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October 13, 2008 3:48:38 PM CDT

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'Hobbits' Were Just Short on Food: Scientists

Posted Mar 5, 08 2:00 PM CST in Science & Health 

(Newser) – In a new volley in the back and forth over whether "hobbit" fossils found on an Indonesian island were a separate species, a research team says the remains are those of modern humans suffering from malnutrition-induced dwarfism. Iodine deficiency during pregnancy can result in humans growing less than 3 feet tall—and looking similar to the fossils found in Indonesia, the BBC reports.

"Our research suggests that these fossils are not a new species but rather the remains of human hunter-gatherers that suffered from this condition," says the head of the Australian team, which has not examined the original fossils. "The conclusions in this paper are not supported by the facts," complains one of the scientists who found the fossils.

Source BBC

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  • 'Hobbits' Were, Indeed, a Different Kind of Human

    Sep 21, 07 1:30 PM CDT
    'Hobbits' Were, Indeed, a Different Kind of Human A new study of three wrist bones from an 18,000-year-old fossil shows that the so-called hobbits of Indonesia were, indeed, a separate human species. When the bones were discovered in 2003, scientists trumpeted the find as evidence of a smaller species, Homo floresiensis. But skeptics argued that the hobbit, at 3 feet tall with a brain the size of a grapefruit, was in fact a human afflicted by microcephaly, a brain-shrinking disorder. More »

The latest theory is that the Flores Island "hobbits" were not a separate species, but developed dwarfism due to nutritional deficiencies.   (Associated Press)
The skull of Homo floresiensis, left, is seen in comparison to a modern human skull. A team of researchers has suggested that Homo floresiensis did not represent a separate species, but in fact suffered...   (Wikimedia Commons)
« Prev« Prev | Next »Next » Slideshow
An update on Homo floresiensis, a.k.a. the "Hobbit" Part 1   (mddawson1 (YouTube))
An update on Homo floresiensis, a.k.a. the "Hobbit" Part 2   (mddawson1 (YouTube))

« Prev« Prev | Next »Next »
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