News: Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution.
Ye Old One
Young Female Had Thumbs, Fingernails, May Have Walked
By NED POTTER
http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7603618&page=1
May 16, 2009 —
Scientists say a 47-million-year-old fossil found in Germany may be a
key link to explain the evolution of early primates, and, ultimately,
modern human beings.
The fossil, of a young female that probably resembled a modern-day
lemur, is described as "the most complete primate fossil ever found."
It is small -- with a body about the size of a raccoon -- but it has
characteristics found in later primates and in humans.
It has, among other things, opposable thumbs, similar to humans' and
unlike those found on other modern mammals. It has fingernails instead
of claws. And scientists say they believe there is evidence it was
able to walk on its hind legs.
Remains From a German Caldera
The find is being published next week in the online journal Public
Library of Science - One (PLoS One for short). The cable channel
History, which bought the North American documentary rights to the
find, provided exclusive details to ABC News.
"She is a transitional species showing characteristics from both the
non-human (prosimians and lemurs) and human (anthropoids, monkeys,
apes and man) evolutionary lines," said the producers in a statement
reviewed by the authors of the PLoS One paper.
It was discovered by amateur fossil hunters in 1983 in a mile-wide
crater called the Messel Shale Pit, not far from Frankfurt. Scientists
speculate that at one time the pit was a volcanic caldera, where
animals got caught and their remains unusually were well preserved.
The amateurs recognized that they had a very good fossil, but they did
not recognize its potential importance.
The location, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has been the source of
many other fossils from the Eocene Period, about 50 million years ago.
The fossil was shown by collectors to Dr. Jorn Hurum of the University
of Oslo, who brought in colleagues from Oslo and Norway's Senckenberg
Research Institute to authenticate the find. They bought the specimen
so that it would not disappear into private hands.
Examination of the fossil went on for two years. They have called the
specimen Darwinius masillae. The researchers were able to keep their
work secret until word leaked out in the last week.
Fossil May Be Evolution 'Link'
Hurum's team said 98 percent of the fossil's skeleton appears intact.
It has a long, curling tail. X-rays show it was young; it had baby
teeth and, beneath them, adult teeth forming to replace them. There
also was evidence that the animal had once broken its wrist.
Evolution Debate
It is hard to say what the find may do to the modern debate over
evolution. The fossil, for one thing, is far older than any of the
human ancestors other scientists have reported finding in what is now
eastern Africa. "Lucy," probably the best-known African fossil that is
generally accepted as pre-human, is somewhat more than three million
years old.
This year happens to be the 200th anniversary of the birth of Charles
Darwin, originator of the theory of evolution by means of natural
selection. Most scientists, following Darwin, believe that humans and
modern apes had common ancestors, but the fossil record has had gaps
in it.
The fossil is to be unveiled Tuesday, when the paper is released in
PLoS One and a news conference takes place in New York. The fossil
will be shown on "Good Morning America" to coincide with the
announcement. History plans to air its two-hour documentary, titled
"The Link," on Monday, May 25.
--
Bob.
Desertphile
wrote:
> Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
Golly, another one?!
> Young Female Had Thumbs, Fingernails, May Have Walked
> By NED POTTER
> http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7603618&page=1
--
http://desertphile.org
Desertphile's Desert Soliloquy. WARNING: view with plenty of water
"Why aren't resurrections from the dead noteworthy?" -- Jim Rutz
Walter Bushell
Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net> wrote:
> The fossil, of a young female that probably resembled a modern-day
> lemur, is described as "the most complete primate fossil ever found."
> It is small -- with a body about the size of a raccoon -- but it has
> characteristics found in later primates and in humans.
We don't have better fossils from early humans and late erectus?
Walter Bushell
Desertphile <deser...@invalid-address.net> wrote:
> On Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:57 GMT, Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net>
> wrote:
>
> > Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
>
> Golly, another one?!
Means another missing link.
Devils Advocaat
> In article <vue21598pk08dj54ilhobrgjbhemr6l...@4ax.com>,
Late erectus? is that the opposite of premature flaccidus? :P
Wombat
> In article <k2u315p2lmoshqdtsgu0i9iorke7cl5...@4ax.com>,
>
> Desertphile <desertph...@invalid-address.net> wrote:
> > On Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:57 GMT, Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net>
> > wrote:
>
> > > Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
>
> > Golly, another one?!
