No bias as to timelines or degree of aquatic-ness. Fire would represent a
major technological advance in food gathering rather than a passive
defensive line.
Culturally this supports a more cooperative communal structure (I would
think) involving even young children in this activity. The overly
aggressive, far ranging, hunting male would not be much welcomed there.
From the purely practical perspective, which is more likely;
That a community would, in the beginning, invest valuable time and energy in
creating and maintaining something that just sat there. Or, would something
that made an immediate contribution to the gathering of food be more likely?
Which more energy efficient?
Terry


>  Is it believed here that we became aquatic long before we domesticated fire?
> I wonder, as I think Wrangham's theories make almost perfect sense, along with
> Hardy's.


>>  > Concerning the `WAVUMBA' trailer that `universatile' has found and shared
>> with us.
>>  > While viewing the video I saw something that is well known but not usually
>> thought of in that way.
>>  > The image we have of the role of fire in early culture is foremost a
>> deterrent to night predators. A powerful, primal image of a ragged band of
>> people huddled round a fire. Tired eyes searching the dark for approaching
>> danger.
>>  > A very deferent possibility is that fire was first used as a lure. We know
>> that light attracts insects at night. Light is also used in night fishing.
>> Not only fish and crustaceans are attracted to light, but also amphibians.
>> The larger of the attracted insects also were valuable foraged protein.
>> Perhaps providing great sport for the children.
>>  > Terry


- F.Berna cs PNAS fire in Wonderwerkgrot 1 Ma?  Is questioned by Wil
Roebroeks cs.
- Wrangham's just-so hypothesis can't explain why Hs has a later puberty
than Hn (it would suppose that Hs used less fire than Hn).
- Origin of fire use: sparks from tool manufacture (flint)?
- IIRC, capuchin monkeys lay shellfish in the sun to open. Fire to get open
shells??

--marc

Microstratigraphic evidence of in situ fire in the Acheulean strata of
Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape province, South Africa
Francesco Berna cs 2012 PNAS  doi 10.1073/pnas.1117620109 OPEN ACCESS
... analyses of intact sediments at Wonderwerk provide unambiguous evidence
(burned bone & ashed plant remains) that burning took place in the cave
during the early Acheulean occupation c 1.0 Ma.
To the best of our knowledge, this is the earliest secure evidence for
burning in an archaeological context.




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks Marc.Here're the interesting ones about water, one on DHA and a
few on coastal diet (coastal peoples tend to be more healthy).May be of
particular interest to Marc is the 3rd one:Previous research suggests
that auditory exostoses are linked to the exploitation of marine
resources in cold water. At Ellis Landing, males were the only
individuals who exhibited auditory exostoses. If auditory exostoses have
a behavioral etiology, then this suggests that males were the primary
procurers of marine dietary resources, possibly explaining the
difference in nitrogen values.Also one about body hair density, but not
talking about its length.Chak
========================
Influence of aquatic resources and subsistence strategy on human milk
fatty acid composition: a cross-cultural analysis. MELANIE A. MARTIN1,
WILLIAM D. LASSEK2, STEVEN J.C. GAULIN1, RHOBERT W. EVANS2, HILLARD S.
KAPLAN3, JESSICA G. WOO5, ARDYTHE L. MORROW4 and MICHAEL D.
GURVEN1.1Integrative Anthropological Sciences, University of California
Santa Barbara, 2Graduate School of Public Health, University of
Pittsbugh, 3Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico,
4Perinatal Institute, Cincinnati Children¡¦s Hospital Medical Center,
5Division of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Cincinnati Children¡¦s
Hospital Medical Center
The long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (LCPUFA) arachidonic (AA,
20:4n-6) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA, 22:6n-3) are essential to early
primate growth and development, particularly of the neural and visual
systems, and are the most abundant LCPUFA in maternal milk. In humans,
the percentages of AA and DHA in milk¡Xderived primarily from
maternal fat stores and secondarily from current dietary intake¡Xare
highly variable across populations. Milk DHA percentages in most
Westernized populations are generally low (reflecting n-6 rich and n-3
poor diets), leading some researchers to suggest that milk DHA standards
should derive from populations consuming traditional diets. We recently
found significantly higher percentages of AA and DHA in the milk of
women from an Amazonian forager-horticulturalist population (the
Tsimane) as compared to a lactational age-matched sample of Midwestern
U.S. women.
We further compared the Tsimane and U.S. DHA values to those reported in
studies across 50 nations, and found women from populations with regular
aquatic (marine, lacustrine, riverine) resource consumption showed the
highest percentages of milk DHA, irrespective of subsistence economy
(i.e., ¡§traditional¡¨, ¡§industrial¡¨). In addition, mean
milk DHA percentages from human non-aquatic consumers are more similar
to those of non-human primates than they are to human aquatic consumers.
Milk fatty acid composition of women who regularly consume aquatic
resources may serve as a better reference standard for comparative
studies of maternal and child nutrition, primate milk composition in
relation to brain size, and hominin evolution.
========================
An oral health assessment of coastal and inland early and middle
Neolithic south China and Taiwan.ADAM J. LAUER1, MINGHUI WANG2, TIANLONG
JIAO3 and GUOPING SUN4.1Department of Anthropology, University of Hawaii
at Manoa, 2Institute of Archaeology, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences,
3Department of Anthropology, Bishop Museum, 4Department of Archaeology,
Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Antiquity and Archaeology
Previous studies of prehistoric health in Southeast Asia find skeletal
samples at the transition to agriculture do not follow the same pattern
of decline as seen in other areas of the world. This paper examines the
oral health of early and middle Neolithic groups (7000-4500 BP) from
riverine and coastal environments of south China and Taiwan, a region
considered part of Southeast Asia. Using several indicators of
oral/dental health and lifestyle (dental caries, antemortem tooth
loss-AMTL, alveolar defects, dental calculus, and dental attrition) this
study examines the biocultural implications of subsistence changes from
the early to middle Neolithic in coastal and inland riverine
environments of southeast China. Skeletal assemblages investigated
include Dingshihshan culture, Guangxi (c. 6000 years BP), Hemudu
culture, Zhejiang (c. 6000 years BP), Tanshishan culture, Fujian (c.
4500 years BP) and Nankuanli East (NKLE), Tainan County, Taiwan (c. 5000
years BP). The hypotheses tested is that higher frequencies of stress
will be observed in the middle Neolithic samples and in samples that may
be more reliant on agriculture such as the inland riverine sample of
Dingshihshan. Oral health profiles suggest these samples follow the same
general patterns as Southeast Asian samples. Low levels of caries,
infectious disease, and AMTL suggest these groups were relatively
healthy but inland samples with restricted resources and middle
Neolithic samples more reliant on agriculture are subject to higher
stress. Inland samples have lower levels of AMTL than coastal samples
and higher levels of wear and calculus suggesting different subsistence
activities.
========================
Diet, dental health, and food acquisition in the prehistoric San
Francisco Bay Area: bioarchaeology of the Ellis Landing Ohlone
population . MELANIE M. BEASLEY1 and ERIC J. BARTELINK2.1Department of
Anthropology, UC, San Diego, 2Department of Anthropology, CSU, Chico
Bioarchaeological research often combines multiple lines of evidence in
an effort to reconstruct the past lifeways. We evaluate the diet, health
and food acquisition patterns of an Ohlone population through stable
isotope and paleopathological analysis of individuals from the Ellis
Landing site (CA-CCO-295), a late Holocene shellmound in the San
Francisco Bay Area (ca. 3740 B.P. to 760 B.P.). Previous stable isotope
research demonstrated that there was a high level of dietary variability
in the population. The mean values for £_13C of -14.3‰ and for
£_15N of 14.7‰ indicate consumption of marine resources with
significant dietary contributions from C3 ecosystems. The only
significant difference found was between male and female £_15N values
(z = 2.143, p = .032). Although significant, this difference is small
(males 0.5‰ higher than females) and may not be meaningful.
However, by including more comprehensive bioarchaeological data, a more
complete picture of Ohlone prehistory can be interpreted. Previous
research suggests that auditory exostoses are linked to the exploitation
of marine resources in cold water. At Ellis Landing, males were the only
individuals who exhibited auditory exostoses. If auditory exostoses have
a behavioral etiology, then this suggests that males were the primary
procurers of marine dietary resources, possibly explaining the
difference in nitrogen values. Overall good dental health at the site
supports the expectation that marine food consumption resulted in low
rates of dental caries and alveolar abscesses in the populations.
========================
Are coastal diets healthy? Examples from the Northern Pacific Rim. KARA
C. HOOVER1, MICHAEL RICHARDS2 and MINORU YONEDA3.1Anthropology,
University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2Anthropology, The University of British
Columbia, 3Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo
An abundant number of studies are pointing to the colonization of the
New World taking place via coastal migrations around the Pacific Rim.
While many of these sites are likely submerged, others have survived and
provide valuable components in reconstructing diet and health. In
particular, dietary adaptations to new and changing environments and
their health consequences are of interest. Specifically, is a
coastal/maritime diet healthy? Maritime diets are nutrient rich but they
also present challenges in the form of parasites and possible vitamin
deficiencies. In the archaeological record, key rubrics of health are
traditional odonto-skeletal biomarkers such as enamel hypoplasia
frequencies, dental caries, dental and/or cranio-facial asymmetry,
porotic hyperostosis, and cribra orbitalia: some of these markers form
during growth and development and some later in adulthood. Carbon and
nitrogen isotopic data aid in dietary reconstruction of proteins
consumed in the last 10 to 30 years of life. Using both
bioarchaeological and isotopic data, we can shed light on the
effectiveness of a particular dietary adaptation on the population
level. We present cross-regional and diachronic data from Japan, China,
and the Pacific Northwest coast in a comparative frame to other
published data from these regions (including Alaska). Hunter-gatherer
bioarchaeological data represent several sites across three islands of
Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, and Kyushu) and date from the Jomon Period
(4000-300 BCE) into the agricultural Yayoi period on Honshu and Kyushu
and the Okhotsk Period on Hokkaido). Analysis generally suggests that
coastal diets provide adequate nutrition and coastal populations are
healthy.
========================
Isotope studies of prehistoric diets on the Northwest Coast of Canada.
MICHAEL P. RICHARDS.Anthropology, University of British Columbia
This poster will bring together recent and published dietary isotope
data for prehistoric humans and dogs from the Northwest Coast of Canada.
This area was one of the first areas in the world where isotope analysis
was applied, and recently, in collaboration with First Nations
communities, new analysis has been undertaken to help determine past
indigenous diets and resource use in this region. Early studies focused
mainly on carbon isotopes in bone collagen and showed the overwhelming
importance of marine foods in diets for people along the coast. More
recent research on dogs has included measurements of collagen nitrogen
isotopes that can help to identify the specific types of marine foods
consumed. Those studies showed that the main dietary protein sources for
the dogs were likely lower trophic level marine foods, and not salmon,
which was often argued as the primary marine food consumed in coastal
prehistoric British Columbia. In this poster we present new human and
dog carbon and nitrogen isotope data which, although the dataset is
limited at this stage of the project, does show that salmon was the most
likely main source of protein for humans along the Northwest Coast.
========================
Are big primates less hairy? Primate hair and body size revisited .
AARON A. SANDEL.Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann
Arbor
Humans are unique among primates in our apparent hairlessness. Schwartz
and Rosenblum (1981, AJPA 55: 9-12) investigated the role of body size
on anthropoid hair density. They found that as body surface area
increased, ¡§relative hair density¡¨ (RHD: hairs/cm2/body surface
area) decreased. They concluded that larger anthropoids have
systematically less dense hair due to thermoregulatory adaptations. This
hair pattern may result simply from differences in growth. In humans,
the absolute number of hair follicles appears to be determined in utero:
increases in surface area postnatally decrease the density of hair
follicles. If a similar pattern of follicle formation occurs in all
primates, I hypothesize that larger primates exhibit lower hair follicle
densities than smaller primates due to increasing body surface area.
Therefore, I plotted body mass (g) against hair density (hairs/cm2) in
22 anthropoids using data from the literature. The RHD variable obscures
the physiological significance of hair density and makes a scaling
relationship less intuitive, as RHD is a count/cm2/cm2 regressed against
surface area (cm2). Consistent with Schwartz and Rosenblum, I found
negative relationships between body mass and scalp, chest and back hair
density. Body mass, however, explains only 50-60% of variance. RHD
regressed against body surface area appears to have created a specious
relationship between hair density and body size. Further study of the
morphology and ontogeny of hair will elucidate the size-density
relationship, and provide insights into the human hair phenotype and the
function of hair in primate evolution.
========================
--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...> wrote:
>
> http://meeting.physanth.org/static/Program2012.html
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>



