All posts tagged: Homo

We’ve only just confirmed that Homo habilis really existed

We’ve only just confirmed that Homo habilis really existed

Published by skeptic

Homo habilis lived in East Africa up to 2 million years ago Natural History Museum, London/Alamy This is an extract from Our Human Story, our newsletter about the revolution in archaeology. Sign up to receive it in your inbox every month. Homo habilis is a paradoxical species. On the one hand, they have a famous name and hold the status of being the first members of our genus Homo: the first humans, if you like. On the other hand, we have never known that much about them, and what we do know is kind of weird. How can a species be simultaneously well known and little known? We have to start with the name, if only because it’s one of the few things we can be sure about. The species was given its moniker in 1964 by a trio of palaeoanthropologists: Louis Leakey, Phillip Tobias and John Napier. Though, as they acknowledged, it wasn’t their idea – their colleague Raymond Dart had suggested “habilis” from the Latin for “able, handy, mentally skilful, vigorous”. They applied the …

Paper Defends Spoken Language in Homo erectus

Paper Defends Spoken Language in Homo erectus

Published by Jenni Sidey

This republished article first appeared in Science and Culture Today There’s a longstanding debate over the intellectual capabilities of Homo erectus. As we’ve discussed before, below the neck erectus is highly similar to modern humans. It’s average brain size is lower than that of modern humans, but it’s still within the range of modern human genetic variation. In the past we’ve discussed the possibility that they used boats and engraved shells. The archaeological evidence is sparse, so there’s lots of room for speculation and disagreement. Now, a new paper in the journal Biological Theory, “Did Homo Erectus Have a (Vocal) Language?”, reviews “a comprehensive set of evidence in favor of vocal linguistic capability in Homo erectus.” The first thing that comes to mind in the context of intellectual capabilities is brain size. The paper notes that “brain volume for most of the Homo erectus fossils is above 800 cm3, varying from that level up to 1390 cm3, which is within AMH [anatomically modern human] variation.” They continue: Compared with brain volume, encephalization quotient (EQ) may be a more reliable predictor of intelligence. It is calculated as brain mass in grams/(0.056×body …

Two-million-year-old skeleton reveals homo habilis had strong, long arms

Two-million-year-old skeleton reveals homo habilis had strong, long arms

Published by Jenni Sidey

Dust and sun define field seasons in East Turkana. So do patience and sharp eyes. In northern Kenya, a set of bones pulled from the ground has now changed what scientists can say about one of your earliest human relatives. An international research team reports an unusually well-preserved Homo habilis skeleton that dates to just over 2 million years ago. The fossil, labeled KNM-ER 64061, comes from East Turkana and includes the most complete postcranial, meaning below-the-skull, evidence known for this species. This matters because Homo habilis has long felt like a species known mostly from heads. Scientists have found cranial pieces over decades, but they rarely had enough connected limb and trunk bones to describe how the body looked and worked. With this new skeleton, the conversation shifts from guesswork toward firmer measurements, especially for the shoulders and arms. The specimen also comes with a crucial bonus, a nearly complete set of mandibular teeth associated with the bones. That dental link lets researchers confidently assign the scattered parts to one individual and to Homo …

Homo HURAQUS 2050 and the Disruptive Techno-Convergence Era: How Humanoid Robotics, AI, Quantum and Synthetic Biology Are Recasting The Future of Humanity

Homo HURAQUS 2050 and the Disruptive Techno-Convergence Era: How Humanoid Robotics, AI, Quantum and Synthetic Biology Are Recasting The Future of Humanity

Published by Jenni Sidey

Screenshot Human civilization is entering a period of unprecedented technological acceleration. This convergence is pushing humanity toward what I define as civilizational frontier risks: systemic, transboundary, and potentially existential challenges arising when transformative technologies intersect with the primal human drives that shape their use. These risks appear when scientific and technological power outpaces the ethical, political, and governance frameworks needed to manage it responsibly. For the first time, the boundaries between the biological, digital, and physical realms are dissolving. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is approaching levels of reasoning and autonomy that challenge human oversight. Quantum technologies promise to transform computation, encryption, and scientific discovery. Synthetic biology gives us the power to design and modify life itself. And humanoid robots are taking machine agency into the physical world, increasingly integrated into homes, workplaces, care facilities, and military systems. These convergences signal that humanity is entering uncharted terrain. We now possess, or soon will, the ability to alter life, rewrite ecosystems, manipulate cognition, disrupt geopolitical stability, and create autonomous systems with agency we barely comprehend.  At this civilizational …