john hawks weblog

paleoanthropology, genetics and evolution

Quote: Missing link, circa 1940

Mon, 2009-08-31 00:56 -- John Hawks

Some dialogue from "Too Many Husbands", as Melvyn Douglas and Fred MacMurray get on each others' nerves:

Melvyn Douglas: All right, spell "Pithecanthropus erectus."

Fred MacMurray: Why?

Melvyn Douglas: Because I say you can't.

Fred MacMurray: All right. P-I-T-H-E-C-A-N-T-H-R-O-P-U-S-E-R-E-C-T-U-S.

Jean Arthur: Is that right?

Melvyn Douglas: Yes.

Jean Arthur: What is it?

Melvyn Douglas: It's the missing link between ape and man. Like an athlete.

And later...

Fred MacMurray: It's my table, I want a steak!

Melvyn Douglas: A glorious night for romance. And you want to tear a cow apart with your teeth!

Neandertals

For years, I've worked on their bones. Now I'm working on their genes. Read more about the science studying these ancient people.

Denisova

From a finger bone of an ancient human came the record of a completely unexpected population. My lab is working on the science of the Denisova genome.

Acceleration

The advent of agriculture caused natural selection to speed up greatly in humans. We're uncovering some of the ways that populations have rapidly changed during the last 10,000 years.

Malapa

Just outside Johannesburg, the Malapa site is producing some of the most exciting finds in human evolution. This site is the headquarters of the Malapa Soft Tissue Project.