Two Million Years Ago, This Homo Erectus Lived the High Life

[sl8]

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/two-million-years-ago-homo-erectus-likely-lived-in-cool-high-altitude-environments-180983073/

Two Million Years Ago, This Homo Erectus Lived the High Life

Dating of a child’s fossilized jaw and teeth suggest our relatives lived at altitude earlier than once thought

Brian Handwerk
Science Correspondent
October 13, 2023



The mandible of the Homo erectus child Italo-Spanish Archaeological Mission at Melka Kunture, with ARCCH permit

Archaeologists are rewriting the story of an early human child whose fossilized jaw and impacted teeth were discovered more than 40 years ago in the Ethiopian highlands. Scientists used high-tech imaging to reveal that early humans, apparently Homo erectus, inhabited this high-altitude plateau two million years ago. Their work provides more evidence that even early in our evolutionary journey, our Homo ancestors weren’t confined to warm African lowlands. Instead, they took advantage of a variety of diverse environments—a precursor of their ability to subsequently spread out across the prehistoric world.

The team analyzed the teeth and jaw as never before, and they published their findings Thursday in Science. They compared the teeth to those of other early Homo species and suggest that the child was H. erectus. That group likely made and used the abundant stone tools of the Oldowan technology found with the fossil, the authors say, as well as the more advanced Acheulean tools also found in the area, from nearly the same time period. This suggests, the authors theorize, that these early highlanders adapted quickly to a high-altitude environment.

Study co-author Margherita Mussi, an archaeologist at Sapienza University in Rome, and colleagues combined two techniques: argon-argon dating and a recently completed paleomagnetic dating analysis to fine-tune the site’s ages. The fossil and Oldowan artifacts with it had previously been dated to 1.7 million to 1.8 million years ago, but revised ages now place them at some two million years old. The team also used advanced imaging technology to study the fossil and suggest which species it represents. “This analysis gave us information inside the teeth, in extremely high detail and comparison with a lot of teeth that are already assessed as Homo erectus,” Mussi says.

Researchers couldn’t determine the child’s sex based on the ancient teeth and jaw, but since so many such fossils have been categorized as male, Mussi took the liberty of deciding the ancient child was a girl whom she affectionally nicknamed “Little Garba.”

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[cachukis]

1. Like to read anthropologically.

Curiously, in the past a link was available for the full post. Not seeing that here. Is this a DU4 issue or something else? Thanks.

[sl8]

3. I added it late - try hitting your browser refresh.

Or,
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/two-million-years-ago-homo-erectus-likely-lived-in-cool-high-altitude-environments-180983073/

[cachukis]

5. Thanks. Saw it later. Great story about expansion

of humanity.

[SpamWyzer]

6. As an aside,

the image in the article actually falls under child pornography laws in some states in the US. The depiction of , even an imaginary child, naked, is considered a form of obscenity. A man in Japan was arrested and charged for creating anime "porn" of non-existent children, imaginary ones in fact. As an image maker, I find this very dangerous for 1A rights and I am mentioning it because, technically, the artist is in violation of the law. The depiction claims the child is female...

[cachukis]

7. Wow. I'm in Florida. Never occured to me to

consider this aspect.

[sl8]

8. I replaced the photo.

Folks can visit the Smithsonian link to see the first pic.

Thanks.

[cachukis]

2. Sorry, did not scroll back high enough.

[sl8]

4. No worries.

I appreciate it when someone reminds me that I left out the link.

[Warpy]

9. H. erectus was the most successful species to date

and traveled Africa, Eurasia, the Indian subcontinent. No remains have been found yet in the Americas, but that might just be a matter of looking in the right place for them.

Because of their small brain size and undeveloped frontal lobes, they have often been characterized as not having planning skills or the ability to create their own culture, often dismissed as pack hunting "wolves with knives.*" Still, they were well adapted to their environment, had the use of fire, made appropriate tools, and had remarkable species longevity.

IOW, they couldn't have been that dumb. They obviously communicated with each other, and spread technologies, adapting to a wide variety of climates and able to support themselves in each of them.

*"wolves with knives" is an actual quote, can't remember where it originated, but it did them a disservice, IMO.

[cachukis]

10. Humanity didn't start with humans

[Warpy]

11. Erectus was human

Early members of our species might have thought they were funny looking, but they were recognizably human.

Ororin tugenensis pushed our likely ancestors all the way back to when our DNA tells us we most likely split off from what became chimps and bonobos.

[cachukis]

12. Yes. I was referring to human like activity, thinking,

for example, in crows et al.

[Warpy]

13. Yes, and magpies. "Bird brain" is no longer an insult

Chimpanzees seem to have conversations composed of gestures, blowing, and lip smacking. Perhaps someone will put it together and decode that as a language. Science has already decoded part of the prairie dog language.

I have an acquaintance of an acquaintance who is studying ancient fire in Africa to try to determine just when our ancestors started to harvest fire from lightning strikes and keep it going. There is some evidence of pre human use of fire, but even H. erectus, whose use of fire is well documented, didn't use it to cook his meat, he liked it raw and bloody (studies of scuzz on his teeth showed his diet).

Now thayt we've finally moved on from freak show, exhibition, and treasure hunting, archaeology and anthropology are starting to give us some tantalizing clues about how and where we came from.

[cachukis]

14. Our intellectual development comes from so many

sources. Watching evolution work it's way through all of our connections is quite the trip. Love reading from those who understand the big picture and seeking the clues of explanation. Archimedes knew the ratio of pi will never be answered, but that it has its place in the quest for understanding. We will never get to the ultimate truth, but I'm okay with that. It's opening the doors where we find the excitement.

[Warpy]

15. The excitement comes from speculating abut what's on the other side

The intellectual challenge comes from finding ways to pick the locks. When we open the door, we're usually quite surprised by what's really there, and it always leads to new questions to be excited about.

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

16. Adapting to high altitude is not all that hard.

Unless you are talking extremely high altitude, above 12,000 feet.

I currently live in Santa Fe, NM, at 7,000 feet. I love it. I feel good. When I go to sea level I initially feel as if the air is too thick, but within a day or so adjust. Humans are for the most part endlessly adaptable. As would have been our not quite yet homo sapien ancestors. As will be our homo whatever descendants, should they get to exist.