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Did we descend from Homo antecessor or Homo heidelbergensis?
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Apr 9, 2025
In this video, we dive into the fascinating world of human evolution during the Lower and Middle Pleistocene periods, spanning from about 2.6 million to 126,000 years ago. Discover the rise of early hominins like Homo erectus, Homo antecessor, and Homo heidelbergensis, each playing a crucial role in shaping the course of human history. We explore the emergence of Homo erectus around 1.8 million years ago in Africa and Asia, known for their advanced tool use and adaptability. In Europe, Homo antecessor appears around 1.2 million years ago, showcasing a mix of primitive and modern traits, including evidence of early social behaviors and tool-making. Join us as we delve into the archaeological findings at the Gran Dolina site in Spain, where fossils of Homo antecessor reveal a combination of primitive and modern features, providing key insights into the evolutionary path of early humans. We also discuss the intriguing debate surrounding Homo heidelbergensis, a species potentially bridging the gap between Neanderthals and modern humans, and how these ancient populations navigated the challenges of their environments. Discover how these early humans adapted to their surroundings, developed complex behaviors, and laid the foundation for future generations. Learn about the debates and discoveries that continue to shape our understanding of where we come from, including the use of ancient DNA and protein analysis to trace our lineage. Don’t miss this in-depth exploration of our ancient ancestors and the evolutionary milestones that define the human story.
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0:02
[Music]
0:04
the lower Pline period spanning from
0:07
about 2.6 million to 780,000 years ago
0:12
was a time of remarkable Evolution and
0:14
adaptation for early
0:17
hominin at the heart of this fascinating
0:19
chapter are some truly intriguing
0:22
figures like Homo erectus and Homo
0:25
antecessor early in this period around
0:28
1.8 million years ago Homo erectus
0:31
emerged and became the dominant hominin
0:34
species in Africa and parts of Asia
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known for their use of more advanced
0:39
tools and their ability to adapt to
0:41
diverse environments Homo erectus marked
0:44
a significant step in human
0:47
evolution homo antecessor represents one
0:50
of the earliest known human species in
0:52
Western Europe homo antecessor showed a
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mix of primitive and more modern traits
0:58
indicating a transitional phase in human
1:02
evolution this species was likely
1:04
involved in early tool making and social
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behaviors that would set the stage for
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future
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advancements homo antecessor offers a
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glimpse into human exploration of the
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vast Landscapes of Europe during the
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lower ply toine Epoch they were crafting
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rudimentary tools navigating shifting
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environments and slowly shaping the
1:26
course of human
1:28
history but the homo antecessor is one
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of the earliest known species in Europe
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and provides crucial evidence of the
1:35
technological and behavioral
1:37
advancements that marked this
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era with a mix of primitive and more
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advanced traits these early humans were
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not just surviving but beginning to
1:47
demonstrate complex behaviors their
1:49
tools were simple yet Innovative for
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their time reflecting their growing
1:54
cognitive abilities and
1:57
adaptability homo antecessor fossils
1:59
were first discovered at a site called
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Grand Delina located in Sierra deap pora
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in bergus Northern
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Spain the Sierra de atap pora is a small
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mountain range in Northern Spain located
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about 15 km east of
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bergus it covers an area of about 25
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Square km and has a maximum height of
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1,082
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M the Sierra is situated between two
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river basins the duero and the e
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and is an important natural feature
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connecting these
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regions the area experiences both
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Atlantic and Mediterranean climates
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which have likely contributed to its
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Rich biodiversity making it an
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attractive place for ancient human
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ancestors during the Pline and Holocene
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periods many important archaeological
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and paleontological sites are found in
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the Sierra di atap porca particularly
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within a system of caves formed in the
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lime Stone
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rocks these fossils were found between
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1994 and 1996 during archaeological
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excavations the site has many layers
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named td1 to td11 with the fossils
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coming from one specific layer called
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td6 the td6 level has been divided into
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three sublevels named td61 td6 2 and TD
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63 the human fossils together with more
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than 300 artifacts and several thousand
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micro and macro mammal fossil remains
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come from sublevel td6
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2 the fossils were found to be from a
