Human evolution news, features and articles
Latest about Human Evolution

1.4 million-year-old jaw that was 'a bit weird for Homo' turns out to be from never-before-seen human relative
By Charles Choi published
The newfound species belongs to the genus Paranthropus, whose nickname is "nutcracker man."

Human evolution quiz: What do you know about Homo sapiens?
By Kristina Killgrove published
This human evolution quiz will test your knowledge of our species, including when and how we evolved.

Neanderthal quiz: How much do you know about our closest relatives?
By Kristina Killgrove published
Quiz Think you know everything about Neanderthals? Take our quiz to find out.

Neanderthals' blood type may help explain their demise, new study finds
By Kristina Killgrove published
Human populations that left Africa evolved quickly whereas Neanderthals stayed the same, according to an analysis of blood group systems.

Our ancient primate ancestors mostly had twins — humans don't, for a good evolutionary reason
By Tesla Monson, Jack McBride published
Twins are pretty rare, accounting for just 3% of births in the U.S. these days. But new research shows that for primates 60 million years ago, giving birth to twins was the norm.

Early human ancestor 'Lucy' was a bad runner, and this one tendon could explain why
By Kristina Killgrove published
By digitally modeling muscles and tendons for the skeleton of Lucy (Australopithecus afarensis), researchers determined that our hominin ancestors could run well but topped out around 11 mph.

10 fascinating discoveries about Neanderthals in 2024, from 'Thorin' the last Neanderthal to an ancient glue factory
By Kristina Killgrove published
This year, we learned that our Neanderthal cousins were a lot like us, despite treading their own path that ended in extinction.

Modern human ancestors and Neanderthals mated during a 7,000-year-long 'pulse,' 2 new studies reveal
By Kristina Killgrove published
An analysis of genomes from some of the earliest modern humans to live in Europe reveals their ancestors interbred with Neanderthals in one period between 43,000 and 50,000 years ago.
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