Lucy and the Australopithecus

by

We’ve come quite a long way along the Hominin River.  We’ve passed tributaries and navigated some pretty large bends.  On the way we’ve heard rumors about what was ahead.  A name actually.  You’ll recognize her name because she’s been mentioned on this show more than once.  She’s perhaps the most famous ancestor(?) of all.

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Works Cited

  • “Anthropologists Have Found the Oldest Skull of One of Our of Earliest Human Ancestors. The 3.8 Million-year-old Fossil Changes Our Understanding of Human History.” Business Insider Nederland, 28 Aug. 2019, www.businessinsider.nl/first-australopithecus-anamensis-skull-discovered-in-ethiopia-2019-8?international=true&r=US.

  • ASU Institute of Human Origins. “How Did You Know Where to Find ‘Lucy’? W/ Donald Johanson | Ask an Anthropologist ASU.” YouTube, 19 Sept. 2018, www.youtube.com/watch?v=5mEu0AYpcO4.

  • “Australopithecus Afarensis.” The Smithsonian Institution’s Human Origins Program, 30 June 2022, humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/australopithecus-afarensis.

  • “Australopithecus Anamensis.” The Smithsonian Institution’s Human Origins Program, 30 June 2022, humanorigins.si.edu/evidence/human-fossils/species/australopithecus-anamensis.

  • Australopithecus and Kin | Learn Science at Scitable. www.nature.com/scitable/knowledge/library/australopithecus-and-kin-145077614/?error=cookies_not_supported&code=1588fecc-9775-4942-997d-fdcc060a5ed0.

  • BBC – Science and Nature – the Evolution of Man. www.bbc.co.uk/sn/prehistoric_life/human/human_evolution/mother_of_man1.shtml.

  • biointeractive. “Finding the Lucy Fossil — HHMI BioInteractive Video.” YouTube, 24 Apr. 2014, www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kqcpkx8tfKI.

  • Black, Riley. “What Killed the Hominins of AL 333?” Science, 3 May 2021, www.nationalgeographic.com/science/article/what-killed-the-hominins-of-al-333?loggedin=true.

  • Evolution: Humans: Origins of Humankind. www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/humans/humankind/d.html.

  • Evolution: Humans: Riddle of the Bones. www.pbs.org/wgbh/evolution/humans/riddle/same.html.

  • FORA.tv. “How ‘Lucy’ Got Her Name.” YouTube, 20 May 2011, www.youtube.com/watch?v=SKYjpetqYWI.

  • FOX 7 Austin. “UT Researchers Crack 3.18 Million Year-old Case: How Did Lucy Die? | 8/29/16.” YouTube, 30 Aug. 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcgWCqupJB0.

  • Guarino, Ben. “This Newfound 3.8-million-year-old Skull Is an ‘Iconic’ Specimen in Human Evolution.” Washington Post, 28 Aug. 2019, www.washingtonpost.com/science/2019/08/28/this-newfound-million-year-old-skull-is-an-iconic-specimen-early-human-evolution.

  • Haile-Selassie, Yohannes. “A 3.8-million-year-old Hominin Cranium From Woranso-Mille, Ethiopia.” Nature, 28 Aug. 2019, www.nature.com/articles/s41586-019-1513-8?error=cookies_not_supported&code=bad91735-6777-4cfe-969d-fbcdf165e63c.

  • Handwerk, Brian. “A 3.8-Million-Year-Old Skull Puts a New Face on a Little-Known Human Ancestor.” Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Aug. 2019, www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/38-million-year-old-skull-puts-new-face-little-known-human-ancestor-species-180973006.

  • Johanson, Donald C. “Lucy, Thirty Years Later: An Expanded View of Australopithecus Afarensis.” Journal of Anthropological Research, vol. 60, no. 4, University of Chicago Press, Dec. 2004, pp. 465–86. https://doi.org/10.1086/jar.60.4.3631138.

  • Lucy Ricardo. “Ricky Ricardo Sings I Love Lucy to Lucy Ricardo.” YouTube, 8 May 2016, www.youtube.com/watch?v=bAaNe2wL7os.

  • Mitchell, P. J., et al. “The AL 333-160 Fourth Metatarsal From Hadar Compared to That of Humans, Great Apes, Baboons and Proboscis Monkeys: Non-conclusive Evidence for Pedal Arches or Obligate Bipedality in Hadar Hominins.” HOMO, vol. 63, no. 5, Elsevier BV, Oct. 2012, pp. 336–67. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jchb.2012.08.001.

  • News Staff. “3.8-Million-Year-Old Skull of Australopithecus Anamensis Found.” Sci.News: Breaking Science News, 29 Aug. 2019, www.sci.news/othersciences/anthropology/australopithecus-anamensis-skull-07542.html.

  • OikocOylj1. “William Shatner – Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds.” YouTube, 13 May 2009, www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB3uVARNhmM.

  • Pattison, Kermit. “Lucy and Ardi: The Two Fossils That Changed Human History.” BBC Science Focus Magazine, 7 Mar. 2021, www.sciencefocus.com/the-human-body/lucy-and-ardi-the-two-fossils-that-changed-human-history.

  • Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History. “How Do Paleontologists Reconstruct Environments From the Ancient Past?” YouTube, 6 Feb. 2012, www.youtube.com/watch?v=agJ8_D3JLNg.

  • The Australian Museum. “Australopithecus Afarensis.” The Australian Museum, australian.museum/learn/science/human-evolution/australopithecus-afarensis.

  • —. “Australopithecus Anamensis.” The Australian Museum, australian.museum/learn/science/human-evolution/australopithecus-anamensis.

  • Wits University OFFICIAL. “Visiting the Taung Child at Wits University.” YouTube, 14 Apr. 2020, www.youtube.com/watch?v=0mWOJ56_Et0.

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