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time between 790,000 and 960,000 years
3:44
ago during the early Pline
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period fossilized pollen suggests a
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Mediterranean climate in td6 and the
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study of amphibians and reptiles
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indicates slightly warmer temperatures
3:57
than today in Bergos
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the human remains found in td6 of the
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grand dolina cave are well preserved but
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many are in fragments due to evidence of
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cannibalism researchers studied various
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features of the skulls and bones
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including teeth Jaws in the
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face in trying to determine the minimum
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number of individuals represented in td6
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researchers face challenges due to the
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extensive fragmentation of The
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Remains the T D6 collection includes
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deciduous teeth permanent inzer germs
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and complete lower incizors suggesting
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the presence of both immature and adult
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individuals the estimation of minimum
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number of individuals is preliminary but
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it's notable that a high percentage of
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about 75% of the individuals are
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immature one important fossil from the
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grand alen site is a parietal bone from
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a young individual estimated to be
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between 4 and 12 years old this bone
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shows some primitive features similar to
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earlier human species like homo orter
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and Homo
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erectus the shape of the bone suggests
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the individual would carry these early
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traits into
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adulthood in contrast the facial Bones
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from the same site show more modern
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features for instance the midface of one
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specimen resembles modern humans with a
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distinct canine fossa and a specific
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shape of the upper
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jaw these traits are similar to what we
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see in today's humans but were present
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earlier than in most other known
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fossils the mandibles from grelina are
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notably lighter and less robust compared
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to other early human
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fossils they also have some primitive
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features but show some similarities to
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modern humans and Neanderthals in
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specific as aspects like the shape of
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the mandibular Notch and the absence of
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certain bony
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features the teeth of these early humans
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have a mix of primitive and derived
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traits for example the teeth show
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patterns similar to both early humans
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and Neanderthals but also some unique
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features that differentiate
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them overall these fossils from Grand
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Delina show a mix of old and new traits
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this combination of features helps
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scientists understand how human
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evolution happened showing both
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primitive and modern characteristics in
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these early
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ancestors in Europe the earliest
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technological record is represented by
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the scarce and Scattered mode one
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technology often deriving from
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occasional occupations or restricted
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activity
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areas the tools and materials found at a
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site do not provide a complete picture
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of the actual activities and
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technological processes that occurred
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there
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the earliest tools have been found at a
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site called sadel
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lefante people at this site used mostly
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simple stone Flakes and some Limestone
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pieces to make tools these tools were
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created using a straightforward
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technique where flakes were struck off
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from a single
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Direction the site was used occasionally
