Paleoanthropologist Lee Berger, a team of #anthropologists, and “underground astronauts” have discovered a new #humanancestor species, #Homonaledi. - http://clapway.com/2015/09/11/ancient-human-ancestor123/

Paleoanthropologist Lee Berger, a team of anthropologists, and “underground astronauts” have discovered a new human ancestor species.

UNCOVERING HOMO NALEDI: an ancient Human Ancestor?

Two years ago, after being tipped off by spelunkers, the team headed to the Rising Star cave system in Cradle of Human Kind, South Africa, to work on a project that would take several excavation attempts to complete. During the process, researchers even made use of social media to find six excavation scientists petite enough to fit through the tiny crevice that would eventually lead them to a chamber of more than 1,500 fossilized bones – from infants, children, adults and elderly individuals – belonging to our new ancient human ancestor, Homo naledi.

The name Homo naledi originates from the cave and the site the specimens were found in. Naledi means star in the South African Sesotho language. Interestingly, this species has a skeletal structure remarkably similar to that of a human, although it features differences in the mandible and overall skull size (the brain was most likely the size of an orange). Furthermore, the finger bones specimens are also curved in a way that seems to suggest that Homo naledi was adapting to climbing.

Ancient human ancestor utilized Proper Burials?

The chamber inside Rising Star Cave is believed to have been used as a burial site. The anthropologists surmise this because the skeletal remains appear to have been set there on purpose, rather than scattered. The only way to get into the cave, for example, is through an extremely small entrance, which hints at the possibility that it may have been ritualistic for Homo naledi to leave their dead there.

Moving forwards with the excavation

This complete dig is considered one of the most dangerous excavation attempts, as the six women who went into the 7 ½ inch crevice had to be barefoot so as to not disturb any of the remains or fragments. The dig lasted longer than three weeks and scientists managed to uncover over 1,500 bones during that time frame.

Unfortunately, the age of the fossils is still unknown. In time, more information will be revealed about our ancient human ancestor. The surface has just been scratched with Homo naledi, as there is so much more to explore in the Rising Star cave.

Photo Courtesy of eLIFE.

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Scientists Uncover New Ancient Human Ancestor

In #Anthropology news today: fossil shoulder blades reveal a thing or two about #human #evolution. - http://clapway.com/2015/09/09/shoulder-blades-human-evolution213/

The complete history of human evolution is a long-standing mystery scientists have yet to fully figure out. The topic typically focuses on the evolutionary trajectory of primates, which over the course of millions of years, has lead to the appearance of anatomically modern humans. As you can imagine, piecing together ancient history involves the combined prowess of many scientific disciplines, and once in a while, a curveball may confuse even the most methodical anthropologists. Other times, a rare “ah-ha!” moment is encountered, which can satisfactorily shed light on the complex timeline of Homo Sapiens.

HUMAN EVOLUTION UNRAVELING…SLOWLY

Take, for example, the recent discovery of fossil shoulder blades belonging to two early human Australopithecus species, which researchers believe provide us with further evidence that humans and apes do indeed share an ape-like ancestor.

But wait. Hasn’t that already been established? Well…yes and no. It’s true that humans are most closely related to the great apes of Africa, as the Washington Post points out. However, after splitting from our closest African ape relative six to seven million years ago, humans seemed to have veered off in a separate direction during the course of human evolution.

Nathan Young, the researcher behind a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, highlights this fact in a news release. “We have features that clearly link us with African apes, but we also have features that appear more primitive, leading to uncertainty about what our common ancestor looked like.”

Based on this assertion, some scientists have suggested that our common ancestor may have actually been more similar to a monkey.

The new study sets the record straight and “suggests that the simplest explanation, that the ancestor looked a lot like a chimp or gorilla, is the right one, at least in the shoulder.”

WHAT FOSSIL SHOULDER BLADES TELL US ABOUT…WELL, US

At a superficial glance, human shoulder blades are more physically similar to those found in monkeys. However, an analysis of 3-D shoulder blade scans, comparing the fossils of African apes, orangutan, gibbons, monkeys and early and modern humans, revealed that human shoulders do have enough similarities to the shoulder blades of apes to give credence to the ape model.

