An analysis of thousands of skulls shows modern humans originated from a single point in Africa and finally lays to rest the idea of multiple origins, British scientists said on Wednesday.
Most researchers agree that mankind spread out of Africa starting about 50,000 years ago, quickly establishing Stone Age cultures throughout Europe, Asia and Australia.
Genetic evidence has always strongly supported the single origin theory, and now results from a study of more than 6,000 skulls held around the world in academic collections supports this case.
Andrea Manica and colleagues wrote in the journal Nature that variations in skull size and shape decreased the further a skull was away from Africa, just like variations in DNA.
The study also concludes that virtually no successive interbreeding with Neanderthals occurred. Regardless of what you may think of American politicians.
With my best Darth Vader voice…
Nooooooooooooooooooooooo!
This is sort of a huge DUH at this point. The time frame for the diaspora may be a bit more specific and recent than expected. All else was already pretty well known.
BTW, don’t insult Neanderthals by calling them U.S. politicians. They had larger brains, including brain size to body weight, than we do. Our success and their Darwinian failure may be due to a number of factors that may or may not include our longer life expectancy and the slight possibility that we ate them.
Geez, I guess we’re all Afro-Americans?!
The Ice Age!!!! and subsequent Global Warming!
Seriously, I did the National Geographics genetic test and it show’d that my non-latino white butt was directly related to the african eurasian-adam dude… now how I got to be born in Illinois is a long story….
There is only a ‘human race’ .
That explains why so many suburban white kids want to be like 50cent.
“The study also concludes that virtually no successive interbreeding with Neanderthals occurred. Regardless of what you may think of American politicians.”
I thought they were just inbred.
“spread out of Africa starting about 50,000 years ago?” More like 2,000,000 years ago. There are lots of extra-African hominid fossils that are well over 1,000,000 years old (e.g., Homo erectus in Europe and Asia). Only 25-50,000 years ago Homo sapiens was already crossing the Bering Straits land bridge from Asia into North America.
#4 – the NG DNA test is a gas. My wife and I both did it and I don’t know who had the most fun.
In her case, she found a couple of traces that were absolutely unknown in her family’s history and there are a couple of dedicated geneologists on her side.
In my case, the happiness came from point-by-point confirmation of the work in anthropology done on “The Celts” by Gerhard Herm. I have the 1975 edition sitting here in my bookcase – the maps of the growth and spread of Celtic culture overlay the results from National Geographic like they were scanned.
#7 – that’s OK, Next years courses, will explain the differences between h.erectus and h.sapiens and the modern African diaspora which finally and overwhelmingly spread – starting 50,000 years ago.
Reparations!
That explains why I dance so well and have this massive cock.
Oh God… I am so sorry I wrote that.
No… I’m not…. It was funny damnit!
Hopefully Angel will come along and shed light on the massive black cock myth.
#14 – You used the word “massive”. I thought the myth was about size, not density. 😉
This is all fine and good, but what of raptor Jesus?
Lauren must be crying….
#14
I have a couple of black friends in LA who would like to “explain” that myth to you.
Just for the record, the Top one is a PC user and the Bottom one is a Mac user.
OFTLO – So you’ve got a big rooster, so what?
#7 – Yes, H. Sapiens was not the only Homo to make it out of Africa. But, all H. Sapiens evolved in and came out of Africa. The other fossils you reference were not our species and those non-Sapiens Homos that came out of Africa, unless they went back, which seems unlikely, are not our ancestors. (Does that parse out to something intelligible? I need sleep.)
What I mean is this. H. Erectus and H. Neanderthalensis, etc, came from Africa, went to Europe and Asia, and died there. We came out of Africa later, around 50K years ago, or possibly a bit more from my prior reading. Either way, Africa is the true Ground Zero … of the human catastrophe.
Say what?
#20, Re: MScott, “Yes, H. Sapiens was not the only Homo to make it out of Africa.
Angel, could you elaborate on that for us?
#20 – Either way, Africa is the true Ground Zero … of the human catastrophe.
