Human evolution

 Human evolution is the lengthy process of change by which people

originated from apelike ancestors. Scientific evidence shows that the
physical and behavioral traits shared by all people originated from apelike
ancestors and evolved over a period of approximately six million years.
 One of the earliest defining human traits, bipedalism - the ability to walk on
two legs evolved over 4 million years ago. Other important human
characteristics - such as a large and complex brain, the ability to make and
use tools, and the capacity for language - developed more recently. Many
advanced traits - including complex symbolic expression, art, and
elaborate cultural diversity - emerged mainly during the past 100,000 years.
 Humans are primates. Physical and genetic similarities show that the
modern human species, Homo sapiens, has a very close relationship to
another group of primate species, the apes. Humans and the great apes
(large apes) of Africa -- chimpanzees (including bonobos, or so-called
“pygmy chimpanzees”) and gorillas -- share a common ancestor that lived
between 8 and 6 million years ago. Humans first evolved in Africa, and
much of human evolution occurred on that continent. The fossils of early
humans who lived between 6 and 2 million years ago come entirely from
Africa.
 Most scientists currently recognize some 15 to 20 different species of early
humans. Scientists do not all agree, however, about how these species are
related or which ones simply died out. Many early human species --
certainly the majority of them – left no living descendants. Scientists also
debate over how to identify and classify particular species of early humans,
and about what factors influenced the evolution and extinction of each
species.
 Early humans first migrated out of Africa into Asia probably between 2
million and 1.8 million years ago. They entered Europe somewhat later,
between 1.5 million and 1 million years. Species of modern humans
populated many parts of the world much later. For instance, people first
came to Australia probably within the past 60,000 years and to the
Americas within the past 30,000 years or so. The beginnings of agriculture
and the rise of the first civilizations occurred within the past 12,000 years.
Paleoanthropology
 Paleoanthropology is the scientific study of human evolution.
Paleoanthropology is a subfield of anthropology, the study of human
culture, society, and biology. The field involves an understanding of
the similarities and differences between humans and other species
in their genes, body form, physiology, and behavior.
Paleoanthropologists search for the roots of human physical traits
and behavior. They seek to discover how evolution has shaped the
potentials, tendencies, and limitations of all people. For many
people, paleoanthropology is an exciting scientific field because it
investigates the origin, over millions of years, of the universal and
defining traits of our species. However, some people find the
concept of human evolution troubling because it can seem not to fit
with religious and other traditional beliefs about how people, other
living things, and the world came to be. Nevertheless, many people
have come to reconcile their beliefs with the scientific evidence.
 Early human fossils and archeological remains offer the most
important clues about this ancient past. These remains include
bones, tools and any other evidence (such as footprints, evidence of
hearths, or butchery marks on animal bones) left by earlier people.
Usually, the remains were buried and preserved naturally. They are
then found either on the surface (exposed by rain, rivers, and wind
erosion) or by digging in the ground. By studying fossilized bones,
scientists learn about the physical appearance of earlier humans and
how it changed. Bone size, shape, and markings left by muscles tell
us how those predecessors moved around, held tools, and how the
size of their brains changed over a long time. Archeological evidence
refers to the things earlier people made and the places where
scientists find them. By studying this type of evidence, archeologists
can understand how early humans made and used tools and lived in
their environments.

The process of human evolution

 The process of evolution involves a series of natural changes that
cause species (populations of different organisms) to arise, adapt to
the environment, and become extinct. All species or organisms have
originated through the process of biological evolution. In animals
that reproduce sexually, including humans, the term species refers
to a group whose adult members regularly interbreed, resulting in
 fertile offspring -- that is, offspring themselves capable of
reproducing. Scientists classify each species with a unique, two-part
scientific name. In this system, modern humans are classified as
Homo sapiens.
 Evolution occurs when there is change in the genetic material -- the
chemical molecule, DNA -- which is inherited from the parents, and
especially in the proportions of different genes in a population.
Genes represent the segments of DNA that provide the chemical
code for producing proteins. Information contained in the DNA can
change by a process known as mutation. The way particular genes
are expressed – that is, how they influence the body or behavior of
an organism -- can also change. Genes affect how the body and
behavior of an organism develop during its life, and this is why
genetically inherited characteristics can influence the likelihood of
an organism’s survival and reproduction.
 Evolution does not change any single individual. Instead, it changes
the inherited means of growth and development that typify a
population (a group of individuals of the same species living in a
particular habitat). Parents pass adaptive genetic changes to their
offspring, and ultimately these changes become common throughout
a population. As a result, the offspring inherit those genetic
characteristics that enhance their chances of survival and ability to
give birth, which may work well until the environment changes. Over
time, genetic change can alter a species' overall way of life, such as
what it eats, how it grows, and where it can live. Human evolution
took place as new genetic variations in early ancestor populations
favored new abilities to adapt to environmental change and so
altered the human way of life.