Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

Ancient walking gets weirder: Fossils from two human ancestors suggest diversity in gait, stance
Science News ^ | Monday, April 16th, 2012 | Bruce Bower

Posted on 04/19/2012 6:13:53 PM PDT by SunkenCiv

1.5 million-year-old footprints excavated in Africa, initially thought to reflect a thoroughly modern walking style, were instead made by individuals that walked differently than people today do, researchers reported April 13 at the annual meeting of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists. And findings presented April 12 at the meeting revealed the surprisingly apelike qualities of foot fossils from a 2 million-year-old species that some researchers regard as the root of the Homo genus.

These reports come on the heels of evidence that a previously unknown member of the human evolutionary family 3.4 million years ago possessed a gorillalike grasping big toe and an ungainly stride ...

"We can infer that the ancient Ileret individuals had a normal, functional gait, but they may have walked differently than we do," Hatala said. For now, it's uncertain just how these hominids walked and whether they belonged to Homo erectus, a possibly direct human ancestor, or to the side-branch species Paranthropus boisei...

Hatala and his colleagues compared five preserved Ileret footprints to those of 38 Daasanach herders in Kenya, none of whom wear shoes. Participants walked across a pressure pad before walking across moistened Ileret soil that approximated the conditions under which the ancient footprints were made. Pressure measurements at 10 spots across the bottom of the foot closely corresponded to depth measurements at the same spots on volunteers' footprints.

Disparities in depth measurements between Daasanach and ancient Ileret footprints signaled that the hominids walked unlike people today do.

Other comparisons to Daasanach footprints indicated that two sets of Ileret tracks were made by individuals who were walking, not running, and who stood about 5 feet, 6 inches tall and weighed 110 pounds. That's in the general size range of Daasanach people today.

(Excerpt) Read more at sciencenews.org ...


TOPICS: History; Science; Travel
KEYWORDS: godsgravesglyphs; ileret; kenya; paranthropusboisei
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021 next last
A new analysis of 1.5-million-year-old fossil footprints uncovered at Kenya's Ileret site suggests that they were made by a human ancestor with a gait different than that of modern humans.Courtesy of Matthew Bennett/Bournemouth Univ.

Ancient walking gets weirder: Fossils from two human ancestors suggest diversity in gait, stance

1 posted on 04/19/2012 6:14:01 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]


2 posted on 04/19/2012 6:14:47 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: StayAt HomeMother; Ernest_at_the_Beach; decimon; 1010RD; 21twelve; 24Karet; 2ndDivisionVet; ...

 GGG managers are SunkenCiv, StayAt HomeMother & Ernest_at_the_Beach
To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list.


3 posted on 04/19/2012 6:15:14 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

Is that why the Kenyan POTUS swishes when he walks.


4 posted on 04/19/2012 6:17:00 PM PDT by King Moonracer (Bad lighting and cheap fabric, that's how you sell clothing.....)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv
They keep looking in Africa, don’t they. As far as possible from where the Bible says it all happened, yes?

Funny how if it walks like a duck et cetera it’s a duck, but if it walks like a gorilla, it ain’t a gorilla but a “human ancestor” . . . ?
5 posted on 04/19/2012 6:19:27 PM PDT by Olog-hai
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

Maybe it was the Ministry of Silly Walks.


6 posted on 04/19/2012 6:20:29 PM PDT by almcbean
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: King Moonracer

It's also why the honorable gay gentleman from Idaho has such a wide stance.

7 posted on 04/19/2012 6:21:26 PM PDT by Pollster1 (Can we afford as much government as welfare-addicted voters demand?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: Olog-hai

Africa isn’t “as far as possible from where the Bible says it all happened”.


8 posted on 04/19/2012 6:23:05 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 5 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

9 posted on 04/19/2012 6:33:34 PM PDT by who_would_fardels_bear
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: almcbean; who_would_fardels_bear
Maybe it was the Ministry of Silly Walks.
Hey, aren't they all a little silly, walks or not?


10 posted on 04/19/2012 6:52:28 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: King Moonracer; Pollster1

;’)


11 posted on 04/19/2012 6:52:34 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 4 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

The Homo had a wide stance??


12 posted on 04/19/2012 6:54:27 PM PDT by GeronL (The Right to Life came before the Right to Pursue Happiness)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv
funny gifs
13 posted on 04/19/2012 6:58:56 PM PDT by Oratam
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

Footprints belong to an early member of the Zumba Tribe.


14 posted on 04/19/2012 7:27:58 PM PDT by bunkerhill7 (Zoom??? Who knew?)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIFUm70n0fU


15 posted on 04/19/2012 7:39:39 PM PDT by Gay State Conservative (Unlike Mrs Obama,I've Been Proud Of This Country My *Entire* Life!)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv
“Cause she knew what she was doing
She taught me how to walk this way
She told me to
Walk this way, talk this way”

Early Aerosmith fans?

16 posted on 04/19/2012 7:51:35 PM PDT by dog breath
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: dog breath

Steve Tyler probably remembers them.


17 posted on 04/19/2012 7:57:33 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (FReepathon 2Q time -- https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: Oratam

My thoughts too.


18 posted on 04/19/2012 8:02:51 PM PDT by Inyo-Mono (My greatest fear is that when I'm gone my wife will sell my guns for what I told her I paid for them)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 13 | View Replies]

To: dog breath

Maybe early Marx Brothers fans?


19 posted on 04/19/2012 8:14:54 PM PDT by married21 (As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 16 | View Replies]

To: SunkenCiv

Cue the crazy “it’s aliens” dude!


20 posted on 04/19/2012 8:18:14 PM PDT by NativeSon ( Grease the floor with Crisco when I dance the Disco)
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first 1-2021 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
General/Chat
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson