Human Origins
Researchers Suggest Big Toe Was Last Part of Foot to Evolve
Early hominins' big toes were equipped for life on the ground and in the trees
Laziness May Have Contributed to the Decline of Homo Erectus
Researchers suggest early humans pursued “least-effort strategies” when crafting tools, collecting resources
Study Suggests Neanderthals Sparked Their Own Fire
Hand-axe wear suggests our hominid cousins used flint and pyrite to unleash Prometheus' gift
Did the Human Hand Evolve as a Lean Mean Bone-Smashing Machine?
Of nearly 40 things Pleistocene people might have done with their hands, getting to yummy marrow requires the most force and dexterity
Oldest Stone Tools Outside Africa Unearthed in China
Six artifacts date to 2.1 million years ago, potentially rewriting what we know about which species led the migration out of Africa
Pink Was the First Color of Life on Earth
Researchers have found bright pink pigments in 1.1 billion year old fossils of cyanobacteria drilled in West Africa
Ancient Toddler Was at Home on the Ground and in the Trees
The foot of a 2.5-year-old Austrolopithecus afarensis shows it had a grippy big toe that let it cling to its mom and climb tree trunks
How Feasting Rituals Help Shape Human Civilization
These transformative practices—and the cooperation they require—are a cornerstone of societies the world over
Neanderthals Hunted in Groups, One More Strike Against the Dumb Brute Myth
The skeletons of deer killed 120,000 years ago offer more evidence of cooperative behavior and risk-taking among our hominin relatives
New Evidence Shows That Humans Could Have Migrated to the Americas Along the Coast
Dating of rocks and animal bones shows Alaska's coast was glacier free around 17,000 years ago, allowing people to move south along the coast
The Startling Alternative Theory of How Humans Arrived in America
On an island off the east coast of Maryland, a stone spearpoint sticking out of a coastal cliff stuns archaeologists
Terrifying Mammals That May Have Greeted Early Humans in America
Arriving in the Chesapeake Bay, the early American inhabitants' first order of business would have been to craft weapons to defend themselves
Archaeologists Uncover 20,000-Year-Old Kangaroo Cook Out
The site in Pilbara is one of many helping to define human movements in Australia
People Lived in This Cave for 78,000 Years
Excavations in Panga ya Saidi suggest technological and cultural change came slowly over time and show early humans weren't reliant on coastal resources
How Do Scientists Identify New Species? For Neanderthals, It Was All About Timing and Luck
Even the most remarkable fossil find means nothing if scientists aren’t ready to see it for what it is
700,000-Year-Old Butchered Rhino Pushes Back Ancient Human Arrival in the Philippines
The find changes the story of human migration, but scientists still don't know what human species did the cutting
Fossil Tracks May Record Ancient Humans Hunting Giant Sloths
The tracks suggest a human—perhaps in search of food—closely followed the movements of the massive creature
Did a Prehistoric Surgeon Practice on This Cow?
Though an early human likely created the hole, the reason why remains less clear
How to Talk With Evangelicals About Evolution
For two years, researchers from the Smithsonian traveled the country explaining the science of our shared origins
Expressive Eyebrows May Have Given Modern Humans an Evolutionary Edge
A new study explores why ancient humans had pronounced brow ridges, and why they eventually lost them
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