• POLITICS
  • SCIENCE
    • Astronomy
    • Physics
    • Biology
    • Geology
    • Environment
    • Medicine and Health
    • Sociology
    • Psychology
  • MOVIES & TV SHOWS
  • TECHNOLOGY
    • Artificial Intelligence
    • Virtual Reality
    • Bionics
    • Nanotechnology
    • Engineering
    • Robotics
    • Space Exploration
    • Transport
    • Industry and Service
  • GADGETS
    • Mobile Devices
    • Wearables
    • Consoles
    • Hi-Tech
  • GEEK CULTURE
    • Gaming
    • Comics
    • Thingamajigs
  • MUSIC
  • SOFTWARE
    • APPS
      • Android
      • iOS
      • Windows
  • HARDWARE
  • CARS
  • REVIEWS
  • Advertise
  • Geek Reply Jobs
  • Contact Us
Geek Reply
  • HOME
  • Editorials
  • Geek Squad
  • GeekReply Jobs
  • Contact Us
  • Facebook

  • Twitter

  • Google+

  • LinkedIn

  • RSS

Biology

New Evidence Modifies Homo sapiens Chronology and Behavior

Two reconstructed Homo sapiens skulls recovered from the excavations at Jebel Irhoud, Morocco.
New Evidence Modifies Homo sapiens Chronology and Behavior
Brian Trail
Brian Trail
June 11, 2017

Earlier this month, researchers published an article outlining new evidence from an excavation in Jebel Irhoud (Morocco) that provides the earliest date yet for the presence of Homo sapiens. A variety of dating methods provide an age of about 315,000 years ago (kya). Prior to this, the earliest securely dated evidence for Homo sapiens were the bones from the Omo Kibish site in Ethiopia dating to about 195 kya.

The decades-long excavation at Jebel Irhoud has uncovered various types of palaeo archaeological data. The skeletal material (e.g. skull, mandible, teeth, humerus, hip bone) shows that there were at least five individuals. The assemblage of stone tools includes examples of the Mousterian industry and the Levallois napping technique. Both of these are closely associated with Neanderthals (Homo neanderthalensis), though are not exclusive to the species. Also, the majority of the tools were made from stone not native to the Jebed Irhoud area. Other recovered evidence includes examples of fire use and animal bones (primarily gazelle) showing signs of hunting and butchering.

Dating Methods

A variety of dating techniques helped establish the age of the new assemblage at 315 kya. The research team measured sediment from the different stratigraphic levels for the quantity of radiation present. They used electron spin resonance on bone samples. Finally, the researchers applied thermoluminescence to the stone tools that were in direct association with the bones. Unfortunately, the research team was unable to extract DNA from the bones.

Homo sapiens stone tools from Jebel Irhoud, Morocco

Samples of stone tools recovered from Jebel Irhoud (Morocco).

Importance of Evidence

The importance of the evidence is twofold. First, it secures a mature development of Homo sapiens over 100,000 years earlier than previous evidence indicated. The date does not remove the firm placement of Homo sapiens within the Middle Pleistocene and during the Middle Palaeolithic. However, a date of 315 kya does provide overlap with the existence of Homo heidelbergensis. Previous evidence indicated that Homo sapiens developed from Homo heidelbergensis between 300 – 200 kya. The Jebel Irhoud data do not exclude this hypothesis but it means that Homo sapiens must have developed much earlier, probably closer to the nadir of Homo antecessor. It also means that Homo sapiens had much longer contemporaneity with Homo erectus than previously known.

The second important aspect is the location of the finds. Morocco is around 3,400 miles from Ethiopia. The prevailing models of human evolution place the development of Homo sapiens in Ethiopia. This makes sense based on the quantity and age of data recovered from sites in Ethiopia and in East Africa. The location of the new finds, and the fact that the fossils represent developed Homo sapiens, indicate that our ancestors had already moved across the continent in viable population sizes so the broad evolutionary changes that resulted in our species had already occurred.

The Jebel Irhoud evidence does not lessen the importance of East Africa in understanding the development of our species. Rather, it contributes data to provide a richer, more robust picture of hominid development and migrations across Africa and the world. It is quite exciting to imagine what else the excavation will recover to further elucidate the history of hominids and Homo sapiens. What are your thoughts?

