Nature World Today

Nature's Best Site

Humans Traveled to China 2.1 Million Years Ago

by 246 Comments

Stone tools unearthed in China suggest that ancient humans moved around the world much earlier than previously thought, according to new research published in the journal Nature. The remains — which were found by a group of international researchers — date back 2.12 million years and are the earliest evidence ever found of humans outside of Africa.

The team made the discovery when they uncovered dozens of quartz and quartzite stones on the Loess Plateau at Shangchen, China. Current estimates suggest hominins originated in Africa roughly 6 million years ago and then did not migrate out until millions of years later. That is supported by the current fossil record, which shows hominin artifacts dating back 1.5 to 1.7 million years ago in numerous spots outside of Africa. 

In fact, before this new finding, the earliest evidence of hominins outside of the continent came from a skeleton found in the Republic of Georgia that dated back 1.85 million years.

Editorial content

Though the stones uncovered in the study look like rocks at first glance, close study revealed they are flaked in a certain way to create specific lines. In addition, they were also found in a stone-free landscape. That suggests they were not worn down as a result of natural processes, but rather by early humans.

This discovery is important because, as it suggests human ancestors left Africa 10,000 generations earlier than previously thought, it changes what researchers know about our species’ past. While scientists are not yet sure what hominins made the ancient tools, they plan to follow up and see what else they can find.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  174. Вечер с Владимиром Соловьевым Вечер с Владимиром Соловьевым Вечер с Владимиром Соловьевым

    94622895504755909125477305046053267 38218138539962951961938535247703905 54413946848564151737356452935870627
    5649640 3980051 6178942 9272195 4519876 8598791 5452758 699112 7785382 9856270 7622218 7156098 9125599 6846969 9163027
    3539596 3094849 266638 691591 6105780 4387159 8120390 2385283 3974135 7195640 1879087 1610826 1605044 9496282 7275637

  195. Симовым, Исааком Рабиновичем и Александрой Экстер; фильм «Космический рейс» (1936), созданный режиссером Василием

  209. substitutes for viagra [url=http://australiacialis.quest/#]mixing cialis and viagra [/url] best place to buy kamagra online how long does it take for levitra to work

  224. paxil and depression [url=https://paxil.directory/#]paxil brand name [/url] how to lose weight while taking paxil how to wean off paxil successfully

  228. missed metformin dose [url=https://metformin.beauty/#]can i buy glucophage over the counter in south africa [/url] metformin and alcohol side effects how does januvia work with metformin

  230. oral diflucan [url=http://diflucan.site/#]diflucan 150 mg buy online uk [/url] diflucan over the counter usa how many hours for diflucan to peak

  236. doxycycline contraindications [url=https://doxycyclineus.com/#]buy doxycycline over the counter [/url] does doxycycline cause weight loss how much does doxycycline cost at cvs

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.