Becoming Human: Last Man Standing

"Last Human Standing." Becoming Human. PBS NOVA. 31 Aug. 2010. Television. 

Becoming Human: Last Human Standing 

This T.V. program,

Becoming Human: Last Human Standing, 

was about how homo 
sapiens ended up being the last human to 

survive on Earth. I 
learned a lot from this movie. I learned that it was not only our 
brain size that caused us to be the last humans standing, but we were also able to adapt to different conditions. Since we were able 
to adapt to changes, we could outlive other 

species. Also our 
brain was naturally more intelligent than the 

rest. We were able 
to make specific tools for specific jobs. For 

example, we could 
make hooks to fish seafood, we made 

specific stone shapes for 
crushing and slicing, and we also made the throwing spear. I 
also learned other interesting things, like there was four different humans living all at the same time. The 

T.V. program also 
emphasized on our body and brain features in comparison to 
other 
humans. Homo erectus was the first human to have similar bodies to us. Homo 
erectus was also the very first human to 
leave the continent of Africa. It was 
also fascinating 

how
 homo 
erectus may have buried their dead. This evidence 

was found in Spain, in which 
over 80 individual skeletons were 

found. A fascinating fact was that 
Neanderthals are in fact the 

closest humans to us, according to research. 



All of this intriguing research and information were found by 
different people and found in different places.   Of particular 
interest were two findings in Belgium and Spain because they 
were very important for revealing our deep past.  Over
80 individuals were all found in the same
place in Spain, in a 

cave which may have 
been exposed during the time of homo 

habilis. Since it was 
probably exposed during this time, the 

homo habilis used it as a burying pit. Also, the very first Neanderthal was found in Murz 
Valley in Belgium. 
 Once important 

contributor was
 Charles Darwin was the person who made up 

the 
evolutionary theory. The evolutionary theory 
states that all 

living things change over time because of 
changes in their 

ecosystem. An important icon mentioned in this show is Turkana boy. 
Turkana boy is the nickname for a homo erectus that was 

found near lake Turkana. Turkana boy represents the change between human like and ape like.

From Grunts to Grammar: The Evolution of language

Miller, Jeanne. "From Grunts to Grammar: The Evolution of Language." Odyssey: Adventures in Science

FROM GRUNTS TO GRAMMAR: THE EVOLUTION OF LANGUAGE NOTES 

In this article, "From Grunts to Grammar", I found out about the beginning and the development of language. For a long time scientists and researchers have been asking when  humans start to have more complicated language. We also have been asking when our brain was actually complex enough to develop, use, and understand more intricate language. To be able to have language we didn't only need a developed brain, but also the vocal chords to make the sounds. According to evidence and artifacts we have found, Homo Habilis might have had an area in their brain for speech. Over time our ancestors' brains have changed in complexity and size. This was a major factor in the development of languages. The larynx developed over time so that we can make different noises. Humans have a space right above our larynx. This is helpful because sounds that we make can be modified because of our throat and neck muscles. This probably helped in our development of language.

 The author also talked about how we are different from other mammals because most mammals breathe through their nose only but we breathe through our nose and mouth. Scientists think this developed when we were in the African savannah and needed to hunt. Since we breathed through both nose and mouth, we had more stamina.We actually have no evidence of language since it was 100% oral, but we can find out a bit about language by looking at our ancestors larynx and brain. To travel from place to place, it was important to have communication. An example was when homo sapiens were spreading to Australia. To be able to make boats to go across water, they needed a lot of communication.

 I think this article is great because it goes into depth about the major factors of the development of language. It also talks a lot about these factors and how they were changed over time. One thing the author could do better is explain how the larynx works because I got very confused. I also liked how the author describes why and how the different factors  affected language development. The article  has a lot of details and examples to back up its different points.

Taming Fire: The First Scientist

TAMING FIRE: THE FIRST SCIENTIST? 

NOTES 

This article, "Taming fire: The first scientist" is an article about how, when, and why our ancestors started to use fire. In the article they talk about how for a very long time humans were quite frightened and curious about the great power of fire. Scientists think that humans have been using fire for at least 250,000 years but some think that we have been using it for at least 1,000,000 years. They think that humans first got fire by getting it from natural fires. Some examples of this are from lightning and forest fires. Later, humans were able to control fire. They did this by creating hearths. Hearths are a very simple form of a fireplace, and were usually just a ring of rocks to prevent fire from spreading. Scientists know this because unburned and intact tools were found near hearths, proving that they could control fire. Also fire from hearths are at a higher temperature than wildfires. So the more burnt objects were obviously from a hearth. The author also talks a lot about the purpose of fire. We used fire for several different purposes. One of these purposes was that we used it for cooking meat. By cooking our meat it made it softer and easier to chew. It also killed any dangerous bacteria and parasites, hidden in the meat. Additionally, we used fire for keeping ourselves warm and scaring off animals.  Fire was used for light, as well. By having a source of light at night, we could work even when it's dark. This provided them with a longer day. I think this is a very good article because the author gives both sides of an argument. He talked about how some scientists think that we started to use fire 250,000 years ago and some say 1,000,000 years ago. There is one bad thing about this article. I personally think the author could have added more facts and information. This is such a broad topic and I think he leaves a lot of loose ends.

On our own two feet

Whitt, Stephen. "On Our Own Two Feet." Odyssey Adventures in Science Oct. 2009: 26-28. Print.

ON OUR OWN TWO FEET

         The article “On Our Own Two Feet” by S Whitt presents our “missing link” between humans and apes. The author also talks about the similarities and differences between humans and apes. The article discusses many interesting facts about ape and human skulls. Ape skulls have a jaw that is more jut out than ours. However, our skulls have a much larger brain case. An Australopithecus Afarensis, which is one of our early ancestors, has a jaw that juts out and a smaller brain case similar to apes even though they are one of human’s earliest ancestors. Another difference between ape and human skulls is the positioning of the foramen magnum. The foramen magnum is a hole at the bottom of the skull where the spinal chord fits to connect with the brain. The foramen magnum of an ape needs to be a bit backward and downward. It needs to be like this because apes walk on all fours so their spinal chord is positioned so that it angles up a bit. Our foramen magnum does not need to be angled a bit back and downward rather it needs to be horizontal because our spinal chord is vertical. As apes "walk on all fours, their spines angle up slightly, but are nowhere between up and down". If you look at the foramen magnum of an Australopithecus Afarensis you would notice that it is horizontal, like ours.


The author talked about bipedality as well. Scientists now have evidence that may be even older than Australopithecus Afarensis. Bipedality may have started with Ardipithecus Ramidus and even Orrorin Tugenesis. Both of these early hominins are older than Australopithecus Afarensis. A previous theory about the purpose of bipedality was that early humans needed bipedality to be able to make and use stone tools. But the fact that stone tools were created after hominins became bipedal prove the theory wrong. One other theory is that hominins became bipedal because they needed to carry food to their mates in their hand while walking. As the author states, “By sharing food we made it possible for one parent to focus on raising children.” 

An Ape Skull in comparison to a human skull