The study of the skull of a tiny, extinct human discovered in Indonesia last year shows that it has features consistent with an advanced brain, despite being only the size of a grapefruit reports Voice of America
The findings conflict with the theory that brain size matters when it concerns supporting advanced, human behaviors. The new analysis suggests this may not be true in this case.
Analysis of the 18,000-year-old fossil that scientists have nicknamed "the hobbit" reveals that the tiny being truly represents a separate human species, researchers reported Thursday.
Florida State University anthropologist Dean Falk and her team have compared the inside of the fossil skulls with casts from modern and ancient humans, chimps and other primates.
According to Reuters - "CAT scans of the inside of a skull -- among the bones of eight individuals found in a cave on the Indonesian island of Flores -- suggest brains that would have allowed advanced behavior such as toolmaking, the international team of researchers said.
They said further study of the skull of the creature, nicknamed "the Hobbit" after a literary character, showed it clearly was a normal adult of its species, not a mutant or diseased specimen, as some critics have alleged." - More at EarthTimes
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