The trajectory, as the Washington Post points out, wasn’t exact linear, but it is logical. Human shoulders essentially “worked backwards,” moving from the ape’s structure back to an enhanced version of what monkeys have today. The transition parallels the changes characteristic of early human behavior, such as the reduced practice of climbing to the increased use of tools, according to Science World Report.

The results of the study are slowly helping researchers learn more about the enigma that is human evolution.

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Shoulder Blades Shed Light On Human Evolution

Italia has realized they"ve an underwater #Stonehenge to for #Atlantis hopefuls. - http://clapway.com/2015/08/09/an-italian-atlantis-archaeologists-reveal-underwater-stonehenge-near-coast-of-sicily-245/

A man-made monolith over 10,000 years old has been uncovered by archaeologists in Italy, prompting some to dub it the underwater Stonehenge. The monolith, which was completely submerged off a small island near Pantelleria, may reveal clues to ancient civilizations living in the Mediterranean basin.

Submerged Monolith Compared to Stonehenge Is More Like Atlantis of Italy

Off the coast of Sicily, submerged about 40 meters deep in the Sicilian Channel, archaeologists have come across a man-made monolith created during the Mesolithic age over 10,000 years ago.

The study authors, Zvi Ben-Avraham from Tel Aviv University and Emanuele Lodolo of the National Institute of Oceanography and Experimental Geophysics, believe the archaeological find will unveil information about significant human activity in the now-submerged regions of Italy’s coast.

The study was published in the Journal of Archaeological Science.

Monolith Found in Sicilian Channel Submerged over 9,500 Years Ago

The monolith found was a total of 12 meters long, but it had been broken into two parts. The archaeologists say the monolith was a regular shape and featured three holes of a similar diameter, one at the end and the other two on the sides of the stone.

After studying the holes, the researchers concluded that no natural process could have produced the holes.

The researchers aged the rock samples of the monolith to around the Late Pleistocene age. After sampling the shoals around the monoliths, the researchers noted the limestone and sandstone were completely different than the materials of the monolith.

Once again, they concluded no natural process would have accounted for this change in stone.

The structure had been created from a single block of stone and weighed an estimated 15 tons. The process of creation probably involved cutting, extracting, transporting, and installing the structure, all of which proved whoever constructed the underwater masterpiece had engineering skills.

With all this evidence, the presence of the monolith points to human activity over 10,000 years ago within the region that is currently underwater.

How the Italian Underwater Stonehenge Became Submerged

While today it is over 40 meters under the ocean surface, the Italian “Stonehenge” had once been above ground.

During the Last Glacial Maximum, sea levels rose dramatically. This had a tremendous impact on the Mediterranean region of what was called the Adventure Plateau, the northwestern region of the Sicilian Channel that had been connected to Sicily as a broad peninsula.

Today, of course, you wouldn’t recognize the Adventure Plateau as the sea levels from the Last Glacial Maximum flooded the peninsula, creating several islands in the shallow sea.

The monolith’s particular island, the Pantelleria Vecchia Bank, had been one of these islands that thrived with ancient human life. However, they wouldn’t remain there long as the entire island would be covered around 9,500 years ago by the still-rising seawaters.

What the Italian Atlantis Can Reveal About Ancient Civilizations

Both researchers believe the discovery will lead to more studies in the Sicilian Channel region to unveil more Mesolithic human activity.

Though the function of the monolith is still unknown, the researchers believe it was a functional structure to aid the people of the community who relied on fishing and trading.

Perhaps the monolith functioned as a lighthouse or anchoring system of some sort. Or perhaps it was a part of a larger complex, less of a Stonehenge and more of an Atlantis.

The archaeological record of the ancient civilizations whose homes are now resting on the seafloor of the continental shelves is mostly a blank for now. But the researchers have found an important start in the uncovering of the prehistoric cultures when they revealed this monolith.

Whether an underwater Stonehenge structure in Sicily or a small part of an Italian Atlantis, the monolith may soon uncover more of the origins of Mediterranean peoples in the Mesolithic age.

Images used have been found from the study in the Journal of Archaeological Science with credit to Emanuele Lodolo and the other researchers.

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An Italian Atlantis? Archaeologists Reveal Underwater Stonehenge Near Coast of Sicily

Body Size Increase Not A Major Factor for Evolution in Homo Genus - http://clapway.com/2015/08/04/body-size-increase-not-a-major-factor-for-evolution-in-homo-genus-324/

According to a new analysis, body size may not have been the contributing factor that gave rise to the Homo genus, a theory that is quite contrary to many current evolutionary studies hypotheses that indicate a body size increase provided the boost that led to the origin of humans.

