A new hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad, Central Africa

Brunet, Michel; Guy, Franck; Pilbeam, David; Mackaye, Hassane Taïsso; Likius, Andossa; Djimdoumalbaye, Ahounta; Beauvilain, Alain; Blondel, Cécile; Bocherens, Hervé; Boisserie, Jean‐Renaud; Bonis, Louis de; Coppens, Yves; Dejax, Jean; Denys, Christiane; Duringer, Philippe; Eisenmann, Véra; Fanone, Gongdibé; Fronty, Pierre; Geraads, Denis; Lehmann, Thomas; Lihoreau, Fabrice; Louchart, Antoine; Adoum, Mahamat; Garcia, Géraldine; Mouchelin, Guy; Otero, Olga; Campomanes, Pablo Peláez; León, Marcia Ponce de; Rage, Jean‐Claude; Sapanet, M.; Schuster, Mathieu; Sudre, Jean; Tassy, Pascal; Valentin, Xavier; Vignaud, Patrick; Viriot, Laurent; Zazzo, Antoine; Zollikofer, Christoph P.E.

doi:10.1038/nature00879

Cited by 895 publications

(463 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…The human fossil record includes an impressive diversity in craniofacial morphology (Stringer and Trinkaus, 1981;Rak, 1983;Walker et al, 1986;Brunet et al, 2002;Brown et al, 2004;Kimbel et al, 2004). Not surprisingly, these fossils have generated much discussion about craniofacial adaptations to biting and chewing.…”

Section: Case Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Finite element analysis in functional morphology

et al. 2005

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This article reviews the fundamental principles of the finite element method and the three basic steps (model creation, solution, and validation and interpretation) involved in using it to examine structural mechanics. Validation is a critical step in the analysis, without which researchers cannot evaluate the extent to which the model represents or is relevant to the real biological condition. We discuss the method's considerable potential as a tool to test biomechanical hypotheses, and major hurdles involved in doing so reliably, from the perspective of researchers interested in functional morphology and paleontology. We conclude with a case study to illustrate how researchers deal with many of the factors and assumptions involved in finite element analysis.

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Section: Case Studymentioning

confidence: 99%

Finite element analysis in functional morphology

et al. 2005

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“…The oldestknown hominins (Fig. 1) are Sahelanthropus tchadensis from Chad (about 7 Mya (65) ) and Orrorin tugenensis from Kenya (about 6-5·7 Mya (66) ). The next oldest are Ardipithecus kadabba (Ethiopia, about 5·8 Mya (67) ) and A. ramidus (Ethiopia, about 4·4 Mya (68) ), Australopithecus anamensis (Kenya, about 4·1-3·9 Mya (69) ), Au.…”

Section: Human Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A multidisciplinary reconstruction of Palaeolithic nutrition that holds promise for the prevention and treatment of diseases of civilisation

2012

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Evolutionary medicine acknowledges that many chronic degenerative diseases result from conflicts between our rapidly changing environment, our dietary habits included, and our genome, which has remained virtually unchanged since the Palaeolithic era. Reconstruction of the diet before the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions is therefore indicated, but hampered by the ongoing debate on our ancestors' ecological niche. Arguments and their counterarguments regarding evolutionary medicine are updated and the evidence for the long-reigning hypothesis of human evolution on the arid savanna is weighed against the hypothesis that man evolved in the proximity of water. Evidence from various disciplines is discussed, including the study of palaeo-environments, comparative anatomy, biogeochemistry, archaeology, anthropology, (patho)physiology and epidemiology. Although our ancestors had much lower life expectancies, the current evidence does neither support the misconception that during the Palaeolithic there were no elderly nor that they had poor health. Rather than rejecting the possibility of ‘healthy ageing’, the default assumption should be that healthy ageing posed an evolutionary advantage for human survival. There is ample evidence that our ancestors lived in a land–water ecosystem and extracted a substantial part of their diets from both terrestrial and aquatic resources. Rather than rejecting this possibility by lack of evidence, the default assumption should be that hominins, living in coastal ecosystems with catchable aquatic resources, consumed these resources. Finally, the composition and merits of so-called ‘Palaeolithic diets’, based on different hominin niche-reconstructions, are evaluated. The benefits of these diets illustrate that it is time to incorporate this knowledge into dietary recommendations.

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“…Humans share a common ancestor with the chimpanzee and bonobo that likely existed in East Africa some 6 to 7 million years ago (mya) [1,2]. The earliest unambiguous fossil hominins, such as Australopithecus anamensis and A. afarensis, were bipedal, but still retained some aspects of arboreal lifestyles, as demonstrated by a combination of long forelimbs, curving phalanges, and barrel-shaped thorax [3].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The evolutionary roles of nutrition selection and dietary quality in the human brain size and encephalization

Burini

Leonard

2018

Nutrire

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Background: Humans and other primates have evolved particular morphological and biological traits (e.g., larger brains, slower growth, longer-lived offspring) that distinguish them from most other mammals. The evolution of many distinctive human characteristics, such as our large brain sizes, reduced gut sizes, and high activity budgets, suggest major energetic and dietary shifts. Main body: Over the course of the last three million years, hominin brain sizes tripled. It is often taken for granted that the benefit of a larger brain is an increase in "intelligence" that makes us stand out among other mammals, including our nearest relatives, the primates. In the case of humans, brain expansion was associated with changes in diet, foraging, and energy metabolism. The first marked expansion occurred with the appearance of the genus Homo. Improved diet quality, allomaternal subsidies, cognitive buffering [by earlier weaning and longer juvenile periods], reduced costs for locomotion and by cooperative behavior, and reduced allocation to production, all operated simultaneously, thus enabling the extraordinary brain enlargement in our lineage. Conclusion: It appears that major expansion of brain size in the human lineage is the product of synergistically interacting dietary/nutritional and social forces. Although dietary change was not being the sole force responsible for the evolution of large brain size, the exploitation of high-quality foods likely fueled the energetic costs of larger brains and necessitated more complex behaviors that would have selected for greater brain size.

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A new hominid from the Upper Miocene of Chad, Central Africa

Cited by 895 publications

References 23 publications

Finite element analysis in functional morphology

Finite element analysis in functional morphology

A multidisciplinary reconstruction of Palaeolithic nutrition that holds promise for the prevention and treatment of diseases of civilisation

The evolutionary roles of nutrition selection and dietary quality in the human brain size and encephalization

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