Ellen+ten+Berge

=Human Evolution Theory 6 = toc

By: Ellen ten Berge





__//According to theories of human evolution, many changes in humanity have enabled us to make progress.....towards society. //__



Introduction
Who are we? Who are our ancestors? Why aren't we hairy? What tools did we use? How have we changed, and what are the major changes? Theories of human evolution tell us about our ancestors (hominids) and how they lived. No one is really sure if these hominids actually were our ancestors, but it is the main theory. Many people think that we have evolved from the first hominid species, Australopithecines. Over time physical appearance, social behaviour, intelligence, tools and environment. In this essay you will find out about what I have learnt about the different hominids that have lived over time. The different hominids I have been researching are:
 * the Australopithecus
 * Homo habilis
 * Homo erectus
 * Homo sapiens (Neanderthalensis)
 * Homo sapiens sapiens, or as it called today, humans

If over many years people will keep on evolving, differences can be spotted if you compare us with the humans that are to come.

Donald Johanson
One of the people who helped contribute theories about human evolution is Donald Johanson. He is famous for discovering one of the most famous fossils. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Donald Carl Johanson was born in Chicago in 1943. He was the son of Swedish immigrants. When Johansons father died, he and his mother moved to Hartford. His neighbour taught anthropology, <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">and Johanson was interested. At the university he studied chemistry, though he soon changed to anthropology, which interested him more. He transferred to Chicago to study under F. Clark Howell for his studies for graduation.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In 1970 and 1971 he visited Ethopia to do do field work. In the year of 1972, he and some of his colleagues went on an expedition to look at the area. Back in the USA he finished his Ph.D. (Doctor of Philosophy) and started to teach at a university called Case Western Reserve University.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In 1973 Johanson discovered AL 129-1, an Australopithecus afarensis. The following year, in 1974, he and Tom Gray found AL 288-1, more commonly known as Lucy. The fossil was named after a song on the radio by the Beatles. There was once again a find, this in 1975. Johanson and his team discovered a collection of fossils, which was nicknamed "First Family". The year after this, more fossils were found as well as stone tools, which are 2.5 million years old and considered the oldest in the world.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">After 1976, political conditions in Ethopia made it impossible for them to go on an expedition for the next fifteen years. With Tim White, Johanson analyzed the fossils <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">that they had found. They named it the Australopithecus afarensis. In 1981, Johanson founded the Institute of Human Origins (IHO), an institution made for the study of prehistory.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In 1987, IHO conducted an expedition to Olduvai Gorge where they found part of a skeleton, OH 62, Homo habilis. Over the years, more afarensis fossils have been found, and the most important one so far is a fossil skull, AL 444-2. In 1997, the IHO moved from Berkeley to Arizona. Here, in Arizona, it became connected with Arizona State University.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Australopithecus
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In theory, Australopithecines lived from 4 to 2.5 million years ago. Australopithecines are thought to have walked on two legs. Until now fossils of the Australopithecines been discovered in Northern Africa and Eastern Africa, and one of these fossils is the famous Australopithecus Lucy. They lived in areas with very few trees, such as on a savanna. Modern apes are similair, so the A. afarensis most likely lived in small families. In these families there were probably one male and several females, as well as children.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Physical Characteristics
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The cranium of an A.afarensis has ape-like characteristics. Their brains may have gone through reorganization once, though there have not been found many cranial remains. The females are most likely smaller than the males, and have less areas for muscle attachment. The australopithecines were smaller than other hominids that were their followers. Under the nose, the face strongly projects. Australopithecines also had more body hair than we do today. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">This hominid is said to maybe have lived in trees, making their shoulders closer to their heads than ours are today. The finger and toe bones are also rather similar to the bones of the great apes alive today. The big toe was used to help keep their balance while standing up. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The most common feature is the Australopithecines small and apelike skull. It can be compared to gorillas and chimpanzees, also when measured to overall body size/height. Though if compared, you would realize that the Australopithecines had smaller canines (the third tooth from the mid line) and molars (teeth used to crush food with). The Australopithecines teeth are still larger then the teeth of modern humans. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Though this hominid is part of our human evolution, they may have had more in common with great apes from today than us, homo sapiens sapiens.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Social Behaviour
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is hard to find out what the behavior of extinct species is like. We think that the social behaviour of the Australopithecus afarensis can easily be compared to the modern species of great apes that exist today.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intelligence
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">It is also not as clear how intelligent the Australopithecines were, but from cranial capacity we can find out if they were more intelligent than apes, which I think they were. Their average brain size is thought to be about 380-430 cm³. Over the years that Australopithecines existed, the increase in brain size was one of the very first hominid adaptive shifts. Though the Australopithecines were not the only ones whose brain became bigger, because over all the years of evolution, brains have also become bigger, like our brains.



