A new branch in our family tree was just recently added. After a long and close quarters expedition into a cave named Rising Star, (South Africa) the skeleton of a never before seen primitive human was completely excavated. Everyone say hello to Homo Naledi, the newest edition to a growing list of early human hominids.
This specimen exhibited many humanesque features such as the hands, feet, and skull along with displaying some australopithecine features. Figuring out naledi’s place in our evolutionary tree will take some time. Some predictions so far could completely change our tree putting naledi as a very close cousin to homo sapiens or they could be placed right in the beginning next to australopithecus. Studying these bones also helps us understand early human genetics and how we were shaped into the living organisms that we are today. Considering the fact that naledi’s skull cavity was about 50% the size of today’s human skull size, I would like to think some major genetic changes have occurred since then. By understanding these past humans, we may even be able to see where we are headed in the future. Although it is hard to see, we are all still evolving!
The more in depth article can be found here!
It's crazy and exciting to think each discovery like naledi's is getting us closer to learn about all the genetic modifications that have occurred to make us who we are today! I cannot wait to see what else turns up!
ReplyDeleteI am amazed that we are still finding new branches in our evolutionary tree. It is always interesting to see how much we evolved over time and it brings up the question how are we going to look in the future.
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