Body Size Does Not Matter In Evolutionary Sciences Suggests Study

Evolutionary studies may soon be rocked by a new study published by Mark Grabowski, assistant research professor at George Washington University’s Center for the Advanced Study of Human Paleobiology (CASHP).

Grabowski’s research in essence explains that early hominins of the Homo genus may not have been much larger than other early hominins from other species. His analysis is revolutionary in the field of evolution as almost all theories regarding the origins of Homo rely on the purported body size increase at specific times in the evolutionary chain.

The Myth of Body Size and the Origin of the Homo Genus

The study analysis has used the latest methodologies and also the largest fossil samples of early hominins to create the most comprehensive data set on body mass estimations, focusing on species averages in general as well as by sex for each hominin.

The data revealed that the body size increase didn’t occur between Australopithecus and the earliest hominins of Homo, but rather showed up in the fossils much later in Homo erectus.

As a Fulbright scholar at the University of Oslo’s Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Grabowski believes the most important findings in the study are knowing that increase in body size was not the the factor that set us (modern humans and our Homo genus) apart from our earlier hominin ancestors.

Because body mass did not set us apart from them, many other assumptions about the jump from the past hominins to our genus will be seen as myths now,  too. These unconfirmed theories that might be included in the myth debunking is that earlier hominins were small in stature because of dietary restrictions.

The last major publication on hominin body mass was published in 1992 by Henry M. McHenry and in the two decades that have since passed, many fossils have been found that would add to the data set, presenting more conclusive details about early species of humans.

The study researchers drew on McHenry’s results, applying new methodologies of analyzing the fossil data set, and updating the fossil hominin body estimates. This recent study is the largest, most comprehensive fossil data set for early hominins and may be used as the new standard for anthropologists.

Body Size Sexual Dimorphism and The Evolutionary Link

Grabowski’s study didn’t end with updating the fossil collection data set, but instead also revealed that dimorphism decreased very slightly in comparing the early hominins to H. erectus. Only much, much later in our human evolution did the researchers see the modern levels of dimorphism that we currently have.

Though this may seem insignificant after such a major feat in compiling the comprehensive data, the findings could in fact challenge the monogamous social structure of relationships that evolutionary assumptions have attributed to earlier Homo members.

While body size may not have led to the origin of our species, it may lead to some interesting new research in the field of evolutionary studies thanks to Grabowski’s updated fossil data set.

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Body Size Increase Not A Major Factor for Evolution in Homo Genus

China: 97 Human Bodies Stacked Inside 20 Square-Meter House - http://clapway.com/2015/07/29/china-97-human-bodies-stacked-inside-20-square-meter-house-245/

Chinese archaeologists uncovered the remains of 97 human bodies stacked in a 5000-year-old burned down house that was a mere 20 square meters. The researchers believe the bodies found at the site named Hamin Mangha in China may have perished of an epidemic that quickly collected its victims leaving no time to bury the deceased.

Grisly Scene as 97 Human Bodies Piled in Just 20 Square Meters

An excavation of a prehistoric Chinese village now named Hamin Mangha revealed a grisly scene as a small house of only 20 square meters held the human bodies of 97 juveniles and middle-age adults. Of the 97 remains, none of the bodies were over the age of 35 and only half of them were over 19 years old, meaning the rest belonged to children and young adolescents.

Though the researchers did not name a specific disease, the number of individuals in the mass grave indicates whatever it was, the disease plucked away these children, teenagers, and young adults faster than the remaining villagers to properly bury them.

The remains were stacked in some areas, jumbled in others, and completely askew in parts as more and more victims were claimed by the mystery disease. The building burned down sometime 5,000 years ago and the deceased have remain in hiding until now.

Though the study was published in Chinese Archaeology, unless you can read Chinese, you won’t be able to access the actual study. Instead, check out the English summary.

Prehistoric Site Hamin Mangha Holds Clues to Mass Grave of Human Bodies

The recent study revealed 29 houses made in a simple design of a solitary room, but the most interesting house was “F40” or the house of horrors containing the mass grave of human bodies.

