Modern Homo Sapiens

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Modern Homo Sapiens

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Homo sapiens sapiens

• It is generally accepted that Homo sapiens
  sapiens evolved from Homo erectus.
• They evolved in sub-Saharan Africa sometime
  between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago.
• Their cranial size was around 1200 cc, compared
  to modern humans average size of 1400 cc.

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Homo sapiens sapiens

• Skeletally and anatomically, early humans were
  extremely similar to modern day humans.
• Theoretically, early Homo sapiens sapiens would
  be able to learn such abstract concepts such as
  physics and calculus as well as modern humans
  could if exposed to these concepts culturally.

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Homo sapiens sapiens

• Humans flourished around the time of the
  extinction of Neanderthals around 35,000 years
  ago.
• The interaction of modern humans and Neanderthals
  occurred between 100,000 and 40,000 years ago.
  They were different genetically because of
  500,000 years of reproductive separation.

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The Journey from Africa

• Modern Homo Sapiens developed in Eastern Africa
  between 200,000 and 100,000 years ago and spread
  around the world from there.
• This was not a planned, massed Exodus, but a
  process taking many, many generations and
  thousands of years.

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Regional Continuity

• In the past, scholars thought that Homo sapiens
  evolved at the same time in different places
  around the world.

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or Replacement?

• Now, scientists believe that all modern humans
  are descended from a single tribe that left
  Africa around 70,000 years ago.

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100k Years Ago
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67k-25k Years Ago
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About 50k Years Ago
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50k-40k Years Ago
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20k-15k Years Ago
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How Do We Know?

• GENETICS
• -Mitochondrial DNA
• Frequent mutation, no recombination
• traces back to an ancestral eve
• original population 500-10000 individuals
• Africans tested have largest variation
• -Y Genome
• small variation, father to son
• indicates multiple migrations
• -Recently, National Geographic Society organizing
  project to trace migration through blood

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Hunting and Gathering

• 99 of our human history
• groups still, today San people of S. Africa
  (language)
• efficient hunters, wiped out many big species
• knowledgeable about the land
• early on used spears, later bows

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Pre Neolithic Transition

• -warmer climates
• -meat less of a role, shifted game
• -less movement
• -bigger populations, early signs of agriculture

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Neolithic

• Early Pacific 6000-5000 ya
• water vessels, pottery, fishing, signs of rice
  cultivation
• Spread of language 8000-6300 ya
• Anatolia origin of the Indo-European family
• Aborigines develop around 400-600 different
  languages
• Agriculture 12000-8000 ya
• allows bigger populations, early cities
• beginnings of civilization
• happened independently in several areas

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Neolithic (cont)

• Time of Invention
• housing, law, writing, beer
• Early Civilizations
• Sumerian, Egypt, China
• Metallurgy 10,000-5,000 ya
• Empires and War since 3,200-1,500 ya
• Cotton grown in modern day Pakistan circa 5,000
  ya

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To the Presentand Beyond

• New inventions
• Rise and falls of civilizations
• Now digitial and computer age
• Gene splicing Homo perfectus

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Source Material

• www.ecotao.com/holism/hu_sap.htm
• www.mines.edu/fs_home/jsneed/courses/LISS.38083/LI
  SS.380/syllabus/week.1/session.2/sapiens/index.sht
  ml
• Carter, Joseph. Prehistoric Life CD
• Bartrams Garden. Field (Picture). 2004. Online
  lthttp//www.bartramsgarden.org/images/happenings/a
  merican_roots_07_05/american_roots_7_05.jpggt
• Evans, Laurence. Natures Holism. Online Last
  updated 6/27/2004, lthttp//www.ecotao.com/holism/h
  u_tech.htmgt
• The Gods Must Be Crazy. (Picture). Online
  lthttp//images.rottentomatoes.com/images/movie/cov
  erv/27/225527.jpggt
• Lilit. (picture). Astro Dienst. online
  lthttp//www.astro.com/im/in/in_lilith2_s.jpggt
• Mitochonrial DNA(Picture) . online
  lthttp//www.d.umn.edu/cla/faculty/troufs/anth1602/
  images/cell_Turn80301_250.jpggt
• Shreeve, James. Greatest Journey. National
  Geographic. March 2006.
• Shreeve, James. Reading the Secrets of Blood.
  National Geographic. March 2006.
• Simulation of the Whole Universe. Universe
  (Picture). Universe Today. Online lt
  http//www.universetoday.com/am/uploads/2005-0602v
  irgo-full.jpggt
• Wroot, Sarah. Farming History Intorduction.
  Farming (Picture). online http//www.farm-direct
  .co.uk/farming/history/images/plow.jpg
• Image of Charlton Heston from The Ten
  Commandments lthttp//www.workingnet.com/thunderbea
  r/images/heston.jpggt