Chelsea, a news article came out this week. This article came from Yahoo News, published on August 7th, 2023 by Rob Wah as the contributor. And the article title, Ancient Skull Found in China, is from quote, third kind of human. End quote. A skull unearthed in East China might indicate that there is another branch the human family trees scientists have revealed. The skull has distinctive features that mean it's not exactly part of the lineage of Neanderthal or Denisovans. Or our own.
Researchers from the Chinese Academy of Xianjia Tong University analyzed jawbone from a hominin from over 300,000 years ago. The fossil was found in 2019 at a site at Huolongdong and labeled HLD6. The scientists write quote, the combination of both archaic and modern human features identified in the HLD6 mandible is unexpected given its late middle Pleistocene age. Quote, the mosaic pattern has never been recorded in the late middle Pleistocene hominin fossil assemblages in East Asia.
The researchers conducted a morphological and geometric assessment with the initial focus on the jawbone and found unique features including a bend and a lack of chin. So unfortunately this relative of ours has no chin. They suggested that it could mean that it was more closely related to an older species. Much of the face is similar to the modern human lineage with split off from the homo erectus 750,000 years ago.
But the lack of a chin is more like another ancient extinct human species, the denisovan, who split from the anithral 750,000 years ago. This could mean the skull is another lineage entirely, a link between two branches of modern humans, science alert reported. The researchers said that the remains could be a hybrid of a modern human and an ancient hominin and it could mean that modern human traits began to appear 300,000 years ago. Chelsea what do you think? Did it make feeling science?
I don't know what it made it onto because it doesn't look like it saved on there. But intriguing nonetheless. And I'm super excited to see when they finally announced the next branch of the tree that we're on, the homo sapien, the denisovan, the neanderthal tree is followed with the big foot line. Yes, it's exciting times. Because of course where they found him is the stomping grounds quite literally of the Yaren, the wild man of China.
So you know, maybe there'll be a new big footy link in our tree, maybe a swing that comes off the side. Yes, can't wait. Chelsea anything to add? No, that's it. Okay, well, I hope this ties you guys over is pretty short but sweet. Hopefully this gets you the 48 hours that you need to get to that Friday that is the journey to the fringe episode. We'll see you then. Bye.