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mainly for making tools and eating
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animal food they might have done these
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activities either inside the cave or
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nearby
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the tools found at the SEMA Delante site
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are associated with early human species
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but it's not definitively established
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that they were made by homo
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antecessor the site is older than the
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earliest known homo antecessor fossils
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which are found at Grand
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Delina at SEMA Del elephante the tools
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are typically linked to early hominins
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from around 1.2 million years
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ago later at grandol
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especially in the td6 level the tool
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making techniques became more advanced
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people used various materials like chirt
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and quartzite to make tools and employ
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different techniques to shape
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them they created a variety of tools and
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while they used many small and
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medium-sized ones there were no large
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tools for heavy tasks this indicates
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that their tool making and usage were
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becoming more sophisticated and
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specialized the most one technology at
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td6 of grand Alina homo antecessor
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demonstrated adaptable tool making by
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using various raw materials like small
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uniform Cretaceous chir and quartz while
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less carefully selecting quartzite and
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Sandstone they employed different core
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reduction strategies such as early
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discarding or extensive shaping by
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rotating the core depending on the
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material size and
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quality this flexibility in practi iCal
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approach rather than a rigid plan
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suggests they adapted their techniques
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to the specific materials and conditions
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they
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encountered the site was used much more
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intensively during the lower PTO scene
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suggesting it was a regular home base
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for Gathering large mammals in the
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cave these included complex behaviors
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including hunting carcass transport
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social cooperation and food sharing as
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well as the oldest evidence of cannibal
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ISM documented in
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prehistory they mainly hunted
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opportunistically as seen from the cut
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marks and breakage patterns on Bones
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which indicate they often had Early
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Access to their prey and transported
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intact carcasses back to their
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base the choices made in transporting
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these carcasses were influenced by
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various factors not just the weight of
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the animals while some bones are missing
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from the fossil record due to carnivore
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activity it's clear that homo antecessor
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was responsible for processing the
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carcasses multiple individuals
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participated in hunting and transporting
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carcasses showing signs of social
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cooperation food sharing and a division
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of tasks within the
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group to understand the position of homo
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antecessor in human evolution it is
10:23
worthwhile to discuss homo
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heidelbergensis the concept of homo hyle
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bensis start started in 1983 with the
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study of a skull from petralona
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Greece over time scientists have debated
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whether this species originated in
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Africa or Western Asia and whether it
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might be the common ancestor of modern
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humans and
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Neanderthals the name Homo heidleberg
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insis comes from a mandible found near
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heidleberg Germany which was dated to
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around 616,000 years ago this suggests
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it could be the oldest known European
