Claire. Posted March 13, 2017 #1 Share Posted March 13, 2017 400,000-year-old fossil human cranium is oldest ever found in Portugal. A large international research team, directed by the Portuguese archaeologist João Zilhão and including Binghamton University anthropologist Rolf Quam, has found the oldest fossil human cranium in Portugal, marking an important contribution to knowledge of human evolution during the middle Pleistocene in Europe and to the origin of the Neandertals. The cranium represents the westernmost human fossil ever found in Europe during the middle Pleistocene epoch and one of the earliest on this continent to be associated with the Acheulean stone tool industry. In contrast to other fossils from this same time period, many of which are poorly dated or lack a clear archaeological context, the cranium discovered in the cave of Aroeira in Portugal is well-dated to 400,000 years ago and appeared in association with abundant faunal remains and stone tools, including numerous bifaces (handaxes). Read more: Phys.org 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paperdyer Posted March 14, 2017 #2 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Great find Claire and a great find for archaeology. But isn't this statement a bit obvious seeing the diversity we have in facial features: "The Aroeria cranium increases the anatomical diversity in the human fossil record from this time period, suggesting different populations showed somewhat different combinations of features." 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ShortyStuff Posted March 14, 2017 #3 Share Posted March 14, 2017 Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
godnodog Posted March 15, 2017 #4 Share Posted March 15, 2017 10 hours ago, ShortyStuff said: Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots. Did you even bother to read the actual article? Since the sediments containing the cranium at the Aroeira site were firmly cemented, the cranium was removed from the site in a large, solid block.Read more at: https://phys.org/news/2017-03-year-old-fossil-human-cranium-oldest.html#jCp" In other words it was not something loose on the ground! It was covered! And since scientists know the average rate of sediment deposit growth they can calculate an estimated age of the fossil. 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldrover Posted March 15, 2017 #5 Share Posted March 15, 2017 1 hour ago, ShortyStuff said: Do you know how they dated this? They dated the stalagmites and stalactites in the area. How stupid is that? I could have dropped these bones off last week for all they know. Scientists have become nothing more than educated idiots. Sorry, does it really not occur to you that they'd have thought of that? That in fact that would be completely obvious to anyone, anyone at all, let alone people who do this professionally? 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
oldrover Posted March 15, 2017 #6 Share Posted March 15, 2017 10 minutes ago, godnodog said: In other words it was not something loose on the ground! It was covered! And since scientists know the average rate of sediment deposit growth they can calculate an estimated age of the fossil. Yes, it's as if they know what they're ding isn't it. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docyabut2 Posted March 15, 2017 #7 Share Posted March 15, 2017 (edited) Quote That is a great find considering most homo sapiens only went back to 200,000 years ago.https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homo_sapiens Edited March 15, 2017 by docyabut2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coolguy Posted March 15, 2017 #8 Share Posted March 15, 2017 (edited) What an awesome find, i just looked at the pics of it and the tools also very cool Edited March 15, 2017 by coolguy 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qxcontinuum Posted March 30, 2017 #9 Share Posted March 30, 2017 that is nick nolte 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted March 30, 2017 #10 Share Posted March 30, 2017 40 minutes ago, qxcontinuum said: that is nick nolte What pray tell does a 400,000 year old fossil human cranium have to do with Nick Nolte qx ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qxcontinuum Posted March 31, 2017 #11 Share Posted March 31, 2017 21 hours ago, Astra. said: What pray tell does a 400,000 year old fossil human cranium have to do with Nick Nolte qx ? maybe genetics ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Astra. Posted March 31, 2017 #12 Share Posted March 31, 2017 1 hour ago, qxcontinuum said: maybe genetics ... Ok - apart from that little wise-guy crack.....why Nick Nolte ?...which btw, came out of left field. Just trying to figure out how you sometimes tick qx.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qxcontinuum Posted April 4, 2017 #13 Share Posted April 4, 2017 he looks like Nick. Really nobody sees the resemblance ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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