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China Discovers New Fossils That Could Rewrite Human Story

A group of human-like fossils found in China have baffled scientists for decades, rejecting easy categorization or explanation. These remains, which were discovered at several locations throughout the nation and include pieces of skulls, teeth, jaws, and other bones, are unmistakably the remains of 300,000–100,000 year ago archaic hominins, a word used to characterize creatures in the human lineage. It is still unknown, though, whatever specific species these bones are from and where they fall into the increasingly complex human family tree.

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One of the researchers reexamining these perplexing fossils from a new angle is Christopher Bae, a professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Hawaii at Manoa who was stationed in Beijing for many years. He and his colleague Wu Xiujie, a senior professor from the Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology in Beijing, now suggest that it may be time to formally recognize a previously unknown ancient hominin. They have proposed officially classifying a species entirely new to science.

Features Of Discovered Fossil

The most distinctive characteristic of this proposed new human ancestor is an exceptionally large brain, exceeding the size of the brain of our own species, *Homo sapiens*, the only surviving hominin. This unique feature is reflected in the proposed name for this species, which Bae and Wu revealed in a November article published in the scientific journal *Nature Communications*: *Homo juluensis*, a name that incorporates “ju lu,” the Chinese term for “huge head.”

China Discovers New Fossils That Could Rewrite Human Story
Photo Credit: nz.co.nz

Bae explained that, “Their skulls are actually very, very large, you know, the estimated cranial capacity is 1,700, 1,800 cubic centimeters.” He further noted that in comparison, the minimum cranial capacity for modern humans is about 1,350 cc, with an average of about 1,450 cc, adding “It’s not an order of magnitude larger but it’s much more robust.” Bae also discussed *Homo juluensis* in his book *The Paleoanthropology of Eastern Asia*, published in September.

This proposition has sparked debate among paleoanthropologists, with some scientists questioning whether the characteristics of this grouping are distinctive enough to warrant the classification of a new species.

However, if Bae and Wu’s analysis is accurate, these fossils could potentially hold the key to solving one of the biggest mysteries in human evolution. This mystery began with the discovery of a pinkie bone in Denisova Cave in the Altai Mountains of southern Siberia. DNA analysis of that tiny fossil in 2010 revealed it to represent a distinct ancient human population, which scientists named the Denisovans. Many people living today carry traces of Denisovan DNA. However, due to the scarcity of Denisovan fossils, experts in human origins still lack a clear picture of what they looked like, where they lived, or the reasons behind their disappearance.

Source: cnn

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