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Humans faced a 'close call with extinction' nearly a million years ago

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Summary

This study suggests that humans experienced a severe population bottleneck around 1 million years ago, with the population hovering around only 1,300 for over 100,000 years. This close call with extinction may have played a role in the evolution of modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans. Researchers looked at the genomes of modern humans from African and non-African populations to infer the size of the ancestral group making up modern humans. They suggest that the bottleneck may have caused humans to split into separate groups, leading to the emergence of distinct populations. The bottleneck coincided with a period of climate change, and may be linked to the fusion of two ancient chromosomes to form chromosome 2 in humans.

Q&As

How did the human population size drop to 1,300 individuals nearly a million years ago?
The human population size dropped to 1,300 individuals nearly a million years ago due to a severe population bottleneck.

What role did this population bottleneck play in the evolution of modern humans and their closest extinct relatives, the Neanderthals and Denisovans?
The population bottleneck may have played a role in splitting ancient human groups into modern humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans by splitting humans into tiny separate groups, and over time, differences between these groups would prove significant enough to divide these survivors into distinct populations.

How was the size of the group that made up the ancestors of modern humans determined?
The size of the group that made up the ancestors of modern humans was determined by looking at the diversity of the genetic sequences seen in their descendants.

What is the link between the population bottleneck and the chromosome fusion that is known in modern humans?
The link between the population bottleneck and the chromosome fusion that is known in modern humans is that the bottleneck coincided with the fusion of two ancient chromosomes to form what is currently known as chromosome 2 in modern humans.

How can this new analytical technique be applied to other genomic data to identify similar population bottlenecks?
This new analytical technique can be applied to other genomic data to identify similar population bottlenecks by looking at the diversity of the genetic sequences seen in the descendants of the species being studied.

AI Comments

👍 This article provides fascinating insight into how humans may have evolved and faced a close call with extinction nearly a million years ago. The study's findings and analytical tool used to infer the population bottleneck are incredibly interesting and could lead to further discoveries about our ancient history.

👎 This article is overly speculative and relies on data that has not been universally accepted or proven beyond a doubt. The insistence of proving humankind evolved as Neanderthal and others did goes on and on without pause, even though it has not been proven.

AI Discussion

Me: It talks about how humans may have faced extinction about a million years ago. The population was estimated to be only about 1,300 individuals, and this close call with extinction could have played a role in the evolution of modern humans, Neanderthals, and Denisovans.

Friend: Wow, that's really interesting! It's amazing to think that humans could have gone extinct and yet, here we are! What implications do you think this article has?

Me: Well, for one thing, it shows us how fragile our species is. It also suggests that climate change could have had a huge impact on humans in the past, and that it could have an even bigger impact in the future. It also suggests that the evolution of modern humans is a lot more complex than we originally thought, and that other factors such as population bottlenecks could have played a role in human evolution.

Action items

Research the genetic data from the study to gain a better understanding of the population bottleneck and its potential role in the evolution of modern humans.
Explore the archaeological evidence from the time period to gain a better understanding of the climate change and its potential effects on humans.
Analyze the genomes of Neanderthals and Denisovans to determine if they experienced similar population bottlenecks.

Technical terms

Population Bottleneck: A population bottleneck is a sharp reduction in the size of a population due to environmental events, such as a natural disaster or human activities, such as overhunting.
Genome: The genome is the complete set of genetic material in an organism. It includes both the genes and the non-coding sequences of DNA.
Neanderthals: Neanderthals were a species of archaic humans that lived in Europe and Asia from about 400,000 to 40,000 years ago.
Denisovans: Denisovans were an extinct species of archaic humans that lived in Eurasia from about 400,000 to 50,000 years ago.
Chromosome: Chromosomes are structures in cells that contain genetic material. They are made up of DNA and proteins and are found in the nucleus of cells.
Fusion: Fusion is the process by which two or more nuclei combine to form a single nucleus.