Moving beyond the adaptationist paradigm for human evolution, and why it matters

Schroeder, Lauren; Ackermann, Rebecca Rogers

doi:10.1016/j.jhevol.2022.103296

Cited by 6 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 236 publications

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“…afarensis in an eastern African context [9][10][11] (Fig. 1A), have raised the possibility of paraphyly or even admixture between species 12,13 . Furthermore, analyses of the enamel-dental junction (EDJ) of southern African Paranthropus indicate significant variation, suggesting the possibility of substructuring within P. robustus 5 or even the presence of more than a single species of this genus in paleoanthropological record of this region 6,14 .…”

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confidence: 99%

Enamel proteins reveal biological sex and genetic variability within southern AfricanParanthropus

Madupe,

Koenig,

Patramanis

et al. 2023

Preprint

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The evolutionary relationships among extinct African hominin taxa are highly debated and largely unresolved, due in part to a lack of molecular data. Even within taxa, it is not always clear, based on morphology alone, whether ranges of variation are due to sexual dimorphism versus potentially undescribed taxonomic diversity. ForParanthropus robustus, a Pleistocene hominin found only in South Africa, both phylogenetic relationships to other taxa1,2and the nature of intraspecific variation3-6are still disputed. Here we report the mass spectrometric (MS) sequencing of enamel proteomes from four ca. 2 million year (Ma) old dental specimens attributed morphologically toP. robustus, from the site of Swartkrans. The identification of AMELY-specific peptides and semi-quantitative MS data analysis enabled us to determine the biological sex of all the specimens. Our combined molecular and morphometric data also provide compelling evidence of a significant degree of variation within southern AfricanParanthropus, as previously suggested based on morphology alone6. Finally, the molecular data also confirm the taxonomic placement ofParanthropuswithin the hominin clade. This study demonstrates the feasibility of recovering informative Early Pleistocene hominin enamel proteins from Africa. Crucially, it also shows how the analysis of these proteins can contribute to understanding whether hominin morphological variation is due to sexual dimorphism or to taxonomic differences. We anticipate that this approach can be widely applied to geologically-comparable sites within South Africa, and possibly more broadly across the continent.

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confidence: 99%

Enamel proteins reveal biological sex and genetic variability within southern AfricanParanthropus

Madupe,

Koenig,

Patramanis

et al. 2023

Preprint

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“…Humans accumulate “culture” via shared knowledge, learned techniques, symbols, rituals, and technology. The genus Homo adapted (and adapts), not just through processes of natural selection and multiple other forms of genetic change (e.g., Schroeder and Ackermann 2023), but also through finely tuned innovation, increasingly sophisticated communication, new forms of organization, accessing distinctive locally available environmental resources, altering the environment, and developing complex skills that are shared and passed on within social groups (and beyond). The scope and dynamics of this cultural capacity means that human behavior, material culture, and forms of adaptation vary widely and allow our species to inhabit an expansive range of ecological and behavioral niches (Laland 2017; Fuentes 2017; Henrich 2011, 2015; Montagu 1965).…”

Section: Human Culture Is Distinctivementioning

confidence: 99%

Distinctively Human? Meaning‐making and World Shaping as Core Processes of the Human Niche

Fuentes¹

2023

Zygon

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Part of the task in studying human evolution is developing a deep understanding of what we share, and do not share, with other life, as a mammal, a primate, a hominin, and as members of the genus Homo. A key aspect of this last facet is gained via the examination of the genus Homo across the Pleistocene. By at least the later Pleistocene members of the genus Homo began to habitually insert shared meaning into and onto their world forming one of the bases of contemporary human abilities to develop a distinctive human niche and human culture. Meaning‐laden cultural dynamics constitute the core of a ubiquitous semiotic ecosystem, which in turn structures the architecture of the complex niches and niche construction processes that characterize humanity today. Here, I offer a summary of Pleistocene evolution of the genus Homo and an argument for when and how that extensive and distinctive capacities for shared meaning‐making and a particularly dynamic niche construction emerged.

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Craniometric variation and the ancestry of modern humans

Relethford

2024

American Journal of Biological Anthropology

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ObjectivesAncient and contemporary DNA provide information about geographic variation in the ancestry of present‐day humans. All living populations have ancestry from early Homo sapiens originating in sub‐Saharan Africa. Populations of Eurasian descent also have a small amount of Neandertal ancestry. This study examines whether craniometric distances between recent modern human samples reflect this geographic variation in ancestry. Among recent modern humans, Eurasians are expected to be more similar to Neandertals, whereas both sub‐Saharan Africans and Eurasians are expected to be equidistant from early H. sapiens.Materials and MethodsData on 33 craniometric traits from 2524 recent modern humans were compared with data from the literature for Neandertals and early H. sapiens. Mahalanobis distances were computed for each modern specimen to both the Neandertal and early H. sapiens means. These distances were examined for differences between recent humans from sub‐Saharan Africa (N = 373) and those of Eurasian descent (N = 2151).ResultsEurasians as a group are significantly closer than sub‐Saharan Africans to Neandertals. There is no significant difference between the distances of sub‐Saharan Africans and Eurasians to early H. sapiens.DiscussionThe differences between sub‐Saharan Africans and Eurasians for both Neandertals and early H. sapiens are as expected. Although there has been geographic differentiation among recent modern humans, including differences in Neandertal admixture, these differences have not affected overall similarity of recent modern sub‐Saharan Africans and Eurasians to the earliest samples of H. sapiens.

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Moving beyond the adaptationist paradigm for human evolution, and why it matters

Cited by 6 publications

References 236 publications

Enamel proteins reveal biological sex and genetic variability within southern AfricanParanthropus

Enamel proteins reveal biological sex and genetic variability within southern AfricanParanthropus

Distinctively Human? Meaning‐making and World Shaping as Core Processes of the Human Niche

Craniometric variation and the ancestry of modern humans

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