Human life appeared on Earth approximately 3.2 million years ago. Until now, mankind does not know for certain how human life originated. There are a number of theories that provide their own options for the origin of man.

The most famous of these theories are religious, biological and cosmic. There is also an archaeological periodization of the life of ancient people, which is based on the material from which tools were made at different times.

The Paleolithic era - the appearance of the first man

The appearance of man is associated with the Paleolithic era - the Stone Age (from the Greek "paleos" - ancient, "lithos" - stone). The first people lived in small herds, their economic activity was gathering and hunting. The only tool of labor was a stone axe. Language was replaced by gestures, a person was guided solely by his own instincts of self-preservation and in many ways was similar to an animal.

In the era of the Late Paleolithic, the mental and physical formation of modern man was completed, lat. Homo sapiens, Homo sapiens.

Features of Homo sapiens: anatomy, speech, tools

Homo sapiens differs from his predecessors in the ability to think abstractly and express his thoughts in an articulate speech form. Homo sapiens learned to build the first, albeit rather primitive dwellings.

Primitive man had a number of anatomical differences from Homo sapiens. The brain part of the skull was much smaller than the front. Since Homo sapiens was more mentally developed, his structure of the skull changes completely: the front part decreases, a flat forehead appears, and a chin protrusion appears. The hands of a reasonable person are significantly shortened: after all, he no longer needs to be engaged in gathering, he is being replaced by agriculture.

Homo sapiens significantly improves the tools of labor, there are already more than 100 types of them. The primitive herd is already being replaced by a formed tribal community: Homo sapiens clearly defines its relatives among many people. Thanks to the ability to analyze, he begins to fill the surrounding objects and phenomena with spiritual meaning - this is how the first religious beliefs are born.

Homo sapiens is no longer so dependent on nature: hunting is being replaced by cattle breeding, he can also grow vegetables and fruits on his own, without resorting to gathering. Due to the fact that a person was able to adapt to the environment and deal with natural disasters, his average life expectancy increases by about 5 years.

Later, with the improvement of the tools of labor, a reasonable person will create a class society, which speaks, first of all, of material superiority and the ability to create personal property. Homo sapiens is inherent in the belief in the spirits of deceased ancestors, who allegedly help and patronize him.

Looking at the evolutionary development of humanity, the soul is filled with admiration for its willpower and ability to deal with various obstacles in its path. Thanks to this, a person was able not only to get out of the cave, but also independently build modern skyscrapers, realize himself in science and art, completely subjugating nature.

reasonable man ( Homo sapiens) is a species of the genus Homo, a family of hominids, a detachment of primates. It is considered the dominant animal species on the planet and the highest in terms of development.

Currently Homo sapiens is the only representative of the genus Homo. Several tens of thousands of years ago, the genus was represented by several species at once - Neanderthals, Cro-Magnons and others. It has been established for certain that the direct ancestor of Homo sapiens is (Homo erectus, 1.8 million years ago - 24 thousand years ago). For a long time it was believed that the closest human ancestor is, however, in the course of research it became clear that the Neanderthal is a subspecies, parallel, lateral or sister line of human evolution and does not belong to the ancestors of modern humans. Most scientists are inclined to the version that the direct ancestor of man became, which existed 40-10 thousand years ago. The term "Cro-Magnon" is defined by Homo sapiens, who lived up to 10 thousand years ago. The closest relatives of Homo sapiens of the primates that exist today are the common chimpanzee and the pygmy chimpanzee (Bonobo).

The formation of Homo sapiens is divided into several stages: 1. The primitive community (from 2.5-2.4 million years ago, the Old Stone Age, Paleolithic); 2. The ancient world (in most cases determined by the major events of ancient Greece and Rome (the First Olympiad, the foundation of Rome), from 776-753 BC); 3. Middle Ages or Middle Ages (V-XVI centuries); 4. New time (XVII-1918); Modern times (1918 - our days).

Today Homo sapiens has populated the whole Earth. The latest estimate of the world's population is 7.5 billion people.

Video: The origins of mankind. Homo sapiens

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Homo sapiens, or Homo sapiens, has undergone many changes since its inception, both in body structure and in social and spiritual development.

The emergence of people who had a modern physical appearance (type) and changed occurred in the late Paleolithic. Their skeletons were first discovered in the Cro-Magnon grotto in France, which is why people of this type were called Cro-Magnons. It was they who had a complex of all the basic physiological features that are characteristic of us. In comparison with that of the Neanderthals, they reached a high level. It is the Cro-Magnons that scientists consider our direct ancestors.

