New Research Forces U-turn In Population Migration Theory

New Research Forces U-turn In Population Migration Theory

www.sciencedaily.com

ScienceDaily (May 26, 2008) — Research led by the University of Leeds has discovered genetic evidence that overturns existing theories about human migration into Island Southeast Asia (covering the Philippines, Indonesia and Malaysian Borneo) - taking the timeline back by nearly 10,000 years.

Prevailing theory suggests that the present-day populations of Island Southeast Asia (ISEA) originate largely from a Neolithic expansion from Taiwan driven by rice agriculture about 4,000 years ago - the so-called "Out of Taiwan" model.

However an international research team, led by the UK's first Professor of Archaeogenetics, Martin Richards, has shown that a substantial fraction of their mitochondrial DNA lineages (inherited down the female line of descent), have been evolving within ISEA for a much longer period, possibly since modern humans arrived some 50,000 years ago.

Moreover, the lineage can be shown to have actually expanded in the opposite direction - into Taiwan - within the last 10,000 years.

(visit the link for the full news article)



[edit on 27-5-2008 by grover]

It seems we humans were running all over the planet far earlier than anyone thought... and it seems that we started almost immediatly.

Perhaps we should be called man the restless... what would be the latin for that... Homo ______?

www.sciencedaily.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

mmm, how about......................"homo"sexual

^WTF is that supposed to mean?

This theory is interesting. I'm not surprised that man started spreading out immediately. With all the conflicts that could have arisen, I'm sure getting the hell out of dodge was the easiest solution.