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Judi Lynn Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 04:14 PM
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Earliest 'human footprints' found
Page last updated at 19:00 GMT, Thursday, 26 February 2009
Earliest 'human footprints' found



The earliest footprints showing evidence of modern human foot anatomy and gait have been unearthed in Kenya.

The 1.5 million-year-old footprints show signs of a pronounced arch and short, aligned toes, in contrast to older footprints.

The size and spacing of the Kenyan footprint trails - attributed to Homo erectus - reflect the height, weight, and walking style of modern humans.

~snip~
The fossil record is distinctly lacking in foot and hand bones, according to lead author Matthew Bennett of Bournemouth University, UK.

"The reason is that carnivores like to eat hands and feet," Professor Bennett told BBC News.

More:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7913375.stm
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villager Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 04:17 PM
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1. a 6,000 year old footprint!?
;-)
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county worker Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 04:20 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. Yep, right next to the print of the dinosaur he/she was playing with.
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Submariner Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 05:02 PM
Response to Reply #1
4. Yes....As Sister Perpetual Agony taught us
Her god put the dinosaur fossils in the ground 6,000 years ago to test our faith....whatever the hell that meant.:eyes:
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GreenPartyVoter Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 04:37 PM
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3. Very cool!
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Peace Patriot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 05:05 PM
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5. I thought Lucy was the oldest footprint. I guess I need to research this.
Anybody remember how old Lucy's footprint is?
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Greyskye Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Feb-26-09 05:41 PM
Response to Reply #5
6. Lucy is 3.2 million years old. Australopithecus afarensis

The new footprints are of Homo erectus. That's the discrepancy that you're thinking of.
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Peace Patriot Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Feb-27-09 08:35 AM
Response to Reply #6
7. Thank you! nt
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pokerfan Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sun Mar-01-09 03:01 AM
Response to Reply #6
8. More specifically, H. ergaster
http://www.sciam.com/article.cfm?id=15-million-footprints-uncover
http://anthropology.si.edu/HumanOrigins/ha/erg.html
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xchrom Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Mon Mar-09-09 10:34 AM
Response to Original message
9. very cool. nt
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