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Date: | Mon, 27 Jul 2009 12:48:48 -0400 |
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Hilary McClure wrote:
> william wrote:
>>
>> Am I the only one here who has heard of the "Missing Link"?
>
> Of course, everyone here has heard the term "Missing Link". But
> William, I'm wondering what you mean by "the". Which missing link are
> you referring to?
The one between Homo Sap and apeman.
> Here are some relevant quotes from the wikipedia page on
> "Transitional fossil": "A popular term used to designate transitional
> forms is "missing links". The term tends to be used in the popular
> media, but is avoided in the scientific press as it is inaccurate and
> confusing. In reality, the discovery of more and more transitional
> fossils continues to add to knowledge of evolutionary transitions."
>
> "The idea of a "missing link" between humans and so-called "lower"
> animals remains lodged in the public imagination. The concept was
> fuelled by the discovery of Australopithecus africanus (Taung Child),
> Java Man, Homo erectus, Sinanthropus pekinensis (Peking Man) and
> other Hominina fossils."
>
> "Transitional fossils (popularly termed missing links) are the
> fossilized remains of intermediary forms of life that illustrate an
> evolutionary transition. They can be identified by their retention of
> certain primitive (plesiomorphic) traits in comparison with their
> more derived relatives, as they are defined in the study of
> cladistics. Numerous examples exist, including those of primates and
> early humans."
>
Evidently the evolution of apemen has been shown, but
I don't see a transitional fossil between man and apeman mentioned.
William
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