Background Until recently, the evolution of the genus Homo has been interpreted in the
context of the onset of African aridity and the expansion of open grasslands. Homo erectus …

The life history of Homo sapiens is characterized by a lengthy period of juvenile
dependence that requires extensive allocare, short interbirth intervals with concomitantly …

Humans possess an extraordinary capacity for cultural production, from the arts and
language to science and technology. How did the human mind—and the uniquely human …

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER• The# 1 bestselling author of The Anxious Generation
and acclaimed social psychologist challenges conventional thinking about morality, politics …

Control of fire is one of the most important technological innovations within the evolution of
humankind. The archaeological signal of fire use becomes very visible from around 400,000 …

Hominin reliance on Oldowan stone tools—which appear from 2.5 mya and are believed to
have been socially transmitted—has been hypothesized to have led to the evolution of …

The brains of modern humans differ from those of great apes in size, shape, and cortical
organization, notably in frontal lobe areas involved in complex cognitive tasks, such as …

In Africa, the scarcity of hominin remains found in direct association with stone tools has
hindered attempts to link Homo habilis and Homo erectus with particular lithic industries …

The Acheulean technological tradition, characterized by a large (> 10 cm) flake-based
component, represents a significant technological advance over the Oldowan. Although …

Human brain size nearly quadrupled in the six million years since Homo last shared a
common ancestor with chimpanzees, but human brains are thought to have decreased in …