It appears that F40 had a particular scheme of body arrangement as the archaeologists noted that in the northwest, the remains were complete skeletons whereas in the east, the remains were mostly skulls with missing limbs. Even more chilling is that in the south, the limbs had been thrown into piles up to three layers deep.

Researchers working on the excavation have come from the Inner Mongolian Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology as well as Jilin University’s Research Center for Chinese Frontier Archaeology.

Though the archaeologists didn’t mention the other houses as much, they did mention F40 had burned down at some point, charring and deforming many of the skulls and limbs.

Eerie Similarities in Other Mass Graves in China

Interestingly enough, the victims at Hamin Mangha were very close in age to victims found in another mass grave in a separate village, called Miaozigou. Both villages were in northeast China.

The team concluded that Hamin Mangha remains most likely succumbed to an epidemic that swept through northeast China with a vicious speed. This theory of a fast-spreading infectious illness would also account for the mass burial victims at Miaozigou as well.

Whether the scientists will investigate the possible prehistoric illness or not, the stack of human bodies found in China after over 5,000 years in waiting is a bone-chilling, yet exciting discovery for Chinese archaeologists and anthropologists.

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China: 97 Human Bodies Stacked Inside 20 Square-Meter House

A telling #child #skeleton revealing more about the #BronzeAge - http://clapway.com/2015/07/26/4000-year-old-child-skeleton-in-fetal-position-uncovered-from-bronze-age-235/

Archaeologists from the University of Reading uncovered a 4,000-year-old child skeleton curled into a fetal position at Wilsford Henge near Stonehenge in the United Kingdom.

Bronze Age Child Skeleton Laid to Rest, Curled in Fetal Position

After only a month of excavations at Wilsford Henge, archaeologists from the University of Reading discovered a well-preserved human skeleton from the Bronze Age. The remains are intact and are believed to belong to an adolescent child or teenager who was living while Stonehenge was being built.

The child skeleton was small at around 1.5 meters in length and had been found in the fetal position. The archaeologists believe the skeleton had been positioned in that specific manner: head turned slightly to the right, knees drawn close to its chest and its arms crossed snugly.

What was more intriguing than the childlike position the skeleton had assumed was the amber necklace he or she had been wearing, preserved within the burial plot for thousands of years.

The Well-Preserved Skeleton Will Shed Light on Diet and Disease

The remains were found in the Vale of Pewsey in Wiltshire in between Stonehenge and Avebury. The archaeological and anthropological communities are extremely excited about what the skeleton can reveal to us.

Dr. Jim Leary, Director of the Archaeology Field School at the University of Reading, said the skeleton will undergo analysis to determine age, gender, date of burial. Leary believes additional testing can even point to the exact village where the child had spent its short life before dying.

With this single find, we will learn more about the diets, diseases, and lifestyle of our Neolithic ancestors who witnessed Stonehenge at its height.

Archaeological excavations of Bronze Age ancient monuments

The archaeologists in the excavation studied under the direction of the University of Reading’s Department of Archaeology and came across the find through research in the Archaeology Field School.

The discovery was a part of a three-year dig focusing around the Vale of Pewsey, a historically important region near the prehistoric, iconic Stonehenge. Its aims are to fully understand the peoples who worshiped at Stonehenge and their lifestyles, both work and play.

Within the items unearthed, archaeologists have found necessary tools including flint arrowheads and blades. Perhaps the child skeleton may have been too young to use these, but decorative items have also been uncovered, such as shale and copper jewelry, a Roman brooch, and beautiful decorated pottery pieces, some of which the child may have been familiar.

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4,000-Year-Old Child Skeleton in Fetal Position Uncovered from Bronze Age

How appropriate as today makes 24 years after the #JeffreyDahmer arrest. Evidence of #Cannibalism in new regions found in #osteo traces. - http://clapway.com/2015/07/22/cannibalism-a-feast-for-archaeologists-as-cannibalistic-evidence-emerges-114/

In two separate events, archaeologists have revealed evidence that may suggest human cannibalism in China and in the Canadian Arctic — though the events occurred over thousands of years apart. With the 24th anniversary of Jeffrey Dahmer’s arrest today, it seems only appropriate that cannibalism makes headlines to commemorate the capture of the world’s most notoriously known cannibal.

