Viewpoint: Human evolution, from tree to braid

If one human evolution paper published in 2013 sticks in my mind above all others, it has to be the wonderful report in the 18 October issue of the journal Science. 

The article in question described the beautiful fifth skull from Dmanisi in Georgia. Most commentators and colleagues were full of praise, but controversy soon reared its ugly head.

What was, in my view, a logical conclusion reached by the authors was too much for some researchers to take.

The conclusion of the Dmanisi study was that the variation in skull shape and morphology observed in this small sample, derived from a single population of Homo erectus, matched the entire variation observed among African fossils ascribed to three species - H. erectus, H. habilis and H. rudolfensis.[...] Clive Finlayson / bbc.co.uk

The UK government is to seek World Heritage status for Gorham's and associated caves on the Rock

Link 2: The 'braided stream' at year-end (B&W3)
Clive Finlayson has a year-end retrospective for BBC News: "Viewpoint: Human evolution, from tree to braid". He reflects on the meaning of 2013's significant paleoanthropological discoveries, from the new Dmanisi Homo erectus skull to the Sima de los Huesos and Denisova ancient DNA discoveries...


Actualización 06-01-14. El profesor Clive Finlayson opina sobre los últimos hallazgos en evolución humana
(Traducido de bbc.co.uk)