Project description DEENESFRITPL Reconstructing the human evolutionary history The hypotheses of human evolution regarding the origin of humans from australopiths have changed since the discovery of the fossil human (hominin) species Homo naledi, Homo floresiensis and Australopithecus sediba. These new fossils raise fundamental questions about the ecological niches occupied by hominins and the inferred transitions between niches throughout human evolution. Under this light, the EU-funded NewHuman project will trace the origins of the human lineage. The project will use a novel, interdisciplinary and holistic approach using cutting-edge analyses of internal structures of fossil hominin teeth and bones to reconstruct the adaptive niche of these enigmatic species and test whether there is an unrecognised adaptive branch on the human family tree. Show the project objective Hide the project objective Objective For almost 100 years, the evolution of humans has been summarized as a transition from small-brained bipeds with an ape-like body plan (referred to as australopiths), to large-brained striding bipeds with a human-like body plan (members of the genus Homo). This characterisation dominates popular perception of human evolution in the public sphere. However, three newly discovered fossil human (hominin) species (H. naledi, H. floresiensis and Australopithecus sediba) do not fit this simple transitional model in either morphology or time (the former two surviving contemporaneously with modern humans), and have re-ignited debate about the origin of the Homo lineage, including perceptions of the earliest putative Homo species, H. habilis. These new fossils raise fundamental questions about the ecological niches occupied by hominins and the inferred transitions between niches throughout human evolution. With NewHuman, I will pioneer a novel, interdisciplinary and holistic approach using cutting-edge analyses of internal structures of fossil hominin teeth and bones to reconstruct the adaptive niche of these enigmatic species and test whether there is an unrecognized adaptive branch on the human family tree. Specifically, NewHuman will employ ground-breaking imaging techniques and analytical tools to reveal never-before-examined tooth and bone structures in these hominins. In doing so, it will 1) characterize the behaviour of these enigmatic species and place them more firmly into their ecological environment; and 2) elucidate the adaptive strategy that was likely the transition from australopith-like hominin species to later Homo, but which also represents a highly successful lifeway that persisted for over 2 million years alongside the evolving human lineage. By achieving these ambitious aims, NewHuman will have a significant impact on hypotheses about human evolution, and could result in a paradigm shift that overturns current views on human evolutionary history. Fields of science social sciencessociologyanthropologyphysical anthropology Programme(s) H2020-EU.1.1. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme Topic(s) ERC-2018-COG - ERC Consolidator Grant Call for proposal ERC-2018-COG See other projects for this call Funding Scheme ERC-COG - Consolidator Grant Coordinator UNIVERSITY OF KENT Net EU contribution € 1 638 643,75 Address The registry canterbury CT2 7NZ Canterbury, kent United Kingdom See on map Region South East (England) Kent East Kent Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 Beneficiaries (4) Sort alphabetically Sort by Net EU contribution Expand all Collapse all UNIVERSITY OF KENT United Kingdom Net EU contribution € 1 638 643,75 Address The registry canterbury CT2 7NZ Canterbury, kent See on map Region South East (England) Kent East Kent Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITAET WIEN Austria Net EU contribution € 241 250,00 Address Karlsplatz 13 1040 Wien See on map Region Ostösterreich Wien Wien Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND JOHANNESBURG South Africa Net EU contribution € 68 750,00 Address Jan smuts avenue 1 2001 Johannesburg See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Website Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00 LAKEHEAD UNIVERSITY Canada Net EU contribution € 50 000,00 Address 955 oliver road P7B 5E1 Thunder bay See on map Activity type Higher or Secondary Education Establishments Links Contact the organisation Opens in new window Participation in EU R&I programmes Opens in new window HORIZON collaboration network Opens in new window Other funding € 0,00
