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John Hawks

Hi, I'm John Hawks.

I'm a paleoanthropologist, exploring the ancient world of humans and fossil human relatives.


I write about the science of human origins, and how our ancient past can help make sense of today's world.

You can follow my writing here, or subscribe to have articles sent when they are published. Keep checking in for more changes.

Featured Posts

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The top 10 discoveries about ancient people from DNA in 2022

Research on ancient genomes has moved way beyond population mixture into broader questions about how ancient people lived and interacted with their environments.

A researcher wearing protective mask, hair net, and gloves is reaching toward an archaeological profile with a test tube.
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A transition to a new platform for my words and video

The look and feel of the site is changing, with a new emphasis on subscriptions and connections.

A fountain pen writing on a page of paper
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What is the ‘braided stream’ analogy for human evolution?

A discussion of the way that reticulation has manifested across human evolution, with reference to an essay by Clive Finlayson.

Channels of water draining in sand showing a braided stream network

Recent Posts

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Debates about Neandertal cave art miss the point of their visual culture

Humans today live in visually rich environments, and it's increasingly clear that Neandertals shaped their visual environments also.

A flowstone with a broken edge revealing a line of red ochre, red pigment on its surface.
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Research highlight: Homo naledi teeth

In a massive new paper, a team led by Lucas Delezene provides descriptions of the dental evidence from the Dinaledi Chamber.

Four third mandibular premolars in five orientations with labels and scale bar
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Ghostbusters of human origins

Humans tend to mix and interact with each other. Geneticists are once again starting to take that seriously, changing their view of our origins.

Meme with the four movie Ghostbusters crossing the streams
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Did two pulses of evolution supercharge human cognition?

An intriguing new study tries to tabulate the ages of genetic variants associated with human phenotypes, but its claims about recent brain evolution may not pan out.

A stylized image of a brain with lightning pulsing through it
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Lecture: Finding ancient minds in the human evolutionary tree

Insights into the behavioral capabilities of ancient human relatives are beginning to show that some of the abilities we consider human go surprisingly deep in our ancestry.

Diagrams of eighteen hominin skulls against a black background
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What color were Neandertals?

Even with whole genomes, scientists can't say very precisely what pattern of skin, hair, and eye pigmentation was in ancient populations like the Neandertals.

Fifteen Neandertal faces of varied ages and complexions
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New evidence is revealing the ages of death, birth, and menarche in Neandertals

Analysis of dental cementum is yielding new insights into the ages when ancient people faced significant physiological stresses.

A Neandertal woman with two children clinging to her, an older woman tends a fire and a child looks on from the background
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Explaining the X chromosome hole in Neandertal ancestry

Natural selection reduced the variation on human X chromosomes in populations with the most Neandertal and Denisovan mixture. It may have been meiotic drive.

A fluorescence image of chromosomes in cells undergoing meiosis
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Many people have a little Neandertal in the brain. Does it matter?

Research has started to show the ways that introgressed genes from Neandertals affect brain shape in living people.

Anatomical model of a brain
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When did our ancestors start looking up to the stars?

Changes in the sky have been important to peoples throughout the world. That connection may go back much further than our species.

A sculpture of a caveman looking up toward a starry Milky Way
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Solving the mystery of the Red Deer Cave people

New DNA evidence is revealing the genetic relationships of ancient groups from southern China, showing how they were connected to living people across the region.

Two reconstructed partial skulls side by side representing the Red Deer Cave people
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The pathogen side of human-pathogen interactions

In the first part of a review of pathogens in human origins, I examine a sampling of infectious diseases in people today and their diverse origins.

A colorful image of a virus preparing to enter a cell.
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Ancient amputations tell remarkable stories of survival and care

A 33,000-year-old case of an amputated leg prompts comparisons to earlier Neandertal instances of amputation.

Skull of the Shanidar 1 individual with portions of the upper body skeleton visible, on a blue velvet table
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The Nesher Ramla site: a third way between Neandertals and modern humans?

Fragments representing people who lived just before Skhūl and Qafzeh seem outside the expectations for these “early modern humans” or for Neandertals.

Archaeologists working on a large, terraced excavation area under a white canopy.
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Finding ancient fire use in the Rising Star cave system

The study of the underground landscape enters a new phase with evidence of charcoal and burned animal bone in deep chambers.

A piece of charcoal upon a brown surface with tiny rodent bones visible