I find it hard to understand the insistence you have in calling it a catastrophe.
Or does it really mean that’s were Noah’s Ark came to rest? Or does this mean that they found a few dead bones that overall don’t mean anything? Or does this mean they haven’t found the missing link or is this the missing link, with how many skeletons did they conduct this review with – one, two or hundred that makes it an absolute fact. Or does this really mean nothing what so ever. It doesn’t change present or past history does it?
You know you can call a dog a cat or invent a really impressive ancestry for the dog, but if in the end you don’t like the way the dog acts or it’s culture it still doesn’t change the fact that the dog is still whatever it was. You do have to feel sorry for the dog though since if the dog doesn’t like it self it can never really get away from itself no matter what it calls itself.
Kinda like commies/perverts that dominate so much of todays news and press, no matter where they go there they are, still………………whatever.
The myth of the hugh black cock is a white lie. In the closing days of the Civil War, even the dumbest redneck knew they were losing and they wondered how they could keep one up on the black man without legalized slavery. How could they continue to dehumanize their fellow man?
The answer was to spread the myth of the hugh black cock–that they were all hung like horses and very virile. That way, the average black man, being afterall just an average man, would judge himself inadequate and be on welfare and out of the job market for generations into the future. This plan worked well until professional sports proved that the lie was true.
Ever resolute, the same technique with the opposite approach is used by the average white man and average black man to keep the average yellow man in place. This cock centric view of racial identity is mans last chance to lord it over the wimens as they have no cock at all, although recent genetic advances may make cocks irrelevant.
#24, traxx,
…does this mean they haven’t found the missing link or is this the missing link, with how many skeletons did they conduct this review with – one, two or hundred that makes it an absolute fact.
Actually, if you had read the article your questions would have been answered. They used data from over 6,000 skulls. Sheet, even if you had read the quote in the intro you would have seen:
An analysis of thousands of skulls shows modern humans originated from a single point in Africa and finally lays to rest the idea of multiple origins, British scientists said on Wednesday.
*
You know you can call a dog a cat or invent a really impressive ancestry for the dog, but if in the end you don’t like the way the dog acts or it’s culture it still doesn’t change the fact that the dog is still whatever it was.
Jesus H. Christ !!! I gotta hand it to you. That is one heck of a run on sentence that says absolutely nothing. I thought I could write run on sentences, but damn I’ve been humiliated.
Pssssst……… traax……….. the Garden of Eden is in Africa. ………. Pass it on.
#17 – Jägermeister
“Lauren must be crying….”
And what, prithee tell, would I be crying about? I certainly don’t get my bowels in an uproar over such things.
Are you now channeling that commie anal sphincter Podesta or something? Lemme know; I’ve got a Family-of-Man-size can of scientific whoop-ass I’ve been wanting to open on that self-righteous love child of Al Sharpton and Bozo the Clown for some time now.
So since I am german…that makes me a African-German??? grinning here…
I like your comment #4… There is only a ‘human race’
That is what my parents (actually my dad) told me:
“We are all humans…and if you peel off the skin…we’re all red.”
I believe that and I live it (no, I do not peel off skin…lol)
And as far as that “myth”… it is one…
#23 – OFTLO,
I’m not the first to call it a human catastrophe. There was a large board in an exhibit on biodiversity at the American Museum of Natural History with the title “Humans as a Catastrophe?”
The explanation goes like this. Prior to the evolution of Homo Sapiens, there were 5 great extinction events on this planet. We call these events catastrophic. One took out up to 95% of the species on the planet at the time, though I assume they meant multi-cellular species. Bacteria would be really hard to track and far more numerous. The most recent extinction event prior to humans was caused by the catastrophe of a large comet impact at the Yucatan Peninsula, though there is still some debate about multiple causes.
Now we are in a sixth great extinction. It is already greater than the one that took out the non-avian dinosaurs 65.3 million years ago. Some already say it is greater than the one 250 million years ago, the prior record holder for percentage of species lost. The cause of this catastrophe? Look in a mirror. So, are humans a catastrophe, IMNSHO, definitely!