Cannibalism Evidence in China: 100,000-year-old Human Thigh Bones

Chinese researchers have uncovered evidence of cannibalism on two thigh bones believed to belong to an early human child from 100,000 years ago. The bones belong to an extinct early species of humans that Chinese archaeologists refer to as Xuchang Man, named after the city in the Henan province in which it was found.

Lead archaeologist Li Zhanyang pointed out the evidence of cannibalism as marks that indicate bites and even gnawing of the bones. Though the researchers do not deny that animals could have possibly left the marks, they also cannot rule out that a member of the same species feasted on the hominid’s thigh meat.

Whether the researchers will be able to conclusively prove that cannibalism is evident in the thigh bones. The discovery of more bones from the Xuchang man species — a missing link in the human evolutionary timeline — in China is incredible in itself. Also, it’s slightly less morbid than knowing that the hominids that predated our ancestors may have enjoyed feasting on one other.

Trapped in Canadian Arctic Sea, 17th century British Navy Forced to be Cannibals

Over half the world away in the Canadian Arctic sea in 1845, sailors of the British navy met a brutal end as their expedition failed and they were forced to turn to cannibalism to survive. Although plenty of research exists on the 19th century shipwrecked sailors, a new study reveals just how grisly the cannibalism became as the sailors slowly starved to death.

Published in the Journal of Osteoarchaeology, the researchers have suggested that the crew took to a rather brutal and extreme form of cannibalism as the starving sailors not only cut their fellow crew members’ flesh away from the bones, but also snapped the bones, heated the bones in boiling water and sucked out the last bit of nutrition found in the marrow.

The expedition, led by Sir John Franklin, was expected to find a route to the Orient passing through the Canadian Arctic. However, as the seas froze during exceptionally cold winters and heavy sea ice remained for several summers, the crew abandoned the stuck ships, called the HMS Erebus, and perhaps prophetically, the HMS Terror.

The crew could not have expected that their abandonment would lead to one of the most startling, horrific acts of cannibalism for the British.

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Cannibalism: A Feast for Archaeologists as Cannibalistic Evidence Emerges

What this Romanian jawbone can tell us about our evolutionary ancestors. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/23/interspecies-breeding-ancient-dna-proves-early-europeans-more-closely-related-to-neanderthal-ancestors-556/

Early Europeans were more closely related to their Neanderthal ancestors say geneticists after analyzing ancient DNA from a 40,000 year old human jawbone. The jawbone found in Romania in 2002 has provided the first genetic evidence of modern humans interbreeding with Neanderthals in Europe.

Homo sapiens and our Neanderthal Ancestors, Homo neanderthalensis

About 45,000 years ago and before then, Europe’s only human population was Homo neanderthalensis. But within only 10,000 years, the Neanderthal population had become extinct, replaced by Homo sapiens, or modern humans who had started to spread across the continent. Before being completely wiped out, our Neanderthal ancestors contributed to our genome. With the exception of sub-Saharan descendants, on average at least one to three percent of the modern human genome comes from Neanderthals.

The transition between species happened rather quickly in evolutionary terms. But what caused the dramatic shift?

Researchers have long known the two species interacted with each other as archaeological evidence has been found. During the time period that modern humans and Neanderthals were neighbors in Europe, there were cultural exchanges between the two groups as seen in subtle changes in tool-making, burial rituals and even in body decoration habits. However, those studies have lacked one important clue in the evolutionary game during that period: skeletons.

The Discovery of the Jawbone, the Link Between Modern Humans and Neanderthals

When archaeologists unearthed a jawbone in a Romanian cave in 2002, they were puzzled as to its origins. Besides a second skull found near the jawbone in Oase Cave, there was no evidence of other artifacts to indicate who the individuals were or to what culture they belonged. The physical features also presented a challenge to the anthropologists. Many of the features were clearly those of modern humans, but some definitively Neanderthal traits were also present. The anthropologists theorized that the two individuals must have been descendants of both groups.

An international group of geneticists, led by Harvard Medical School’s David Reich of Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator and Svante Pääbo at the Max Planck Institute in Germany, conducted a new study to determine the jawbone’s human origins.

How a Single Jawbone Gave Away Our Neanderthal Ancestors’ Biggest Secret

Pääbo and Reich’s team set about a difficult quest to obtain the jawbone’s ancient DNA. Not only had it been sitting in soil filled with microbes for over 40,000 years, but since being found in 2002, it had over a decade of handling to be contaminated with several sets of modern human DNA.