For some time, this type of people existed simultaneously with the Neanderthals, who later died, since only the Cro-Magnons were sufficiently adapted to environmental conditions. It is with them that stone tools go out of use, and they are replaced by more skillfully crafted from bone and horn. In addition, more types of these tools appear - all kinds of drills, scrapers, harpoons and needles appear. This makes people more independent of climatic conditions and allows them to explore new territories. A reasonable person also changes his behavior in relation to his elders, a connection between generations appears - the continuity of traditions, the transfer of experience, knowledge.

Summing up the above, we can highlight the main aspects of the formation of the species Homo sapiens:

1. spiritual and psychological development, which leads to self-knowledge and the development of abstract thinking. As a result - the emergence of art, as evidenced by rock paintings and paintings;
2. pronunciation of articulate sounds (the origin of speech);
3. thirst for knowledge to pass it on to their fellow tribesmen;
4. the creation of new, more advanced tools of labor;
5. which allowed to tame (domesticate) wild animals and cultivate plants.

These events were an important milestone in the development of man. It was they who allowed him not to depend on the environment and

even exercise control over some of its aspects. Homo sapiens continues to undergo changes, the most important of which is

Taking advantage of the benefits of modern civilization, progress, man is still trying to establish power over the forces of nature: changing the course of rivers, draining swamps, populating territories where life was previously impossible.

According to the modern classification, the Homo sapiens species is divided into 2 subspecies - Idaltu Man and Man. Such a division into subspecies appeared after the discovery in 1997 of remains that had some anatomical features similar to the skeleton of a modern person, in particular, the size of the skull.

According to scientific data, Homo sapiens appeared 70-60 thousand years ago, and during all this time of its existence as a species, it improved under the influence of only social forces, because no changes were found in the anatomical and physiological structure.

For a long time in the Anthropogen, biological factors and patterns were gradually replaced by social ones, which finally ensured the appearance in the Upper Paleolithic of a modern type of man - Homo sapiens, or Homo sapiens. In 1868, five human skeletons were found in the Cro-Magnon cave in France, along with stone tools and drilled shells, which is why Homo sapiens are often called Cro-Magnons. Before Homo sapiens appeared on the planet, there was another humanoid species called Neanderthals. They inhabited almost the entire Earth and were distinguished by their large size and serious physical strength. The volume of their brain was almost the same as that of a modern earthling - 1330 cm3.
Neanderthals lived in the era of the great glaciation, so they had to wear clothes made from animal skins and hide from the cold in the depths of the caves. Their only rival in natural conditions could only be a saber-toothed tiger. Our ancestors had highly developed brow ridges, they had a powerful protruding jaw with large teeth. The remains found in the Palestinian cave of Es-Skhul, on Mount Carmel, clearly indicate that Neanderthals are the ancestors of modern humans. These remains combine both ancient Neanderthal features and features that are already characteristic of modern man.
It is assumed that the transition from a Neanderthal to a human of the current type took place in the most climatically favorable regions of the globe, in particular, in the Mediterranean, Western and Central Asia, the Crimea and the Caucasus. Recent studies show that the Neanderthal lived for some time even at the same time as the Cro-Magnon man, the direct predecessor of modern man. Today, Neanderthals are considered to be a kind of side branch of the evolution of Homo sapiens.
Cro-Magnons appeared about 40 thousand years ago in East Africa. They populated Europe and within a very short period completely replaced the Neanderthals. Unlike their ancestors, the Cro-Magnons were distinguished by a large active brain, thanks to which they made an unprecedented step forward in a short period of time.
Since Homo sapiens lived in many regions of the planet with different natural and climatic conditions, this left a certain imprint on his appearance. Already in the era of the Upper Paleolithic, racial types of modern man began to develop: Negroid-Australoid, European-Asian and Asian-American, or Mongoloid. Representatives of different races differ in skin color, eye shape, hair color and type, skull length and shape, as well as body proportions.
The most important occupation for the Cro-Magnons was hunting. They learned how to make darts, tips and spears, invented bone needles, used them to sew the skins of foxes, arctic foxes and wolves, and also began to build dwellings from mammoth bones and other improvised materials.
For collective hunting, housing construction and the manufacture of tools, people began to live in tribal communities, consisting of several large families. Women were considered the core of the clan and were mistresses in common dwellings. The growth of the frontal lobes of a person contributed to the complication of his social life and the diversity of labor activity, ensured the further evolution of physiological functions, motor skills and associative thinking.