[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...> wrote:
>
>
> No bias as to timelines or degree of aquatic-ness. Fire would represent a
> major technological advance in food gathering rather than a passive
> defensive line.
> Culturally this supports a more cooperative communal structure (I would
> think) involving even young children in this activity. The overly
> aggressive, far ranging, hunting male would not be much welcomed there.
> From the purely practical perspective, which is more likely;
> That a community would, in the beginning, invest valuable time and energy in
> creating and maintaining something that just sat there. Or, would something
> that made an immediate contribution to the gathering of food be more likely?
> Which more energy efficient?
> Terry
>
>
> >  Is it believed here that we became aquatic long before we domesticated
fire?
> > I wonder, as I think Wrangham's theories make almost perfect sense, along
with
> > Hardy's.
>
>
> >>  > Concerning the `WAVUMBA' trailer that `universatile' has found and
shared
> >> with us.
> >>  > While viewing the video I saw something that is well known but not
usually
> >> thought of in that way.
> >>  > The image we have of the role of fire in early culture is foremost a
> >> deterrent to night predators. A powerful, primal image of a ragged band of
> >> people huddled round a fire. Tired eyes searching the dark for approaching
> >> danger.
> >>  > A very deferent possibility is that fire was first used as a lure. We
know
> >> that light attracts insects at night. Light is also used in night fishing.
> >> Not only fish and crustaceans are attracted to light, but also amphibians.
> >> The larger of the attracted insects also were valuable foraged protein.
> >> Perhaps providing great sport for the children.
> >>  > Terry
>
>
> - F.Berna cs PNAS fire in Wonderwerkgrot 1 Ma?  Is questioned by Wil
> Roebroeks cs.
> - Wrangham's just-so hypothesis can't explain why Hs has a later puberty
> than Hn (it would suppose that Hs used less fire than Hn).
> - Origin of fire use: sparks from tool manufacture (flint)?
> - IIRC, capuchin monkeys lay shellfish in the sun to open. Fire to get open
> shells??
>
> --marc
>
> Microstratigraphic evidence of in situ fire in the Acheulean strata of
> Wonderwerk Cave, Northern Cape province, South Africa
> Francesco Berna cs 2012 PNAS  doi 10.1073/pnas.1117620109 OPEN ACCESS
> ... analyses of intact sediments at Wonderwerk provide unambiguous evidence
> (burned bone & ashed plant remains) that burning took place in the cave
> during the early Acheulean occupation c 1.0 Ma.
> To the best of our knowledge, this is the earliest secure evidence for
> burning in an archaeological context.
>
Sometimes it is about the forest,
and sometimes the detritus on its floor.
Sometimes the tree,
and sometimes it is about its seed.
Terry



> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

Thanks Marc. Here're the interesting ones about water, one on DHA and a
few on coastal diet (coastal peoples tend to be more healthy). May be of
particular interest to Marc is the 3rd one: Previous research suggests
that auditory exostoses are linked to the exploitation of marine
resources in cold water. At Ellis Landing, males were the only
individuals who exhibited auditory exostoses.

Thanks a lot, Chak.
Yes, in the classical paper on ear exostoses of GE Kennedy (1985 JHE
14:699), in some populations the men dived, in others the women, in still
others both sexes.
Ear exostoses develop in guinea-pigs & humans by irrigation of the ear
canals with water of less than 17 or 18°C IIRC.
Many Hn skulls had extensive & bilateral ear exostoses, only a few He
skulls had EEs.
It can be argued that EEs suggest non-adaptation to (cold) water.
That only a few He skulls had EEs can mean that
- He was not well adapted to diving,
- He was better adapted to diving (hence less likely to develop EEs) than
Hs,
- He mostly swam in warmer waters,
- EEs had other advantages (eg, closing the ear canal),
- ...?
Hn skulls generally had more EEs: colder waters?

