the big landmark in history in human evolution HOW DID IT HELP HUMANS
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africa is your answer ...........
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KEY POINTS
Humans began to evolve about seven million years ago, and progressed through four stages of evolution. Research shows that the first modern humans appeared 200,000 years ago.
Neanderthals were a separate species from humans. Although they had larger brain capacity and interbred with humans, they eventually died out.
A number of theories examine the relationship between environmental conditions and human evolution.
The main human adaptations have included bipedalism, larger brain size, and reduced sexual dimorphism.
TERMS
aridity hypothesis
The theory that the savannah was expanding due to increasingly arid conditions, which then drove hominin adaptation.
turnover pulse hypothesis
The theory that extinctions due to environmental conditions hurt specialist species more than generalist ones, leading to greater evolution among specialists.
Red Queen hypothesis
The theory that species must constantly evolve in order to compete with co-evolving animals around them.
encephalization
An evolutionary increase in the complexity and/or size of the brain.
sexual dimorphism
Differences in size or appearance between the sexes of an animal species.
social brain hypothesis
The theory that improving cognitive capabilities would allow hominins to influence local groups and control resources.
Toba catastrophe theory
The theory that there was a near-extinction event for early humans about 70,000 years ago.
savannah hypothesis
The theory that hominins were forced out of the trees they lived in and onto the expanding savannah; as they did so, they began walking upright on two feet.
hominids
A primate of the family Hominidae that includes humans and their fossil ancestors.
bipedal
Describing an animal that uses only two legs for walking.
Human evolution began with primates. Primate development diverged from other mammals about 85 million years ago. Various divergences among apes, gibbons, orangutans occurred during this period, with Homini (including early humans and chimpanzees) separating from Gorillini (gorillas) about 8 millions years ago. Humans and chimps then separated about 7.5 million years ago.
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Skeletal structure of humans and other primates. A comparison of the skeletal structures of gibbons, humans, chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans.
Generally, it is believed that hominids first evolved in Africa and then migrated to other areas. There were four main stages of human evolution. The first, between four and seven million years ago, consisted of the proto hominins Sahelanthropus, Orrorin and Ardipithecus. These humans may have been bipedal, meaning they walked upright on two legs. The second stage, around four million years ago, was marked by the appearance of Australopithecus, and the third, around 2.7 million years ago, featured Paranthropus.
The fourth stage features the genus Homo, which existed between 1.8 and 2.5 million years ago. Homo habilis, which used stone tools and had a brain about the size of a chimpanzee, was an early hominin in this period. Coordinating fine hand movements needed for tool use may have led to increasing brain capacity. This was followed by Homo erectus and Homo ergaster, who had double the brain size and may have been the first to control fire and use more complex tools. Homo heidelbergensis appeared about 800,000 years ago, and modern humans, Homo sapiens, about 200,000 years ago. Humans acquired symbolic culture and language about 50,000 years ago.
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