Gradually, the technique of production of tools was improved, their assortment increased. Having learned to use the advantages of his developed intellect, a reasonable person became the sovereign master of all life on Earth. In addition to hunting mammoths, woolly rhinos, wild horses and bison, as well as gathering, Homo sapiens also mastered fishing. The way of life of people also changed - a gradual settling of individual groups of hunters and gatherers began in the forest-steppe regions abundant in vegetation and game. Man has learned to tame animals and domesticate some plants. This is how cattle breeding and agriculture appeared.
The sedentary lifestyle ensured the rapid development of production and culture, which led to the flourishing of housing and economic construction, the manufacture of various tools, the invention of spinning and weaving. A completely new type of management began to take shape, and people began to depend less on the vagaries of nature. This led to an increase in the birth rate and the spread of human civilization in new territories. The manufacture of more advanced tools became possible due to the development of gold, copper, silver, tin and lead around the 4th millennium BC. There was a social division of labor and specialization of individual tribes in production activities depending on certain natural and climatic conditions.
We draw conclusions: at the very beginning, human evolution took place at a very slow pace. It took several million years that have passed since the emergence of the most ancient ancestors for a person to reach the stage of his development, at which he learned to create the first rock paintings.
But with the advent of Homo sapiens on the planet, all his abilities began to develop rapidly, and in a relatively short period of time, man turned into the dominant form of life on Earth. Today, our civilization has already reached the mark of 7 billion people and continues to grow. At the same time, the mechanisms of natural selection and evolution still work, but these processes are slow and rarely amenable to direct observation. The emergence of Homo sapiens and the subsequent rapid development of human civilization led to the fact that nature gradually began to be used by people to satisfy their own needs. The impact of people on the biosphere of the planet has made significant changes in it - the species composition of the organic world in the environment and the nature of the Earth as a whole has changed.

General information

Homo sapiens (lat. Homo sapiens; transliterated variants of Homo sapiens and Homo sapiens are also found) is a species of the genus Homo from the family of hominids in the order of primates. Presumably, as a species of Homo sapiens appeared in the Pleistocene about 200,000 years ago. At the end of the Upper Paleolithic, about 40 thousand years ago, it remains the only representative of the hominin family, its range already covers almost the entire Earth. From modern humanoids, in addition to a number of anatomical features, it differs in a significant degree of development of material and non-material culture (including the manufacture and use of tools), the ability to articulate speech and developed abstract thinking. Man as a biological species is the subject of study of physical anthropology.

Neoanthropes (ancient Greek νέος - new and ἄνθρωπος - man) - a generalized name for modern people, fossils and living people.

The main anthropological features of humans, which distinguish them from paleoanthropes and archanthropes, are a voluminous cerebral skull with a high vault, a vertically rising forehead, the absence of a supraorbital ridge, and a well-developed chin protrusion.

Fossil humans had a somewhat more massive skeleton than modern humans. Ancient people created a rich Late Paleolithic culture (various tools made of stone, bone and horn, dwellings, sewn clothes, polychrome painting on cave walls, sculpture, engraving on bone and horn). The oldest known neoanthrope bone remains are radiocarbon dated at 39 thousand years, but it is most likely that neoanthropes arose 70-60 thousand years ago.

Systematic position and classification

Together with a number of extinct species, Homo sapiens forms the genus Homo. Homo sapiens differs from the closest species - Neanderthals - in a number of structural features of the skeleton (high forehead, reduction of the superciliary arches, the presence of the mastoid process of the temporal bone, the absence of the occipital protrusion - the "bone chignon", the concave base of the skull, the presence of a chin protrusion on the mandibular bone, "kynodont" molars, a flattened chest, as a rule, relatively longer limbs) and the proportions of the brain regions (“beak-shaped” frontal lobes in Neanderthals, widely rounded in Homo sapiens). Currently, work is underway to decipher the Neanderthal genome, which allows us to deepen our understanding of the nature of the differences between these two species.

