News tagged with modern humans

Germany may be birthplace of European music and art

The remains of the world's oldest musical instruments and human figurines suggest that music and artistic depictions of the human form may have first developed in Germany around 40,000 years ago, say researchers.

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created May 29, 2012 | popularity 3.9 / 5 (7) | comments 5

Earliest musical instruments in Europe 40,000 years ago

The first modern humans in Europe were playing musical instruments and showing artistic creativity as early as 40,000 years ago, according to new research from Oxford and Tübingen universities.

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created May 25, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (4) | comments 1

Oldest art even older

New dates from Geißenklösterle Cave in Southwest Germany document the early arrival of modern humans and early appearance of art and music.

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created May 24, 2012 | popularity 4.3 / 5 (3) | comments 10

Study finds modern dog breeds genetically disconnected from ancient ancestors

Cross-breeding of dogs over thousands of years has made it extremely difficult to trace the ancient genetic roots of today's pets, according to a new study led by Durham University.

Biology / Plants & Animals

created May 21, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (7) | comments 1 | with audio podcast

New research suggests European Neandertals were almost extinct long before humans showed up

Western Europe has long been held to be the "cradle" of Neandertal evolution since many of the earliest discoveries were from sites in this region. But when Neandertals started disappearing around 30,000 years ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Mar 26, 2012 | popularity 4.4 / 5 (8) | comments 6 | with audio podcast

Mystery human fossils put spotlight on China

Fossils from two caves in south-west China have revealed a previously unknown Stone Age people and give a rare glimpse of a recent stage of human evolution with startling implications for the early peopling ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Mar 14, 2012 | popularity 4.7 / 5 (27) | comments 9 | with audio podcast

Study: Demise of large animals caused by both man and climate change

Past waves of extinctions which removed some of the world's largest animals were caused by both people and climate change, according to new research from the University of Cambridge. Their findings were reported today, 05 ...

Biology / Ecology

created Mar 05, 2012 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Evidence suggests Neanderthals took to boats before modern humans

(PhysOrg.com) -- Neanderthals, considered either a sub-species of modern humans or a separate species altogether, lived from approximately 300,000 years ago to somewhere near 24,000 years ago, when they inexplicably ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Mar 01, 2012 | popularity 4.9 / 5 (15) | comments 31 | with audio podcast report

European neanderthals were on the verge of extinction even before the arrival of modern humans: study

New findings from an international team of researchers show that most neanderthals in Europe died off around 50,000 years ago.

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Feb 26, 2012 | popularity 4 / 5 (13) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Anthropologists clarify link between Asians and early Native-Americans

A tiny mountainous region in southern Siberia may have been the genetic source of the earliest Native Americans, according to new research by a University of Pennsylvania-led team of anthropologists.

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Jan 26, 2012 | popularity 4.6 / 5 (12) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

Archaeologists find clues to Neanderthal extinction

(PhysOrg.com) -- Computational modeling that examines evidence of how hominin groups evolved culturally and biologically in response to climate change during the last Ice Age also bears new insights into the extinction of ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Jan 16, 2012 | popularity 3.6 / 5 (13) | comments 18 | with audio podcast

Did a good sense of smell give us an evolutionary advantage over Neanderthals?

(PhysOrg.com) -- Our sense of smell may have been as important as language in helping to give us, modern humans, an evolutionary advantage over other human relatives such as the Neanderthals, scientists report ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Dec 13, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 2 | with audio podcast

The disappearance of the elephant caused the rise of modern man 400,000 years ago

Elephants have long been known to be part of the Homo erectus diet. But the significance of this specific food source, in relation to both the survival of Homo erectus and the evolution of modern humans, has n ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Dec 12, 2011 | popularity 3.7 / 5 (9) | comments 5 | with audio podcast

Archeologists investigate Ice Age hominins' adaptability to climate change

Computational modeling that examines evidence of how hominin groups evolved culturally and biologically in response to climate change during the last Ice Age also bears new insights into the extinction of ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Nov 17, 2011 | popularity 4 / 5 (1) | comments 0 | with audio podcast

New evidence for the earliest modern humans in Europe

The timing, process and archeology of the peopling of Europe by early modern humans have been actively debated for more than a century. Reassessment of the anatomy and dating of a fragmentary upper jaw with ...

Other Sciences / Archaeology & Fossils

created Nov 02, 2011 | popularity 5 / 5 (1) | comments 0

Human

A human is a member of a species of bipedal primates in the family Hominidae (taxonomically Homo sapiens—Latin: "wise man" or "knowing man"). DNA and fossil evidence indicates that modern humans originated in east Africa about 200,000 years ago . When compared to other animals and primates, humans have a highly developed brain, capable of abstract reasoning, language, introspection and problem solving. This mental capability, combined with an erect body carriage that frees the forelimbs (arms) for manipulating objects, has allowed humans to make far greater use of tools than any other species. Humans are distributed worldwide, with significant populations inhabiting most land areas of Earth. The human population on Earth is greater than 6.7 billion, as of February 2009,

Like most higher primates, humans are social by nature. Humans are particularly adept at utilizing systems of communication—primarily spoken, gestural, and written language—for self-expression, the exchange of ideas, and organization. Humans create complex social structures composed of many cooperating and competing groups, from families to nations. Social interactions between humans have established an extremely wide variety of traditions, rituals, ethics, values, social norms, and laws, which together form the basis of human society. Humans are distinctive as a species on the Earth by having a perception of beauty and aesthetics at least to a point which results in a material culture. This, when combined with the desire for self-expression and a proportionally large brain-size, has led to innovations such as art, written language, music and science.

Humans seek to understand and influence the environment around them by trying to explain and manipulate natural phenomena through philosophy, art, science, mythology, and religion. This natural curiosity has led to the development of advanced tools and skills. Although humans are not the only species to use tools, they are unique in building fires, cooking their food, and clothing themselves; as well as using other advanced technologies. Humans pass down their skills and knowledge to the next generations and so are regarded as dependent upon culture.

For more information about Human, read the full article at Wikipedia.
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