>
> Means another missing link.
>
>
>
> > > Young Female Had Thumbs, Fingernails, May Have Walked
> > > By NED POTTER
> > >http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7603618&page=1
Don't you mean two? One on either side.
Wombat
Walter Bushell
<8c6ac482-eb6a-4e46...@z19g2000vbz.googlegroups.com>,
Wombat <tri...@multiweb.nl> wrote:
One, each time we find a missing link there are two new ones generated
but one destroyed.
Say there is a link missing between groups A and C. That's one missing
link. Then when we find a B we have A B C or two missing links one
between A and B and one between B and C. There is here no missing link
between A and C anymore.
I think I have expended more effort on this than it is worth. But it
gave me an idea on how to measure the gaps in the history of a lineage.
I propose that it be the sum of the squares of the difference between
each known example and its closest descendant genes in the line of
descent. That is
let m be the desired method
let A[i] be the known species, numbered from 1 to n where n is the
number of know species.
let G(a,b) be a function that give the differing genes in species a and
b.
and
m=sum {for j from 1 to n-1] G(A(j),A(j+1)^2
m is clearly decreasing for each intermediate link. Unfortunately not
currently measurable for many cases of interest, but points in the right
direction or perhaps should be modifies to only count the different
genes that survive to the next level.
The important think is that the size of the gaps has been reduced.
Ye Old One
<deser...@invalid-address.net> enriched this group when s/he wrote:
>On Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:57 GMT, Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net>
>wrote:
>
>> Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
>
>Golly, another one?!
Yep, doesn't it make you sick, yet another link found. What are those
poor creationists going to do?
>
>> Young Female Had Thumbs, Fingernails, May Have Walked
>> By NED POTTER
>> http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7603618&page=1
>
--
Bob.
Paul J Gans
>In article <k2u315p2lmoshqdts...@4ax.com>,
> Desertphile <deser...@invalid-address.net> wrote:
>> On Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:57 GMT, Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net>
>> wrote:
>>
>> > Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
>>
>> Golly, another one?!
>Means another missing link.
Two, in fact. One before and one after. Unless he was a
dead end in which case only one.
--
--- Paul J. Gans
Wombat
>
>
>
> Wombat <tri...@multiweb.nl> wrote:
> > On 19 May, 15:06, Walter Bushell <pr...@panix.com> wrote:
> > > In article <k2u315p2lmoshqdtsgu0i9iorke7cl5...@4ax.com>,
>
> > > Desertphile <desertph...@invalid-address.net> wrote:
> > > > On Mon, 18 May 2009 10:44:57 GMT, Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net>
> > > > wrote:
>
> > > > > Primate Fossil Could Be Key Link in Evolution
>
> > > > Golly, another one?!
>
> > > Means another missing link.
>
> > > > > Young Female Had Thumbs, Fingernails, May Have Walked
> > > > > By NED POTTER
> > > > >http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=7603618&page=1
>
> > Don't you mean two? One on either side.
>
> > Wombat
>
> One, each time we find a missing link there are two new ones generated
> but one destroyed.
>
> Say there is a link missing between groups A and C. That's one missing
> link. Then when we find a B we have A B C or two missing links one
> between A and B and one between B and C. There is here no missing link
> between A and C anymore.
OK. I surrender.
Wombat
Desertphile
Hell, better late than never......
Walter Bushell
Desertphile <deser...@invalid-address.net> wrote:
> On Tue, 19 May 2009 09:05:33 -0400, Walter Bushell
> <pr...@panix.com> wrote:
>
> > In article <vue21598pk08dj54i...@4ax.com>,
> > Ye Old One <use...@mcsuk.net> wrote:
> >
> > > The fossil, of a young female that probably resembled a modern-day
> > > lemur, is described as "the most complete primate fossil ever found."
> > > It is small -- with a body about the size of a raccoon -- but it has
> > > characteristics found in later primates and in humans.
>
> > We don't have better fossils from early humans and late erectus?
>
> Hell, better late than never......
That joke is so weak it's wilted. It's better to copulate than never.