How To Tell If A Fossil Homi Walked Upright
Sept 9, 2018 9:23:39 GMT -5
Fossilman and MsAli like this
Post by 1dave on Sept 9, 2018 9:23:39 GMT -5
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How To Tell If A Fossil Hominid Was Bipedal
By Jim R. McClanahan
Human evolution is obviously one of the most important aspects of human history, so I've decided to post information on how to tell whether or not a fossil hominid was bipedal. It's not as difficult as it sounds. The following list is by no means meant to be comprehensive. Just look upon it as a primer.
The first place to look is the head. All vertebrates have a hole in the skull through which the spinal cord connects with the brain. This hole is known as the Foramen Magnum ("Big whole")--my professor actually used a condom joke to explain the name. The foramen magnum in apes is positioned on the back of the skull due to their bent over posture. This of course goes back to our time in the trees when we had to look forward while running quadrupedally along the limbs. Humans have a foramen magnum that is position under the skull due to our upright posture. Next, the muscle attachment points on the occipital protuberance are positioned further back on the skull of an ape, while the attachment points are positioned under the skull in humans. If a fossil has a foramen magnum and muscle attachment points more under the skull, then it was most likely bipedal.
By Jim R. McClanahan
Human evolution is obviously one of the most important aspects of human history, so I've decided to post information on how to tell whether or not a fossil hominid was bipedal. It's not as difficult as it sounds. The following list is by no means meant to be comprehensive. Just look upon it as a primer.
The first place to look is the head. All vertebrates have a hole in the skull through which the spinal cord connects with the brain. This hole is known as the Foramen Magnum ("Big whole")--my professor actually used a condom joke to explain the name. The foramen magnum in apes is positioned on the back of the skull due to their bent over posture. This of course goes back to our time in the trees when we had to look forward while running quadrupedally along the limbs. Humans have a foramen magnum that is position under the skull due to our upright posture. Next, the muscle attachment points on the occipital protuberance are positioned further back on the skull of an ape, while the attachment points are positioned under the skull in humans. If a fossil has a foramen magnum and muscle attachment points more under the skull, then it was most likely bipedal.
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- O Henry
