Scientists have long believed that our distant cousins are the placoderms, and ancient group of armoured fish. But a new study is casting doubt on that view.
Bonobo Jasongo at Leipzig Zoo has a hunch about what you’re thinking.
MPI-EVA
Realizing that others’ minds hold different thoughts, feelings and knowledge than your own was thought to be something only people could do. But evidence is accumulating that apes, too, have ‘theory of mind.’
The level of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is rising faster than at any point in the past 55 million years.
Illustration of ritualised human sacrifice in traditional Hawaiian culture, as documented by the French explorer and artists Jaques Arago in 1819.
Arago, Jacques. (1822). Promenade autour du monde: pendant les années 1817, 1818, 1819 et 1820, sur les corvettes du roi l’Uranie et la Physicienne, commandées par M. Freycinet
It helps society function when people punish selfish acts, even at a personal cost. A new theory suggests third-party punishment also confers some benefits on the punisher.
With moralistic gods watching, it’s easier to be fair and cooperative.
Olivier
For human groups to grow from small, intimate communities to the huge interconnected societies we know now, people needed to be willing to cooperate with strangers. Religion might have played a big role.
A panoramic view of the interior of the Blombos Cave, which holds fascinating insights into human evolution.
Supplied
The discovery of the world’s oldest jewellery at the Blombos Cave in South Africa has resulted in a paradigm shift in our understanding of human evolution.
Artist’s reconstruction of a Red Deer Cave man.
Peter Schouten
Author and ecologist Paul Ehrlich told Q&A that humans, on average, have associated with only about 150 other people for millions of years. Is that right?
Hands down amazing: nearly 2 million year-old pinkie bone.
M. Domínguez-Rodrigo
The science about our special senses - vision, smell, hearing and taste - offers fascinating and unique perspectives on our evolution. Yet it remains patchy; we know surprisingly little for example about…
Neanderthals were just too macho for culture.
suchosch
The challenge we face after a century of extraordinary discoveries is pinning down the lineage and mapping the evolutionary route through which we as human beings got here.
Chimpanzees are wily enough to adapt in some ways when people encroach on their turf.
Kimberley Hockings
Apes and people are sharing habitat more than ever. As apes are pushed into novel situations, we can see how they adapt and maybe find clues into early human evolution.
The move to cultivating the land for food has dramatic impact on the male population.
Shutterstock/hiroshi teshigawara