|
|
Article: Brain was small, but souped-up: controversial 'hobbits' may have had complex thoughts.(Anthropology)
- Article from:
- Science News
- Article date:
- April 25, 2009
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2009 Science Service, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
In the strange and contentious world of fossil hobbits, a chimp-sized brain may boast humanlike powers. An analysis of the inner surface of an 18,000-year-old skull assigned to Homo floresiensis, also known as hobbits, suggests that this tiny individual possessed a brain blessed with souped-up intellectual capacities, Dean Falk of Florida State University in Tallahassee reported April 2.
As H. floresiensis evolved a relatively diminutive brain, the species underwent substantial neural reorganization that allowed its members to think much like people do, Falk contended. She also reported the findings online February 28 in the Journal of Human Evolution.
...