In the second half of the 20th century, a number of researchers suggested that Neanderthals be considered a subspecies of H. sapiens - H. sapiens neanderthalensis. The basis for this was the study of the physical appearance, lifestyle, intellectual abilities and culture of Neanderthals. In addition, Neanderthals were often considered as the immediate ancestors of modern man. However, a comparison of the mitochondrial DNA of humans and Neanderthals suggests that the divergence of their evolutionary lines occurred about 500,000 years ago. This dating is inconsistent with the Neanderthal origin of modern humans, since the evolutionary lineage of modern humans separated later than 200,000 years ago. Currently, most paleanthropologists tend to consider Neanderthals a separate species within the genus Homo - H. neanderthalensis.

In 2005, remains were described that are about 195,000 years old (Pleistocene). The anatomical differences between the specimens prompted researchers to identify a new subspecies of Homo sapiens idaltu ("Elder").

The oldest Homo sapiens bone from which DNA has been isolated is about 45,000 years old. According to the study, the same number of Neanderthal genes were found in the DNA of an ancient Siberian as in modern humans (2.5%)

Human Origins

Comparison of DNA sequences shows that the closest living relatives of humans are two species of chimpanzee (common and bonobo). The phylogenetic line with which the origin of modern man (Homo sapiens) is connected separated from other hominids 6-7 million years ago (in the Miocene). Other representatives of this line (mainly Australopithecus and a number of species of the genus Homo) have not survived to this day.

The closest relatively well established ancestor of Homo sapiens was Homo erectus. Homo heidelbergensis, a direct descendant of Homo erectus and an ancestor of the Neanderthals, does not appear to have been an ancestor of modern humans, but rather a lateral evolutionary lineage. Most modern theories attribute the origin of Homo sapiens to Africa, while Homo heidelbergensis originated in Europe.

The emergence of man was associated with a number of significant anatomical and physiological modifications, including:

• 1. Structural transformations of the brain
• 2. Enlargement of the brain cavity
• 3. Development of bipedal locomotion (bipedalism)
• 4. Development of the grasping hand
• 5. Omission of the larynx of the hyoid bone
• 6. Reducing the size of fangs
• 7. The appearance of the menstrual cycle
• 8. Reduction of most of the hairline.

Comparison of mitochondrial DNA polymorphisms and fossil dating suggest that Homo sapiens appeared c. 200,000 years ago (this is the approximate time when "Mitochondrial Eve" lived - a woman who was the last common ancestor of all living people on the maternal side; the common ancestor of all living people on the paternal side - "Y-chromosomal Adam" - lived several later).

In 2009, a group of scientists led by Sarah Tishkoff from the University of Pennsylvania published the results of a comprehensive study of the genetic diversity of the peoples of Africa in the journal Science. They found that the most ancient branch, which has experienced the least amount of mixing, as previously expected, is the genetic cluster to which the Bushmen and other Khoisan-speaking peoples belong. Most likely, they are the branch that is closest to the common ancestors of all modern humanity.

About 74,000 years ago, a small population (about 2,000 people) that survived the consequences of a very powerful volcanic eruption (~20-30 years of winter), presumably the Toba volcano in Indonesia, became the ancestor of modern people in Africa. It can be assumed that 60,000-40,000 years ago people migrated to Asia, and from there to Europe (40,000 years), Australia and America (35,000-15,000 years).

At the same time, the evolution of specific human abilities, such as developed consciousness, intellectual abilities and language, is problematic to study, since their changes cannot be directly tracked by the remains of hominids and traces of their life activity, to study the evolution of these abilities, scientists integrate data from various sciences, including physical and cultural anthropology, zoopsychology, ethology, neurophysiology, genetics.

Questions about how exactly these abilities evolved (speech, religion, art), and what their role was in the emergence of a complex social organization and culture of Homo sapiens, remain the subject of scientific discussions to this day.

Appearance

The head is big. On the upper limbs there are five long flexible fingers, one of which is somewhat spaced from the rest, and on the lower limbs there are five short fingers that help balance when walking. In addition to walking, humans are also capable of running, but unlike most primates, the ability to brachiate is poorly developed.

Dimensions and body weight

The average body weight of a man is 70-80 kg, women - 50-65 kg, although there are also larger people. The average height of men is about 175 cm, women - about 165 cm. The average height of a person has changed over time.

Over the past 150 years, there has been an acceleration of the physiological development of a person - acceleration (an increase in average height, the duration of the reproductive period).

The dimensions of the human body can change with various diseases. With increased production of growth hormone (pituitary tumors), gigantism develops. For example, the maximum reliably recorded human height is 272 cm / 199 kg (Robert Wadlow). Conversely, low production of growth hormone in childhood can lead to dwarfism, such as the smallest living person - Gul Mohamed (57 cm at a weight of 17 kg) or Chandra Bahadur Danga (54.6 cm).

