Evolution
From space dust to sapiens and beyond.
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Updated This Week
Science
Story
225 million years ago (±5 million years)
Platypus–Ape Common Ancestor
When dinosaurs rose, our line quietly began.
Last Common Ancestor (LCA)
The platypus is odd: duck bill, fur, warm-blooded, and egg-laying. It doesn’t feel like a mammal, yet we classify it as one. The truth is, we didn’t jump cleanly from synapsids to modern mammals. Evolution is slow, branching, and entangled. The last common ancestor of platypus and ape lived around 225 million years ago, during the Late Triassic. It wasn’t a modern mammal yet, but a very late synapsid or early mammaliaform.
Featured QUOTE
History
Quote
“Natural selection acts solely by the preservation and accumulation of small inherited modifications, each profitable to the preserved being.”
- Charles Darwin
- 1859
Evolution
Evolution is not about desire, nor is it a contest of strength, or intellect. It’s about reproductive success. The individuals, and species, that possess traits best suited for the current environment are more likely to survive, and to pass on those traits. Over millennia, these traits accumulate, leading to races, sub-species, and eventually separate species unable to interbreed.
Featured FAQ
Updated This Week
Science
FAQ
What was the IQ of Homo habilis, and did they ask questions?
Homo habilis IQ?
Homo habilis, living two million years ago, likely had an IQ of 50-60. Their early cooperation in hunting and childbirth may have sparked simple, abstract questions, marking the start of human cognitive evolution.
Evolution
The Ever-Changing Tree of Life!
The process by which new species arise is well-understood, the evidence compelling and conclusive, our knowledge complete. We can read the fossil record like a book and on these pages we see changes gradually accumulate over millennia.
Deep-Dive Articles
Holistic Paleolithic Framework: A New Look at Prehistory
A new look at dividing up the paleolithic era.
The Evolution of Vocabulary in Ancient Humans
The evolution of language is the evolution of communication. From touch which evolved about 800 million years ago to human words. Along the journey, communication ...
Dawn of Humanity: Sapiens in Their First Millennia
Using fossils spread across Africa and beyond, this is the story of our first 1,000 years featuring our unique pioneering spirit.
Must-Reads
Ancient Humans
The Evolution of Vocabulary in Ancient Humans
The evolution of language is the evolution of communication. From touch which evolved about 800 million years ago to human words. Along the journey, communication ...
Animals
Cultural Transmission: The Sharing of Knowledge from Crows to Libraries
Explore communal learning through transcendental intelligence.
New Ideas
Ancient Humans
Holistic Paleolithic Framework: A New Look at Prehistory
A new look at dividing up the paleolithic era.
Updated Articles
Ancient Humans | H1-Prehistory
Human Extinction: A New Look From Homo habilis to the Neanderthals
When and where ancient humans died out.
05 May 2024
Published 2 years ago.
Updated 1 month ago.
Evolution
Dawn of Humanity: Sapiens in Their First Millennia
Using fossils spread across Africa and beyond, this is the story of our first 1,000 years featuring our unique pioneering spirit.
05 May 2024
Published 2 years ago.
Updated 1 month ago.
Evolution | H4-Post Medieval
The Family of Charles Darwin and His Scientific Community
The family man behind evolution.
03 Mar 2024
Published 2 years ago.
Updated 1 month ago.
All Evolution Timelines
March to Consciousness: The Soul Timeline
Animal consciousness is the combination of cognition and sensory input, with human consciousness being the most advanced on Earth.
