Human Evolution
The controversy about the human race origin and evolution is one that has carried on since mankind started to walk the earth. Geology forms part of many science fields that attempts to elucidate the origin human species and evolution of the universe. In order to understand where we come from, we need to understand the environment that existed in the beginning of life and compare it’s to today’s geological-atmospheric environment.
Definition of human evolution
Human evolution is the process by whichhuman beings developed on Earth from now-extinct primates. The earth was formed about 4,5 billion years ago. The earth already had an atmosphere then, but the composition was very different from what it is today. The composition of the earth, atmosphere and availability of resources (food, habitant, minerals etc) are the driving forces into human evolution. The oldest known primate-like mammal species, the Plesiadapis, came from North America, but they were widespread in Eurasia and Africa during the tropical conditions of the Paleocene and Eocene.
Objectives of the Project
The mineralogy of each rock type is unique, thus this study intends to focus on:
(a) Human origin
(b) Human evolution
An Outline of the Project
- An introduction to:
- General geology
- How the earth formed
- Different theories on human origin and evolution
- How humans were introduced on earth
- Different types of fossils and how to identify them
- Significant of fossils in understanding human evolution time line
- A trip to Maropeng
- Interpretation
- Conclusions and recommendations
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