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afarcomp3.jpg Afarensis is a 3.5-2.8 million year old hominin from the Kada Hadar member of the Hadar formation in the Middle Awash, Ethiopia. He is approximately 41 inches tall, weighs approximately 60 pounds and has a cranial capacity of a whopping 410 cc (approximately). Afarensis is currently considered to be transitional between apes and humans and displays some traits of both. Since he spends a lot of time on the couch watching monster movies, some observers question whether he is an obligate biped (although no one has observed him climbing a tree). He also has a blog called Transitions:The Evolution of Life His previous blog can be found here.
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Interesting Paleoanthropology Sites

Category: Paleoanthropology
Posted on: July 10, 2008 8:20 PM, by afarensis, FCD

A number of the more famous paleoanthropological sites have web pages. Two of the more interesting and informative are below the fold.

The first is called The Sunghir Archaeological Site. It is divided into the following sections: Anthropological findings (provides a basic overview of the skeletons), Morphology, Paleopathology, Trace element analysis of the bones, Molecular analysis of the DNA, What they looked like, and Ecology and evolution. It is well worth reading.

The second is called The story of Pech de l'Aze - this one has some interesting movies in the FAQs sections.

Comments

Thanks very much! I'm always looking for new links to add to my Palanthsci and blog sites. I really liked that Peche de l'Aze link, BTW.
Anne G

Posted by: Anne Gilbert | July 10, 2008 11:43 PM

That brings back fond memories. I was a volunteer on an Earthwatch project with Harold Dibble and the Pech de L'aze group a few years back. It was quite an experience. I have a few pictures up on my blog from the dig.

Posted by: Romeo Vitelli | July 11, 2008 12:02 AM

If you liked those, you might be interested in checking out the Dolni Vestonice information by Petr Shkrdla, by going to www.iabrno.cz/jarosov/Chapter4.pdf. That was in the Czech Republic, where vast numbers of tiny, clay "sculpture" of mostly animals, but also some humans were found, dating to the Upper Paleolithic. In the Sept. 18, 1998 Science, there was also an excellent article (available online to subscribers) about Quebrada Jaguay, a pre-Clovis site in South America which I believe is on the coast of Peru (or else Chile). While not as famous as Monte Verde (definitely in Chile), the dating is more secure and is part of the proof that people were in the Americas well before Clovis (before 11 kya).

Posted by: DianaGainer | July 18, 2008 10:38 AM

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