The human brain, more than any other trait, distinguishes our species. Over the last 7 million years or more, it has grown in size and complexity, enabling us to use language, plan for the future, and coordinate with each other on a scale never before seen in the history of life. But our brains come… Read More »
New research has pinpointed the likely time when humans first began speaking in prehistory. Analysis by British archaeologist Steven Mithen suggests that early humans first developed primitive language about 1.6 million years ago, somewhere in eastern or southern Africa. “Humanity’s development of speech was undoubtedly the key to enabling much of later physical and cultural… Read More »
An employee of the Natural History Museum in London looks at a model of a Neanderthal man.Will Oliver/PA Images/Getty Until recently, there was consensus that Neanderthals and Homo sapiens were separate species. But most people carry around 2% of Neanderthal DNA, challenging the notion that we are different. Other research suggests that Neanderthals were not… Read More »