There is a correlation between the brain size of an individual and their body size: a larger animal needs a larger a brain to take care of their basic bodily functions. However, some creatures deviate from this relationship and have a significantly bigger brain than would be expected given their body size. This is known … Continue reading »
Increased meat consumption was an important part of human evolution. In 7 million years we went from meat making up ~3% of our diet to at least ~20% nowadays. Not counting vegetarians of course. Such an increase provided us with a range of benefits. Better nutrition allowed for increased brain size; we could expand into … Continue reading »
In The Descent of Man Charles Darwin laid out his thoughts regarding humans. At length he discussed our nature, behaviour and evolution. But of all he had observed around the world one aspect of humanity stood out to him as the “noblest.” The aid which we feel impelled to give to the helpless is mainly … Continue reading »
The facts of this post are currently disputed An appreciation of aesthetics seems to be an old trait in hominins. Ironically perhaps it seems to be older than the production of these aesthetics themselves. As early as Australopithecus it seems our ancestors had an appreciation for the look of certain objects since a face-shaped rock … Continue reading »
Whilst Homo sapiens is defined by its biology, if one were forced to identify their most important attribute then their anatomy would not be it. No, it is our behaviour which truly sets apart from other creatures. Although our body is a highly derived object with surprisingly derived adaptations, it is how we behave that … Continue reading »
Modern humans are almost defined by their behaviours, making the development of modern behaviour a fundamental turning point in the origin of us. It’s when we stopped being hominins and started being humans. Actually, that’s a lie: we’re technically still hominins, that’s just a pithy – if factually vacuous – statement to convey the importance … Continue reading »
Homo neanderthalensis is not a species to be dismissed lightly. They weren’t especially dumb, nor especially weak. Indeed, they actually had larger brains and denser muscles than we did. On top of that, their technology was so well adapted to their environment that they were able to flourish without drastically altering it for hundreds of … Continue reading »
One of the defining traits of humanity is conciousness or “sapience.” Arguably it’s what separates us from the beasts, so understanding its development is of prime importance when examining human evolution. To identify the origin of concious thought is to identify the very origin of humanity. However, answering such a deep question is hampered by … Continue reading »
The social brain hypothesis suggests that our brains, specifically our neocortex, grew larger because it allowed us to remember more relationships and thus live in larger groups which gave us an evolutionary advantage. The evidence for this is rather strong, allowing us to put one piece of the puzzle firmly in place. But alas, one … Continue reading »
By all accounts Homo neanderthalensis should’ve driven Homo sapiens extinct. They had larger brains, stronger muscles and thicker bones. Yet we are the only species of Homo alive in the world today, creating one of the most puzzling aspects of recent human evolution. How did we beat the neanderthals? Answering this question is made even … Continue reading »
