Posted on 02/12/2009 12:35:36 PM PST by Free ThinkerNY
Neanderthals are a step closer to walking on Earth again.
Scientists have unravelled the genetic code of man's closest cousin using fragments of bone found across Europe.
The blueprint could provide information on the Neanderthal's looks, intelligence, health and habits, as well as what makes us human.
It also raises the intriguing possibility of bringing our ancient relatives, who died out around 30,000 years ago, back from the dead.
Researcher Professor Jean-Jacques Hublin said: 'Studying the Neanderthals and studying the Neanderthal genome will tell us what makes modern humans really human, why we are alone, why we have these amazing capabilities that allowed our ancestors to draw paintings, to create complex symbols.'
Scientists from the Max Planck Institute in Germany and US colleagues sequenced more than one billion fragments of DNA extracted from bones of Neanderthal men, women and children that lay undiscovered in caves in Croatia, Spain, Germany and Russia for up to 70,000 years.
They have decoded 63 per cent of the Neanderthal's DNA and have started comparing it with the man's genetic code to work out what makes us human.
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
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