Nature

W3Schools
Related ItemsAfricaexcavationfeaturedFossilshominidhomininHomo sapienshuman evolutionJebed IrhoudLevalloisMoroccoMousterianNeanderthalpaleoanthropologypaleoarchaeology
Biology
June 11, 2017
Brian Trail
Brian Trail @BWTrail

Archaeology, technology, science, movies and TV shows, video games, government and politics, reading sci-fi and fantasy, '60s/70s classic rock. These are the areas in which I spend my days (somewhere in there are food and travel...).

Related ItemsAfricaexcavationfeaturedFossilshominidhomininHomo sapienshuman evolutionJebed IrhoudLevalloisMoroccoMousterianNeanderthalpaleoanthropologypaleoarchaeology

More in Biology

Chinese Dinosaur Might Have Been as Iridescent as a Hummingbird

Aaron GreenbaumJanuary 17, 2018
Read More

Scientists Discover Velociraptor’s Cousin, and It Looks Like a Swan

Aaron GreenbaumDecember 6, 2017
Read More

Researchers Use Stem Cells to Help Rats with Paraplegia Walk Again

Aaron GreenbaumNovember 17, 2017
Read More

Scientists Discover Jellyfish Sleep Even Though They Don’t Have Brains

Aaron GreenbaumSeptember 21, 2017
Read More

Ancient Fossils Rewrite Evolutionary Timeline of Complex Animals

Aaron GreenbaumSeptember 11, 2017
Read More

A Portuguese Fish Can Clone Itself

Aaron GreenbaumMay 26, 2017
Read More

A Major Initiative Will Catalyse Organ And Tissue Regeneration

Varun RainMay 3, 2017
Read More

The Teleocrater: Dinosaurs May Have Been More Closely Related to Crocodiles Than We Thought

Aaron GreenbaumApril 15, 2017
Read More

Turns Out the Tasmanian Tiger Might Not Be Extinct After All

Aaron GreenbaumApril 7, 2017
Read More
Scroll for more
Tap

Game Deals

  • Popular

  • Latest

  • Comments

  • Esports is now an Official Medal Event at 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games
    Opinion PiecesDecember 30, 2020
  • Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac
    Stellar Data Recovery Professional for Mac- It can surely save the day
    ReviewsSeptember 26, 2019
  • Esports is now an Official Medal Event at 2022 Hangzhou Asian Games
    Opinion PiecesDecember 30, 2020
  • gaming equipment
    Maintaining Your Mental and Physical Health While Gaming
    GamingDecember 16, 2020
  • How Futuristic Movies Compare to Reality
    Geek CultureOctober 27, 2020
  • The end of geo-blocking within the EU
    Opinion PiecesOctober 19, 2020
  • Just 10% Of iPhone X Users Want Apple To Remove The Notch, Survey Says – My WordPress Website says:

    […] There are lots of requests that Apple users are…

  • The 9 most plausible rumors in regards to the new iPhones – Mark Swarrts says:

    […] Just 10% Of iPhone X Users Want Apple To…

  • Onimusha: Warlords HD PS4/Xbox One Box Art Revealed - GameSinners says:

    […] mean for the series, as its success could result…

  • 5 Essential Tips to Setup a Web Hosting Business | Your Own Website says:

    […] Source link […]

Geek Reply

Greetings techies! We are Geek Reply, a website whose main goal is to bring you all the latest news and updates from within the industry and beyond. What can you expect to find here?

Professional journalism coupled with expository writing for the most part, but we also give our honest opinion or throw in a pinch of humor for good measure when we deem it necessary. Our team is comprised of enthusiasts from across a wide variety of fields ranging from smartphone junkies to camera nerds, and everything in between. But perhaps you were looking for your daily dose of science news or hoping to read about the latest apps. If that’s the case, don’t worry, you came to the right place.

GeekReply Secured with GeekReply Scured
Nintendo Switch GeekReply

Copyright © 2020 GeekReply - Webdesign & Marketing - iPublicitate

Anthropological Reflections on Anthropomorphic Robots
Neil Degrasse Tyson Launches Kickstarter for Space Odyssey