'Missing link' in human history confirmed after long debate

Early humans were still swinging from trees two million years ago, scientists have said, after confirming a set of contentious fossils represents a "missing link" in humanity's family tree.

The fossils of Australopithecus sediba have fueled scientific debate since they were found at the Malapa Fossil Site in South Africa 10 years ago.

And now researchers have established that they are closely linked to the Homo genus, representing a bridging species between early humans and their predecessors, proving that early humans were still swinging from trees 2 million years ago.

'Missing link' in human history confirmed after long debate

I'm not sure this really is THE missing link. I don't see much proof in the PDF, which is linked in the news article linked above. The fossils they have of these skeletons are interesting.

The site was found when a nine year old boy was chasing his dog and stopped to look at a rock he tripped over.

The reconstructed image of Australopithecus sediba is quite attractive

Article from ScienceDaily, Scientists confirm pair of skeletons are from same early hominin species

"Our interpretations in the papers suggest that A. sediba was adapted to terrestrial bipedalism, but also spent significant time climbing in trees, perhaps for foraging and protection from predators," says Williams, whose research in the issue centered on the axial skeleton (vertebrae, ribs, and sternum). "This larger picture sheds light on the lifeways of A. sediba and also on a major transition in hominin evolution, that of the largely ape-like species included broadly in the genus Australopithecus to the earliest members of our own genus, Homo."

There is no missing link and never has been. Further, Australopithecus species (plural) have been known for along time. This PARTICULAR Australopithecus (sediba) is very well documented. If you want to see a real wrench in the works, check out Homo naledi. (Yeah: Homo) which is a whole lot younger than anyone ever anticipated.

Why do they call this science when even those who make the call,decide it’s a missing link a fee clearly not sure
Evolution is a faith and we see the scientific evidence of that here in this very thread.

We have decided after not being sure.
No scientific evidence but assumption offered

"Evolution is a faith..."

No, that is incorrect. Evolution is something that occurs over time through adaptation and mutation, and sometimes it occurs fairly rapidly across only a few generations. We have seen this happen in microhabitats such as a single stream that contains the only known population of a species of fish: they change color over time as a reaction (camouflage) to reduced or increased light caused by multi-year changes in forest canopy coverage.

But it also happens that some scientists will stretch the limits of their hypotheses to accommodate their conclusions. This does pollute the waters of truth.

"The reconstructed image of Australopithecus sediba is quite attractive."

Put a hat on it and it could be Abe Vigoda as Fish on the TV show Barney Miller

a reply to: TheTruthRocks

We have seen this happen in microhabitats such as a single stream that contains the only known population of a species of fish: they change color over time as a reaction (camouflage) to reduced or increased light caused by multi-year changes in forest canopy coverage.

Elephants are now being born without tusks because of the Ivory trade. Like the fish this is survival of the fittest and not evolution. Evolution basically says that man was created from rock soup.

"Put a hat on it and it could be Abe Vigoda as Fish on the TV show Barney Miller"

It sure could, I didn't notice that

Whoever did the reconstruction wanted it to look attractive, with the soft facial features and the hand touching the side of the face. Most "caveman" images are not so nice.

Swinging from the trees? Spent much of my youngness doing exactly that...one of the most peaceful exercises you can do..providing you don't fall off of course...and no I never did.

Evolution, is more than likely a good theory come truth though since we know we can adapt...[A] when we want to, [B] when we need to, and [C] instinct which we are finding more about all the time..[D] Inherited epigenetic memory.
Wicked stuff, that kind of memory...fookes up timelines and those of us that ambled along on all fours and then HE since there is no reason to believe that none of the above had a need to diversify while others didn't just because of a singular environment since it seems fairly clear that environment is ever changing..plus a big bermb from the heavens totally fooking up everything on a linear basis for a very long time....so they say.

I'm part neanderthal. We have our mancaves, mine is in the basement.

That creature on top the page is no relative, he doesn't have a bald spot.

originally posted by: schuyler
There is no missing link and never has been. Further, Australopithecus species (plural) have been known for along time. This PARTICULAR Australopithecus (sediba) is very well documented. If you want to see a real wrench in the works, check out Homo naledi. (Yeah: Homo) which is a whole lot younger than anyone ever anticipated.

He He He...homo.

