Human Evolution and the Discovery of Human Antiquity: Human Evolution and Genetics

In the attempt to reconstruct human origins, archaeologists evaluate fossil evidence, but scientists can also find clues about human ancestry and evolution in the human genome. At the Linda Hall Library, trace the progress of the theory of evolution in our History of Science Collection and use the Linda Hall Library Catalog and databases to search for the lastest developments in evolutionary genetics. Learn about our genetic inheritance, what scientists believe it suggests about Homo sapiens' past, and what it might mean for our future.

"So do we know how life began? We don't. What we do know is that spontaneous chemical processes, in the absence of previous life and under conditions that plausibly may have existed on the early Earth, can give rise to organic compounds including those that are the fundamental building blocks of life..."

-Fancisco J. Ayala, Am I a Monkey?

Du Chaillu, Paul. Explorations in Africa. 1861. Plate opp. Page 423.

Blade and Bone: Discovery of Human Antiquity. An Exhibition of Original Publications from the Collections of the Linda Hall Library

Discovering Human Antiquity | Linda Hall Library Digital Collections