I can't pretend to come close to imagining all the ramifications this truly immense dataset will have on the sciences of archaeology and paleontology, so I've collected a few stories in the mainstream and science blogging press. But of course, I had to put together a photo essay on the project as well.
Human Migration: A Photo Essay
Tishkoff, Sarah A., et al. 2009 The Genetic Structure and History of Africans and African Americans. Science Express
Hadza and Datog peoples listen to an explanation of the study in a village near Lake Eyasi in the Arusha district of northern Tanzania. Image Courtesy Sarah Tishkoff
Today, the results of an immense study of DNA and linguistics in the African continent was published in Science magazine. The study includes the nuclear DNA from over 3,000 people from 113 ethnic groups in Africa, and it speaks to the origins of humans, and the migration patterns of how people left Africa.
Explore Archaeology
Comments
What a fascinating photo essay! And how cool that linguistic evidence supports the genetic evidence in the migration patterns.
Truly awe-inspiring! And the iceberg hasn’t even apparent;y been tipped!
well once again in the last few days we are talking lower paleolithics, acheulean tools, mousterian technology, and migration theories.Kris or whoever would like to respond. If tools of a known technology such as mousterian were found in north america they would look like mousterian tools found abroad just as a clovis point found on the west coast looks like a clovis point found in the eastern part of the country.When a clovis point is found on the surface of the ground, dating is not even an issue because it is a known technology that has been established as a certain age made by a people that were specific in their tool making style and its origin accepted solely on the recognition of the now famous clovis point. Abroad the same applies to mousterian tools, levallois technology and acheulean artifacts. Lower and middle paleolithics are clearly recognizable and now firmly established in regard to the makers. So if a clearly identifiable lower or middle paleolithic tool assemblage, large enough to constitute an industry were to be found in the u.s., one would have to surrender to the truth that our history is very incomplete. It seems as though when this question is raised that those who are sure about our origins tend to ignore or at least dodge the issue. Kris, you recently stated that there is “absolutely no evidence” of neanderthal presence in the u.s. If you were presented with a clearly recognizable levalloisian assemblage, complete with mousterian points, lavellois cores, points, blades, scrapers, burins, virtually every tool found in neanderthal sites abroad, would you not have to at least consider the possibility? My, my, my, wouln’t that change everything from the migration theories to the evolutionary foundation its self. If oldowan tools were found here too, well, I quit….lets hear some feedback…..rick doninger.
i just keep waiting for a response to my previous post but I guess the choice to ignore the question should be obvious by the absence of any responses. Kris,thanks for answering the last time I posted in/re to the “what if mousterian tools were found?” I just have to wonder why there was time to explain your lack of response but not time to go ahead and address the question I posed? I wonder if anyone checked out Mark Corbitts site where levallois tools from south georgia are posted? If the establishment archaeologist are so quick to say “extraordinary claims demand extraordinary evidence”, why isn’t anyone saying ” Let’s see the assemblages that you claim to have that are levallois technology”? The current establishment is obviously going to ignore any contradicting evidence as long as they possibly can. I have to wonder why? doninger@sbcglobal.net