'Hobbit' human may have had Down syndrome

[UM-Bot]

New doubts have been cast on the idea that a species of small humans lived on the island of Flores.

Few anthropological discoveries have been as fiercely debated in recent times as the finding in 2004 of bones in Indonesia of what some believed to be a previously unknown species of human with an abnormally small stature.

Read More: http://www.unexplained-mysteries.com/news/270417/hobbit-human-may-have-had-down-syndrome

[Ashyne]

The question is:

1) Do the "Hobbit" humans have Down's Syndrome,

or

2) Are the modern humans with Down's Syndrome today actually "Hobbits"?

[Atuke]

Sounds like they were banished to the island. Makes the story way more interesting

[questionmark]

Guess that kills my thread about the first person found with Down Syndrome on this forum... The hobbit was there first!

[Drfeelgood11]

People are born all the time with varies traits and uncommon defeciencies. Just because this little guy was found on an island it somehow makes a difference? Ive seen ppl w/ down syndrome and ppl that are 3 ft tall. Yea big woop!!

[maximusnow]

Ashyne! funny girl .....I think?

[maximusnow]

If a group of people were found with the same abnormally small stature, this is very interesting either way.

[paperdyer]

Maybe the National Enquirer will investigate the story and get to hte bottom of it!

[u2canbfmj]

must of been the GMOs

[+Hammerclaw]

This was suggested from the beginning by critics and is nothing new. The remains of nine individuals have been discovered, confirming the size of the first set of skeletal remains were not anomalous. The Down Syndrome hypothesis is highly suspect and based on the analysis of a single skull.

Edited August 6, 2014 by John Wesley Boyd

[coolguy]

I know this will sound dumb,but people back then had Down syndrome ??

I though that Down's syndrome was due to pollution and life style like eating junk food

[LoveDuet]

Down syndrome isn't caused by air pollution, life style or eating junk food. The only known cause is age of the birth mother as the chances increase of having a Down syndrome baby the older a mother is.

[Peter B]

I have my doubts about the theory. Take that with a grain of salt, as I have no relevant qualifications.

However, the man proposing the theory, Maciej Henneburg, has been a hobbit skeptic pretty much ever since the announcement of the discovery of the hobbit skeletons. In previous years his theory was that the hobbits were normal humans with microcephaly (congenitally small brains). Now they're normal humans with Down Syndrome.

By contrast, other studies have pointed out the hobbit skeletons share anatomical characteristics with primitive humans such as Homo habilis.

[Ifonly]

How exactly would having down syndrome account for the size of these people, and wouldn't three feet tall primitive people just naturally have smaller brains.

[Mr.United_Nations]

Its called Island Dwarfism, . Same with Dwarf Elephants and the reverse is Island Giantism, in the case of Giant Tortoises and Komodo dragons.

[questionmark]

Its called Island Dwarfism, . Same with Dwarf Elephants and the reverse is Island Giantism, in the case of Giant Tortoises and Komodo dragons.

And while you are right there we might want to explain it a little more: dwarfism occurs when in a restricted habitat a species occurs that cannot be supported by it and it (the species) has no enemy. Gigantism occurs when a species has no competition in its ecological niche.

Now, Flores with its over 5000 square miles is hardly a too small habitat to make Dwarfism in humans an issue, which was always the Achilles Heel of the Hobbit theory.

Edited August 7, 2014 by questionmark

[PersonFromPorlock]

I suppose anything is possible, but the fact that the 'hobbit' skull has round (instead of rectangular) eye sockets would seem to rule out its being an h. sapiens of any sort.

Edited August 7, 2014 by PersonFromPorlock

[Sundew]

As if life with Down's Syndrome would not be difficult enough, add to that ten foot carnivorous lizards roaming about. Could someone with Down's even defend themselves in such a situation and would a primitive society protect them or see them only as a liability in a dangerous environment?

[psyche101]

As if life with Down's Syndrome would not be difficult enough, add to that ten foot carnivorous lizards roaming about. Could someone with Down's even defend themselves in such a situation and would a primitive society protect them or see them only as a liability in a dangerous environment?

I am very dubious of the claim as well, they "have a feeling" about the shape of the thigh bone, and the skull is asymmetrical, which mean nothing at all here.

I do not see how this trumps the more definitive evidence seen in the wrist bones, which are more primitive, like those of gorillas, chimpanzees, and other early human ancestors.

[Atlantisresearch]

I have my doubts about the theory. Take that with a grain of salt, as I have no relevant qualifications.

However, the man proposing the theory, Maciej Henneburg, has been a hobbit skeptic pretty much ever since the announcement of the discovery of the hobbit skeletons. In previous years his theory was that the hobbits were normal humans with microcephaly (congenitally small brains). Now they're normal humans with Down Syndrome.

By contrast, other studies have pointed out the hobbit skeletons share anatomical characteristics with primitive humans such as Homo habilis.

The 'hobbit' remains might be frauds. There is only one complete skull (LB1) and Henneberg has argued he spotted a modern dental filling.

http://news.sciencemag.org/2008/04/tempest-hobbit-tooth

[psyche101]

The 'hobbit' remains might be frauds. There is only one complete skull (LB1) and Henneberg has argued he spotted a modern dental filling.

http://news.sciencem...st-hobbit-tooth

From that link:

At least one independent expert who has seen the specimen agrees. Dental anthropologist Shara Bailey, now of New York University, has not taken sides in the hobbit wars but had the chance to examine the specimen in detail while it was in Jacob's lab. "I was surprised by the hypothesis," she says. The first molar had odd dental wear and coloration, she admits--"I was struck by the opacity and whiteness of the dentine"--but it didn't look like a filling. She points out that "the canine and incisor have the same overall look. ... If someone filled that [molar] tooth, they filled the [tops] of the canine and incisor too, which would be unusual."