00:00It's not a monkey, little kitty. It is a Homo erectus. One of the ancestors of modern humans.
00:20Oh, my bad.
00:22No worries, little kitty. Wait a minute. You gave me an idea for today's topic.
00:29Hey, friends. So in today's episode, let me tell you the story of you.
00:36Yes, you the humans and answer a fundamental question.
00:42Where did humans come from? Zoom in.
00:47The human evolution started nearly 7 million years ago when the human genealogy separated from the chimpanzees.
00:58And as the time passed by, over 20 human species or hominin originated under the league of extraordinary humankind.
01:10But most of them went extinct while those who survived might have been ancestors of modern humans.
01:19These survivors displayed various human-like psychological, behavioral and physical characteristics such as large brains, the ability to walk on two legs, small teeth and the skill to carve and use tools and weapons.
01:39These smart creatures fell into three primary groups.
01:44Namely, Early Hominins, Australopithecines and the Homo genus.
01:51The early hominins are believed to exist between 7 to 4.4 million years ago in the great African continent.
02:03And these species displayed a mixture of ape and human characteristics like small teeth that were used for eating instead of hunting and fighting.
02:15The next stage of human evolution consists of primates called Australopithecines that lived somewhere between 4.4 to 1.4 million years ago all across Africa.
02:33Even these species showed many ape-like features, but as time passed by, their skull, spine and legs began to evolve more like today's humans, which allowed them to walk on their feet effortlessly.
02:52And the last phase of human evolution involves the homogenous family that are believed to come into existence around 2.4 to 1.4 million years ago.
03:08These species could have possibly evolved from the Australopithecines lineage.
03:15But unlike Australopithecines, who were the combination of apes and humans, the Homo species were becoming more like modern day humans as their inner skull size was growing larger than other species.
03:33And they made the most out of their larger brains by developing hunting techniques with the help of better tools.
03:42And they were the first species to utilize the burning capacity of fire.
03:49But they didn't just stop there.
03:52These improvements in physical, mental and behavioral characteristics combined with advanced technologies allowed them to migrate out of Africa and explore the other parts of the world.
04:06So, my friends, although more than 20 species of humans started their incredible journey on Earth, in the end, only one, the Homo sapiens, managed to survive the obstacles and hurdles in front of them.
04:24And they went on to shape the world and made progress that no other living being can ever think of.
04:32But the vital question is, have humans and apes stopped evolving?
04:40Well, the answer is no.
04:43Humans are still evolving.
04:46But the difference is, now the evolution is driven as much by our culture and the technology we've invented as biobiology.
04:56And even other animals, including the apes, are also continuing to evolve in response to the enormous changes in the environment that humans have made.
05:09So, you never know, millions of years from now, we might look completely different than what we look today.
05:19All we can do is hope that it looks pretty.
05:24Trivia time!
05:26Did you know, you may be part Neanderthal species?
05:31Yes, a certain genetic of Neanderthal bones showed that there are some Neanderthal genes that have made their way into modern non-African populations.
05:43Also, it is believed that humans navigated the Indian Ocean in small boats, probably lashed together out of reeds 50,000 years ago.
05:56Wow!
05:57Now that takes some serious courage!
06:01Hope you learned something new in today's episode.
06:06Until next time, it's me, Dr. Binox, Zooming out!
