Plesiadapis

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Plesiadapis
Temporal range: Late Paleocene-Early Eocene[1] Pre O S D C P T J K Pg N

Scientific classification Kingdom: Phylum: Class: Animalia Chordata Mammalia

Order: Superfamily: Family: Genus:

Plesiadapiformes Plesiadapoidea Plesiadapidae Plesiadapis

Gervais, 1877

Type species Plesiadapis tricuspidens Paleospecies[2][3] Plesiadapis walbeckensis Russell, 1964 Plesiadapis remensis Lemoine, 1887 Plesiadapis tricuspidens Gervais, 1877 Plesiadapis russelli Gingerich, 1976 Plesiadapis insignis (Piton, 1940) Plesiadapis praecursor Gingerich, 1975 Plesiadapis anceps Simpson, 1936 Plesiadapis rex (Gidley, 1923) Plesiadapis gingerichi Rose, 1981 Plesiadapis churchilli Gingerich, 1975 Plesiadapis fodinatus Jepsen, 1930 Plesiadapis dubius (Matthew, 1915) Plesiadapis simonsi Gingerich, 1975 Plesiadapis cookei Jepsen, 1930 Plesiadapis is one of the oldest known primate-likemammal species which existed about 58-55 million years ago in North America and Europe.[2] Plesiadapis literally means "near-Adapis", which is a reference to the Eocene lemuriform, Adapis. Plesiadapis tricuspidens, the type specimen, is so named because of the three cusps present on its upper incisors.

Human
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Homo sapiens" redirects here. For other uses, see Homo sapiens (disambiguation). This article is about modern humans. For other human species, see Homo. For other uses, seeHuman (disambiguation).

The evolutionary history of primates can be traced back 65 million years. Primates are one of the oldest of all surviving placental mammal groups. The oldest known primatelike mammal species (those of the genus Plesiadapis) come from North America, but inhabited Eurasia and Africa on a wide scale during the tropical conditions of the Paleocene and Eocene. Molecular evidence suggests that the last common ancestor between humans and the remaining great apes diverged 48 million years ago. The gorillas were the first group to split, then the chimpanzees (genus Pan) split off from the line leading to the humans. The functional portion of human DNA is approximately 98.4% identical to that of chimpanzees when comparing single nucleotide polymorphisms (see human evolutionary genetics). Therefore, the closest living relatives of humans aregorillas and chimpanzees, as they share a relatively recent common ancestor.[24]

1.

Gorilla 2. Australopithecus 3. Homo erectus 4.Neanderthal (La Chapelle aux Saints) 5. Steinheim Skull 6. Euhominid

Humans are probably most closely related to two chimpanzee species: the Common Chimpanzee and the Bonobo.[24] Full genome sequencing has resulted in the conclusion that "after 6.5 [million] years of separate evolution, the differences between chimpanzee and human are ten times greater than those between two unrelated people and ten times less than those between rats and mice".[attribution needed]Current estimates of suggested concurrence between functional human and chimpanzee DNA sequences range between 95% and 99%;[25][26][27][28] Early estimates indicated that the humanlineage may have diverged from that of chimpanzees about five million years ago, and from that ofgorillas about eight million years ago. However, a hominid skull discovered in Chad in 2001, classified as Sahelanthropus tchadensis, is approximately seven million years old, and may be evidence of an earlier divergence.[29]

Human evolution is characterised by a number of important changesmorphological, developmental, physiological, and behaviouralwhich have taken place since the split between the last common ancestor of humans and chimpanzees. The first major morphological change was the evolution of abipedal locomotor adaptation from an arboreal or semi-arboreal one,[30] with all its attendant adaptations (a valgus knee, low intermembral index (long legs relative to the arms), reduced upper-body strength). The human species developed a much larger brain than that of other primates typically 1,400 cm in modern humans, over twice the size of that of a chimpanzee or gorilla. The pattern of human postnatal brain growth differs from that of other apes (heterochrony), and allows for extended periods of social learning and language acquisition in juvenile humans. Physical anthropologists[who?] argue that the differences between the structure of human brains and those of other apes are even more significant than their differences in size. Other significant morphological changes included the evolution of a power and precision grip,[31] a reduced masticatory system, a reduction of the canine tooth, and the descent of the larynx and hyoid bone, making speech possible. An important physiological change in humans was the evolution of hidden oestrus, or concealed ovulation, which may have coincided with the evolution of important behavioural changes, such as pair bonding. Another significant behavioural change was the development of material culture, with human-made objects becoming increasingly common and diversified over time. The relationship between all these changes is the subject of ongoing debate.[32][33] The forces of natural selection have continued to operate on human populations, with evidence that certain regions of the genome display directional selection in the past 15,000 years.[34]

Transition to civilization
Main articles: Neolithic revolution and Cradle of Civilization Further information: History of the world

The rise of agriculture, and domestication of animals, led to stable human settlements.

The path followed by humans in the course of history

Until c. 10,000 years ago, most humans lived ashunter-gatherers. They generally lived in small nomadic groups known as band societies. The advent of agriculture prompted the Neolithic Revolution, when access to food surplus led to the formation of permanent human settlements, the domestication of animals and the use of metal tools for the first time in history. Agriculture encouraged trade and cooperation, and led to complex society. Because of the significance of this date for human society, it is the epoch of the Holocene calendar or Human Era. About 6,000 years ago, the first proto-states developed in Mesopotamia, Egypt's Nile Valley and the Indus Valleys. Military forces were formed for protection, and government bureaucracies for administration. States cooperated and competed for resources, in some cases waging wars. Around 2,0003,000 years ago, some states, such as Persia,India, China, Rome, and Greece, developed through conquest into the first expansive empires. Influential religions, such as Judaism, originating in West Asia, and Hinduism, a religious tradition that originated in South Asia, also rose to prominence at this time. The late Middle Ages saw the rise of revolutionary ideas and technologies. In China, an advanced and urbanized society promoted innovations and sciences, such as printing and seed drilling. In India, major advancements were made in mathematics, philosophy,

religion and metallurgy. The Islamic Golden Age saw major scientific advancements in Muslim empires. In Europe, the rediscovery ofclassical learning and inventions such as the printing press led to the Renaissance in the 14th and 15th centuries. Over the next 500 years, exploration and colonialism brought great parts of the world under European control, leading to later struggles for independence. The Scientific Revolution in the 17th century and the Industrial Revolution in the 18th19th centuries promoted major innovations in transport, such as the railway and automobile; energy development, such as coal and electricity; and government, such as representative democracy and Communism. With the advent of the Information Age at the end of the 20th century, modern humans live in a world that has become increasingly globalized and interconnected. As of 2010, almost 2 billion humans are able to communicate with each other via the Internet,[40] and 3.3 billion by mobile phonesubscriptions.[41] Although interconnection between humans has encouraged the growth of science, art, discussion, and technology, it has also led to culture clashes and the development and use of weapons of mass destruction. Human civilization has led to environmental destruction and pollution, producing an ongoing mass extinction of other forms of life called the holocene extinction event,[42] that may be further accelerated by global warming in the future.[43]