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middle pene
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human in the period between 770,000 and
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126,000 years ago Earth was buzzing with
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action this period called the middle
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Pline was a pivotal era in human history
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it witnessed the rise of various human
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species across different parts of the
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world modern humans emerged in Africa
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while neanderthals made their Mark in
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Europe and the denisovans left their
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races in Mainland
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Asia alongside Advanced species more
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primitive features were seen in Homo
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erectus
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homoni and earlier species like homo
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floresiensis in Flores island of
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Indonesia and Homo lanis in the
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Philippines added to the
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diversity during the middle PTO scene
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significant changes in human morphology
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behavior and Technology occurred brain
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volume increased sharp Lalo's tools
12:00
emerged and evidence of fire use and
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complex settlements reflected enhanced
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cognitive
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abilities this era was influenced by the
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early to Middle Pline transition marked
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by global climatic fluctuations
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impacting ecosystems human populations
12:19
and their evolutionary
12:21
trajectory ancient DNA studies show
12:24
insights into relationships between
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neanderthals denisovans and modern
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humans modern humans diverge from
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neanderthals around 500,000 years ago
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and denisovans around 600,000 years
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ago these findings illustrate diverse
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evolutionary paths taken by human groups
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over hundreds of thousands of years
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highlighting the dynamic nature of human
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evolution
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worldwide between approximately 600,000
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and 300,000 years ago different
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populations of a ancestor began to show
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variations leading to the formation of
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distinct
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groups these groups or subspecies were
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geographically separated but still
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belong to the same ancestral
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species after 300,000 years ago new
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species emerged from these
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differentiated
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populations these new species were
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defined based on genetic morphological
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and behavioral differences known as
13:28
apomorphy
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there's ongoing debate about how these
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speciation events occurred in the
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taxonomic status of many fossil
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specimens found in Africa and
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Eurasia the most curious question is the
13:43
exact identity of the last common
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ancestor from which modern humans
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neanderthals and Denny sens ultimately
13:51
originated most Scholars identify homo H
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highle binus as the last common ancestor
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based on fossil evidence
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homo heidleberg insis existed between
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approximately 900,000 and 300,000 years
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ago and exhibited significant
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variability in morphology and
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geography in 1907 a Jawbone was found
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near heidleberg Germany and the Sands
14:17
deposited by the necer river the species
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was named homo Heidelberg insus popular
14:23
known as the Mau jaw it was well
14:25
preserved lacking a bony chin but with
14:28
teeth similar to those of modern
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humans primitive features in the
14:33
specimen suggested that homo
14:34
heidelbergensis could be distinguished
14:36
from Asian and African representatives
14:39
of homo
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erectus the Mau jaw is often grouped
14:44
with mandibles and partial craniums from
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arago cave in France and petrona in
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Greece if we include the SEMA deos Usos
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in Spain additional skulls and numerous
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postcranial bones can be added to the
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species
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typod the petrona and arago specimens
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also share anatomical similarities with
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crania from various locations including
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broken Hill also called cab Cranium in
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Zambia a lance Fontaine in South Africa