--marc


If auditory exostoses have
a behavioral etiology, then this suggests that males were the primary
procurers of marine dietary resources, possibly explaining the
difference in nitrogen values.Also one about body hair density, but not
talking about its length. Chak
========================
Influence of aquatic resources and subsistence strategy on human milk
fatty acid composition: a cross-cultural analysis. MELANIE A. MARTIN1,
WILLIAM D. LASSEK2, STEVEN J.C. GAULIN1, RHOBERT W. EVANS2, HILLARD S.
KAPLAN3, JESSICA G. WOO5, ARDYTHE L. MORROW4 and MICHAEL D.
GURVEN
AA & DHA are essential to early
primate growth and development, particularly of the neural and visual
systems, and are the most abundant LCPUFA in maternal milk. In humans,
the percentages of AA and DHA in milk - derived primarily from
maternal fat stores and secondarily from current dietary intake - are
highly variable across populations. Milk DHA percentages in most
Westernized populations are generally low (reflecting n-6 rich and n-3
poor diets), leading some researchers to suggest that milk DHA standards
should derive from populations consuming traditional diets. We recently
found significantly higher percentages of AA and DHA in the milk of
women from an Amazonian forager-horticulturalist population (the
Tsimane) as compared to a lactational age-matched sample of Midwestern
U.S. women.
We further compared the Tsimane and US DHA values to those reported in
studies across 50 nations, and found women from populations with regular
aquatic (marine, lacustrine, riverine) resource consumption showed the
highest percentages of milk DHA, irrespective of subsistence economy
(i.e. traditional, industrial). In addition, mean
milk DHA percentages from human non-aquatic consumers are more similar
to those of non-human primates than they are to human aquatic consumers.
Milk fatty acid composition of women who regularly consume aquatic
resources may serve as a better reference standard for comparative
studies of maternal and child nutrition, primate milk composition in
relation to brain size, and hominin evolution.
========================
An oral health assessment of coastal and inland early and middle
Neolithic south China and Taiwan.ADAM J. LAUER1, MINGHUI WANG2, TIANLONG
JIAO3 and GUOPING SUN
Previous studies of prehistoric health in SE.Asia find skeletal
samples at the transition to agriculture do not follow the same pattern
of decline as seen in other areas of the world. This paper examines the
oral health of early & middle Neolithic groups (7-4.5 ka) from
riverine & coastal environments of S.China & Taiwan. Using several
indicators of
oral/dental health & lifestyle (dental caries, ante-mortem tooth
loss-AMTL, alveolar defects, dental calculus, dental attrition) this
study examines the bio-cultural implications of subsistence changes from
the early to middle Neolithic in coastal & inland riverine
environments of SE.China. Skeletal assemblages investigated
include Dingshihshan culture, Guangxi (c 6 ka), Hemudu
culture, Zhejiang (c 6 ka), Tanshishan culture, Fujian (c
4.5 ka) and Nankuanli East (NKLE), Tainan County, Taiwan (c 5 ka).
The hypotheses tested is that higher frequencies of stress
will be observed in the middle Neolithic samples & in samples that may
be more reliant on agriculture such as the inland riverine sample of
Dingshihshan. Oral health profiles suggest these samples follow the same
general patterns as SE.Asian samples. Low levels of caries,
infectious disease & AMTL suggest these groups were relatively
Healthy, but inland samples with restricted resources & middle
Neolithic samples more reliant on agriculture are subject to higher
stress. Inland samples have lower levels of AMTL than coastal samples
& higher levels of wear & calculus suggesting different subsistence
activities.
========================
Diet, dental health, and food acquisition in the prehistoric San
Francisco Bay Area: bioarchaeology of the Ellis Landing Ohlone
population   MELANIE M. BEASLEY and ERIC J. BARTELINK
Bio-archaeological research often combines multiple lines of evidence in
an effort to reconstruct the past lifeways. We evaluate the diet, health
& food acquisition patterns of an Ohlone population through stable
isotope & paleo-pathological analysis of individuals from the Ellis
Landing site (CA-CCO-295), a late Holocene shell-mound in the San
Francisco Bay Area (c 3740 to 760 BP). Previous stable isotope
research demonstrated that there was a high level of dietary variability
in the population. The mean values for £_13C of -14.3‰ and for
£_15N of 14.7‰ indicate consumption of marine resources with
significant dietary contributions from C3 ecosystems. The only
significant difference found was between male and female £_15N values
(z=2.143, p=.032). Although significant, this difference is small
(males 0.5‰ higher than females) and may not be meaningful.
However, by including more comprehensive bio-archaeological data, a more
complete picture of Ohlone prehistory can be interpreted. Previous
research suggests that auditory exostoses are linked to the exploitation
of marine resources in cold water. At Ellis Landing, males were the only
individuals who exhibited auditory exostoses. If auditory exostoses have
a behavioral etiology, then this suggests that males were the primary
procurers of marine dietary resources, possibly explaining the
difference in nitrogen values. Overall good dental health at the site
supports the expectation that marine food consumption resulted in low
rates of dental caries & alveolar abscesses in the populations.
========================
Are coastal diets healthy? Examples from the Northern Pacific Rim. KARA
C. HOOVER1, MICHAEL RICHARDS2 and MINORU YONEDA
An abundant number of studies are pointing to the colonization of the
New World taking place via coastal migrations around the Pacific Rim.
While many of these sites are likely submerged, others have survived and
provide valuable components in reconstructing diet & health. In
particular, dietary adaptations to new & changing environments &
their health consequences are of interest. Specifically, is a
coastal/maritime diet healthy? Maritime diets are nutrient-rich, but they
also present challenges in the form of parasites & possible vitamin
deficiencies. In the archaeological record, key rubrics of health are
traditional odonto-skeletal bio-markers (enamel hypoplasia
frequencies, dental caries, dental & cranio-facial asymmetry,
porotic hyperostosis, cribra orbitalia): some of these markers form
during growth & development, some later in adulthood. C & N
isotopic data aid in dietary reconstruction of proteins
consumed in the last 10 to 30 years of life. Using both
Bio-archaeological & isotopic data, we can shed light on the
effectiveness of a particular dietary adaptation on the population
level. We present cross-regional & diachronic data from Japan, China &
the Pacific NW coast in a comparative frame to other
published data from these regions (incl.Alaska). Hunter-gatherer
Bio-archaeological data represent several sites across 3 islands of
Japan (Hokkaido, Honshu, Kyushu) and date from the Jomon Period
(4000-300 BP) into the agricultural Yayoi period on Honshu & Kyushu
& the Okhotsk Period on Hokkaido. Analysis generally suggests that
coastal diets provide adequate nutrition & coastal populations are
healthy.
========================
Isotope studies of prehistoric diets on the Northwest Coast of Canada.
MICHAEL P. RICHARDS
This poster will bring together recent & published dietary isotope
data for prehistoric humans & dogs from the NW Coast of Canada.
This area was one of the first areas in the world where isotope analysis
was applied, and recently, in collaboration with First Nations
communities, new analysis has been undertaken to help determine past
indigenous diets & resource use in this region. Early studies focused
mainly on C isotopes in bone collagen, and showed the overwhelming
importance of marine foods in diets for people along the coast. More
recent research on dogs has included measurements of collagen N
isotopes that can help to identify the specific types of marine foods
consumed. Those studies showed that the main dietary protein sources for
the dogs were likely lower trophic level marine foods, and not salmon,
which was often argued as the primary marine food consumed in coastal
prehistoric British Columbia. In this poster we present new human &
dog C & N isotope data which, although the data-set is
limited at this stage of the project, does show that salmon was the most
likely main source of protein for humans along the NW Coast.
========================
Are big primates less hairy? Primate hair and body size revisited
AARON A. SANDEL
Humans are unique among primates in our apparent hairlessness. Schwartz
& Rosenblum (1981 AJPA 55:9-12) investigated the role of body size
on anthropoid hair density. They found that as body surface area
increased, relative hair density (RHD: hairs/cm2/body surface
area) decreased. They concluded that larger anthropoids have
systematically less dense hair due to thermo-regulatory adaptations. This
hair pattern may result simply from differences in growth. In humans,
the absolute number of hair follicles appears to be determined in utero:
increases in surface area postnatally decrease the density of hair
follicles. If a similar pattern of follicle formation occurs in all
primates, I hypothesize that larger primates exhibit lower hair follicle
densities than smaller primates due to increasing body surface area.
Therefore, I plotted body mass (g) against hair density (hairs/cm2) in
22 anthropoids using data from the literature. The RHD variable obscures
the physiological significance of hair density and makes a scaling
relationship less intuitive, as RHD is a count/cm2/cm2 regressed against
surface area (cm2). Consistent with Schwartz & Rosenblum, I found
negative relationships between body mass & scalp, chest & back hair
density. Body mass, however, explains only 50-60 % of variance. RHD
regressed against body surface area appears to have created a specious
relationship between hair density & body size. Further study of the
morphology & ontogeny of hair will elucidate the size-density
relationship, and provide insights into the human hair phenotype & the
function of hair in primate evolution.

Using mammalian microfauna to reconstruct Hominin paleohabitats in South
Africa
JENNIFER LEICHLITER, OLIVER PAINE, MATT SPONHEIMER, PAUL SANDBURG, DARRYL DE
RUITER, DARYL CODRON, NICO AVENANT & THALASSA MATTHEWS


Fossilized faunal remains have long been used to infer paleo-environmental
conditions at hominin-bearing localities, but mammalian micro-fauna have
been under-utilized despite their abundance in the fossil record.
One difficulty in using micro-mammals is that the specific habitat & dietary
affinities of many modern spp remain unresolved.
The diets & habitats of micro-mammal spp can also vary significantly from
region to region.

This study refines our understanding of micro-mammal ecology within the
Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site.
We anticipated that certain micro-habitat types would be characterized by
unique small mammal community structures, and that habitat & dietary
generalists would have highly variable diets.
We assessed small mammal community structure using samples collected from
accumulated pellets at roost sites of the African barn owl Tyto alba & trap
lines.
Roost & trapping sites were located within different micro-habitat types
ranging from open grassland to closed wooded areas.
In addition, stable isotope analyses were conducted on hair & tooth enamel
samples to investigate diet.

Our results indicate :
- despite their relative proximity, micro-habitats are characterized by
distinct differences in diversity & relative abundance of micro-mammal spp,
- isotopic values, while variable in generalist spp, are highly variable,
even in many spp with purportedly narrow habitat & dietary preferences.
We discuss the implications of these findings for paleo-habitat
reconstruction generally, and provide preliminary assessments of the
Sterkfontein, Swartkrans & Gladysvale micro-mammal assemblages.




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Investigating hominin paleohabitats using fossil rodent ecomorphology
OLIVER PAINE, JENNIFER LEICHLITER1, MATT SPONHEIMER & NICO AVENANT

The taxonomic composition of fossil rodent assemblages from hominin sites
can be used to infer paleo-habitat structure.
However, much of the fossil rodent material recovered is non-diagnostic or
   too incomplete to allow reliable taxonomic assessment, as is the case
with the abundance of isolated fossil incisors that often confronts
researchers.
Thus, an eco-morphological, taxon-free method of investigating fossil
rodent habitats would greatly augment our ability to utilize rodents for
paleo-environmental reconstruction.
Croft cs 2011 J Mammal 92:871-879 outline methods by which upper incisor
morphology can be used to predict dietary preferences among caviomorph
rodents.
Using these methods, we have demonstrated that extant S.African rodents
can also be successfully partitioned into distinct eco-morphological
categories.
However, the application of these methods to the fossil record becomes
more difficult, because the necessary morphometric measurements require
that the incisor be positioned correctly within its alveolus.
Due to diagenesis & the inherent fragility of rodent crania, this
positioning can rarely be determined, even when the fossil incisor is
still articulated with the premaxilla.
To better the applicability of such eco-morphological approaches, we have
been developing new measurements specific to isolated incisors &
hemi-mandibles.
Here we discuss these methods & their utility with material from
Sterkfontein, Swartkrans & Gladysvale.

______




Using mammalian microfauna to reconstruct Hominin paleohabitats in South
Africa
JENNIFER LEICHLITER, OLIVER PAINE, MATT SPONHEIMER, PAUL SANDBURG, DARRYL
DE RUITER, DARYL CODRON, NICO AVENANT & THALASSA MATTHEWS

Fossilized faunal remains have long been used to infer paleo-environmental
conditions at hominin-bearing localities, but mammalian micro-fauna have
been under-utilized despite their abundance in the fossil record.
One difficulty in using micro-mammals is that the specific habitat &
dietary affinities of many modern spp remain unresolved.
The diets & habitats of micro-mammal spp can also vary significantly from
region to region.

