The last 1000 generations…

• Developed agriculture• Lived in cities• 6000 languages• Rituals, customs, belief systems

The last 10 generations…

• Human population explosion

Current human evolution

• Lactose tolerance• Sense of taste• Medicine suppresses our natural response to

illness.• Vitamin D• CCR5-D32 gene protects 10% of Europeans

from HIV disease