Qiaomei Fu, then a graduate student, applied modern methods Pääbo’s lab had pioneered to retrieve the DNA via genetic probes. These methods spanned the DNA against 3.7 million human genome positions to evaluate the variations between human populations. Fu was able to separate the ancient DNA from its contaminants by restricting her analysis to DNA with a specific type of damage which resulted from deterioration that had occurred over thousands of years.

The DNA analysis revealed rather than the normal Neanderthal contribution of one to three percent in the genome, an astonishing six to nine percent of the jawbone’s genome came from Neanderthals.

Interbreeding with Our Neanderthal Ancestors

The new study suggests that the jawbone is evidence of modern humans interbreeding with Neanderthals more recently than previously postulated. As DNA passes from each generation, each segment is broken and recombined. With each generation, the DNA of all the other ancestors is interspersed. Reich’s team found segments of intact Neanderthal DNA that was large enough to indicate that the DNA hadn’t been passed down for more than four to six generations.

“In the last few years, we’ve documented interbreeding between Neanderthals and modern humans,” Reich says, “but we never thought we’d be so lucky to find someone so close to that event.”

Amazingly, the study has also proven the Oase cave individuals don’t have any living relatives in Romania or anywhere else for that matter. The team believes instead of passing on his ancestry, the individuals were part of a group that had, like the Neanderthals, disappeared after the modern humans took over.

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Interspecies Breeding: Ancient DNA Proves Early Europeans More Closely Related to Neanderthal Ancestors

"With the new DNA findings along with several other skeletal analyses performed over the last few years, anthropologists are able to see a bigger picture of human migration in the Americas." - http://clapway.com/2015/06/21/u-s-dna-reveals-relatives-of-8500-year-old-kennewick-man-skeleton-from-washington-to-be-native-americans-123/

After nearly a decade of debate, DNA tests confirm the 8,500-year-old skeleton found in Kennewick, Washington to be closely-related to Native Americans from the Northwest coast.

From Discovery to Disarray: Kennewick Man’s Mysterious Origins

When first discovered near the Columbia River in 1996, the skeleton caused much disarray in the scientific community as anthropologists, researchers, and reporters came up with varying theories and reports of the man’s origins.

Upon the coroner’s first inspection, the skeleton, dubbed Kennewick Man or The Ancient One, was believed to be of European descent until bone analysis concluded he was at least 8,000 years old. After the analysis, speculations arose of his real origins. When reporters covered his mysterious story, they misidentified him as being of Caucasian-descent as they were unfamiliar with “Caucasoid,” the term researchers were using in reference to him.

Contested Origins and a Complicated Court Case about Kennewick Man

Though reporters may have led some astray with their error, there was still much debate among the scientific community surrounding the ancient man. Some researchers thought he was of Polynesian or Japanese descent and at least five Native American tribes claimed to have descended from Kennewick Man.

Matters were further complicated by a court case between the federal government and several of the Native American tribes against the scientific researchers interested in understanding his origins. His possible Native American descendants argued for his proper ritual burial, while the science scholars believed the research to be paramount in understanding human migration. After the lengthy court case, the judge ruled in favor of science as the skeleton’s origins had not been conclusively founded as Native American.

Anthropologists Reconstruct Kennewick Man’s Life

As researchers worked to trace Kennewick Man’s genome through DNA analysis, a group of physical anthropologists worked to recreate his life. Their findings indicated he was between 35 to 45 years old and he stood around 5’7” tall (170 cm). He was predominately right-handed and due to injuries his skeleton revealed, he was most likely involved in hard labor.

Anthropologists linked him to a coastal area as chemical analysis of his bones revealed a diet of fish. The size and shape of his skull also linked him to a coastal area, one believed to link him to the Polynesians or Ainu. However, with advanced methods of DNA extraction, these theories would be put to rest soon.

DNA Evidence Proves Kennewick Man More Closely-related to Native Americans

On June 18, a new study, undertaken by Eske Willerslev, was published that compared DNA found in a sliver of bone in Kennewick Man’s hand to different human populations’ DNA. The findings confirmed Kennewick Man’s origins as more closely-related to the Native Americans rather than then Polynesian or Ainu peoples.