This study refines our understanding of micro-mammal ecology within the
Cradle of Humankind World Heritage Site.
We anticipated that certain micro-habitat types would be characterized by
unique small mammal community structures, and that habitat & dietary
generalists would have highly variable diets.
We assessed small mammal community structure using samples collected from
accumulated pellets at roost sites of the African barn owl Tyto alba &
trap lines.
Roost & trapping sites were located within different micro-habitat types
ranging from open grassland to closed wooded areas.
In addition, stable isotope analyses were conducted on hair & tooth enamel
samples to investigate diet.

Our results indicate :
- despite their relative proximity, micro-habitats are characterized by
distinct differences in diversity & relative abundance of micro-mammal spp,
- isotopic values, while variable in generalist spp, are highly variable,
even in many spp with purportedly narrow habitat & dietary preferences.
We discuss the implications of these findings for paleo-habitat
reconstruction generally, and provide preliminary assessments of the
Sterkfontein, Swartkrans & Gladysvale micro-mammal assemblages.

Hair and scalp diseases:
medical, surgical, and cosmetic treatments
AJ McMichael & MK Hordinsky eds 2008
Informa Healthcare USA


Dandruff and Seborrheic Dermatitis:
Use of Medicated Shampoos
Janet G Hickman

...
ANTHROPOLOGY OF DANDRUFF
Although a theory not widely held by current anthropologists, the Aquatic
Ape hypothesis of human evolution offers a possible role for dandruff in
human development. The tenets of this hypothesis are that the evolutionary
forebears of Homo sapiens were adapted to a warm aquatic environment and
that some of those adaptations persist today. Examples include our thick
subcutaneous fat layer, lack of fur, stretched hind limbs, voluntary
respiration, diving reflexes, and infant swimming. Even the fi nding that
omega 3 fatty acids ("fish oils") promote healthy human and ape brain
development accords with this hypothesis (19­21).
For dermatologic findings, this theory notes hair and sebaceous gland
distribution as promoting streamlining for forward swimming in water.
Thus, male vertex balding, the growth pattern of nose, ear and chest hair,
and sebaceous gland concentration at the scalp, forehead, nose, and
shoulders all appear adaptive for swimming. Even dandruff fi ts this
hypothesis, as individual scales at the base of hairs are angled to assist
in "slicking down" the hairs for decreased water resistance. The
Malassezia yeasts that colonize the scalp secrete a UV protectant that may
also have been useful to swimming ancestors (22,23).

The Triggering Track-Ways Theory
Shaw-Williams, Kim 2011
http://hdl.handle.net/10063/1967
In this thesis I present a new paradigm in human evolutionary theory: the
relevance of track-ways reading (TWR) to the evolution of human cognition,
culture and communication.
Evidence is presented that strongly indicates hominins were exploiting
conspecific track-ways 4 Ma.
For a non-olfactory ape that was a specialized forager in open featureless
wetland environments, they were the only viable natural signs to exploit for
safety, orienteering & recognizable social markers.
Due to the unique cognitive demands of reading track-ways, as compared to
scent-trails all other animals use to find each other & preferred prey
species, social TWR triggered the evolution of a unique faculty for
narrative elsewhere-&-when cognition in the hominin mind.
2 My later, this narrative faculty was entrenched enough to enable the
rather sudden "explosion" of co-operative Oldowan Lithic Culture that began
at 2.6 Ma.
This cultural adaptation was a highly successful response to catastrophic
environmental change.
Thereafter selection for encephalization to increase neural capacity to
store & co-operatively exploit socio-ecological knowledge gained from the
hominin narrative faculty (via co-evolving, increasingly efficient modes of
intentional communication) drove all further biological & cultural
developments in the hominin trajectory towards H.sapiens & behavioural
modernity.




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Here is one interesting take on this. In the 1800's, almost everyone had
fungal
diseases of the scalp, which made them lose their hair. As a result, most
everyone
wore something on their head ... kerchiefs, wigs, whatever. They were bald.
It took some
time before people got into the habit of using "shampoo" and actually
WASHING, in
Northern Europe. In other countries, a dip in the lake was common, or they
slathered
mud on their hair, and they didn't have this problem.

I was thinking of this when I had ducks. I turns out, that if a duck does
NOT have something
to "duck" their heads in, they get eye fungal infections. They don't need
to swim especially,
but they do need to get their heads in water. So you need to provide a
water source of some
kind. And they duck into it all day long.

Turkeys are the exact opposite. If the environment is too WET, they get
fungal infections.

Humans really do need water on their skin. Omega 3's too, for sure. But the
NEED to get
wet is kind of rare in farm animals: most of them get thrush if they are
too wet, and they
tend to avoid water. The exceptions seem kind of obvious: ducks (totally
about water),
geese (ditto), pigs (semi-aquatic), chickens (jungle birds, and also taken
on long canoe trips with explorers),



On Sat, Apr 21, 2012 at 4:31 PM, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...>wrote:

> **
>
>
> Hair and scalp diseases:
> medical, surgical, and cosmetic treatments
> AJ McMichael & MK Hordinsky eds 2008
> Informa Healthcare USA
>
> Dandruff and Seborrheic Dermatitis:
> Use of Medicated Shampoos
> Janet G Hickman
>
> ...
> ANTHROPOLOGY OF DANDRUFF
> Although a theory not widely held by current anthropologists, the Aquatic
> Ape hypothesis of human evolution offers a possible role for dandruff in
> human development. The tenets of this hypothesis are that the evolutionary
> forebears of Homo sapiens were adapted to a warm aquatic environment and
> that some of those adaptations persist today. Examples include our thick
> subcutaneous fat layer, lack of fur, stretched hind limbs, voluntary
> respiration, diving reflexes, and infant swimming. Even the fi nding that
> omega 3 fatty acids ("fish oils") promote healthy human and ape brain
> development accords with this hypothesis (19­21).
> For dermatologic findings, this theory notes hair and sebaceous gland
> distribution as promoting streamlining for forward swimming in water.
> Thus, male vertex balding, the growth pattern of nose, ear and chest hair,
> and sebaceous gland concentration at the scalp, forehead, nose, and
> shoulders all appear adaptive for swimming. Even dandruff fi ts this
> hypothesis, as individual scales at the base of hairs are angled to assist
> in "slicking down" the hairs for decreased water resistance. The
> Malassezia yeasts that colonize the scalp secrete a UV protectant that may
> also have been useful to swimming ancestors (22,23).
>
>
>



--
Heather Twist
http://eatingoffthefoodgrid.blogspot.com/


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...> wrote:
>
> Some of the oldest man made images we have found in caves and other isolated
> locations are handprints. Made by placing a hand directly on the rock
> surface and splattering pigment over the area to leave an outline of the
> hand. Some of these handprints may be 35,000 years old. As such these
> 'prints' are man made analogs of some of the rarest of all fossils. Those
> that preserve the outlines of soft tissues.
> Unfortunately these unique treasures are mostly ignored. Art histories
> include an image or two of them between the beautiful paintings that are
> really important to the history of man. One study I found dismissed them as
> some sort of male pubescent fantasy ritual?
> For the curious investigator these prints are as close to photographs of
> stone age man as we will ever see. Statistical analysis of each 'print' can
> tell us a great deal about the physical anatomy of the individuals that made
> them. Reconstructing their height, build and more.
> It is unlikely, however, that any note would be made concerning the degree
> of webbing between the fingers. Which should also be clearly preserved.
> Whether such a random sampling, over time, shows an increasing or decreasing
> amount webbing. Unless, of course, someone with an interest in the aquatic
> theory were to look...  Such information should help establish a clearer
> timeline for development of this adaptation. Also the persistence of such
> changes to the soft tissues in man.
> Terry
>
>
> See illustrations at Google. As expected, they (only 35 ka, ie, much after
> the sapiens LCA) are no different from ours, eg, no webbing.
> I guess these prints are "signatures" in initiation rites to attest that
> somebody was present?
>
> Aonyx otters search for shellfish in shallow waters without webbed fingers.
> Humans have rel.primitive (more monkey-like), but very broad hands &
> rel.long thumbs, without the specialisations of the apes (esp.metacarpal &
> finger lengthening).
> I don't think we ever had clear webs between our fingers (our feet were more
> important in swimming), but possibly our littoral ancestors had somewhat
> shorter fingers.
>
> Webbing is not uncommon in other primates, possibly for strengthening the
> grip.
> Symphalangus syndactylus (siamang) litterally means twice "fused finger" (2d
> & 3d pedal toes = also seen in kangaroos, a relic of their arboreal past I
> guess).
>
> --marc
>
Thank you marc,
Regarding these points you made:
As expected, they (only 35 thousand years ago, much after the sapiens LCA) are
no different from ours, no webbing.
I don't think we ever had clear webs between our fingers (our feet were more
important in swimming), but possibly our littoral ancestors had somewhat shorter
fingers.
I guess these prints are "signatures" in initiation rites to attest that
somebody was present?--marc

As Morgan covered in `The Aquatic Ape' (page 77) around 7 percent of humans in
all cultures have webbing between their toes. Webbing between the fingers is
rarer (see plate 4). Of interest was emphasizing the `vestigial triangle of thin
skin between the finger and thumb...a feature not found in any other primate'.
With this in mind I expected some natural variation around the modern norm, but
all clear examples appeared to be less webbed including the finger-to-thumb
triangle that Morgan mentioned. Fingers look longer in the prints compared to
the modern hand?