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and Bodo from the middle aash of
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Ethiopia this suggests that homo
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heidleberg inses may have inhabited both
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Africa and
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Europe the species is considered
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potentially related not only to
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neanderthals but also to modern
15:33
humans anatomically homo highle Beres
15:36
had a bigger brain compared to Homo
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erectus averaging around
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1,230 cubic
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cm the skull relatively is taller than
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in Homo
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erectus the front of the head is wider
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the sides are high and arched like in
15:53
modern humans and the back is more
15:56
rounded the part at the back of the
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skull is is longer than in Homo
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erectus the jaw joint is similar to that
16:04
of homo sapiens along with certain parts
16:07
of the ear bone the Bony ridge above the
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eyes is still quite
16:13
large the front part of the head is
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flatter like in Homo
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erectus the overall shape is less round
16:20
compared to modern humans the face is
16:23
connected to the skull in a way that
16:26
emphasizes the projection of the face
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the nose opening is more vertical and
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the canal in the front of the upper jaw
16:34
is placed more forward than in Homo
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rectus the point where the two halves of
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the jaw meat is receding and there's a
16:44
developed internal area for the teeth
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European jaws of homo H highle bines
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also look similar to
16:52
neanderthals some individuals from Sima
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de los Usos were tall and robust with
16:58
limbo bones and a pelvis suggesting
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possible differences in size between
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males and females similar to what we see
17:05
in recent
17:07
populations the classification of homo
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heidelbergensis in the Human family Tree
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is a debated topic the Mau mandible
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dating back 69,000 years is among the
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oldest middle Pline fossils in Europe
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aligning with findings in Bodo
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Africa some scientists suggest replacing
17:28
homo heidelbergensis with homo boduan as
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supporters say it clarifies middle ply
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toine hominine
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classification especially from Africa
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and the Eastern
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Mediterranean opponents argue against
17:42
changing long-standing names expressing
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concerns about confusion and potential
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political
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motivations the evolution and
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classification of these middle plast
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toine hominins is debated one view
17:56
groups populations into evolving grades
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within Homo sapiens indicating a single
18:02
lineage with brain and skull
18:05
advancements alternatively some proposed
18:07
cladogenesis within homo arguing for a
18:10
unique morphology in living humans that
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separates them from most fossil hominins
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they believe only those sharing specific
18:18
features should be considered Homo
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sapiens some researchers propose two
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lineages the European Branch including
18:27
neanderthals traces back to the middle
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plasto scene through fossils like
18:31
petralona arago seelos Usos and
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Mau this perspective suggests repeated
18:39
speciation events another lineage rooted
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in Africa includes specimens like broken
18:45
Hill elans fontine and Bodo referred to
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as homo
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rensis some late members display a mix
18:53
of archaic and modern
18:55
features an alternative view argues
18:58
minor morphological differences in
19:00
ancient European and African fossils
19:03
attributing them to geography and
19:04
Intergroup
19:06
variation this approach Advocates
19:08
classifying them under one taxon homo
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hyal bensis challenging distinct
19:15
lineages if the broader homo
19:17
heidelbergensis classification is
19:19
accepted it could be the ancestor to
19:22
neanderthals and modern Homo sapiens
19:25
determining the preferred scenario
19:27
depends on the strength of morphometric
19:30
similarities notably findings from the
19:33
petrona cranium support homo H highle
19:36
bensis as a widespread polytypic
19:40
species around 1,000 to 900,000 years
19:44
ago earth's climate experienced glacial
19:47
Cycles every 100,000
19:49
years at the beginning of the middle pla
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scene there was a notable change in the
19:55
environment marked by The Disappearance
19:57
of villafranchian faas leading to a
19:59
decline or disappearance of human
20:02
populations using oldo one
20:05
tools after about 650,000 years ago
20:09
there was a shift in Europe we start
20:11
seeing the use of more advanced Hulan
20:14
tools associated with human remains the
20:17
tools and fossils indicate similarities
20:20
with African
20:21
contexts it suggests a possible
20:24
migration route from Africa to Europe
20:27
through the Middle East
20:29
in West Asia aulian Technologies
20:33
possibly originating in Africa appeared
20:36
before 1.35 million years ago in ubia
20:39