The lightest person was the Mexican Lucia Zarate, her weight at the age of 17 was only 2130 g with a height of 63 cm, and the heaviest was Manuel Uribe, whose weight reached 597 kg.

hairline

The human body is usually covered with little hair, except for the areas of the head, and in sexually mature individuals - the groin, armpits and, especially in men, the arms and legs. Hair growth on the neck, face (beard and mustache), chest and sometimes on the back is typical for men.

Like other hominids, the hairline does not have an undercoat, that is, it is not fur. With old age, a person's hair turns gray.

Skin pigmentation

Human skin is able to change pigmentation: under the influence of sunlight, it darkens, a tan appears. This feature is most noticeable in the Caucasoid and Mongoloid races. In addition, vitamin D is synthesized in the human skin under the influence of sunlight.

sexual dimorphism

Sexual dimorphism is expressed by the rudimentary development of the mammary glands in males compared to females and a wider pelvis in females, broader shoulders and greater physical strength in males. In addition, adult men tend to have a stronger facial and body hair.

human physiology

• Normal body temperature perishes.
• The maximum temperature of solid objects with which people can contact for a long time is about 50 degrees Celsius (a burn occurs at a higher temperature).
• The highest recorded indoor air temperature at which a person can spend two minutes without harm to the body is 160 degrees Celsius (experiments of British physicists Blagden and Chantry).
• Jacques Mayol. A sports record in free diving without restrictions was set by Herbert Nietzsch, diving to 214 meters.
• July 27, 1993 Javier Sotomayor
• August 30, 1991 Mike Powell
• August 16, 2009 Usain Bolt
• November 14, 1995 Patrick de Gaillardon

Life cycle

Lifespan

Human life expectancy depends on a number of factors and in developed countries averages 79 years.

The maximum officially recorded life expectancy is 122 years and 164 days, at that age the Frenchwoman Jeanne Calment died in 1997. The age of older centenarians is disputed.

reproduction

In comparison with other animals, human reproductive function and sexual life have a number of features. Sexual maturity occurs at 11-16 years of age.

Unlike most mammals, whose reproductive capacity is limited by periods of estrus, women have a menstrual cycle lasting about 28 days, which makes them capable of pregnancy throughout the year. Pregnancy can occur at a certain period of the monthly cycle (ovulation), but there are no external signs of a woman's readiness for it. Women, even during pregnancy, can have sex, which is uncharacteristic for mammals, but is found among primates. However, reproductive function is limited by age: women lose their ability to reproduce at an average of 40-50 years (with the onset of menopause).

A normal pregnancy lasts 40 weeks (9 months).

A woman, as a rule, gives birth to only one child at a time (two or more children - twins - occur approximately once in 80 births). A newborn child weighs 3-4 kg, his vision is not focused, and he is not able to move independently. As a rule, both parents participate in the care of the offspring in the first years of the child: the cubs of no animal require as much attention and care as a human child requires.

Aging

Human aging - like the aging of other organisms, is a biological process of gradual degradation of parts and systems of the human body and the consequences of this process. While the physiology of the aging process is similar to that of other mammals, certain aspects of the process, such as mental loss, are of greater importance to humans. In addition, the psychological, social and economic aspects of aging are of great importance.

Lifestyle

bipedalism

Humans are not the only modern mammals that walk on two limbs. Kangaroos, which are primitive mammals, use only their hind legs to move. The anatomy of humans and kangaroos has systematically changed to maintain upright posture - the back muscles of the neck are somewhat weakened, the spine is rebuilt, the hips are enlarged, and the heel is substantially shaped. Some primates and semi-primates are also capable of walking upright, but only for a short time, as their anatomy does little to help this. So, on two limbs, some lemurs and sifakas jump sideways. Bears, meerkats, and some rodents periodically use “upright standing” in social actions, but they practically do not walk in such a position.

Food

To maintain the normal course of physiological processes of life, a person needs to eat, that is, to absorb food. People are omnivorous - they eat fruits and root crops, meat of vertebrates and many marine animals, eggs of birds and reptiles, and dairy products. The variety of food of animal origin is limited mainly to a particular culture. A significant part of food is subjected to heat treatment. There is also a wide variety of drinks.

Newborn babies, like the babies of other mammals, feed on mother's milk.