Concerning the cultural aspect of handprints. A vigorous population of this
culture left evidence over a wide area of Europe. If this was a common
initiation ritual every protected rock surface in Europe should show traces of
this practice. Or the few favored sights should be heavily overprinted.
A part of all cultural initiation rituals is that each sex has different ones.
Published research is all over the map on the sex of the printers. Also, no
juvenile imitation prints have been preserved, apparently.
If this practice was, instead, some individual declaration of presents in a
special place they would be more common at mountain passes, or water falls. Just
as they are today.

A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally we
`present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has there
been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening years? Perhaps
there is another explanation.
David Hockney caused quite a brawl among art historians by suggesting that the
sudden changes in painting style that occurred around the 1470's were the result
of using optical devices to project an image on to the canvas. His strongest
`proof' of this is the sudden transition from predominantly right handed people
to predominantly left handed people being depicted. As if in mirror image as a
pinhole produces. A lack of direct evidence for this is not surprising. At that
time, being accused of using a mirror for witchcraft could get you burned at the
stake.

FYI: Secret Knowledge rediscovering the lost techniques of the old masters. by
David Hockney. Copyright 2001. ISBN 0-670-03026-0.
Terry
>
>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

The auditory anatomy of the minke whale (Balaenoptera acutorostrata):
a potential fatty sound reception pathway in a baleen whale
http://csi.whoi.edu/sites/default/files/literature/Yamato_2012.pdf
Yamato, Maya cs 2012 The Anatomical Record doi 10.1002/ar.22459

Cetacea possess highly derived auditory systems adapted for underwater
hearing.
- Odontoceti (toothed whales) are thought to receive sound through
specialized fat bodies that contact the tympano-periotic complex, the
bones housing the middle & inner ears.
- Sound reception pathways remain unknown in Mysticeti (baleen whales),
which have very different cranial anatomies compared to odontocetes.

Here, we report a potential fatty sound reception pathway in the minke
whale (balaenopterid).
The cephalic anatomy of 7 minke whales was investigated, using CT & MRI,
verified through dissections.
  Findings include
1) a large well-formed fat body lateral, dorsal & posterior to the
mandibular ramus, lateral to the tympano-periotic complex.
This fat body inserts into the tympano-periotic complex at the lateral
aperture between the tympanic & periotic bones, and is in contact with the
ossicles.
2) a 2d smaller body of fat within the tympanic bone, which contacts the
ossicles as well.

This is the first analysis of these fatty tissues' association with the
auditory structures in a mysticete, providing anatomical evidence that
fatty sound reception pathways may not be a unique feature of odontocete
cetaceans.



http://news.sciencemag.org/sciencenow/2012/04/scienceshot-baleen-whales-use
.html?ref=em
Baleen Whales Use 'Ear Fat' to Hear
Jane J Lee 19.4.12

Whales use sound to
- communicate over entire oceans,
- search for food &
- coordinate attacks.
How baleen whales (that use comb-like projections from the roof of their
mouth to
catch food) heard these grunts & moans was something of a mystery.
Toothed whales (dolphins & porpoises) use lobes of fat connected to their
jawbones & ears to pick up sounds.
But in-depth analyses of baleen whales weren't previously possible,
because their sheer size made them impossible to fit into CT & MRI
scanners, which analyze soft tissues.
So in a new study (Anat Rec), researchers focused on one of the smaller
spp, minke whales:
triangular patches of fat surrounding minke whale ears (yellow patches,
above) could be key to how they hear.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ar.22459/pdf
They scanned 7 minke whale heads in CT & MRI machines, created computer
models of the ears & surrounding soft tissue, and dissected the whale
noggins to reveal ear fat running from blubber just under the skin to the
ear bones.
This is similar to the arrangement found in toothed whales.
The novel analysis allowed the authors to speculate that the ear fat in
both toothed and baleen whales could have shared a common evolutionary
origin.

("Toothed whales" is no longer a correct term: sperm whales (no baleens)
are closer relatives of baleen whales than of dolphins  --mv)

> Some of the oldest man made images we have found in caves and other isolated
> locations are handprints. Made by placing a hand directly on the rock
> surface and splattering pigment over the area to leave an outline of the
> hand. Some of these handprints may be 35,000 years old. As such these
> 'prints' are man made analogs of some of the rarest of all fossils. Those
> that preserve the outlines of soft tissues.
> Unfortunately these unique treasures are mostly ignored. Art histories
> include an image or two of them between the beautiful paintings that are
> really important to the history of man. One study I found dismissed them as
> some sort of male pubescent fantasy ritual?
> For the curious investigator these prints are as close to photographs of
> stone age man as we will ever see. Statistical analysis of each 'print' can
> tell us a great deal about the physical anatomy of the individuals that made
> them. Reconstructing their height, build and more.
> It is unlikely, however, that any note would be made concerning the degree
> of webbing between the fingers. Which should also be clearly preserved.
> Whether such a random sampling, over time, shows an increasing or decreasing
> amount webbing. Unless, of course, someone with an interest in the aquatic
> theory were to look...  Such information should help establish a clearer
> timeline for development of this adaptation. Also the persistence of such
> changes to the soft tissues in man.    Terry

> See illustrations at Google. As expected, they (only 35 ka, ie, much after
> the sapiens LCA) are no different from ours, eg, no webbing.
> I guess these prints are "signatures" in initiation rites to attest that
> somebody was present?
> Aonyx otters search for shellfish in shallow waters without webbed fingers.
> Humans have rel.primitive (more monkey-like), but very broad hands &
> rel.long thumbs, without the specialisations of the apes (esp.metacarpal &
> finger lengthening).
> I don't think we ever had clear webs between our fingers (our feet were more
> important in swimming), but possibly our littoral ancestors had somewhat
> shorter fingers.
> Webbing is not uncommon in other primates, possibly for strengthening the
> grip.
> Symphalangus syndactylus (siamang) litterally means twice "fused finger" (2d
> & 3d pedal toes = also seen in kangaroos, a relic of their arboreal past I
> guess).  --marc

Thank you marc,
Regarding these points you made:
As expected, they (only 35 thousand years ago, much after the sapiens LCA)
are no different from ours, no webbing.
I don't think we ever had clear webs between our fingers (our feet were more
important in swimming), but possibly our littoral ancestors had somewhat
shorter fingers.

Yes, likely IMO. We got longer fingers, but apes got much much longer
fingers (& hands) I guess.  --marc

I guess these prints are "signatures" in initiation rites to attest that
somebody was present?--marc

As Morgan covered in 'The Aquatic Ape' (page 77) around 7 percent of humans
in all cultures have webbing between their toes. Webbing between the fingers
is rarer (see plate 4). Of interest was emphasizing the 'vestigial triangle
of thin skin between the finger and thumb...a feature not found in any other
primate'.
With this in mind I expected some natural variation around the modern norm,
but all clear examples appeared to be less webbed including the
finger-to-thumb triangle that Morgan mentioned. Fingers look longer in the
prints compared to the modern hand?
Concerning the cultural aspect of handprints. A vigorous population of this
culture left evidence over a wide area of Europe. If this was a common
initiation ritual every protected rock surface in Europe should show traces
of this practice. Or the few favored sights should be heavily overprinted.
A part of all cultural initiation rituals is that each sex has different
ones. Published research is all over the map on the sex of the printers.
Also, no juvenile imitation prints have been preserved, apparently.
If this practice was, instead, some individual declaration of presents in a
special place they would be more common at mountain passes, or water falls.
Just as they are today.
A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally we
'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has there
been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening years?
Perhaps there is another explanation.
David Hockney caused quite a brawl among art historians by suggesting that
the sudden changes in painting style that occurred around the 1470s were the
result of using optical devices to project an image on to the canvas. His
strongest 'proof' of this is the sudden transition from predominantly right
handed people to predominantly left handed people being depicted. As if in
mirror image as a pinhole produces. A lack of direct evidence for this is
not surprising. At that time, being accused of using a mirror for witchcraft
could get you burned at the stake.
FYI: Secret Knowledge rediscovering the lost techniques of the old masters.
David Hockney 2001. ISBN 0-670-03026-0.  Terry


Thanks, Terry.

--marc





[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

>
> Here is one interesting take on this. In the 1800's, almost everyone had
> fungal diseases of the scalp, which made them lose their hair. As a result,
> most everyone wore something on their head ... kerchiefs, wigs, whatever. They
> were bald.
> It took some time before people got into the habit of using "shampoo" and
> actually WASHING, in Northern Europe. In other countries, a dip in the lake
> was common, or they slathered mud on their hair, and they didn't have this
> problem.
> I was thinking of this when I had ducks. I turns out, that if a duck does NOT
> have something to "duck" their heads in, they get eye fungal infections. They
> don't need to swim especially, but they do need to get their heads in water.
> So you need to provide a water source of some kind. And they duck into it all
> day long.
> Turkeys are the exact opposite. If the environment is too WET, they get fungal
> infections.
> Humans really do need water on their skin. Omega 3's too, for sure. But the
> NEED to get wet is kind of rare in farm animals: most of them get thrush if
> they are too wet, and they tend to avoid water. The exceptions seem kind of
> obvious: ducks (totally about water), geese (ditto), pigs (semi-aquatic),
> chickens (jungle birds, and also taken on long canoe trips with explorers),
> Heather Twist

Thanks, Heather, dandruff (typically human?) is caused by Pityriasis capitis
(commensal), which grows mostly just below the eyebrows, next to the nose &
just above the beard & in the hair border frontally.
When men don't wash their hear, most of them get a lot of scales sticking
into the sebum (sebaceous follicles = "acne glands") that is oozed
underneath the hears.
The anatomical relations are so typical that it's clear that these
constellations (scales>hair>sebum(+squalene)) were once part of the
streamlined head (filling up the "dips' between head & body, & above the
supraorbital torus (& possibly in the axillas, swimming with the arms next
to the body, & the pubic hair filling up the dips  between the thighs?).
Neck manes are also seen in male sealions.