Israel and from 750,000 years ago
20:43
onwards in jeser Ben Yakov
20:47
Israel this aligns with archaeological
20:50
sites and human fossils in mid low
20:53
latitude regions of Africa and Europe
20:57
fossils from Mau and Germany and arago
20:59
cave in France distinct from homo
21:02
antecessor resemble those from terine in
21:05
Algeria suggesting homo heidleberg an's
21:08
spread from Africa to Eurasia
21:11
introducing euline
21:13
artifacts these findings including tools
21:16
and human remains in Italy and Frei
21:19
indicate advancement possibly influenced
21:21
by Africa through the West
21:23
Asia after reaching Europe in the middle
21:26
PTO scene homo heidleberg is adapted to
21:29
harsh conditions during glacial Cycles
21:32
leading to Neanderthal characteristics
21:34
through genetic drift in small or
21:36
isolated
21:38
groups concurrently homo heidelbergensis
21:40
in Africa evolve toward anatomically
21:43
modern Homo sapiens fossils from
21:46
locations like aoud in Morocco omo
21:49
kibish in Ethiopia heru in the middle
21:51
aash region and Loli in Tanzania
21:54
document this progression towards homo
21:56
sapiens
21:58
scientists are debating recent findings
22:01
at s deos Usos challenging our
22:04
understanding of Neanderthal
22:05
Evolution the skulls from Sima delos
22:08
usus exhibit traits expected in early
22:12
neanderthals characteristics like a bony
22:15
ridge above the eyes broad nasal bones
22:18
and a distinct part at the back of the
22:19
head suggests similarities to
22:21
neanderthals teeth from SEMA deusas
22:24
closely resemble Neanderthal
22:26
teeth compared to other ancient skulls
22:29
like Mau or arago Calusa skulls appear
22:33
more Neanderthal
22:35
like some scientists propose Sima deos
22:38
Usos as the source population for
22:41
neanderthals while Mau and arago
22:43
represent a different
22:45
group this suggests two coexisting
22:48
species during the European Middle plene
22:51
homo heidelbergensis predating
22:52
neanderthals and early neanderthals
22:55
challenging previous Notions of human
22:57
evolution complex
23:00
fossils across Europe hint that
23:02
Neanderthal traits showed up first in
23:05
the Western and Atlantic regions and
23:06
spread Eastward
23:08
later genetic signals also complicate
23:12
things mitochondrial DNA suggests a link
23:15
to denisovans while nuclear DNA shows
23:18
closer ties to
23:19
neanderthals this makes it hard to place
23:21
SEMA deos Usos with neanderthals
23:24
especially with denisovans in the
23:27
mix Homo sapiens likely originated in
23:30
Africa during the late middle
23:32
Pline potentially evolving from homo H
23:35
highle Bergens is due to climate
23:38
shifts following Homo erectus a gap in
23:42
fossil record spans 900 to 600,000 years
23:45
ago with Advanced features emerging
23:47
around 600,000 years ago mainly in
23:50
Southeastern
23:52
Africa further advancements including
23:55
larger brains and modern features occur
23:58
occurred around 300,000 years
24:01
ago some researchers thought homo
24:04
antecessor might be the common ancestor
24:06
of neandertals and modern humans because
24:08
it has a modern-like face however this
24:12
idea has
24:14
challenges the geographic position of
24:16
the Iberian Peninsula in the western
24:19
most extreme of the Eurasian continent
24:21
is far away from Africa where most
24:24
believe modern humans
24:26
originated moreover the geological age
24:29
of the td6 level is difficult to
24:32
conciliate with the fact that neander
24:34
paals and modern humans split later than
24:36
this age recent genetic studies suggest
24:40
the split between modern humans and
24:42
neandertals happened between
24:44
0.34 and
24:46
0.54 million years
24:48
ago some researchers think modern like
24:51
facial features evolved independently in
24:54
different places and times homo
24:56
antecessor might not be the direct
24:58
ancestor of modern humans but rather a
25:01
side branch in Western
25:03
Europe however from a cladistic point of
25:06
view this lineage would stem out very
25:08
close to the last common ancestor of
25:10
homo sapiens and homon
25:14
neanderthalensis another population from
25:17
a nearby site called sadela lefante
25:20
dated to about 1.1 to 1.2 million years
25:23
ago might represent an earlier migration
25:26
into Europe though this is is still
25:29
uncertain studies of early human Dental
25:32
features suggest that no known fossil
25:34
including antecessor and heidleberg enes
25:37
fit the role last common ancestor of
25:40
neandertals and modern
25:42
humans there is a possibility that the
25:45
genetic estimates for the split between
25:47
neandertals and modern humans might be
25:50
too recent and differences and dental
25:52
features could have developed before
25:54
these species
25:56
diverged homo intercessor does share
25:59
some traits with neandertals and other
26:01
early hominins but these traits might
26:04
not specifically indicate a direct
26:06
lineage instead they may reflect common
26:09
features in early human
26:12
populations ancient DNA analysis has
26:15
been tough because ancient DNA doesn't
26:18
survive well over
26:19
time alternatively ancient proteins
26:22
found in Dental enamel are helping to
26:25
understand the position of antecessor
26:28
in a recent study scientists analyzed
26:31
Dental enamel from two key fossil groups
26:34
homo antecessor from Spain and Homo
26:36
erectus from
26:38
Georgia extracting proteins from the
26:41
deines dentine sample only yielded a few
26:44
collagen fragments so they didn't
26:47
analyze it
26:48
further however they successfully
26:50
retrieved and analyzed ancient enamel
26:53
proteins from both hominin and recent
26:55
human
26:57
teeth the the proteins included those
26:59
specific to enamel like amelogenin and
27:02
enamelin as well as some common proteins
27:05
like serum Alban and
27:07
collagen homo antecessor is closely
27:10
related to but not part of the group
27:13
that includes neanderthals denisovans
27:16
and modern
27:18
humans homo antecessor might be a sister
27:20
group to the common ancestor of these
27:23
species meaning it was closely related
27:25
but separate this aligns with other
27:28
findings that homo antecessor lived
27:30
around the time when Homo sapiens and
27:32
Neanderthals are thought to have
27:35
diverged it's thought that the ancestors
27:38
of neandertals and modern humans split
27:40
earlier than previously believed and
27:42
this split might have involved different
27:44
populations moving into
27:46
Europe there is evidence suggesting that
27:49
Eurasia played a significant role in
27:51
early human evolution with migrations
27:54
into Europe occurring due to various
27:56
Geographic and climatic
27:59
factors the current theory suggests that
28:02
modern humans originated in Africa while
28:05
neandertal evolved in
28:08
Europe however some believe that early
28:10
human populations might have mixed or
28:13
migrated between Africa and Eurasia
28:16
particularly through the letine corridor
28:18
key region connecting Africa and
28:22
Eurasia this mixing and migration could
28:24
have continued until climatic changes
28:27
around 1 million years ago which might
28:29
have contributed to the separation of
28:31
populations and the eventual evolution
28:34
of neandertals in modern humans
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