Sopra this respect, the Qesem hominins may play an important role

Per summary, the notion that shifts durante human life histories, accompanied by improved intelligence, are an evolutionary response puro a dietary shift towards high-quality food resources that are difficult esatto acquire has already been suggested by Kaplan . Our model is innovative con that it suggests per mechanism for such a dietary shift that could have propelled hominins sicuro per new evolutionary tirocinio.

Conclusion

For more than two decades a view dominated anthropological discussions that all modern human variation derived from Africa within verso relatively recent chronological framework. Recent years challenged this paradigm with new discoveries from Europe, Pendenza, and other localities, as well as by new advances in theory and methodology. These developments are now setting the tirocinio for per new understanding of the human story durante general and the emergence of modern humans con particular (e.g., , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ). Analysis of their dental remains suggests verso much deeper time frame between at least some of the ancestral populations and modern humans than that which is assumed by the “Out of Africa” model. This, combined with previous genetic studies (addirittura.g., , , , ), lends support preciso the notion of assimilation (ancora.g., ) between populations migrating “out of Africa” and populations already established con these parts of Eurasia.

It is still premature puro indicate whether the Qesem hominin ancestors evolved mediante Africa prior to 400 kyr , developed blade technologies , , and then migrated puro the Levant esatto establish the new and unique Acheulo-Yabrudian cultural complex; or whether (as may be derived from our model) we face verso local, Levantine emergence of per new hominin lineage. The plethora of hominins con the Levantine Middle Paleolithic fossil primato (Qafzeh, Skhul, Zuttiyeh, Tabun) and the fact that the Acheulo-Yabrudian cultural complex has no counterparts con Africa may hint sopra favor of local cultural and biological developments. This notion gains indirect support from the Denisova finds that raise the possibility that several different hominin groups spread out across Europe and Oriente for hundreds of thousands of years, probably contributing onesto the emergence of modern human populations , , .

It should not che tipo di as per surprise that H. erectus, and its successors managed, and in fact evolved, sicuro obtain per substantial amount of the densest form of nutritional energy available mediante nature – fat – esatto the point that it became an obligatory food source. Animal fat was an essential food source necessary con order onesto meet the daily energy expenditure of these Pleistocene hominins, especially taking into account their large energy-demanding brains. It should also not che tipo di as per surprise that for per predator, the disappearance of a major prey animal may be a significant reason for evolutionary change. The elephant was a uniquely large and fat-rich food-package and therefore per most attractive target during the Levantine Lower Palaeolithic Acheulian. Our calculations show that the elephant’s disappearance from the Levant just before 400 kyr was significant enough an event puro have triggered the evolution of a species that was more adept, both physically and mentally, preciso obtain dense energy (such as fat) from verso higher number of smaller, more evasive animals. The concomitant emergence of verso new and innovative cultural complex – the Acheulo-Yabrudian, heralds a new arnesi of behavioral habits including changes con hunting and chatango sharing practices , , that are relevant sicuro our model.

If indeed, as we tried esatto esibizione, the dependence of humans on fat was so fundamental puro their existence, the application is made possible, perhaps after some refinement, of this proposed bioenergetic model sicuro the understanding of other important developments con human evolutionary history

Thus, the particular dietary developments and cultural innovations joined together at the end of the Lower Paleolithic period sopra the Levant, reflecting a link between human biological and cultural/behavioral evolution.