From Grunts to Grammar

Grammar is what makes it possible for us to show complicated thoughts and communicate easily. There is also evidence that the Homo Habilis started to developed parts of the brain that allow us to speak. Also partly why the reason is that we can speak and even have the ability to is because we have the larynx is low in the throat for us. For ALL the other animals it is high in the throat and when it is low it allows for a larger sound chamber. When it first even started to descend down lower is when our Genus began (Homo, first ones were Homo Habilis). Also the thing about humans is that we have the ability to breath through both the nose and mouth which is what allowed us to run longer distance and feed, but most mammals only breath through the nose. Since language can be hard to find, because there is no proff if it, there is no need for a written language to mean that that is when you started speaking, The way archeologists find out is if looking ofr sign when there was need for languages. We firsed stated to develop language about 60,000-80,000 years ago. When we first started to develope it was when we started to move out ot (present day) Australia because even though the sea levels wee lower and much nore could have been my foot, there sill needed to be a longer boat journey which required complex communication (language). However, the face was also part of their central communication but when they needed to cross that water, we know for a fact that language was needed then and there, and there was the birth of a distinction between us and animals.

On Our Own Two Feet

How old is bipedal walking? Let me tell you this, it is extremely old and it is much older than modern humans today. Bipedal walking is generally rare among primates, but especially among all species. The amazing part about bipedal walking on humans and our ancestors is that we find it easier to rest our heavy head on our two flat feat than to walk on all fours. We do this for a long period of time without falling. There are many differences between chimpanzees, modern humans, and Australopithecus's. One of them is that we have the flattest face while the chimpanzees sticks out the most, and Australopithecus's face shape is somewhere in between. The chimpanzees even have a small little snout, and the Australopithecus has a small snout, while we humans do not have any snout. Look at these images below to see the difference. Notice how the Australopithecus's face looks more similar to a chimpanzees than a modern day humans?

The human also has the largest brain case while the chimpanzees is the smallest. And once again the Australopithecus's is in the middle. When comparing these three species, the Australopithecus is usually in the middle, however it usually is a little close to a chimpanzees than a modern humans. The brain case of the Australopithecus is only a little larger than the chimpanzees. Also there is something in the brain called a Foramen Magnum which is a hole in the skull where the spinal cord connects the skull and spine. Looking at that you can tell how a species spine is.Obviously a humans is straight and chimpanzees bends. But the true question was, how was the Australopithecus's and how did we find out? Since in an archeological dig we found a skull of an Australopithecus we have access to the Foramen Magnum. Because of this we know that it was straight, so they were bipedal. However we also know that bipedalism started before the Australopithecus. Keep tuned onto my blog and you will find our more about early humans!!

Whitt, Stephen. "On Our Own Two Feet." Odyssey: Adventures in Science Oct. 2009: 26-28. Print.