The study also re-examined the skull and found it was within a normal range of variation to be related to Native American populations. The theory of his origins along the Northwest coast held true.

The team found the closest genetic match to be the Colville tribe, one of the original tribes claiming Kennewick Man. Although they are the closest relatives known, scientists have pointed out that the study had a limited sample size of Native American DNA. While other tribes may be more closely-related, the Colville tribe have embraced The Ancient One as one of their own.

The Impact of Kennewick Man’s Origins and His Future

With the new DNA findings along with several other skeletal analyses performed over the last few years, anthropologists are able to see a bigger picture of human migration in the Americas.

One lineage of people migrated to Central and South America. Another lineage headed into the northwest coast of North America towards Canada. Kennewick Man and the nomadic group to which he belonged would become a third branch that followed the south line before diverting north to live and travel around different areas of the Columbia River.

Though the findings have brought The Ancient One to his Colville relatives, Kennewick Man’s journey isn’t completely over yet as this new evidence must be taken into consideration before his final resting place is decided. For now, he will remain at the Burke Museum in Washington.

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U.S.: DNA Reveals Relatives of 8,500-Year-Old Kennewick Man Skeleton from Washington to Be Native Americans

Drink with the best of them. - http://clapway.com/2015/06/10/guinea-chimpanzees-will-drink-you-under-the-table-123/

Chimpanzees have long been known as our closest relatives, and often discovered to be spookily similar. Meet the chimpanzees who are first of their kind to take part in regular drinking. It’s difficult not to wonder if chimps experience hangovers. If so, why do they seem to enjoy it? Is it far-fetched to posture that it’s probably for the same reasons humans do?

The 1st Alcohol Consumption Study Done on Chimps

For the last 17 years, the Royal Society Open Science has been studying these chimpanzees from the south eastern part of the Republic of Guinea. This research, carried out from 1995 to 2012 is the world’s first alcohol related study done on wild chimpanzees. They were able to record 51 drinking events, and much like humans, they co-drank, having drinking sessions more so than drinking alone. Though there was always that one guy…

“What’s your poison?”

Their drink of choice is a fermented planet sap which they drink using large leaves. Yes, as nature would have it, these toolmaking extraordinaires developed their own goblets, too. They chewed-up the leaves to make absorbent sponges that they could then dip into the sap of raffia palm trees to squeeze into their mouths. The sap from these trees ferment quickly into palm wine.

More of then than not, they were reported to consume enough alcohol from this palm tree sap that one could visually tell they were inebriated. Some chimpanzees consumed approximately 85ml of alcohol, according to Dr. Kimberley Hockings. Hockings is a leader of the primatological research team from Oxford Brookes University and Centre for Research in Anthropology in Portugal. Consider this: 85ml of alcohol equates to an entire bottle of wine (for beer drinkers, this is about three pints of Stella Artois).

Do Chimpanzees Like Being Drunk?

Wino chimpanzees actually exhibit the same behavior humans do during inebriation. Some of these behaviors include passing out shortly after drinking. Some might even act foolhardy, swinging from tree to tree when it was time for bed, hopped up on liquid courage perhaps.

Local villagers in their region of Guinea do collect the sap from raffia palm trees. Human tappers will put a container under a wedge that they have cut into the palm tree. Chimpanzees might raid the containers, furtively dipping their leaf sponges (“goblets”) into the plastic harvesting containers. Clearly, they really like drinking. To be fair though, there was not truly conclusive evidence that spoke of their attraction to the alcohol. It could have been the taste. Dr. Hockings expressed interest in giving them the option of alcoholic and non-alcoholic palm wine for future tests.

It isn’t the weekend yet, but if you’re looking for inspiration watch this video to watch the chimpanzees get their booze on.

Don’t forget to “hidrate” after any drinking day. HidrateMe can help you recover from those miserable hangovers:

Guinea: Chimpanzees Will Drink You Under The Table

U.K.: Egypt Major Gateway for Prehistoric Human Migration - http://clapway.com/2015/05/29/u-k-egypt-major-gateway-for-prehistoric-human-migration-123/

While most scientists agree that mankind originated in Africa, there has been much discussion over the years as to what route they took out of Africa to expand and travel via prehistoric human migration.

