Tag: Homo naledi

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O’Leary

Date
July 26, 2025

Categories
Archaeology
Evolution
Human Origins and Anthropology
Tagged
, Associated Press, bones, brain, burial, Colin Barras, Homo naledi, Homo sapiens, Melanie Lidman, Michael Egnor, Neanderthals, New Scientist, Rising Star Cave, skeletons, stereotype, teeth, The Immortal Mind, Tinshemet Cave, Yossi Zaidner}

Investigation of Ancient Burials Yields Surprises

_{Denyse O’Leary
July 26, 2025

Archaeology, Evolution, Human Origins and Anthropology

6}

Archaeologists are reporting on a group culture around death from 100,000 years ago, maybe involving both Neanderthals and modern humans. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Günter Bechly

Date
March 29, 2024

Categories
Human Origins and Anthropology
Paleontology
Tagged
, Africa, Asia, Australopithecines, Chris Stringer, Darwin critics, Eurasia, Europe, evolutionary narrative, Fossil Friday (series), gene flow, gravity, Homo floresiensis, Homo luzonensis, Homo naledi, Homo sapiens, human evolution, human origins, Israel, Levant, Misliya cave, modern humans, Natural History Museum, palaeoanthropology, Pleistocene, population genetics, uranium}

Fossil Friday: New Dating of Pleistocene Fossils Rewrites the Story of Human Evolution

_{Günter Bechly
March 29, 2024

Human Origins and Anthropology, Paleontology

6}

The most recent data on human fossils and their dating do not really support an evolutionary narrative from ape-like ancestors to modern humans. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O’Leary

Date
January 25, 2024

Categories
Bioethics
Human Origins and Anthropology
Science Reporting
Tagged
, Andrew McDiarmid, archeology, burials, Casey Luskin, documentaries, Homo naledi, human origins, ID the Future, Lee Berger, Nature (journal), Neanderthals, Netflix, paleontology, Rising Star Cave, science fiction, Scientific American, The Guardian, Wall Street Journal}

Science or Science Fiction? Scientists Debate

_{Denyse O’Leary
January 25, 2024

Bioethics, Human Origins and Anthropology, Science Reporting

6}

Should some Netflix documentaries be labeled science fiction? Two are currently targeted by researchers in paleontology and archeology respectively. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Casey Luskin

Date
November 16, 2023

Categories
Archaeology
Evolution
Human Origins and Anthropology
Tagged
, Africa, culture, evolution, fire, Homo heidelbergensis, Homo naledi, Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens, human origins, humans, interbreeding, Journal of Human Evolution, last common ancestor, Middle Palaeolithic, Neanderthals, PLOS ONE, Portugal, Science Alert, stereotypes, stone tools, University of Trento}

Were Neanderthals and Humans the Same Species?

_{Casey Luskin
November 16, 2023

Archaeology, Evolution, Human Origins and Anthropology

5}

The evidence does not demonstrate that humans evolved from some kind of humanlike yet intellectually primitive precursor. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Casey Luskin

Date
November 15, 2023

Categories
Archaeology
Human Origins and Anthropology
Paleontology
Tagged
, burial, cave walls, chronology, erosion, fossils, geochemistry, hominins, Homo naledi, Homo neanderthalensis, Homo sapiens, human origins, hype, IFL Science, intelligence, Journal of Human Evolution, Lee Berger, media, micromorphology, Netflix, paleoanthropologists, Rising Star Cave, South Africa, spectroscopy, taphonomy, tools}

Journal Rejects Claims that Homo naledi Buried Dead, Made Rock Art, Used Fire

_{Casey Luskin
November 15, 2023

Archaeology, Human Origins and Anthropology, Paleontology

8}

Researchers, led by Lee Berger, had claimed in a Netflix documentary that the species buried its dead, used fire, used tools, and made rock art. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O’Leary

Date
November 2, 2023

Categories
Bioethics
Human Origins and Anthropology
Tagged
, ancient Greeks, animals, anthropology, birds, death, Dogs, Eurasia, funerals, Homo naledi, humans, Iraq, Israel, Live Science, Neanderthals, Oxford University Press, paleontologists, Shanidar Cave, skeletons, South Africa, University of Arizona, Zagros Mountains}

When Did Humans Start Burying the Dead?

_{Denyse O’Leary
November 2, 2023

Bioethics, Human Origins and Anthropology

6}

Only humans understand death as the inevitable and final reality for all mortal beings no matter what we do. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Andrew McDiarmid

Date
October 9, 2023

Categories
Evolution
Human Exceptionalism
Human Origins and Anthropology
Tagged
, ABC News, Casey Luskin, cave art, fire, Homo naledi, human origins, ID the Future, intelligence, Lee Berger, Marketing, Netflix, podcast, preprints}

Not Enough Evidence: Casey Luskin on Recent Homo naledi Claims

_{Andrew McDiarmid
October 9, 2023

Evolution, Human Exceptionalism, Human Origins and Anthropology

3}

They claim that the small-brained species had high intelligence and engaged in activities like burying their dead, using fire, and engaging in cave wall art. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Casey Luskin

Date
September 22, 2023

Categories
Cultural Anthropology
Human Exceptionalism
Human Origins and Anthropology
Paleontology
Tagged
, ABC News, afterlife, Arizona State University, bioRxiv, brain, burial, Chris Stringer, Dinaledi Chamber, documentary, eLife, evolution, fire, Homo naledi, Homo sapiens, human origins, humans, intelligence, La Trobe University, Lee Berger, María Martinón-Torres, micromorphology, Natural History Museum, Nature (journal), paleoanthropology, peer review, religion, skeletons, The Guardian, University of Western Australia}

Peer Review Rejects Claims that Homo naledi Buried Dead, Used Fire, and Scrawled on Cave Wall

_{Casey Luskin
September 22, 2023

Cultural Anthropology, Human Exceptionalism, Human Origins and Anthropology, Paleontology

11}

I could not find a single reviewer who accepted the claims of the papers. They were harshly critical of claims of intentional burial of the skeletons. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Casey Luskin

Date
June 7, 2023

Categories
Archaeology
Human Exceptionalism
Human Origins and Anthropology
Paleontology
Tagged
, ABC News, archaeologists, Associated Press, Australia, bioRxiv, burial, cave art, chimpanzees, fire use, Germany, Gibraltar, Griffith University, hominids, Homo naledi, human origins, intelligence, Kenya, Lee Berger, María Martinón-Torres, Natural History Museum, Neanderthals, New York Times, Newsweek, paleontology, Phys.org, Rising Star Cave, Science News, skeletons, Spain, The Conversation, Wall Street Journal}

Scientists Are Skeptical that Intelligence in Homo naledi “Erases Human Exceptionalism”

_{Casey Luskin
June 7, 2023

Archaeology, Human Exceptionalism, Human Origins and Anthropology, Paleontology

13}

Berger et al.’s claims about the species have been disputed and their idea that it lived 2-3 million years ago was exaggerated by a factor of 10. Read More ›

^{Type
post

Author
Denyse O’Leary

Date
December 12, 2022

Categories
Arts
Human Origins and Anthropology
Science
Tagged
, children, civilization, copper, Greece, Homo naledi, Iraq, Lee Berger, Michael Marshall, Neanderthals, owls, pulses, Quartz, Rising Star Cave, Shanidar Cave, South Africa, University of Liverpool, Zagros Mountains}

Early Humans Were More Sophisticated than We Thought

_{Denyse O’Leary
December 12, 2022

Arts, Human Origins and Anthropology, Science

6}

Neanderthals were not just downing raw hunks of meat 70,000 years ago, as many of us have assumed. Read More ›