The world, the universe and us Skull rewrites story of human evolution; Autism and Tylenol; discovery of wind coming from black hole
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Sep 26, 2025 Michael Marshall, a science writer and reporter, dives into the groundbreaking reconstruction of the Yunxian fossil skull, suggesting human evolution may have begun in Asia rather than Africa. He explains how features of this ancient skull differ from Homo erectus and what it means for our understanding of Denisovans. The discussion also addresses recent claims about Tylenol's link to autism, debunking myths with scientific evidence. Finally, they unveil the surprising discovery of winds from Sagittarius A*, transforming perceptions of our galaxy's black hole.
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Skull Recast By Modern Reconstruction
- A reanalysis of the Yunxian 2 skull using modern CT and 3D methods shows features inconsistent with Homo erectus.
- The team compared it to 56 hominin fossils and reconstructed relationships that place Yunxian 2 outside classic erectus morphology.
Three Major Hominin Groups Emerged Early
- The morphological analysis groups late hominin fossils into three clusters: Homo sapiens, Neanderthals, and Denisovan-like forms.
- Yunxian 2 falls with Denisovan-like fossils, implying much earlier divergences than genetic timing suggests.
Divergence Timelines May Be Much Older
- The study moves the initial split of ancestor X to around 1.3 million years ago, much earlier than the ~600,000-year genetic estimate.
- This suggests a long period with missing fossils and potential revisions to the geographic origin of ancestor X.