Category Archives: Latest on Evolution

The Origins and Evolution of the Ribosome

The evolution of the ribosome, a large molecular structure found in the cells of all species, has been revealed in unprecedented detail in a new study. Around 4 billion years ago, the first molecules of life came together on the early Earth and formed precursors of modern proteins and RNA. Scientists studying the origin of…

Bones of elephant ancestor unearthed: Meet the gomphothere

An animal once believed to have disappeared from North America before humans ever arrived there might actually have roamed the continent longer than previously thought -- and it was likely on the list of prey for some of continent's earliest humans, researchers from the University of Arizona and elsewhere have found. Archaeologists have discovered…

Human Ancestors Got Herpes from Chimps’ Ancestors

A herpes virus that infects humans originated in chimpanzees before it jumped into our early human ancestors, according to a new study. Researchers found that herpes simplex virus 1 (HSV-1) infected hominids before their evolutionary split from chimpanzees 6 million years ago, whereas herpes simplex 2 (HSV-2) was transferred from ancient chimpanzees to human ancestors such…

New fossil find pinpoints the origin of jaws in vertebrates

A major fossil discovery in Canada sheds new light on the development of the earliest vertebrates, including the origin of jaws, the first time this feature has been seen so early in the fossil record. A key piece in the puzzle of the evolution of vertebrates has been identified, after the discovery of fossilised…

The First Vertebrate Sexual Organs Evolved as an Extra Pair of Legs

We humans use the euphemism for sex that “we like to get a leg over” but the first jawed vertebrates – the placoderms – they liked to get a leg in. They were the first back-boned creatures to evolve male genital organs, or claspers, supported by a bony internal skeleton. What’s even more peculiar is that,…

Evolution: What the Fossils Say and Why It Matters

THE HOTTEST CULTURAL CONTROVERSY OF 2005 was the Intelligent Design challenge to the theory of evolution, being played out in classrooms and courtrooms across America. The crux of the argument made by proponents of Intelligent Design is that the theory of evolution is in serious trouble. They claim that the evidence for evolution is weak,…

Australia’s deadly eruptions were reason for the first mass extinction

A Curtin University researcher has shown that ancient volcanic eruptions in Australia 510 million years ago significantly affected the climate, causing the first known mass extinction in the history of complex life. Published in the journal Geology, Associate Professor Fred Jourdan from Curtin's Department of Applied Geology, along with colleagues from several Australian and international institutions, used…

Intertwined evolution of human brain and brawn

The cognitive differences between humans and our closest living cousins, the chimpanzees, are staggeringly obvious. Although we share strong superficial physical similarities, we have been able to use our incredible mental abilities to construct civilisations and manipulate our environment to our will, allowing us to take over our planet and walk on the moon while…

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Caught in the Act: California Insect Evolution

A first-of-its-kind study this week suggests that the genomes of new species may evolve in a similar, repeatable fashion -- even in cases where populations are evolving in parallel at separate locations. The research is featured on the cover of the May 16 issue of Science. A team of evolutionary biologists at Rice University, the…