ANTHROP 1AA3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 18: Rising Star Cave, Laetoli, Bipedalism
6 Mar 2017
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Document Summary
When and where did the first humans appear: hominid humans and their direct ancestors, multidisciplinary, physical sciences, biological sciences, social sciences. What are fossils: organic material (e. g. bone) is replaced by minerals from surrounding soil - petrifaction. Where are the earliest fossils found: east and south africa. Earliest hominin fossils: ardipithecus ramidus (~4. 4 million years ago, 35 individual sets of bones from this species, ape like skeleton, doesn"t have flexibility in big toe for grasping (not opposable, not certain if bipedal. What does a hominid look like: small front teeth & large molars, bipedalism & associated anatomical adaptations, have good manual dexterity. Australopithecus afarensis (~4-3 million years ago: most famous lucy (30-40% complete, s shaped spine; broad pelvis, bipedal features. Laetoli footprints: found in tanzania (1978, evidence for bipedal. Hypotheses: man as hunter, 2-parent family & sexual division of labor, food-sharing and carrying, carrying offspring, enhanced heat loss, communication.
