Human Origins

Synopsis: Our common ancestry with the great apes comes from the fossil records. Our hominid heritage on the tree of life started on the continent of Africa.

Modern humans and the other great apes also share a number of anatomical and molecular similarities between them. This past can be traced in large part through the fossil record, which shows that our hominid forebears first appeared on the African continent nearly 18 million years ago. These first African apes and our apelike ancestors in human lineage (known collectively as hominids) eventually gave rise to the Africans, Asians, and Europeans of today. The "Afropterocus" group (as some scientists call the last common ancestor of African apes and humans) was part of an African fauna that also included the European ancestors we mentioned earlier, plus ancestors of modern-day American apes. The apes that migrated at or around that time ended up in Southeast Asia, which evolved into gibbons and orangutans. And the ones that stayed on in Africa evolved into gorillas, chimpanzees, and humans.

This book gives a comprehensive treatment on the historical discoveries and scientific developments concerning our Human Origins. Topics begin with a scientific description on the emergence of "life" to the evolution of humanity and ending with a view of the rich human diversity that we all share. There are no advanced biological concepts and scientific descriptions for the reader to be concerned with. This book is written for the general reader that has a curiosity about the makeup of Humanity. It is a refreshing alternative to some of the rigorous biology books on the market.

Autobiography: I am a sole proprietor business owner of Gnosis Publishing. I am in the business of writing and selling my own written books in the genre of science. I also design educational apps, and Action Video Games. These products are displayed and listed on my business website www.gnosispublishing.com.