<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Use of Tools
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In caves, small stones and twigs were found scattered across the floor. The sticks and stones had sharpened edges. They are proof that also australopithecines also used tools in their daily life. When looking for food, they would probably just use tools that they found lying around. They used twigs, rocks, grass and other simple things. For hunting they used clubs and sticks, but they never used fire or stone tools.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Australopithecines are thought to be our great-great-great-great-great-great...grandparents that lived 4 million years ago. They are different from great apes because this hominid was the first creature to walk upright, unlike other animals. One of the most important ideas about the Australopithecines that you should now understand is that although they did not have a very large brain, they were still capable of other things that apes would not be able to do.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Homo Habilis
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The Homo habilis lived about 2.2 to 1.6 million years ago in the east and south of Africa. The definition of the word habilis is "handy man, skillful person". They lived at the the same time as Paranthropus boisei. They were in theory omnivorous and vegetarian. Homo habilis lived at a time with not many forest foods. Many animals had to leave the area they lived in and search for an area with more nutritional foods. H. habilis ate meat if they could, and they would go out searching for dead bodies of animals. They often had to take the meat under the noses of dangerous predators.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Physical Characteristics
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Males were about 1.30 m high, and they would weigh around 37 kg. females would be 1.00 m high and would weigh about 32 kg. They were short, and had ape-like arms, similar to the Australopithecus afarensis. Though <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;"> they were different to hominids that had lived before Homo habilis. H. habilis had larger brains and smaller teeth. This species of hominids was taller than the hominids that lived before it (Australopithecines). H. habilis also had a rather larger brain than their ancestors. They lived of eating different roots, nuts, fruits and vegetables that they found.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Social Behaviour
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Homo habilis was the first hominid to live in small groups, not families. They worked together, hunted together and shared their learning. This was proved by them maybe be capable of speaking to each other. H. habilis. They would hunt together, and communicate with each other. It is not sure, but they may have told each other stories about the hunts that had happened in the past day/days. This may have happened around a campfire. All of this shows great improvement from when the Australopithecines lived. The groups they lived in would leave an area when there was not enough food left in the place they lived in. These groups often depended on how much food there was in an area. They always tried to have shelter under cliffs, though this was not always possible, because there was often already somebody or something there, such as cave lions.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intelligence
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">H. habilis' brain size was about 47% of a modern brain. Their approximate brain size was 630 cm ³.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Use of Tools
To protect themselves from wild animals, they did not have claws like many predators that were their competitors. They made stone tools that would help them collect food and live more comfortably. These tools that they made they would also use to protect themselves from animals that would try to kill them. H. habilis' weapons were also pretty simple. Scientists are rather sure that H. habilis had and built campfires, though they didn't have the ability to start fires. They would often find it burning from natural causes, such as lightning. There was always someone watching the fire and taking care of it, the fire was precious. This was because they couldn't start it again. Their fire would keep wild and dangerous animals away, for they were afraid of the flames. A campfire was often used as a sleeping area.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
The Australopithecines are the ancestors of the species Homo habilis. A major difference is the increase in brain size. Homo habilis' brain was approximately 200 <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">cm ³ larger than the Australopithecines. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The discovery of fire had also made a difference. Homo habilis could hunt more easily and keep safe because of fire. The use of tools also increased, and they were used more and more often over the millions of years of human evolution.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Homo Erectus
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">The name 'erectus' means upright man. Homo erectus is considered to have lived 1.9 million years ago. A fossil of Homo erectus was first discovered in Indonesia by Eugene Dubois in 1891. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">In Terra Amata, fossils have been found and it seems that the H. erectus might have lived here.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Physical Characteristics
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">H. erectus had a body height similar to modern humans. H. erectus had a more strong and healthy skeleton compared to the hominids that lived before it. H. erectus could grow up to 1.60 metres, though they would usually be around 1.45 metres. The idea that they had longer arms and legs than we have today tells us that they ymust have had a short upper body. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Their bottom jaw is wider and more V-shaped than our jaws today.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Social Behaviour
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Some people think that H. erectus could be a sub-species for our species. Different paleoanthropologists (combined disciplines of paleontology and physical anthropology) think that if erectus were alive today, it might be able to interbreed with modern humans. H. erectus might have been a hunter and a scavenger, but no one knows certainly. Homo erectus is thought to be one of the first 'humans' to live in a hunter-gatherer society. They probably were the first hominids to live in societies, not groups. People believe that H. erectus was socially more like modern humans, probably because of their increase of brain size and the use of more sophisticated (developed to a high degree of complexity) tools. These were occasionally found with fossils. Though the Homo habilis may not have have been able to to make sounds that can be compared to human speech.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intelligence
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">H. erectus' cranial capacity is about 30% less than the average for us. This is about 800-900 cm³. Homo erectus is maybe the first hominid to to hunt in //organized// groups, use more complicated tools and to care about wounded or weak companions. Europe and Asia contain evidence of the controlled use of fire of the H. erectus about 1.5 million years ago.



