Scientists in Germany say they've found ape teeth that are surprisingly similar to the teeth of an early human relative dating to millions of years later. As the Independent reports, the team of experts unearthed a pair of 9.7 million-year-old fossilized teeth that, they say, have some of the same features as the teeth of the hominid Australopithecus afarensis. http://mentalfloss.com/article/5084...th-discovered-germany-have-scientists-puzzled https://www.researchgate.net/public...port_Hominoidea_Miocene_MN_9_Proto-Rhine_Riv\ Hmm Pre-iceage population ranges may yet surprise
Yes Rather surprising? Our prejudice via "education" would seem to preclude contemplating a significant portion of our evolution in Eurasia? New paradigm time?
They also resemble teeth from a female chimpanzee, according to the abstract. A wide range of apes in general before the ice seems unsurprising, given the current range today.
Why? The location of the split into the modern bipedal line, and the radiation of hominid species from that event, remains unaffected. That would be the key event in "our" evolution, surely.
I'm seeing a lot of hooplaing, the latest news is the pure gospel, until replaced with the next new thing, which then becomes the pure gospel. This isn't scholarship.
The northern hemisphere ice age has been estimated to have begun 2.8 to 3.2 million years ago, and significant glaciation only 1.8 to 2 million years ago, plenty of evolutionary time before the onset of the glaciers. Will we find more hominid pre-Lucy fossils in Eurasia? and. Then......................................?
Which would make it irrelevant, then, in a discussion of a 9 million year old fossil of female chimpanzee teeth. Will we find more ape fossils from the general lineage that produced Homo sapiens several million years later? It would be surprising if we didn't. Most of the African finds are on the northern end, and the land connection with Europe is right there.
But those are hominins - people. Up on two feet since a million years. Nine million back, it was a different world.
One tooth that hints at(and predates by several millions of years) evolutionary changes to come....................... per se, It cannot be other than "interesting" all else we bring to the table/interpretation If we bring our own spices to the dinner table: Is it likely that we would all bring the same spices? ................................ Is it even remotely possible/likely that someone/anyone will find other 9.7 million year old fossils of the same species?
Which doesn't exactly support(nor detract from) the veracity of the interpretation of the tooth. ............... What's a posh spice? ok ... looked it/her up Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! this one?
Just saying that we're finding new material all the time. I always want confirmation of evidence. It's an artifact.