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Why You Should Love Neanderthals

Writer's picture: Frank VictoriaFrank Victoria

Congratulations! Your DNA is 99.7 identical to Neanderthals! I hope that doesn’t bother you because Neanderthals were the forerunners of our modern-day Homo Sapiens. They were a fascinating species that managed to survive the last Ice Age about 260 million years ago despite their primitive clothing and tools.


Why You Should Love Neanderthals
Neanderthals were the forerunners of our species, Homo sapiens, and our DNA is almost 100% identical to them. They are similar to us but there are significant differences.  We all come from somewhere from somebody. And the surprise? You have Neanderthal DNA—lots of it. 
#Neanderthals #Homo sapiens #Cavemen #Anthropology

Neanderthals are an extinct group of humans that emerged around 400,000 years ago and died off around 40,000 years ago. They are our closest known relatives and interbred with Homo sapiens.


Neanderthals' core range was in western Eurasia. They lived as far west as what is now Wales and as far east as the Altai mountains in Siberia. They also lived around the Mediterranean as far south as Israel and reached across from what is now Iran to Uzbekistan to Central Asia. 


Like Homo sapiens, Neanderthals lived in shelters, used fire in a controlled manner, and hunted. But there are differences, especially in their appearance, and distinct facial features. They had a sloping forehead with very big, arched brow ridges. Their noses were wider and more prominent than those of modern humans, and their skulls would be a little bit more elongated. When seen from the side, Neanderthals also had noticeably small chins, and their front teeth were bigger compared with our “modern day” ones. 



Although Neanderthals had similar size brains to Homo sapiens, their skull shape differed from ours. Our skulls tend to be high and rounded, globular in terms of the shape of the braincase, whereas Neanderthal skulls, like those of most other early humans, are long and low.

Some other differences.

 

Their skeletons were quite similar to ours. But they were, on average, aroundNeanderthal limbs were also proportioned differently from  4 feet 11 inches to 5 feet 7 inches tall. In modern humans—the lower segments of their arms and legs are relatively short compared with the upper segments. This gave them a stocky appearance. Similar features are also seen in modern humans who live in colder climates, with a shorter, wider body being an adaptation to reduce surface area and conserve heat. 

 

Neanderthals were an intelligent and accomplished species of human, and not wildly different from Homo sapiens in terms of their mental faculties. However, a 2022 study published in the Journal of Science revealed a slight difference in the brain development of modern humans and Neanderthals. A gene mutation in Homo sapiens allowed for the development of more neurons in the neocortex, and this mutation is not found in Neanderthals. This change in the wiring of the brain may have given Homo sapiens a cognitive advantage.


Neanderthals likely lived in small bands, and likely never formed the large groups that Homo sapiens favored. Neanderthals had lower genetic diversity, which implies smaller social groupings. The more robust and heavier build of the Neanderthals may have necessitated this, as they required more energy and therefore more food, making large groups less attainable. 


According to Bernard Wood, a paleoanthropologist at George Washington University, Neanderthals needed 600 to 700 more calories a day than modern humans today. In other words, they were not nearly as energy efficient as Homo sapiens—something that could be catastrophic during a famine.


The fact that the Homo Sapiens formed larger bands would have given them an advantage if the conflict between the two occurred. Studies also suggest that Homo sapiens were using ranged weapons, including the bow and arrow and spear-throwers, whereas the Neanderthals were not, giving them a substantive advantage when it came to hunting and potential conflict.


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Why You Should Love Neanderthals
Neanderthals were the forerunners of our species, Homo sapiens, and our DNA is almost 100% identical to them. They are similar to us but there are significant differences.  We all come from somewhere from somebody. And the surprise? You have Neanderthal DNA—lots of it. 
#Neanderthals #Homo sapiens #Cavemen #Anthropology

Frank Victoria is an award-winning author and screenwriter. He’s been an Amazon bestseller with his recent book, The Founders’ Plot, a political thriller for our times. He donates proceeds of his books to Tunnels to Towers and Fisher House, helping military veterans and first responders. His novellas, The Ultimate Bet and The Protectors are available on his website and Amazon. Check out his new website: FrankVictoriaAuthor.com

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