--marc


>>  Hair and scalp diseases:
>>  medical, surgical, and cosmetic treatments
>>  AJ McMichael & MK Hordinsky eds 2008
>>  Informa Healthcare USA
>>  Dandruff and Seborrheic Dermatitis:
>>  Use of Medicated Shampoos
>>  Janet G Hickman   ...
>>  ANTHROPOLOGY OF DANDRUFF
>>  Although a theory not widely held by current anthropologists, the Aquatic
>>  Ape hypothesis of human evolution offers a possible role for dandruff in
>>  human development. The tenets of this hypothesis are that the evolutionary
>>  forebears of Homo sapiens were adapted to a warm aquatic environment and
>>  that some of those adaptations persist today. Examples include our thick
>>  subcutaneous fat layer, lack of fur, stretched hind limbs, voluntary
>>  respiration, diving reflexes, and infant swimming. Even the fi nding that
>>  omega 3 fatty acids ("fish oils") promote healthy human and ape brain
>>  development accords with this hypothesis (19­21).
>>  For dermatologic findings, this theory notes hair and sebaceous gland
>>  distribution as promoting streamlining for forward swimming in water.
>>  Thus, male vertex balding, the growth pattern of nose, ear and chest hair,
>>  and sebaceous gland concentration at the scalp, forehead, nose, and
>>  shoulders all appear adaptive for swimming. Even dandruff fi ts this
>>  hypothesis, as individual scales at the base of hairs are angled to assist
>>  in "slicking down" the hairs for decreased water resistance. The
>>  Malassezia yeasts that colonize the scalp secrete a UV protectant that may
>>  also have been useful to swimming ancestors (22,23).




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

"A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally we
`present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has there
been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening years? Perhaps
there is another explanation."

If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer to outline,
which hand would you use, and which would you outline?
Nancy

"A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally
we 'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has
there been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening
years? Perhaps there is another explanation."

If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer to
outline, which hand would you use, and which would you outline?
Nancy

It depends on who would outline it: if you did it yourself, a right-hander
would place his left hand on the wall, and paint it with his right.
But if somebody else would paint it (in this case, the initiator/priestŠ), I
don't know, I think I would place my left hand on the wall (and keep my
right hand "free").

We (right-handers at least) use our left hand to fixate something manually
(fork, baby, shield, paper), often outside our vision, and our right hand to
manipulate something within the fovea of our visual field = to "fixate"
something visually (knife, milk bottle, sword, pen).
IOW, our left hand is "dominant" for stabilizing something, our right hand
for doing something.

--marc






[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Bipedalism: A Response to Climate and Other Evolutionary Pressures
Kirsti J. Robertson
<http://www.studentpulse.com/authors/385/kirsti-j-robertson>
                                                2011, Vol. 3 No. 03 | Page
1 of 1
Many
  theories regarding bipedalism in early hominids, as well as the
advantages provided by bipedalism have arisen and have been debated. The
  theories are an attempt to reconstruct the past environs in which these
  early bipeds lived, to make a solid, tangible idea of how bipedalism
emerged as a need of daily activity. No one theory is complete, however.
  As new data arises and the history of bipedalism scales back even
further in history, anthropologists still have yet to find one theory to
  encompass all ideas.
Pete Wheeler and Pat Shipman are two anthropologist who claim to have
  a resolution as to why bipedalism first emerged. Wheeler, convinced
that heat is the sole proprietor of bipedalism and Shipman, persuaded
that bipedalism evolved as a response to freeing the hands, fail to
mention that both theories have ample evidence and that both are viable
explanations. To analyze either authors reasoning, we must glance into
the scientific atmosphere at the time. In Shipman and Wheelers paper,
Australopithecus afarensis is the oldest known hominin fossil.
Consequentially, they base their research off of the environment of A.
afarensis (such as savannas).


To examine the theory that Wheeler proposes, we can envision
  a savanna, whose climate would be much to harsh for any animal without
any cooling mechanism. Most savanna mammal are fitted with the ³"carotid
  rete, a network of fine arteries at the base of the brain, coupled with
  the venous circulation through the muzzle" (Wheeler, 1993). This allows
  the brain to cool rapidly, however interestingly, this feature is
missing in these early bipeds. They would eventually ³replace² this
feature, as Wheeler claims, with  the ability to cool the entire body
and thereby cool the brain. His argument is simple; "erect posture
exposes less surface area to the sun and lifts the body above the
ground, which keeps the body temperature cooler and reduce the dangers
of dehydration and sunstroke on the savanna." Although he did compare
and contrast different quadruped and biped, hairy and naked subjects on
the amount of sun exposure received, more thorough research should be
conducted to refine this idea, as seen in Shipman's excerpt.Pat Shipman
begins his journey to understand the hominin atmosphere
with an anecdote, explaining that he began by exploring wear marks on
bones, and discovered something quite by accident. Shipman and his
colleague had found cut marks of bones, as well as carnivore tooth
marks, which they claimed were the first true pieces of evidence to
convey the correlation between early bipedal hunters and animals.
Shipman's findings are intriguing, given the assumption that early
bipedal hunters were, at the time, assumed to have procured their
sustenance in the same way as modern hunters do: ³More than 90% of the
Neolithic marks in these two categories (disarticulation or meat
removal) were from disarticulation, but to my surprise, only about 45%
percent of the corresponding Olduvai cut marks were from
disarticulation...This finding casts serious doubt that early hominids
carried their kills back to camp to share with others, since both
transport and sharing are difficult unless carcasses are cut up."
Furthermore, analysis on bones from Olduvai totaling 13 specimens, eight
  of which with signs of wear, demonstrated that carnivore tooth marks
were prevalent before any other human made marks, suggesting that early
bipeds were actually scavenging (Shipman, 1984). To be a scavenger, you
must have the physiological ability to survey large areas of land,
larger than predators survey for prey. Shipman shows that at speeds of
2.5 to 3.5mph, bipedal locomotion is more ³energetically efficient;²
couple that with the ability to see over the savanna grasses, the wide
range of dietary needs and hands that can be used to perform a separate
task such as carrying, and Shipman provides a very tantalizing argument.
What do the modern theories and studies reveal? One study compares
the energy costs between humans and chimps, and concludes: ³Even small
increases in energy savings from slight increases in hindlimb extension
or length may have provided critical selection pressure for early
hominins. Our results therefore support the hypothesis that energetics
played an important role in the evolution of bipedalism² (Sockol,
Raichlen, and Pontze, 2007). These researchers seem to side with Wheeler
  and his theory that heat was the primary evolutionary stressor, in that
  both studies are directed by energetics studies. Additionally, because
tool making arose much later than bipedalism emerged, this suggests that
  bipedalism was retained as a trait due to its usefulness (tool-making).
  ³Freeing the hands for tool making was Darwin's original suggestion,
but this seems unlikely in view of the later development of stone tool
manufacture. More probable is that bipedalism is an energetically
efficient response to the spread of nonforested environments between 10
and 5 million years ago. Apart from its locomotor efficiency in
terrestrial environments, it has also been convincingly argued that it
provides a number of clear thermoregulatory advantages in what would
have been considerably hot environments. It is thus linked to other
unique human traits such as copious sweating and loss of body hair²
(Foley, 2011). These theories are in line with Wheeler's claim (albeit
energetics only merits one paragraph in his excerpt): ³Finally human
bipedalism at low speeds uses less energy that does either true
quadrupedalism or the knuckle walking used by African apes. This reduces
  both dietary requirements (and the time and effort spent foraging) and
the rate at which heat is generated internally as a byproduct of
muscular activity.² To ensure my assertion that bipedality is the
response to hominin needs for energetic efficiency, a study conducted by
  Leslie Aiello and Jonathon Wells claims that there are massive energy
requirements due to the emergence of the genus Homo. It can be assumed
that as evolution continues to run it's course, energy requirements
fluctuate, and humans will adapt physiologically to accommodate.
In conclusion, bipedalism emerged as the need to be energetically
efficient for subsistence strategies, such as scavenging. Tool-making
and freeing the hands influenced the retention of bipedalism, as did
other physiological traits that evolved as hominins evolved through
time.

From the work of Thomas Wilson Parry MD (1866-1945) as described in;
The Lost Civilizations of the Stone Age, by Richard Rudgley. Copyright 1999.
ISBN 0-684-86270-0.
Parry became fascinated by trepanation, especially as done in the stone age. He
identified various methods and did experiments on freshly dead human bodies. In
addition to using flint and obsidian he even used a beach washed shell
successfully.
The big surprise was shark teeth.
"Parry found that the most effective of all surgical implements for boring holes
in bone, with the exception of those made of metal, was a hafted shark's tooth."
Rudgley.
Parry noted the shark tooth's sharpness, the strength of its point and its
serrated edges. In addition, the tooth has a natural flange to aid in tying it
to a handle.

Given that sharks shed their teeth constantly they should be fairly common along
beaches. Shark teeth should be added to the possible tool kit of coastal humans
of any age.

