Habitual Bipedalism

What evidence shows the changing from the early hominids to the modern humans? Throughout the human evolution body parts like legs and harms have changed for the better. By the early hominids being biped, meaning they are able to stand and even walk on two feet, it helped them to be able to do more things like getting around more and help with their tool making and hunting. A lot of the fossils discovered were found in the Great Rift Valley in East Africa, which contained many different lakes and small rivers. For many years researchers have been finding new species. These species have been named Australopithicus, robust australopithecines , Orrorin tugenensis, Homo habilis, Homo erectus, neanderthal, and Homo sapiens. These early

accommodate this strange position, we have developed a specialized pelvis, hip and leg muscles, and an S-shaped vertebral column. Because these changes can be documented in fossil bone, bipedalism is seen as the defining trait of the sub family Homininae.

They found that Au. ramidus had very similar characteristics to Sahelanthropus Tchadensis an ancestor that dates to 6-7 million years ago. Ardi had a foot that was primitive and had an opposable big toe which was most likely used to grab on branches. She also had a long and curvy spine just like humans. Its pelvis was large like those of apes and had short and broad shoulders suggesting it had a lower center of mass and could possibly walk on one leg at a time. But it is also thought that it was still spending a lot of time in the trees as well. Thus, why it is thought to be intermediate form of bipedalism it lived in both worlds, walking upright, and climbing trees, equal success in both biospheres. Although Ardi is not the connection to apes it still served to prove that the ancestor of apes was a lot more primitive than we believed. There are still several questions to be answered in this puzzle called our ancestry. It may seem that more questions arise as more clues are found, but that is science, there would be no intrigue left if all questions were

In the article “Born to Run” by Adam Summers, who is an assistant professor of bioengineering and ecology and evolutionary biology at the University of California, Irvine, the author states that throughout time bipedalism has evolved to benefit endurance running. Summers also claims that bipedalism modern humans have differs from the one our early ancestors had. The author relies on the research by Dennis M. Bramble and Daniel E. Lieberman that have improved the understanding of human bipedalism and its evolution. According to Summers, the corrections made by Bramble and Lieberman’s research helped to draw a more accurate picture of an early human.

Bipedalism is a habitual human characteristic and is, in fact, the primary form of transportation. Many theories circulate around the benefits of bipedalism over quadrupedalism that prompted early hominids to evolve into upright walking creatures. Some of these benefits included leaving our hands up to hold weapons, getting a better view of predators, using less energy to move around and sun ray making contact with mostly the top of our heads instead of our entire back. Another added bonus to walking bipedally was that it meant we would have to develop a bigger heart and set of lungs in order to get oxygen up to the brain. More oxygen to the brain meant the development a bigger brain, and with the development of a bigger brain, we also gained more complex thoughts.

Michel Brunet and his team found the fossil in the sand dunes of northern Chad after “a decade of digging”(Whitfield 2002). This discovery is most definitely a new one and one that will cause the reinterpretation of all previous hominid research. What makes this find so spectacular is that the structure of the skull suggests a being that walked upright, though it lived in a time when apes and chimpanzees also existed. “Sahelanthropus has many traits that shout ‘hominid’. These include smaller canines, and thicker tooth enamel than apes. And the point at the back of the skull where neck muscles attach suggests that Toumai walked upright”(Whitfield 2002). The key to this discovery, Brunet believes, is the back of the skull that suggests a muscle attachment for upright walking ability, which supports the scientist’s theory that

The first behavior, locomotion, is well known for hominins because of the evolution to bipedalism. Bipedal locomotion allows for the carrying of objects, provisioning family, and efficiency of energy, among many other reasons. Not all primates are bipedal. Chimpanzees can walk both bipedally and quadrupedally. They have been a common point of reference for a better understanding of the evolution of bipedal locomotion in early ape-like hominins. Many studies have looked into the evolution of walking quadrupedally to bipedally. These bipedal performances of contemporary non-human primates have given important context that can help in reconstructing early hominin bipedalism. Many anthropologists claim that biomechanical models link locomotor performance to anatomy and have the potential to reveal robust form function relationships, however, this is only given to the extent that locomotor performance of chimpanzees and other species are shown to fit

Bipedalism is a form of locomotion that is on two feet and is the one factor that separates humans from other forms of hominoids. The first bipeds are believed to have lived in Africa between 5 and 8 million years ago. (Haviland et al. 2011, pg. 78). The evolution to bipedalism resulted in various anatomical changes. To be able to balance on two legs, the skull must be centered over the spinal column. As bipeds evolved, the foramen

