Are We Homo Erectus?
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CONCLUSION

There is simply not enough evidence to decide between the theories – did modern humans evolve from Homo erectus after leaving Africa about 2 million years ago, or is Homo sapiens a new species that arose recently in Africa and moved across the world replacing H. erectus in its wake?

Nevertheless, new evidence is being found all the time. For example, the recently discovered modern human fossils from Ethiopia, described by White et al. (2003), see this article, show a continuity of human evolution from Ardipithecus at 6 million years to modern people at 160,000 years. The spread of Homo sapiens from Africa is shown below.

The map above shows the proposed dispersion of Homo sapiens from its origin in Africa to replace other human species as it moved across the globe – a theory that is still hotly contented.

This find, White claims, strengthens the theory that modern humans evolved only once in Africa. This discovery, exciting as it is however, does not explain the 'archaic' modern human fossils found throughout Asia and the evolution of regionally distinct variants of modern humans.

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NEXT PAGE
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INTRODUCTION
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MULTI-REGIONAL HYPOTHESIS
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OUT-OF-AFRICA HYPOTHESIS
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ANALYSIS OF HYPOTHESES
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EVIDENCE FROM MITOCHONDRIAL DNA
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DISPUTED EVIDENCE
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AUSTRALIAN CONTROVERSY
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BEHAVIOURAL EVIDENCE
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CONCLUSION
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REFERENCES
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Copyright 2003 - Judith Woods - email