Egypt Major Thoroughfare for Leaving Africa

Now, genetic information from prehistoric humans shows that Egypt was a major gateway for prehistoric human migration and travel into the rest of the world. So says a study done by scientists at the Wellcome Trust Sanger and the University of Cambridge by analyzing the genome of modern populations of humans living in Egypt and Ethiopia.

The scientists used the genetic data from six groups of modern humans from Northeastern Africa. The test subjects were 100 Egyptians and 5 Ethiopian groups of 25 people in each group.

Two Probable Routes Were Used For Prehistoric Human Migration

The scientists determined that while they are positive that the prehistoric humans began in Africa, there are two probable routes that were likely used for travel out of Africa, and the migrating humans chose these routes about 60,000 years ago. There were two prehistoric human migration routes to choose from. One route went through Egypt and Sinai in a northern direction and the other choice was to go through Ethiopia, via the Bab el Mandeb strait and Arabian Peninsula, which is to the south.

The genetic testing and study ended up revealing a closer genetic likeness between the Egyptian and Eurasian peoples than there was seen between the Ethiopian peoples and the Eurasians. This showed that the majority of prehistoric humans preferred to travel the northern route out of Africa.

Pre Human Migration Findings Fill In Part of the Evolutionary Puzzle

The researchers’ findings, which are now printed in the American Journal of Human Genetics, help to fill in part of the evolutionary puzzle of mankind’s past. The data can also be used to help put together a public catalogue of the diversity of the genome for Ethiopian and Egyptian peoples, which could help with medical or anthropological research in the future.

Most scientists today agree that once prehistoric humans evolved into the first examples of more modern humans that they started their migration out of Africa. It is thought that they may have used land bridges or rafts to get across oceans. In addition, fossils have proven that the Neanderthals were already in the areas where the pre-human migration was taking place.

U.K.: Egypt Major Gateway for Prehistoric Human Migration

Kenya: Prehistoric Stone Tools Predate Others - http://clapway.com/2015/05/21/kenya-prehistoric-stone-tools-predate-others-123/

Scientists doing research in Kenya have discovered prehistoric stone tools that are estimated to be more than three million years old, which is at least 700,000 years older than any tools previously found that were used by ancient humanoid species. They were dated using magnetic mineral deposits and volcanic ash in the area they were found in.

The prehistoric stone tools were accidentally discovered by archeologist Sonia Harmand from Stony Brook University and Jason Lewis a paleoanthropologist, also from Stony Brook University and Rutgers University, and the Turkana Basin Institute back in 2011 at a site called Lomekwi. The tools have been undergoing study and they findings were recently released. During their travel they discovered nearly 150 prehistoric stone tools such as those used by ancient humanoids to make things like anvils and hammers.

Prehistoric Stone Tools Will Help Learn About Ancient Humans

The newly found prehistoric stone tools are expected to help scientists learn about humanoid behavior and mental development of ancient humans. In fact, it was previously believed that the first of the ancient tool-making species were the first Homo sapiens, or more modern-age related humans. Now, with the discovery of prehistoric stone tools like this latest find, it could change that opinion.

The reason is that these prehistoric stone tools found during the scientists’ travel predate the earliest known Homo sapiens. The scientists believe that the makers of these prehistoric stone tools could possibly be a humanoid species called Kenyanthropus platyops or Australopithecus afarensis. According to scientists at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History helping with the research, this fabulous discovery could help to solve some of the mysteries of earlier historical times for humanoids. In the past, the scientists thought there must be a method of stone tool making that predated the other tools that have been found prior to these examples of prehistoric stone tools, and this find helps to confirm that belief.

Prehistoric Stone Tools Used For Several Things

The prehistoric stone tools showed evidence of sharp-edged flakes scientists believe might have served to do things like cut meat. Scientists have believed that humans developed tools in order to cut meat, however many of the tools found would have been used for other reasons such as to pound open nuts, dig up and mash tubers and cut foliage as the ancient humans made their travel around in their environment.

In the course of their investigations, the scientists also found that the area was once lush with plants, not like the dryer savanna it is today. These tools are hoped to help discover how the ancient humans made the transition from using natural, organic tools like those used today by chimps, to consciously making stone tools, which would show advanced brain function. This leap in cognitive ability is what marks humans from animals, so the making of prehistoric stone tools is an exciting time in the evolution of humanoids that lead to the modern day humans we are today.

Kenya: Prehistoric Stone Tools Predate Others