Adventure Ausrama Blog

Australopithecus africanus were much like humans. They had evolved to use their hands to do intricate thing. It would have been possible for them to turn a key or hold a hammer. Coming down from the trees "caused" manipulatory advancement. The most useful attributes spread to more of their number due to longer survival and breeding capability. While anthropologists are not sure that they used the advanced abilities, it is highly probable that they did otherwise the traits would not have become dominant. This pushes tool use way, way back to 3 million years ago. How do scientists know that Australopithecus had complex skills? Trabeculae which is inside bones in the hands shows how hands were used. Humans, for example use the fingers and thumb region more than chimpanzees. Our friendly relations mainly use their fingers. The supposition that tool use began millions of years ago was only theory: now it is proven.  Culture must have been passed on to offspring as well. ...

The Announcement that skeletons found in South Africa belong to a new species of Man is premature.  They were found in a cave near Johannesburg. The "new species" was named Australopithecus sediba . It was claimed to be the "rosetta stone" into the past. They were also the most complete skeletons ever discovered. The creatures walked upright, had long arms and powerful hands. Unfortunately, they were small brained. Paleoanthropologists not involved in the find say the name chosen is just a "wastebasket" category. They are not ancestors of Man. Furthermore, some animals in the species could have had larger or smaller brains. It could still be transitional in evolution to Man, but very distant. It may fit into Homo . Perhaps it is a sister species to Homo habilis . The brain size of Australopithecus sediba is the same as Homo floresiensis , the Hobbit, of Indonesia. The features in sediba are similar to those in other Homo species. Paleoanthropologi...