New Ancient Human DNA Found
Posted: Thu Dec 05, 2013 3:43 am
From the New York Times. Baffling 400,000-Year-Old Clue to Human Origins
The main point is that that not only is this the oldest known instance of human ancestor DNA discovered thus far, but it belongs to a group called Denisovans (I am unfamiliar with that group) and was found in a location (Spain) which is thousands of miles from every other known Denisovan location found to date. Anthropologists are now going to have to rethink their positions about which groups were located where and when, and how they might have interacted. This isn't just one guy saying "oh, look what I found"; no, apparently the extracted DNA has already been independently verified so the find is legitimate.
We are still suffering from a lack of evidence to give us a clear picture of the history of our earliest ancestors. I would say "if only they had invented writing 150,000 years ago" but how do we know they didn't have a written language? Just because we haven't found it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. *shrug*
Fascinating stuff.
edit: d'oh! my typos have absolutely nothing to do with that Shiner I was drinking at the time. honest. really.
The main point is that that not only is this the oldest known instance of human ancestor DNA discovered thus far, but it belongs to a group called Denisovans (I am unfamiliar with that group) and was found in a location (Spain) which is thousands of miles from every other known Denisovan location found to date. Anthropologists are now going to have to rethink their positions about which groups were located where and when, and how they might have interacted. This isn't just one guy saying "oh, look what I found"; no, apparently the extracted DNA has already been independently verified so the find is legitimate.
We are still suffering from a lack of evidence to give us a clear picture of the history of our earliest ancestors. I would say "if only they had invented writing 150,000 years ago" but how do we know they didn't have a written language? Just because we haven't found it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. *shrug*
Fascinating stuff.
edit: d'oh! my typos have absolutely nothing to do with that Shiner I was drinking at the time. honest. really.