First, evidence from the hominid fossil Ardy and archaeological evidence from the same area where Ardy was found points to the evolution of bipedalism in a woodland environment. This goes against the previous assumption that bipeds adapted to a more desolate environment. Additionally, it was also previously believed that bipedalism started with organisms that walked on two legs and their knuckles as a today’s chimp walk. However, there is no evidence in Ardy’s bones that it ever walked using its knuckles. On the other hand, Ardy possesses a short, broad hipbone which allows for bipedalism, but also a much longer lower half of the pelvis which would be more useful for climbing. Consequently, while Ardy could walk on two legs, it could not walk as well as future bipeds such as the fossil Lucy or modern humans. Lucy is often described as “the ape who stood up” and is further down the evolutionary track toward modern humans. This evolutionary adaptation to stand and walk on two legs opened great doors for humankind. Most important was the fact that walking on two limbs rather than four freed up our very special hands and empowered humankind to build tools and reshape the world as no creature could

Bipedalism was the first evolutionary change to define the hominid lineage. It was a major evolutionary change that changed the way we move. Bipedalism is the condition of using two feet for standing and walking. Before bipedalism emerged we were walking on all fours just as many animals do presently. Bipedal locomotion dates back to 7 million years ago with one of the candidates which is Sahelanthropus tchadensis. The other two candidates for the earliest bipedal hominid are Orrorin tugenesis, and Genus Ardipithecus. This evolutionary change brings about several benefits such as being better adapted to live on savannas, having freed hands, more efficient for travel, and better regulation of body temperature. However, similar to many evolutionary changes, Bipedalism comes with “costs” or disadvantages. These disadvantages include our loss of speed, and more stress on lower body joints including the spine.

Based on Chapter ten from the textbook, there are seven distinct differences of a bipedal hominin like us humans, and a quadrupedal pongid, such as a gorilla (Larsen, 2014). One of the seven steps include the length of the leg, shown in humans to be long which gives us proficiency when striding or running unlike apes that have long arms for climbing on trees. A second step is the opposable big toe found only in apes that give them the capability to take hold of objects and walk. A third step of the seven is the position of the foramen magnum, which in humans is on the bottom of the skull while in apes it is in a posterior position. Overall, the difference is found in that the human head rests on top of the body while the ape head sits in the front. Lastly, a fourth step is the shape of the spine. Humans have an S-shape and apes have an almost C-shaped. Humans have numerous curves to assist in maintaining balance when standing up.

Approximately 4 million years ago a wonderful evolutionary phenomenon was happening in Africa. Early hominids, man’s ancestors, were beginning a giant leap in their evolution. These hominids were moving out of the forest and beginning to walk upright, out on the open plains (Fagan, 98). This change from quadrupedalism was the most significant adaptation that ever happened to these early hominids. It caused many adaptations that make man what he is today. This process occurred in early hominids for many different reasons, each reason helping to perfect the upright walking posture. Bipedalism is thought to have occurred because of changes in environment, feeding habits, thermal regulation, and

Peter, 103). Thus, bipedalism of living hominids is considered to be more efficient than quadrupedalism (Rodman, S. Peter, 104). The morphology of locomotion is often a comprise with other dimensions of existence (Rodman, S. Peter, 105).

There has been much debate concerning the origins of bipedalism. Bipedalism, or the ability to move on two legs (eLucy, 2007) was said to have emerged due to climate change in East Africa, for sexual display purpose, to reduce exposure to sunlight, the need to use weapons and tools and many more (NOVA, 2013). There are numerous arguments associated with bipedalism as no one can be entirely sure as to what constituted to the emergence of this trait, which was first present in hominins Australopithecus Afarensis. Anthropologists claim that there is a missing link in the evolutionary lineage that makes it hard to confirm the real cause of bipedalism emergence. However, there are some models which are widely accepted by scientific world, such

The Australopithecines were the first to walk upright, or became bipedal, although rather clumsily. Their walk was unsteady, judging by their bone structure (Figure 1.), and they most likely were quadrupedal the majority of the time. The Australopithecines had a brain about the size of an orange, high up cheekbones, and big molars. They were about three feet tall, and had small thumbs. Australopithecines, while definitely possessing some human characteristics, humans are still much closer to the chimps. Australopithecines were vegetarians; even if they knew that animals were edible, they still had no reliable means of killing animals for food. About 2 million years ago, highly evolved Australopithecines made the