Skip to content

FAQ: What about Human Evolution?

Recently I had the opportunity to present a scientific critique of human evolution in a university human evolution anthropology class.  I recorded the presentation and Q&A which followed and then spliced it into the three videos below.   My overall conclusion, referencing in part the textbook and scientific journals, is that the human evolution story is just that – a story – which says more about our society and culture than anything derived from hominin fossil data.

In the first video I discuss how it is our worldview which moves us to interpret data in a certain way, rather than the data forming our worldview.  I cite from the textbook used in the course to provide some examples of this.  I then look at how the fossil hominin data is to all practical extent removed from investigators.  I introduce the Catalogue of Fossil Hominids – a catalogue of discovered fossil hominids up to mid-1970’s  – and contend that the fossil data is actually much better than we are usually led to believe – it just does not follow the standard evolutionary story so we do not know about it.

http://www.vimeo.com/39457387

In the second video (a continuation of the same presentation in class). I systematically go through the most ancient hominin candidates that are typically proposed as the first human ancestors that diverged from apes 5-8 million years ago.   I analyze Ardipithecus, tchadensis, Tuang skull (an australopithecine), australopithecus afarensis (ie Lucy), australopithecus africanus, Laetoli footprints and homo habilis and argue that all of these do not readily fit within the standard evolutionary story.  I look at fossil hominid KP271 which we usually do not hear about since it does not follow the standard story.

http://www.vimeo.com/39479831

In the third video I examine the standard homo specimens: homo erectus, archaic homo sapiens (ie Heidelbergensis) and Neanderthals.  I look at 2010 Neanderthal nuclear DNA sequencing data results which show Neanderthals interbred with modern homo sapiens and that therefore all these homo species can be seen as varieties of homo sapiens – this is one conclusion supported in the textbook.  The video then follows the Q&A time where the class interacted on the material I presented. (The sound is now fixed so it works throughout)

http://www.vimeo.com/39564896

For a different perspective (one based on cognitive psychology) on the implications of our predisposition to ‘belief’ see my article here.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *