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December 4, 2008 10:18:00 AM CST


human evolution

human evolution news stories

15 Stories

 Multitasking 
 Is a Myth 

Imaging shows brain quickly switches among tasks instead

(Newser) - Pull your ears away from that cell phone: Multitasking is a myth. New research shows we can’t really concentrate on two things at once; rather, the executive functions of the brain sweep quickly between multiple tasks. It’s thought that survival and the hunt made this rapid refocusing of attention an evolutionary boon. NPR checked in with researchers studying the phenomenon. More »

More about:  MIT scientific research human evolution University of Michigan MRI natural selection multitask executive function

 Did We Slaughter
 the Neanderthals?

DNA probe sheds light on early humans' doom 

(Newser) - Analysis of DNA from a thigh bone is helping solve the longstanding question of what happened to Neanderthals. Did they simply die off, were they killed by more modern humans—or did the two groups interbreed? DNA from the Neanderthal bone is so different from that of modern humans that interbreeding now appears highly unlikely, the Independent reports, making it likely that our ancestors were to blame. More »

More about:  DNA evidence human evolution Neanderthals prehistoric

Humans Wired to Fear Snakes

Scientists find innate ability to discern slithering critters in the wild

(Newser) - Evolution seems to have given humans a hard-wired ability to recognize snakes and spiders, LiveScience reports. Intrigued by the widespread fear of serpents despite the fact that most humans rarely interact with them, researchers showed groups of adults and 3-year-olds natural scenes containing various hidden animals. Both groups were consistently able to find snakes and spiders faster than other animals. More »

More about:  genes human evolution psychological research natural selection snakes spiders phobias

Africans Have Most Diverse DNA

Testing confirms man evolved on continent before migrating

(Newser) - A pair of wide-ranging genetic studies, published yesterday in the journal Nature , back up the idea that humanity first evolved in Africa before migrating elsewhere, Reuters reports. DNA testing of African Americans and European Americans found that people with African roots had much more genetic diversity. Other tests discovered that DNA diversity decreased the farther away populations were from Africa. More »

More about:  Africa DNA genetics genetic mutation genetic research human evolution

Baby Blues Come From Single Ancestor

A long-ago genetic mutation diluted brown eyes, scientists say

(Newser) - All blue-eyed people have a single, shared ancestor, scientists say. And all those baby blues are the result of a genetic mutation that occurred between 6,000 and 10,000 years ago, LiveScience reports. Before that, everyone had brown eyes. The mutation limits the effects of the gene that produces melanin, which colors our eyes and hair, thus diluting browns to blues. More »

More about:  science genetics Denmark genetic mutation human evolution eyes

Humans Evolving
at Warp Speed

New research contradicts theory that easier life slowed development

(Newser) - The pace of human evolution switched to the fast track when people began forming agrarian societies 10,000 years ago, researchers have discovered. Scientists had theorized that evolution would slow as challenges to survival waned, but the opposite appears to be the case with changes occurring surprisingly quickly, the Los Angeles Times reported. More »

More about:  disease evolution genes population malaria genetic mutation milk human evolution

Religion Remains Flashpoint With Huckabee

GOP candidate sounds off on creationism in schools, Romney's Mormon faith

(Newser) - A month before the Iowa caucuses, Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee reacted with frustration when asked if creationism should be taught in public schools, the AP reports. Huckabee, a Southern Baptist minister who has said he does not believe in Darwin's theory of evolution, said his personal views on religion were irrelevant—though they remain a hot topic. More »

Female Hunters May Have Doomed Neanderthals

Study says feminist practices put the 'reproductive core' in harm's way

(Newser) - "Stone Age feminism" may have contributed to the Neanderthals' extinction, says a recent study, which uses archaeological evidence to argue that Neanderthal females hunted—and were "stomped, gored, and worse"—alongside males. Pitting the "reproductive core" of a population that never topped 10,000 against giant beasts, reports the Boston Globe , "could bring doom to a hard-pressed species." More »

More about:  feminism human evolution Neanderthals homo sapiens

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

Wrist-bone analysis shows link to apes

(Newser) - 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 »

More about:  Indonesia archaeology fossil human evolution anthropology skeleton hobbits Homo erectus homo sapien

New Georgian Fossils May Link 'Lucy' and Homo Erectus

Less-evolved specimens in Europe indicate earlier emigration from Africa

(Newser) - Archaeologists have unearthed four fossilized skeletons of a human ancestor that shares characteristics with the humanesque Homo erectus and the earlier, smaller Australopithicus afarensis, of which the famous 'Lucy' skeleton is a member. The fossils in the republic of Georgia contradict the previously held idea that hominids developed all key human attributes before emigrating from Africa, the NY Times reports. More »

More about:  fossil human evolution Lucy

Lucy Debuts
in Houston

But dem bones ain't made for traveling,
say scientists

(Newser) - Lucy kicks off her public debut  at the Houston Museum of Natural Science tomorrow amid controversy that the world's favorite human ancestor should never have left her home in Ethiopia. The public wants the chance to the 3.2 million-year-old remains, but scientists say Lucy's too fragile to travel. More »

More about:  evolution Houston fossil Ethiopia human evolution Lucy

Women Have Been Falling for Brad Pitt Types for 2.6M Years

Rules of attraction haven't changed much

(Newser) - The facial proportions of the average hot guy haven't changed much throughout human  evolutionary history, finds a new study that compares contemporary human skulls with skulls from 2.6 million years ago. Women have been selecting for males with short, broad faces—think Brad Pitt and Will Smith—since the dawn of man, and chimps do the same. More »

More about:  women science Brad Pitt evolution gender men biology human evolution attraction

Girls Think Pink, Naturally,
Study Finds

Women's attraction to redder hues linked
to evolution

(Newser) - Shocking news: Girls love pink. That love might not just be cultural—but linked to evolutionary development, researchers  in a new study have concluded. Pink may have helped ancient women recognize ripe fruit and healthy men with ruddy faces, while both genders yearned for the blue of open skies and clear water, the Telegraph reports. More »

More about:  gender biology human evolution gender roles girls pink

Kenyan Fossil Rattles Human
Family Tree

Skull suggests two precursors were actually concurrent

(Newser) - Two of our ancestors apparently lived alongside each other in Africa rather than evolving from one to the next on the path to Homo sapiens , as scientists once believed. National Geographic reports that a Homo habilis skull dug up in Kenya is surprisingly young, making its 1.4 million-year-old owner a neighbor to Homo erectus rather than an evolutionary forerunner. More »

More about:  Africa Kenya evolution archaeology fossil human evolution anthropology origins of humanity homo sapiens Homo erectus

Orangutans Play Charades

Apes pay attention to whether they are being understood

(Newser) - Orangutan communication works just like a game of charades, according to new research. Orangs and other apes who use signals to communicate what they want pay careful attention to whether their audience understands their gestures—if something works, they repeat it, and if they aren't getting through they try another signal. More »

More about:  language communication human evolution apes orangutans

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