In a search of AAT archive I found the following;
Tools, different thinking
teeburd105@.
Message #6726
Feb 12, 2001
There's an ongoing thread on early tools, and I'd like to add two that aren't
heard about much. The first, obsidian, is very workable and can have an edge
unrivaled by most other mediums. This, I think, is limited to areas of
vulcanism, but that includes a lot of the planet.
The second tool, (or potential tool) is one that is found throughout the
world...sharks teeth. Sharks teeth are the number one fossil on the planet, due
to the time frame for sharks and their habit of producing many teeth in a
lifetime. I bought a 20,000,000 yr old tooth from a dig in the California desert
and was immediately struck by the utilitarian look of the piece. Some are very
small, some are larger than human hands, all have cutting edges and hand holds.
If you've never held a sharks tooth in your hand, do, it, you'll see what I'm
talking about.
Marc........these would make great oyster knives!
TonyK
P.S.: The 'dig' was Calico, the site once suspected ( Leaky) of Homo erectus
(HSA) type tools.

(WIKI page; Calico Early Man Site, for latest).

I have not attempted to locate these articles cited in the bibliography but
perhaps they will interest some;
Parry, T.W., 1914. `Prehistoric Man and His Early Efforts to Combat Disease',
The Lancet 13 June.
Parry, T.W.,1916. `The Art of Trephining Among Prehistoric and Primitive
Peoples: The Motives for its Practice and Their Methods of Procedure', Journal
of the British Archaeological Association March 1916, 33-69.
Parry, T.W., 1918. Surgery of the stone Age: A Ballad of Neolithic Times, John
Bale, London.
Parry, T.W., 1923. Trephination of the Living Human Skull in Prehistoric Times,
British Medical Association, London.

Terry

--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Nancy <Empress9@...> wrote:
>
>
> "A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally we
`present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has there
been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening years? Perhaps
there is another explanation."
>
> If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer to outline,
which hand would you use, and which would you outline?
> Nancy
>
In Europe:
While some of the wall paintings were done with brushes and other tools, most of
the handprints were done without using a tool. The pigment was blown over the
hand leaving a random splatter around it. No solid line. Hand control would not
have mattered.
Terry

--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...> wrote:
>
> "A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally
> we 'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has
> there been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening
> years? Perhaps there is another explanation."
>
> If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer to
> outline, which hand would you use, and which would you outline?
> Nancy
>
> It depends on who would outline it: if you did it yourself, a right-hander
> would place his left hand on the wall, and paint it with his right.
> But if somebody else would paint it (in this case, the initiator/priestŠ), I
> don't know, I think I would place my left hand on the wall (and keep my
> right hand "free").
>
> We (right-handers at least) use our left hand to fixate something manually
> (fork, baby, shield, paper), often outside our vision, and our right hand to
> manipulate something within the fovea of our visual field = to "fixate"
> something visually (knife, milk bottle, sword, pen).
> IOW, our left hand is "dominant" for stabilizing something, our right hand
> for doing something.
>
> --marc
>
Also, was the palm up or down? We assume something is obvious without knowing
what was intended.
The `dominant' for stabilization is new to me. Very interesting.
Terry>
>
>
>
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>

I'm interested in any links you have postulating the "blowing" of pigment. I'm
wondering if there would be any distinction from stippling which would seem to
be more likely than ingesting pigment.  I recently got very close to some
handprints in Patagonia in a shallow cave with some other drawings. I was
fascinated in that it appeared to me that the area where the artwork appeared
had been "plastered" or "gessoed" to give a better surface on the rather rough
granite or whatever it was.

As for "priests" ??? Where is there any indication for priests? It's been my
theory that most early artwork was done by women and children who undoubtedly
spent more time in the caves. That seems borne out in Chauvet, where at least
some of the handprints were of young females.

Nancy

Posted by: "Marc Verhaegen" m_verhaegen@...   aquape
Sun Apr 22, 2012 1:59 pm (PDT)

"A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally
we 'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has
there been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening
years? Perhaps there is another explanation."

Nancy>> If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer to
outline, which hand would you use, and which would you outline?<<
Nancy

Marc>>It depends on who would outline it: if you did it yourself, a right-hander
would place his left hand on the wall, and paint it with his right.
But if somebody else would paint it (in this case, the initiator/priestŠ), I
don't know, I think I would place my left hand on the wall (and keep my
right hand "free").

We (right-handers at least) use our left hand to fixate something manually
(fork, baby, shield, paper), often outside our vision, and our right hand to
manipulate something within the fovea of our visual field = to "fixate"
something visually (knife, milk bottle, sword, pen).
IOW, our left hand is "dominant" for stabilizing something, our right hand
for doing something.<<

Terry>>In Europe:
While some of the wall paintings were done with brushes and other tools, most of
the handprints were done without using a tool. The pigment was blown over the
hand leaving a random splatter around it. No solid line. Hand control would not
have mattered.
Terry

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Europe's cave art (since Grotte Chauvet ~36.5 ka = warmer phase?) = part
of worldwide tradition of totems (Out of Africa c 50 ka)?  The completely
dark caves were not for living, but for rituals it is believed.
- The artworks themselves were extremely realistic, part of a long
tradition of painters, in black & red, following natural curves of the
rocks etc., in the beginning mostly illustrations of carnivores, later
more ungulates. Perhaps comparable with medieval churches that were
illustrated with scenes of the lives of saints or heroes, or friezes in
Greek, Roman & Indian temples etc.
- More numerous were incomplete sketches, experiments of pupils of
painters etc.
- In some caves there are rows of heel impressions, it is thought
initiating ritual dances.
- A lot of caves contain "pornographic" material, probably drawn by
pubers: breasts, genitals, copulating people etc.

--marc



Op 23/04/12 18:58 schreef Nancy Bovee <Empress9@...>:

>I'm interested in any links you have postulating the "blowing" of
>pigment. I'm wondering if there would be any distinction from stippling
>which would seem to be more likely than ingesting pigment.  I recently
>got very close to some handprints in Patagonia in a shallow cave with
>some other drawings. I was fascinated in that it appeared to me that the
>area where the artwork appeared had been "plastered" or "gessoed" to give
>a better surface on the rather rough granite or whatever it was.
>
>As for "priests" ??? Where is there any indication for priests? It's been
>my theory that most early artwork was done by women and children who
>undoubtedly spent more time in the caves. That seems borne out in
>Chauvet, where at least some of the handprints were of young females.
>
>Nancy
>
>Posted by: "Marc Verhaegen" m_verhaegen@...   aquape
>Sun Apr 22, 2012 1:59 pm (PDT)
>
>"A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally
>we 'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has
>there been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening
>years? Perhaps there is another explanation."
>
>Nancy>> If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer
>to
>outline, which hand would you use, and which would you outline?<<
>Nancy
>
>Marc>>It depends on who would outline it: if you did it yourself, a
>right-hander
>would place his left hand on the wall, and paint it with his right.
>But if somebody else would paint it (in this case, the
>initiator/priestŠ), I
>don't know, I think I would place my left hand on the wall (and keep my
>right hand "free").
>
>We (right-handers at least) use our left hand to fixate something manually
>(fork, baby, shield, paper), often outside our vision, and our right hand
>to
>manipulate something within the fovea of our visual field = to "fixate"
>something visually (knife, milk bottle, sword, pen).
>IOW, our left hand is "dominant" for stabilizing something, our right hand
>for doing something.<<
>
>Terry>>In Europe:
>While some of the wall paintings were done with brushes and other tools,
>most of the handprints were done without using a tool. The pigment was
>blown over the hand leaving a random splatter around it. No solid line.
>Hand control would not have mattered.
>Terry
>
>[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>------------------------------------
>
>Community email addresses:
>  Post message: AAT@yahoogroups.com
>  Subscribe:    AAT-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
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>
>
>

http://sandwalk.blogspot.com/2011/03/zombie-theories.html




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Polar bears older than previously thought
New analysis reveals the Arctic species dates back about 600,000 years
Rebecca Cheung  April 19th, 2012

<http://www.sciencenews.org/view/access/id/340091/title/rc_hailer4HR-polar-
bear.jpg>
... These animals emerged much earlier than previously thought, c 600 ka,
a new genetic analysis suggests.


Polar bears might have originated c 600 ka, an international team reports
April 20 in Science.
Previously, studies suggested that Ursus maritimus emerged much later, c
150 ka.
But many of these estimates were based on analyzing mitochondrial DNA.
In the new study, researchers partially decoded DNA from 45 bears,
including polar, brown & black bears.
A comparison of the various species' nuclear DNA indicates that polar
bears are much older than previously thought.
This means that populations likely survived through several glacial
periods & the warmer times between.
But the polar bear population's lack of genetic variation suggests that
the warm phases created a genetic bottleneck, wiping out many individual
bears.
Coauthor Frank Hailer says that adding climate change, speeded up by
humans, to stresses such as habitat loss, pollution & hunting might pose a
threat to polar bear survival.

Most of the handprints have a misty halo around them. Very much like what a
modern airbrush would make. Many of the large animal figures also use this
technique in varying degree.
Michel Lorblanchet has become well known for his work in recreating these
methods. These links should help:
Paleolithic Paint Job
Two French archeologists are trying to get closer--much closer--to an ancient
act of creation.
<http://discovermagazine.com/1993/jul/paleolithicpaint240>
Cave painters giveaway handprints at Pech-Merle
<http://www.archaeologydaily.com/news/200909112140/Cave-painters-giveaway-handpr\
ints-at-Pech-Merle.html>

On your observation that the work you observed appeared to have had something
put on the rock first. It is possible that a binder such as fat, egg or bone
marrow was used to hold dry powder.

