john hawks weblog

paleoanthropology, genetics and evolution

Quote of the day

Fri, 2006-12-08 11:05 -- John Hawks

From p. 1 of Risk, by John Adams:

The apprehension, determination and intense concentration that can be observed in the face of a toddler learning to toddle, the wails of frustration or pain if it goes wrong, and the beaming delight when it succeeds -- are all evidence that one is in the presence of a serious risk-management exercise.

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Neandertals

For years, I've worked on their bones. Now I'm working on their genes. Read more about the science studying these ancient people.

Denisova

From a finger bone of an ancient human came the record of a completely unexpected population. My lab is working on the science of the Denisova genome.

Acceleration

The advent of agriculture caused natural selection to speed up greatly in humans. We're uncovering some of the ways that populations have rapidly changed during the last 10,000 years.

Malapa

Just outside Johannesburg, the Malapa site is producing some of the most exciting finds in human evolution. This site is the headquarters of the Malapa Soft Tissue Project.