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Our Closest Relatives, the Neanderthals

Our Closest Relatives, the Neanderthals. By: Stephen Thai. Introduction. Homo Neanderthalensis Lived in Europe and Southwestern Asia 138,000 to 28,000 years ago Mostly an Ice Age Never numbered more than 100,000 1856, Neander Valley, Germany 1 st Neanderthal skulls discovered.

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Our Closest Relatives, the Neanderthals

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  1. Our Closest Relatives, the Neanderthals By: Stephen Thai

  2. Introduction • Homo Neanderthalensis • Lived in Europe and Southwestern Asia • 138,000 to 28,000 years ago • Mostly an Ice Age • Never numbered more than 100,000 • 1856, Neander Valley, Germany • 1st Neanderthal skulls discovered

  3. Neanderthals and Humans • Common Ancestor • Homo Antecessor • 465,000 – 600,000 years ago • 378 unit mtDNA strand • Humans did not evolve from Neanderthals • No evidence of interbreeding (yet)

  4. Out of Africa Theory • 1 million years ago • Homo antecessor migrates out, evolves into Neanderthals • Remaining homo antecessor in Africa evolve into Homo sapiens • 100,000 years ago • Humans migrate out, replacing other hominids

  5. Neanderthal Bodies Relative to Humans • 5 ft, 185 lbs • Larger noses, heads, bones, muscles • Bulkier, stronger than humans • Efficient and well suited to cold environments • Less agile • Short limbs, wide pelvises

  6. Language • Hyoid Bone • Allows humans to produce wide range of sounds necessary for language • FOXP2 • “Language gene” • Responsible for humans’ cognitive ability to understand complex language • Both present in Neanderthals • Did they speak a language?

  7. Brains • Approximately 20% larger than human brains • But proportionally, Neanderthal brains were smaller • Back of the brain • Deals with sight and touch • Well developed • Front of brain • Deals with speech and thought • Relatively small compared with back • Left side of brain larger than right • Right handed • Shorter childhood • Less time to develop cognitive abilities

  8. Brain Sizes

  9. Culture • Social Unit • Consisted of extended family members • Took care of the sick and injured • Mostly lived inside caves • Like humans… • Knew how to use fire • Constructed complex temporary structures for shelter when migrating • Skinned animals • Lacked art

  10. Burials • 1st known hominids to bury dead • Was it a ritual or simply to avoid attracting scavengers? • Sites contain multiple individuals • Usually inside caves/ rock shelters • Some filled with items and pollen • Intentional or no? • Occasional cannibalism

  11. Interaction with Humans • Usually avoided each other when possible • Increasing numbers of humans in Neanderthal habitats made avoidance harder • Culture Changes • Adoption of bone and ivory tools • Puncturing holes into animal bones for decoration • Early form of art for Neanderthals

  12. Hunting • Mostly hunted, occasionally foraged • Well suited to walking, running, hunting • Thickness and high density of leg bones • Killed using stone point spears and axes • Rarely used ivory or bone until human interaction • Women and sometimes even children hunted • Both men and women sustained numerous injuries from hunts – broken limbs • Few lived older than 30 years

  13. Extinction Theories • Climate Change • Sudden swings between warm and cold rapidly changed environment • Killed off many species that Neanderthals depended on for food • Not intelligent enough to develop technology for surviving cold, esp. compared to humans • Extinction coincided w/ coldest period of Ice Age • Natural selection would favor humans • Fails to explain extinction in Middle East/ SW Asia

  14. Extinction cont. • Competition with Humans • Homo sapiens more technologically advanced • Better tools for hunting and survival • Division of labor • Human women did not hunt – gatherers • Neanderthal women hunted – higher rates of death • Result: reduced birth rates and survival rates of young children for Neanderthals • More humans competing with less Neanderthals

  15. Neanderthal Genome Project • Sequence the Neanderthal genome • DNA extracted from femur bone of 38,000 year old male fossil, Croatia • Helped in discovery of FOXP2 gene • DNA similarities • Human and Chimpanzee: 98.77% • Human and Neanderthal: 99.5% • Possible interbreeding?

  16. Summary • Common ancestor Homo antecessor • 465,000 – 600,0000 years ago • 1st migration out of Africa – evolved into Neanderthals • 2nd Migration – evolved into humans • Neanderthals bigger, stronger, bulkier • May have spoken a language • Had hyoid bone and FOXP2 gene • Proportionally smaller brains • Culture • Social units essential to survival • First known hominid burials • Both men and women hunted • Extinction Theories • Climate Change • Competition with humans • Neanderthal Genome Project

  17. References • Hall, Stephen S. "Last of the Neanderthals." 2008. National Geographic. Accessed 2 Nov. 2008 http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2008/10/neanderthals/hall-text • Krause, Johannes. "The Derived FOXP2 Variant of Modern Humans Was Shared with Neandertals." Science Direct. 6 Nov. 2007. Elsevier Ltd. Accessed 24 Nov. 2008 • http://www.sciencedirect.com/science?_ob=articleurl&_udi=b6vrt-4pxn9tn-5&_user=961305&_rdoc=1&_fmt=&_orig=search&_sort=d&view=c&_acct=c000049425&_version=1&_urlversion=0&_userid=961305&md5=ce8c9f9e49901592bc557891c8948c9e • Kreger, C. David. "Homo Neanderthalensis." Archaeology.Info. 2008. Accessed 8 Oct. 2008 http://www.archaeologyinfo.com/homoneaderthalensis.htm • Mellars, Paul. "The Fate of the Neanderthals." Nature. 8 Oct. 1998. Accessed 3 Nov. 2008 http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v395/n6702/full/395539a0.html • "Neanderthal." BBC - Science & Nature - Horizon. BBC. Accessed 2 Nov. 2008 http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/neanderthal_prog_summary.shtml • "Neanderthal Men, An Extinct Race." Old and Sold. Accessed 3 Nov. 2008 http://www.oldandsold.com/articles32n/history-outline-24.shtml • "Neanderthals." Ecotao. 7 July 2008. Accessed 30 Oct. 2008 http://www.ecotao.com/holism/hu_neand.htm • Noonan, James P. "Sequencing and Analysis of Neanderthal Genome DNA." Research Article. 17 Nov. 2006. Science Mag. Accessed 24 Nov. 2008 http://pritch.bsd.uchicago.edu/publications/noonanetal06.pdf • O'Neil, Dennis. "Neandertals." Evolution of Modern Humans: Neandertals. 17 Oct. 2008. Accessed 24 Nov. 2008 http://anthro.palomar.edu/homo2/mod_homo_2.htm • Tattersall, Ian, ed. "Neandertals." Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia. Microsoft Corporation. Accessed 3 Nov. 2008 http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_701702357_2/neandertals.html

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