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Fossil Evidence of Human Ancestors

Discovering the early ancestors of humans

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Lucy,

the first hominid found

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Fossil Evidence Beyond Lucy

Discovering the early ancestors of humans

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Take a guess! Which of these is human?

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EVIDENCE FROM FOSSILS

01.

PRIOR KNOWLEDGE:

  1. What evidence can be gathered from fossil remains?

  • What information can be obtained from skull fossils?

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Watch

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02. Evidence from skulls

What information can be revealed from having a nearly complete cranium?

__________?

Indicated by the shape of the eyes, jaw, and facial bones

__________?

Indicated by the shape shape of the teeth and the wearing on the teeth and jaw

__________?

Measured by skull circumference and volume

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01. Facial Appearance

02. Brain Size

03. Diet

04. Identify Relationships with DNA

Evidence from skulls

Indicated by the shape of the eyes, jaw, and facial bones

Measured by skull circumference and volume

Indicated by the shape shape of the teeth and the wearing on the teeth and jaw

DNA from fossils can be sequenced and compared in databases to identify evolutionary relationships

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03. Additional Evidence

  1. What other information could you gather from observation of fossils of the skull?

  • Which characteristics require other fossil body parts and cannot be determined from skull fossils?

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Image Credit:Lee Berger, University of the Witwatersrand

03. Additional Evidence

3. What observations can you make to compare these skeletons?

4. Suggest which two organisms are more closely related and why. Construct your answer as a CER.

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03. Additional Evidence- Related species share similar structures

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Homo sapiens have 3 modern lineages

Today’s humans come from 3 main lineages- African, Asian, and European descent. Genetically, there are not separate races, but there are unique features associated with each lineage.

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04. Evolutionary Relationships

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04. Evolutionary Relationships

  1. Evolutionary relationships can be identified with structural similarities, but what kind of physical evidence would be best to determine how closely a species is related?

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Thanks!

Do you have any questions?

senelson@henrico.k12.va.us

Henrico High School

Henrico County Public Schools

CREDITS: This presentation template was created by Slidesgo, including icons by Flaticon, and infographics & images by Freepik

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