Archive - John Hawks

April 2025

Consilience, convergence, and consensus

A new editorial in Science questions the common understanding of “scientific consensus”, and I reflect on what makes science reliable.

Apr 27 •

How do hominin fossils get their numbers?

Numbers for fossils, like AL 288-1, are nowhere near as iconic as names like “Lucy”, but have an important place in the study of paleoanthropology.

Apr 21 •

How Homo naledi got into the Dinaledi Chamber

New research from Dirk van Rooyen gives the most detailed look ever at the entry path into the deepest parts of the Rising Star cave system.

Apr 15 •

Tinshemet Cave and modern-Neandertal cultural interactions

New work at a site of similar age to Skhūl and Qafzeh suggests cultural sharing among groups of different biological ancestry.

Apr 5 •

March 2025

Research highlight: Burials by Homo naledi

After two years of intense reviews and revision, the work on burial evidence from this ancient hominin finds acceptance.

Mar 30 •

Lactase and the Neandertals

New research shows that a common gene variant that may explain some lactase persistence in East Asia is introgressed from Neandertals.

Mar 18 •

A look at the Sima del Elefante face

When the global timeline passed one million years ago, more than half the span of hominin presence in Eurasia had already passed by.

Mar 12 •

Plant-eating and meat-eating in Australopithecus

A new approach to sampling nitrogen-15 in tooth enamel opens a window into the diets of early hominins.

Mar 9 •

Gathering the Ancestors

The largest exhibition of hominin fossils in history brought together science, the public, and geopolitics at the height of the Cold War.

Mar 2 •

February 2025

Pounding starches on Jordan's ancient banks

New research highlights starch grains from many kinds of plants that were processed by pounding tools at Gesher Benot Ya'aqov.

Feb 28 •

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