A collection of unusually old stone tools found in Algeria is challenging our ideas about early human evolution. The find suggests one of two scenarios: either the first humans expanded rapidly from their small East African homeland, or humans emerged simultaneously across a vast region of Africa. Image: M. Sahnouni
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Skin tone has varied greatly among humans for at least the last 900,000 years. So concludes an analysis of the genetic variants associated with skin pigmentation in people from several regions of Africa. The latest findings suggest that some particularly dark skin tones evolved relatively recently from paler genetic variants. Image: llamnudds
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It was the first fussy eater. Most ancient hominins ate a broad diet, but one species specialised on sedges, which might have led to its downfall. Image: PriscillaBurcher
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Ethiopia’s green economy is booming, but most of the locals are not feeling the benefit. Last week, the country opened Africa’s biggest wind farm. It came online just days after Ethiopia announced a preliminary agreement to build a 1000-megawatt geothermal facility, the largest in Africa – but 77 per cent of Ethiopians still lack access to electricity. Image: cabbit
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Early in the 20th century most researchers believed we evolved in Eurasia rather than Africa. Surprisingly, they may have been partially correct. Recently, some prominent researchers have come round to the idea that hominins may have left their African cradle much earlier than we thought and undergone critical evolutionary transitions further north. Image: Cea.
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