<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Use of Tools
<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">H. erectus' fossils were often found with tools, such as a hand-axe used for chopping, scraping, pounding and digging. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Some people suggest that H. erectus could not control fire, but light fires. I think it is the other way around, that they could not light fires, but that they could control it. I think that it was the Neanderthals/Homo sapiens that could do both.

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<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
The increase in brain size has and will always be a major difference. The change in brain size from the H. habilis to the H. erectus is about 160 cm<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">³. Their use of tools was also more advanced than the H. habilis' and the Australopithecines. Homo erectus could also control fire better than Homo habilis, and H. erectus could probably also keep it going longer before it went out. <span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Between the lives of the different hominids there have been a lot improvements, and there probably always will be.

Read the text and answer these questions on: []

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Homo Sapien (Neanderthalensis)
The Homo sapien is more commonly known as the Neanderthal. This hominid lived about 230,000 until 35,000 years ago. The name Homo sapien means 'knowing man'. Homo sapien lived spread out across Europe and the Middle East. It is thought that the Homo sapien lived during the last Glacial Age, meaning that they probably were used to the cold that surrounded them all the time.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Physical Characteristics
The average male height for Homo sapiens was 1.65 metres high, which is smaller than the average for modern humans, though they were heavier than the average for us. Their noses were larger than the ones we have today. This is because the size of your nose depends on the temperature of where you come from. The larger the nose, the colder the area you live in is. The Homo sapiens Neanderthalensis had powerful arms and legs, as well as powerful teeth and jaws. Although they had large noses and were a bit chunky, they could still walk upright like us, Homo sapiens sapiens.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Social Behaviour
It is not sure whether H. sapiens had a language that was used to communicate, but they had large enough brains, so there is a good chance that they had a way of speaking to each other. Paintings on the walls of caves have been found, that the Homo sapiens Neanderthalensis created. I think that they made these to show each other how they felt, or maybe they at the end of the day painted paintings about the days hunt. They may also have shown the different warriors and those who died.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intelligence
The brain size for this hominid is 1300 cm<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">³. The hominid Homo sapien is more intelligent than the ones that lived before it. These hominids actually kept themselves warm by wearing skins of animals. This is the clothing they had that they would wear to keep the cold out as much as possible. Neanderthals didn't only have clothing, they could also //light// fires to keep themselves warm.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Use of Tools
There have been tools found with some H. sapiens Neanderthalensis remains. They had tools used to scrape with made out of stone flakes. Each different tool was created for a different task, they wouldn't just be there for all purpose. For hunting there would probably be spears, which wouldn't be used for cutting meat. A stone flake with a sharp edge would be used for cutting meat, not for hunting. Every single tool they made had their own use.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
One of the biggest differences between all hominids is the increase in brain size. The H. sapiens Neanderthalensis also had clothing, which other hominids didn't, at least, there is no evidence that they did. The increase in brain size also gave them the chance to have several different tools. Since H. sapiens Neanderthalensis could light fires, and probably control them better, so you could say that the use and control of fire improved.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Homo Sapiens Sapiens
