Chapter 3: HUMAN EVOLUTION

What is specific to humans since our last common ancestor with the chimpanzees ?

I) The knowledge about human evolution thanks to Genetics and Paleoanthropology

1) Our 5 early relatives (from Afarensis to Florensis : article from the UK National History Museum

website.)

What were the interactions between early human relatives which led to modern humans ?

2) 3 main models of evolution

3) Scientific tools to understand human evolution : phylogenetic trees

II) Evolution : a burning issue in the USA

1) Darwin and the process of Evolution

2) The battle between Evolution and Creationism and the difficulty to teach the topic in the USA :

- cartoon from the AIG, 2001 (Adam as opposed to apes)

- Virtual Tour of the Creationist museum of Petersburg, funded by the AIG

(http://creationmuseum.org/whats-here/exhibits/)