Essay on The Origins Of Our Species - 1945 Words

The latest discovery of a fossil skull in Kenya, more than three million years old, once again demonstrates the complex evolution of humankind. The following article examines the evidence and sees how it fits into the ideas of human origin formulated by Frederick Engels more than 100 years ago. quot;There is a grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.quot; (Charles Darwin, The Origin of the Species, pp. 459-60, Penguin 1985.) The latest discoveries in paleontology†¦show more content†¦It is understood that, as with the Australopithecus, the Kenyanthropus also walked upright. The emergence of these bipedal apes was a revolutionary breakthrough in human evolution. What forced these creatures in this direction is likely to have been the climatic changes that swept through the African continent some fifteen million years ago. The transformed geography, driven by the separation of two tectonic plates, running from the Red Sea in the north through Mozambique in the south, saw faulting and uplifting of mountains and the creation of the Great Rift Valley. This transformation caused the forests to shrink and fragment, creating radical changes to the habitat of the ape populations. quot;The land to the east of the valley was no place for apes, with its forests rapidly disappearing as rainfall levels diminishedquot;, states Richard Leakey and Roger Lewin. quot;One very persuasive theory for the origin of bipedalism, the feature that established the human family, is that it was an adaptation for more efficient locomotion between widely distributed food sources. There are other theories, too, but this one makes good biological sense, given the habitat changes of the time.quot; (The Sixth Extinction, p.88.) Over aShow MoreRelatedThe Theory Of Christianity And Christianity1321 Words   |  6 Pagesfor a way to explain the universe. We have always been developing new ideas explaining our beginnings, and how we came to be. We look for the cause of a certain earthly phenomenon such as the weather or the rising and setting of the sun. Our ancient ancestors at the dawn of humanity were in a huge and confusing world, obviously trying to make sense of it all. This beginning of our intellectually adept species had no people before them to learn from, and formulated simple theories that could easilyRead MoreCharles Darwin s Theory Of The Creation Of Species1560 Words   |  7 Pagescreation of species and has caused people to turn their backs on faith and look to science to be their religion. 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