If you are reading this in public or alone, look around or at yourself. You will see a Homo sapien sapien. This is because we, modern humans, are Homo sapiens sapiens (meaning 'wise man')! It can be scary to think that we are hominids, and in a way can be connected to the Australopithecines, but this is because of human evolution. We humans, or Homo sapiens sapiens, first appeared 200,000 years ago, though we reached our full behavioural modernity 50,000 years ago.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Physical Characteristics
Well, get a mirror and look at yourself! That is what a Homo sapien sapien looks like. Not that everyone looks like you, but that we humans don't have as much body hair as the Australopithecines, for example. You could compare what we look likek to the hominids that lived before us, we have a less pointed jaw than the Homo erectus's, our average height is higher than the average height of the Homo habilis's. The average height of a human adult is from 1.5 metres to 1.8 metres. Did you know that the talst human on earth was 2.72 metres tall? A Homo sapiens sapiens physical appearance depends on height, weight, hair, shapes of body parts, etc.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Social Behaviour
Our behaviour is often influenced by values, culture, emotions and other people. I think that these are the most important factors that can affect your behaviour. We have made clothing to wear, and plenty of books and electronics to entertain ourselves.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Intelligence
<span style="font-family: Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px; line-height: 18px;">The average cranial capacity for us Homo sapiens sapiens is from about 1300 cm **3** to 1500 cm **3**. The increase in brain size and understanding of different things around us has made it possible for us to create new clothing, buildings, electronics, etc. Many people think that our brain size still will increase of the many years to come, and I belieive this is true.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Use of Tools
Some important tools we use today to build things are for example cranes, and other large programmed machines. For hunting we have guns and also traps. We keep animals as pets. I think that horses can be considered to be used as pets, but also to transport thing that are heavy and that we often can't carry ourselves.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
A change from the Homo sapien Neanderthalensis is increase in brain size, which has been a major defference between all hominid. Size, intelligence, use of tools, etc., have also changed. Physical appearance has also changed (luckily) over the many thousands of years of evolution.

<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif;">Conclusion
As this essay is coming to an end, you should understand that we did not come from apes. They may have lived at the same time as our hominid ancestors, though we did not evolve from apes, though from Australopithecines. This evolution theory is important to understand that although many people look similar, in many, many, many, etc., years we humans will look completely different. No one would expect someone to be born with a brain three times the size of ours in a few days, no. Every person has a microscopic bit more brain than us, so in a thousand years humans might have a brains larger than ours, though not much. The different changes have mainly been use of tools, intelligence, behaviour, and physical characteristics. You should also now understand the main differences between the different hominids that have lived in this world. Is all of this true? Did we evolve from these hominids, or is it unknown? Think of more questions.

Review of main idea:

__//<span style="font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 20px;">According to theories of human evolution, many changes in humanity have enabled us to make progress.....towards society. //__

Notecards
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