Ancient Human Remains: Pushes dates around

Researchers: Ancient human remains found in Israel



Daniel Estrin, Associated Press
Mon Dec 27, 2010



JERUSALEM –

Israeli archaeologists said Monday they may have found the earliest evidence yet for the existence of modern man, and if so, it could upset theories of the origin of humans.

A Tel Aviv University team excavating a cave in central Israel said teeth found in the cave are about 400,000 years old and resemble those of other remains of modern man, known scientifically as Homo sapiens, found in Israel. The earliest Homo sapiens remains found until now are half as old.

"It's very exciting to come to this conclusion," said archaeologist Avi Gopher, whose team examined the teeth with X-rays and CT scans and dated them according to the layers of earth where they were found.

He stressed that further research is needed to solidify the claim. If it does, he says, "this changes the whole picture of evolution."

The accepted scientific theory is that Homo sapiens originated in Africa and migrated out of the continent. Gopher said if the remains are definitively linked to modern human's ancestors, it could mean that modern man in fact originated in what is now Israel.

Sir Paul Mellars, a prehistory expert at Cambridge University, said the study is reputable, and the find is "important" because remains from that critical time period are scarce, but it is premature to say the remains are human.

"Based on the evidence they've cited, it's a very tenuous and frankly rather remote possibility," Mellars said. He said the remains are more likely related to modern man's ancient relatives, the Neanderthals.

According to today's accepted scientific theories, modern humans and Neanderthals stemmed from a common ancestor who lived in Africa about 700,000 years ago. One group of descendants migrated to Europe and developed into Neanderthals, later becoming extinct. Another group stayed in Africa and evolved into Homo sapiens — modern humans.

Teeth are often unreliable indicators of origin, and analyses of skull remains would more definitively identify the species found in the Israeli cave, Mellars said.

Gopher, the Israeli archaeologist, said he is confident his team will find skulls and bones as they continue their dig.

The prehistoric Qesem cave was discovered in 2000, and excavations began in 2004. Researchers Gopher, Ran Barkai and Israel Hershkowitz published their study in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology.





 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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EXTINCTION: Claim is we are undergoing Extinction Process Now

Earth 'facing mass extinction'

AAP
September 03, 2010


THE world is facing a mass extinction event that could be greater than that of the dinosaurs, new Australian research shows.

Macquarie University palaeobiologist Dr John Alroy used fossils to track the fate of major groups of marine animals throughout the Earth's history.

He compiled data from nearly 100,000 fossil collections worldwide, tracking the fate of marine animals during extreme extinction events some 250 million years ago.

The findings, published this week in the international journal Science, showed a major extinction event was currently underway that had the potential to be more severe than any others in history.

"Organisms that might have adapted in the past may not be able to this time," Dr Alroy said.

"You may end up with a dramatically altered sea floor because of changes in the dominance of major groups. That is, the extinction occurring now will overturn the balance of the marine groups."

The research shows a combination of human behaviour and climate change could have devastating affects on species across the planet.

"When there's mass extinction all bets are off and anything could happen," Dr Alroy said.

"So what we're basically doing as the human species collectively is we're running this gigantic experiment with nature."

There have been three major mass extinction events throughout history and biologists widely agree the world is currently suffering from another.

The last mass extinction was an estimated 65 million years ago when an asteroid smashed into Mexico and wiped out the dinosaurs, making room for mammals to thrive.

Dr Alroy said a new mass extinction wouldn't be the result of a single horrific event such as an asteroid hitting Earth.

Instead, it would be the result of a factors from introduced foreign species, run-offs from fertilisers and pesticides, pollution and deforestation, he said.

Climate change and an accelerated growth in the worldwide population were also playing a part.

But Dr Alroy said the current situation was not yet as bad as the worst mass extinction 250 million years ago, known as Permian-Triassic extinction or The Great Dying.

"It's safe to say that we have not yet lost nearly as much as what was lost during that event but it's also reasonable to say that we could end up losing as much as was lost in that event," he said.

"We're currently playing games with evolution on a epic scale.

"Really, really big mass extinctions happen very, very rarely and they have very important long-term consequences."
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
extinction

Abandon the Earth

Call us ET, we need help.






Stephen Hawking: Abandon the Earth


Monday, 09 Aug 2010



(CANVAS STAFF REPORTS) - Theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking has some advice for the people of Earth - it's time to get off.

"I believe that the long-term future of the human race must be in space," Hawking said to Big Think , a global forum that includes interviews with experts.

"It will be difficult enough to avoid disaster on planet Earth in the next hundred years, let alone the next thousand, or million. The human race shouldn't have all its eggs in one basket, or on one planet. Let's hope we can avoid dropping the basket until we have spread the load."

The physicist called humankind's survival "a question of touch and go" and referred to the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1963 as one time people narrowly avoided extinction. He also referred to the 22,600 stockpiled nuclear weapons, including 7,770 still operational, scattered around the planet.

If that doesn't drive us off, University of Sussex astrophysicist Dr. Robert Smith said global warming may reach a point "where all of Earth's water will simply evaporate." He said life will disappear on Earth long before the 7.6 billion years some say the aging sun will expand and destroy Earth.

CNet news said that Hawking has concerns about how humans "are eating up finite resources" and has claimed man's genetic code "carries selfish and aggressive instincts" that have helped humanity survive in the past.

Hawking suggests that if man can avoid disaster for the next two centuries "our species should be safe as we spread into space."

According to the Daily Mail , Hawking warned earlier this year that humans should be cautious in trying to contact other alien life forms because there is no way to know if they will be friendly.

"If we are the only intelligent beings in the galaxy we should make sure we survive and continue," he said.

Vernos Branco, a Las Vegas Sun reader, suggested in a letter to the editor that it may not be that easy to escape. He wrote about how humans have continued to move from one place to another as they settle in an area, use all the resources, pollute the area and move on.

He said now that man has technology that can destroy the environment faster, we are running out of space to live in.

"The planet will be fine and heal; it is man who will vanish," he wrote. "... If we develop the technology for space travel, we will do the same to that environment, until we learn not to. Man will become extinct due to his greed."

It may not be that easy anyway to just hop to another planet. University of Michigan astrophysicist Katherine Freese told Big Think that the closest star to Earth is Proxima Centauri. That's 4.2 light years away, which means man could reach the star in 4.2 years - if man could travel at the speed of light.

At this point man travels at about ten thousandth of light speed, which would make that journey about 50,000 years.

There is also the cosmic radiation danger unless man creates a warp drive or cryogenic freezing technology.

If man can develop the technology needed, she said, man could travel into the future.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
space