Darwin gave a lot of thought to the strangest creatures on this planet, wondering how they had evolved from less strange ancestors. Whales today might be fish-like warm-blooded beasts with blowholes and flukes, but long ago, Darwin argued, their ancestors were ordinary mammals that walked on land with legs. His suggestion was greeted with shock and disbelief; nevertheless, scientists have found bones from ancient walking whales. Humans, Darwin argued, evolved from apes, most likely in Africa where chimpanzees and gorillas are found today. And today scientists have found about twenty different species of hominids, from chimp-like creatures that lived six million years ago to not-quite humans that lived alongside our own species.
The latest joy from the Discovery Institute: an attempt to make dodos look scary.
Originally published February 7, 2007. Copyright 2007 Carl Zimmer.
There are six and a half billion human stomachs on this little planet of ours, and over half of them are home to a microbe called Helicobacter pylori. Scientists have known about the bacteria since the late 1800s, but it wasn’t until the 1980s that Australian doctors noticed that H. pylori was in the stomachs of just about everyone with an ulcer. A swig of antibiotics turned out to be a great way to make ulcers disappear.
In celebration of Darwin’s 198th birthday, there will be lots of events–talks, etc.–going on around the world next week. I’ll be doing my part, heading to the Rockies to talk at Western State College in Gunnison, Colorado. My talk is entitled, “The Descent of Man, From Darwin to DNA.” I’ll be speaking at 7 on Tuesday, February 13, in the Kebler Ballroom at the College Union Building. It’s free and open to the public. (Map)
Speaking of hobbits, the paperback edition of my human evolution book is just about to come out, and you can order it now on Amazon. And if you prefer the resounding thwack of hard covers, the hardback edition is still available. For information on the innards of the book, see this post from last year.
Originally published January 31, 2007. Copyright 2007 Carl Zimmer.