Childish joke aside I agree, there is no need for a missing link, our evolutionary path is already well documented, there was no giant leap for mankind, evolution tiptoes, not leaps. Like the bird for instance.

a reply to: rickymouse

I carry the Denisovan gene so I'm part denisovan however whenever I read evolution of human info the only thing that comes to mind is "hocus pocus"

a reply to: Thecakeisalie

according to the Enuma Elish EA had to create multiple iterations of man (genetic manipulation) due to various flaws

Tablet 6 Enuma Elish

Let me put blood together, and make bones too.
Let me set up primeval man: Man shall be his name.
Let me create a primeval man.
The work of the gods shall be imposed (on him), and so they shall be at leisure.

They bound him and held him in front of Ea,
Imposed the penalty on him and cut off his blood.
He created mankind from his blood,
Imposed the toil of the gods (on man) and released the gods from it.

Oooo ok, not the Enuma Elish but the Sumerian cuneiform creation "myth"

Ack, I had a great link for the cuneiform tablets but I lost it...

Linkypoo

Ea is the creator and protector of humanity in the Babylonian flood myth Atra-hasīs and the Epic of Gilgameš. He hatched a plan to create humans out of clay so that they could perform work for the gods. But the supreme god Enlil attempted to destroy Ea's newly created humans with a devastating flood, because their never-ending noise prevented him from sleeping. But clever Ea foresaw Enlil's plan; he instructed a sage TT named Atrahasis to build an ark so that humanity could escape the destruction.

www.uintahbasintah.org...

It was believed that human beings were actually Viracocha's second attempt at living creatures as he first created a race of giants from stone in the age of darkness. However, these giants proved unruly and it became necessary for Viracocha to punish them by sending a great flood. In the legend all these giants except two then returned to their original stone form and several could still be seen in much later times standing imposingly at sites such as Tiahuanaco (also known as Tiwanaku) and Pukará.

It's obvious as day what really happened those who still cling to their evolution mythology I think just lack the insight to be able to determine our other worldly origins

originally posted by: Raggedyman
Why do they call this science when even those who make the call,decide it’s a missing link a fee clearly not sure
Evolution is a faith and we see the scientific evidence of that here in this very thread.

We have decided after not being sure.
No scientific evidence but assumption offered

No faith needed when you have testable data and conclusions from experiments.

"Missing link" is MIS-nomer. Every fossil found is a link between something. They already found like 24 different species that are links between modern human and ancient ape. You don't just have one single link that's an exact 50/50 blend between the 2. The article title is misleading.

originally posted by: LookingAtMars
Evolution basically says that man was created from rock soup.

Whatever you are smoking, please pass it this way.

originally posted by: LookingAtMars
Evolution basically says that man was created from rock soup.

There are a whole lot of elements in the universe. I don't think "rock" is one of them.

a reply to: Barcs

please pass it this way

Gladly

"More than 3.6 billion years ago, a major transition was made on Earth whereby a dilute, swirling cauldron of simple chemical soup made a critical step towards creating the building blocks of life. The simple chemicals became amino acids, the fundamental building blocks of more complicated protein molecules. These proteins then somehow came together to form a single, primitive cell."

All that was on the Earth was rocks (minerals) so the simple chemical soup was made from rock, no?

In a nutshell...
You know darwinist's are getting desperate when these 'Missing link' claims are even being criticized by their own scientists.

So leading paleoanthropologists like Bernard Wood, Donald Johanson, Fred Spoor, Ian Tattersal, and Tim White aren’t convinced that Au. sediba was a human ancestor, but the media believes it’s perfectly acceptable to promote the opposite view to the public.

Australopithecus sediba: The Hype-Cycle Starts Again

originally posted by: Barcs

originally posted by: LookingAtMars
Evolution basically says that man was created from rock soup.

Whatever you are smoking, please pass it this way.

Well, he's not wrong. At least, on this planet anyway.

Meaning, if life were seeded here via panspermia, who knows really, where and how it started.

a reply to: gallop

Yes wrong,the ape and human were invented at the same time,so one wasn't here before the other,there have been many versions of man,not necessarily humans so to speak,humans are new to earth

well that proves that modern humans are the result of genetic manipulation..
and lets face it... even the old bibles tell us that modern humans were made !

why didend the "ape's " evovle further
if we find an old tribal communety of humans they diddend evolve further aswell (still having troubbles to find out the "wheel" living in the stone age
why?
becouse nobody teached ore told them…
all the evidence is there but we still keep on oure out of time history-books...