GENUS HOMO

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GENUS HOMO ?Evolved out of australopithecine
genus. ?Possibly from afarensis or
africanus. ?Genus to which modern humans
belong. Homo habilis (2.5 - 1.6 mya) ?Increased
brain size (630 cc average, up to 750 cc). ?Used
stone tools (Olduwan). habilis means
handy-man. ?Confined to East and South
Africa. ?May not be directly ancestral to
Humans. Lived contemporaneously with other
Homo species. ?Diversity in size has led to a
different species designation for the larger
fossils (i.e. ER 1470), called Homo rudolfensis.
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Homo georgicus (1.8 mya)

• Species was named in 2002
• Fossils found in Dmanisi, Georgia.
• Seem intermediate between H. habilis and H.
  erectus.
• Not yet sure of its taxonomic significance.
• The brain sizes of the skulls vary from 600 to
  680 cc.
• Height, as estimated from a foot bone, would have
  been about 1.5 m (4'11").
• Partial skeleton was discovered in 2001 but no
  details are available on it yet.

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Homo erectus (1.9 mya - 200,000 ya) ?Oldest H.
erectus fossils found in East Africa. ?First
hominid to leave Africa. Found in China and SE
Asia. Much colder environment. ?First use of
clothing? ?Increasing trend toward larger brain
size (1000 cc). Fossil brain endocasts and
skull caps show increasing brain
complexity. ?Lateral asymmetry. ?Beginning of
handedness and possibly speech. ?Used more
complex tools (Acheulian type). ?Learned to use
fire. ?Lived in caves. ?Possibly hunting large
animals.
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Homo erectus (1.9 mya - 200,000 ya) ?Two species
or one? Some researchers believe that African
and Asian H. erectus are different enough to be
2 species. Homo ergaster (Africa) and Homo
erectus (Asia). Some argue that African H.
erectus evolved into archaic Homo and then into
modern H. sapiens some suggest H. erectus in
Asia went extinct, others say that they evolved
into modern Asian population of H. sapiens.
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• Homo antecessor (780,00 ya)
• Found in 1977 at the Spanish cave site of
  Atapuerca.
• Oldest confirmed European hominids.
• Mid-facial area very modern, but other parts of
  the skull such as the teeth, forehead and
  browridges much more primitive.
• Unclear what H. antecessor represents.
• Often grouped with Archaic Homo.

Archaic Homo sapiens (500,000 - 200,000
ya). ?Often referred to as Homo
heidelbergensis ?Brain size increase to 1200
cc. ?Africa, Europe, and Asia. ?Big game
hunting. ?Increased use of fire. ?Evidence for
the use of constructed shelters. ?Complex
Acheulian tools
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SLIDES LEGEND