"The first book for a general audience to chronicle the epic story of the Denisovans, ancient cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals, who left traces of their DNA in modern-day humans
In December 2010, scientists discovered a fragment of a finger bone in an isolated cave in Siberia. To their surprise, the bone contained neither Homo sapiens nor Neanderthal DNA. The DNA came from a previously unknown species of hominids―the Denisovans―who shared a common ancestor with both Neanderthals and Homo sapiens.
This discovery reshaped everything we thought we knew about the “out of Africa” theory. Scientists initially believed that Homo erectus inhabited much of Asia, but looking at Denisovan fossils and the genealogy of native populations in the Philippines reveals that the Denisovans made up a vast population, occupying much of East Asia and Oceania.
But who were the Denisovans? How did they live? What did they look like? Paleoanthropologist Silvana Condemi and science journalist François Savatier tell the Denisovans’ story in The Secret World of Denisovans. Leading us through the excavation of Denisova cave, the sequencing of the Denisovan genome, and recent research on Denisovan fossils, Condemi and Savatier uncover how the Denisovans migrated to Asia, who they interacted with along the way, and why traces of Denisovan DNA can be found in modern-day humans. By studying the story of the Denisovans, we can better understand how humans evolved and populated the globe―and how we are more closely related to our prehistoric ancestors than we might think."
"Why aren't we more like other apes? How did we win the evolutionary race? Find out how 'wise' Homo sapiens really are.
Prehistory has never been more exciting: New discoveries are overturning long-held theories left and right. Stone tools in Australia date back 65,000 years—a time when, we once thought, the first Sapiens had barely left Africa. DNA sequencing has unearthed a new hominid group—the Denisovans—and confirmed that crossbreeding with them (and Neanderthals) made Homo sapiens who we are today.
A Pocket History of Human Evolution brings us up-to-date on the exploits of all our ancient relatives. Paleoanthropologist Silvana Condemi and science journalist François Savatier consider what accelerated our evolution: Was it tools, our 'large' brains, language, empathy, or something else entirely? And why are we the sole survivors among many early bipedal humans? Their conclusions reveal the various ways ancient humans live on today—from gossip as modern 'grooming' to our gendered division of labor—and what the future might hold for our strange and unique species."
