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

(NEWSER) - Scientists have discovered a 47 million-year-old primate fossil that they believe represents the common ancestor of all later monkeys, apes, and humans, reports the Wall Street Journal. The find supports a theory that humans' ancient ape-like ancestor was an adapid, which is also believed to be linked to lemurs. The skeleton, found in Germany, of the young female adapid will be unveiled at New York City's American Museum of Natural History next week. More»

Separate species may have evolved from homo erectus

(NEWSER) - Two new reports forward the theory that the tiny people who roamed an Indonesian island 8,000 years ago were a separate species of human, the BBC reports, not just pygmy versions of homo sapiens. The biggest clue is the feet of the “hobbits,” which are distinctly primitive but human. Scientists say the 3-foot-tall creatures must have branched off the human line before the modern foot evolved. More»

Forensic artist reconstructs face of first modern human found in Europe

(NEWSER) - Meet the first modern European. His face—or hers, as researchers have been unable to determine the sex—was reconstructed by a forensic artist based on a partial skull and jawbone discovered in a Romanian cave. The facial features linked to the 35,000-year-old bones recall the continent's immediate African ancestors, reports the Guardian. Scientists speculate the skin color was darker than present-day Europeans. More»

Number of supporters grow for 'distinct' hominid species theory

(NEWSER) - Six years after their discovery on an Indonesian island, fossils of 3-foot-tall people creatures nicknamed "hobbits" continue to captivate researchers, reports the New York Times. So far, they haven't been clearly linked to other known human fossils. They may be descendants of Homo erectus who migrated from Africa earlier, or perhaps are an example of "reverse evolution," posit researchers. Some critics believe they are dwarf mutants or suffered a brain-shrinking disease that gave them grapefruit-sized heads. More»

Tracks in Kenya are 1.5 million years old

(NEWSER) - Scientists have unearthed ancient footprints that reveal humanity's ancestors walked with a modern stride as long as 1.5 million years ago, reports the Philadelphia Inquirer. Researchers believe the tracks—left beside a muddy river bank in Kenya and preserved when the river changed course—belong to human ancestor Homo erectus, and provide vital clues to how humanity began. More»