Evolutionary Anthropology

Origins of Fossil Cuts

Recently, a tibia fossil from the early Pleistocene was found to have butchery marks. These are the only cut marks identified on an early Pleistocene postcranial hominin fossil to date. Researchers have gone to great lengths to examine these cuts and determine their origin.

Using Machine Learning to Detect Misinformation About Evolution on Social Media

As I have researched evolution for this blog, I have noticed that there is a lot of misinformation about evolution online. This inspired me to write a research paper in which I created a machine-learning architecture that detects misinformation about evolution on social media. I was fortunate enough to be invited to present the paper at the 2024 Carnegie Mellon University IDeaS Conference: Disinformation, Hate Speech and Extremism Online. At the conference, I was the only presenter who was not a graduate student, post doctorate or PhD.

The Insights of Cave Paintings

Ancient cave paintings go beyond just being beautiful. These remarkable artworks also contain many hidden stories and symbols. By uncovering them, we can discover a glimpse into our ancestors’ lives.

Forensic Anthropology

Recently, I attended a speaking event and listened to the leader of the Anthropology Club at Georgia State University speak. He discussed forensic anthropology, which merges archaeological bone analysis with crime investigations.

Forensic anthropology uses many different techniques to discover the sex, age, and identity of a body. For example, to determine sex, Forensic Anthropologists often analyze the mastoid process and pelvis bones of the body. In men, the mastoid process is more pronounced, and in females, the pelvis is wider due to the birthing canal.

North African Agriculture

For at least 7,000 years, starting around 15,000 years ago, there was clear population continuity in the North African region. There was a group of Hunter-Gathers living there with no gene flow across the Mediterranean Sea. Then, a group of European Farmers came in and brought with them many innovations.

Speak Up! The Importance of Human Hearing

Our auditory system is remarkably complex, designed to perceive a wide range of sounds essential for survival and communication. Early primates had relatively simple hearing structures, but as hominins evolved, so did their auditory capacities.

The Phoenix Project

The Phoenix Project is a monumental undertaking rooted in preserving and cataloging the extensive collection of artifacts unearthed during the construction of Atlanta’s MARTA subway system in the 1970s. It’s comprised of over 100,000 items housed in 469 boxes. These artifacts offer invaluable insights into Atlanta’s history, spanning from the Civil War era to the city’s rapid urbanization in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The Phoenix Project not only safeguards this rich cultural heritage but also provides opportunities for interdisciplinary research, education, and public outreach (Phoenix Lab, 2024).

Obervable Evolution

Typically, evolution is something abstract that we cannot observe. Sure we can look at a textbook and see what humans looked like a hundred million years ago, but humans have not evolved since we have been alive. Professor Richard Lenski has been running an experiment for more than 30 years observing evolution firsthand.

Development of Skin Color

The evolution of human skin color is an intriguing topic that breaks down racism when studied. The amount of melanin a person has in their skin is what determines their skin color. Melanin is a pigment that absorbs and scatters UV radiation. Differing needs of UV radiation is what caused different groups to have different amounts of melanin and therefore different skin colors (Jablonski & Chaplin, 2000).

Homo Erectus

Homo erectus is an extinct species of the genus Homo. Most likely the species originated in Africa, but it dispersed quickly starting from around 1.9 mya into South Asia, Europe, and Southeast Asia. In terms of looks, they looked pretty similar to modern humans. They had similar height range, with a smaller brain, bigger teeth, and a somewhat similar skull shape. Although, they had a distinct brow ridge. They were also the first species to control fire around a million years ago. The species flourished until about 200,000 years ago (Smithsonian, 2022).