The Human Fossil Record Craniodental Morphology Of Early Hominids Genera Australopithecus Paranthropus Orrorin And Overview

The Human Fossil Record, Craniodental Morphology of Early Hominids (Genera Australopithecus, Paranthropus, Orrorin), and Overview

The Human Fossil Record Volume one Terminology and Craniodental Morphology of Genus Homo (Europe) Jeffrey H. Schwartz Ian Tattersall The Human Fossil Record series is the most authoritative and comprehensive documentation of the fossil evidence relevant to the study of our evolutionary past. This first volume covers the craniodental remains from Europe that have been attributed to the genus Homo. Here the authors also clearly define the terminology and descriptive protocol that is applied uniformly throughout the series. Organized alphabetically by site name, each entry includes clear descriptions and original, expertly taken photographs, as well as: Morphology Location information History of discovery Previous systematic assessments of the fossils Geological, archaeological, and faunal contexts Dating References to the primary literature The Human Fossil Record series is truly a must-have reference for anyone seriously interested in the study of human evolution.

The Human Fossil Record: Craniodental morphology of early hominids (genera Australopithecus, Paranthropus, Orrorin) and overview

The Evolution of the Human Head

In one sense, human heads function much like those of other mammals. We use them to chew, smell, swallow, think, hear, and so on. But, in other respects, the human head is quite unusual. Unlike other animals, even our great ape cousins, our heads are short and wide, very big brained, snoutless, largely furless, and perched on a short, nearly vertical neck. Daniel E. Lieberman sets out to explain how the human head works, and why our heads evolved in this peculiarly human way. Exhaustively researched and years in the making, this innovative book documents how the many components of the head function, how they evolved since we diverged from the apes, and how they interact in diverse ways both functionally and developmentally, causing them to be highly integrated. This integration not only permits the head’s many units to accommodate each other as they grow and work, but also facilitates evolutionary change. Lieberman shows how, when, and why the major transformations evident in the evolution of the human head occurred. The special way the head is integrated, Lieberman argues, made it possible for a few developmental shifts to have had widespread effects on craniofacial growth, yet still permit the head to function exquisitely. This is the first book to explore in depth what happened in human evolution by integrating principles of development and functional morphology with the hominin fossil record. The Evolution of the Human Head will permanently change the study of human evolution and has widespread ramifications for thinking about other branches of evolutionary biology.