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Dog Domestication: A Tale of Alaskan Canids and Human Companionship

Anthropology.net

However, the journey to this unique bond between humans and canines was far from straightforward. A new study 1 suggests that in prehistoric Alaska, humans repeatedly domesticated and lived alongside not just dogs but also wolves, wolf-dog hybrids, and even coyotes. Sablin, M.

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The Shape of a Face: What Neanderthal Growth Patterns Reveal About Human Evolution

Anthropology.net

In contrast, modern humans have relatively smaller, flatter faces with retracted midfaces and more delicate bone structures. How Faces Grow: A Comparative Approach At birth, Neanderthals already have larger midfaces than modern humans. For decades, researchers have debated the evolutionary forces behind these differences.

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The Gene That May Have Helped Shape Human Language

Anthropology.net

A Genetic Mystery Unraveled For years, scientists have tried to piece together the evolutionary puzzle of human language. What genetic shifts allowed humans to develop the intricate vocal control necessary for language? Research suggests that mutations in the human NOVA1 gene may have played a role in the development of language.

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The First Europeans: Ancient Genomes Reveal Complex Histories of Human Expansion and Neanderthal Interactions

Anthropology.net

A Glimpse into Europe’s Earliest Settlers Over 45,000 years ago, small groups of modern humans roamed the icy expanse of Ice Age Europe. Among these pioneers were individuals whose lives and genetic histories have now been reconstructed from the oldest modern human genomes yet sequenced.

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Neanderthals and Modern Humans: A Shared Past Revealed Through DNA

Anthropology.net

The genetic legacy of Neanderthals persists in modern humans, with 1-2% of non-African genomes composed of Neanderthal DNA—a determination made through comprehensive sequencing and comparison of ancient and modern genomes. “These beneficial traits spread rapidly in early human populations.”

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The Journey of Homo sapiens into East Eurasia: What Ancient Genomes Reveal

Anthropology.net

Human history is not just about where we came from but how we adapted to the ever-changing environments we encountered. Studies on mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA), which is inherited exclusively from the mother, found that all modern human mtDNA lineages trace back to a common ancestor in Africa, roughly 200,000 years ago.

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The Evolution of Cooking: A Defining Moment in Human History

Anthropology.net

Cooking is often viewed as a significant turning point in human evolution. It not only provided the extra calories needed to support larger brains 1 but also transformed the way early humans interacted with their environment. Unlike other species, humans are biologically adapted to consume cooked food.