The question of lighting is curious. Many locations, when discovered, showed
little or no soot on the wall and ceiling. Most plant and animal products
produce soot when burned.
I have no evidence for this and it is completely a speculation:
An important crop in ancient Egypt was the castor bean. One of the less well
known properties of castor oil is that it burns with a smokeless flame. This is
how workmen were able to decorate the tombs with out coating painted ceilings
with soot. There was a similar fuel source, it just has not been recognized yet.
Terry



--- In AAT@yahoogroups.com, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...> wrote:
>
> Europe's cave art (since Grotte Chauvet ~36.5 ka = warmer phase?) = part
> of worldwide tradition of totems (Out of Africa c 50 ka)?  The completely
> dark caves were not for living, but for rituals it is believed.
> - The artworks themselves were extremely realistic, part of a long
> tradition of painters, in black & red, following natural curves of the
> rocks etc., in the beginning mostly illustrations of carnivores, later
> more ungulates. Perhaps comparable with medieval churches that were
> illustrated with scenes of the lives of saints or heroes, or friezes in
> Greek, Roman & Indian temples etc.
> - More numerous were incomplete sketches, experiments of pupils of
> painters etc.
> - In some caves there are rows of heel impressions, it is thought
> initiating ritual dances.
> - A lot of caves contain "pornographic" material, probably drawn by
> pubers: breasts, genitals, copulating people etc.
>
> --marc
>
>
>
> Op 23/04/12 18:58 schreef Nancy Bovee <Empress9@...>:
>
> >I'm interested in any links you have postulating the "blowing" of
> >pigment. I'm wondering if there would be any distinction from stippling
> >which would seem to be more likely than ingesting pigment.  I recently
> >got very close to some handprints in Patagonia in a shallow cave with
> >some other drawings. I was fascinated in that it appeared to me that the
> >area where the artwork appeared had been "plastered" or "gessoed" to give
> >a better surface on the rather rough granite or whatever it was.
> >
> >As for "priests" ??? Where is there any indication for priests? It's been
> >my theory that most early artwork was done by women and children who
> >undoubtedly spent more time in the caves. That seems borne out in
> >Chauvet, where at least some of the handprints were of young females.
> >
> >Nancy
> >
> >Posted by: "Marc Verhaegen" m_verhaegen@...   aquape
> >Sun Apr 22, 2012 1:59 pm (PDT)
> >
> >"A new point is the left hand appears more often than the right. Generally
> >we 'present' our dominant hand and start a step on our dominant foot. Has
> >there been a shift of brain hemisphere dominance during the intervening
> >years? Perhaps there is another explanation."
> >
> >Nancy>> If you had pigment on a brush or tool and wanted to apply a layer
> >to
> >outline, which hand would you use, and which would you outline?<<
> >Nancy
> >
> >Marc>>It depends on who would outline it: if you did it yourself, a
> >right-hander
> >would place his left hand on the wall, and paint it with his right.
> >But if somebody else would paint it (in this case, the
> >initiator/priestŠ), I
> >don't know, I think I would place my left hand on the wall (and keep my
> >right hand "free").
> >
> >We (right-handers at least) use our left hand to fixate something manually
> >(fork, baby, shield, paper), often outside our vision, and our right hand
> >to
> >manipulate something within the fovea of our visual field = to "fixate"
> >something visually (knife, milk bottle, sword, pen).
> >IOW, our left hand is "dominant" for stabilizing something, our right hand
> >for doing something.<<
> >
> >Terry>>In Europe:
> >While some of the wall paintings were done with brushes and other tools,
> >most of the handprints were done without using a tool. The pigment was
> >blown over the hand leaving a random splatter around it. No solid line.
> >Hand control would not have mattered.
> >Terry
> >
> >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
> >
> >
> >------------------------------------
> >
> >Community email addresses:
> >  Post message: AAT@yahoogroups.com
> >  Subscribe:    AAT-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
> >  Unsubscribe:  AAT-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
> >  List owner:   AAT-owner@yahoogroups.com
> >
> >Shortcut URL to this page:
> >  http://www.yahoogroups.com/community/AATYahoo! Groups Links
> >
> >
> >
>

Social environment is associated with gene regulatory variation in the
rhesus macaque immune system
Jenny Tung cs 2012 PNAS 109:6490-5 open access

Variation in the social environment is a fundamental component of many
vertebrate societies.
In humans & primates, adverse social environments often translate into
lasting physiological costs.
...
Here we addressed these questions by leveraging the power of an
experimental system that consisted of 10 social groups of female macaques,
in which each individual's social status (dominance rank) could be
experimentally controlled.
  Using this paradigm, we show that dominance rank results in a widespread,
yet plastic, imprint on gene regulation, such that peripheral blood
mononuclear cell gene expression data alone predict social status with 80
% accuracy.
We investigated the mechanistic basis of these effects, using cell
type-specific gene expression profiling & gluco-corticoid resistance
assays, which together contributed to rank effects on gene expression
levels for 694 (70 %) of the 987 rank-related genes.
We also explored the possible contribution of DNA methylation levels to
these effects, and identified global associations between dominance rank &
methylation profiles that suggest epigenetic flexibility in response to
status-related behavioral cues.
Together, these results illuminate the importance of the molecular
response to social conditions, particularly in the immune system, and
demonstrate a key role for gene regulation in linking the social
environment to individual physiology.

The authors of this paper expressed their puzzlement that the human need for
iodine was greater than would have been expected, and
commented that  nobody  had been able to think of an explanation.

Elaine

Orthoiodosupplementation: Iodine Sufficiency Of The Whole Human Body

Guy. E. Abraham M.D.1, Jorge D. Flechas M.D.2 and John C. Hakala R.Ph.3




[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

LOL. That iodine thing was one of the reasons I started looking at
"shoreline diets" to begin with. There are a handful of dietary needs that
are just "off" for humans, compared to most animals. We also tend to hoard
copper, which is something that happens in Orkney sheep, who eat a lot of
seaweed. And of course the Omega 3's.  Humans have to work really hard to
get the right diet, if they live inland. What is weird is that so few
people notice that. Pretty much every food study I've seen, the healthier
people eat shoreline foods.


On Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 3:59 AM, Elaine Morgan <elaine@...>wrote:

> **
>
>
> The authors of this paper expressed their puzzlement that the human need
> for iodine was greater than would have been expected, and
> commented that nobody had been able to think of an explanation.
>
> Elaine
>
> Orthoiodosupplementation: Iodine Sufficiency Of The Whole Human Body
>
> Guy. E. Abraham M.D.1, Jorge D. Flechas M.D.2 and John C. Hakala R.Ph.3
>
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>



--
Heather Twist
http://eatingoffthefoodgrid.blogspot.com/


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Thanks a lot, Elaine & Heather. I was thinking of answering them, but it's
apparently a creationist text:
"Such high requirements for I- in an environment depleted of this
element, do not have a logical explanation. Unless sometimes in the
distant past, the top soil of planet earth contains significant levels
of I- and meeting these high requirements for I- sufficiency could then
be achieved with any diet. The theory of evolution does not offer an
intellectually satisfying answer to this paradox. However, the Biblical
account of the origin of the world through creation 6000 years ago
followed by the fall of man and the flood fits very well the current
situation. According to the biblical narrative, the Creator declared
planet earth and everything in it perfect. Therefore, the original
planet earth contained a top soil rich in I, and all elements required
for perfect health of Adam, Eve and their descendants. A rebelled
archangel was expelled from God¹s Habitation for attempting a hostile
takeover (Isaiah 14:12-15). His name was Lucifer before the attempt
(Isaiah 14:12) and Satan after his expulsion (Luke 10:18). Satan
deceived Eve into believing that she could become a goddess by
disobeying her Creator (Genesis 3:4,5). A sequence of events followed,
culminating in the worldwide flood 4500 years ago. Following this
episode, the receding waters washed away the top soil with all its
elements into oceans and seas. The new top soil became deficient in I
and most likely other essential elements, whose essentialities are
still unknown. Mountainous areas became the most I-deficient because
the receding waters were the most rapid over the steep slopes, eroding
deeper into the soil. The post-deluvian worldwide I deficiency may be a
reminder to mankind of the flood, their fallen state and their need for
a Redeemer."

--marc

Op 25/04/12 19:50 schreef Heather Twist <HeatherTwist@...>:

>LOL. That iodine thing was one of the reasons I started looking at
>"shoreline diets" to begin with. There are a handful of dietary needs that
>are just "off" for humans, compared to most animals. We also tend to hoard
>copper, which is something that happens in Orkney sheep, who eat a lot of
>seaweed. And of course the Omega 3's.  Humans have to work really hard to
>get the right diet, if they live inland. What is weird is that so few
>people notice that. Pretty much every food study I've seen, the healthier
>people eat shoreline foods.
>
>
>On Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 3:59 AM, Elaine Morgan
><elaine@...>wrote:
>
>> **
>>
>>
>> The authors of this paper expressed their puzzlement that the human need
>> for iodine was greater than would have been expected, and
>> commented that nobody had been able to think of an explanation.
>>
>> Elaine
>>
>> Orthoiodosupplementation: Iodine Sufficiency Of The Whole Human Body
>>
>> Guy. E. Abraham M.D.1, Jorge D. Flechas M.D.2 and John C. Hakala R.Ph.3
>>
>> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
>--
>Heather Twist
>http://eatingoffthefoodgrid.blogspot.com/
>
>
>[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>
>
>
>------------------------------------
>
>Community email addresses:
>  Post message: AAT@yahoogroups.com
>  Subscribe:    AAT-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
>  Unsubscribe:  AAT-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com
>  List owner:   AAT-owner@yahoogroups.com
>
>Shortcut URL to this page:
>  http://www.yahoogroups.com/community/AATYahoo! Groups Links
>
>
>

Syntactic structure and geographical dialects in the songs of male rock
hyraxes
Arik Kershenbaum cs 2012
Proc R Soc B doi 10.1098/rspb.2012.0322

... Syntactically complex mammalian vocalizations have been previously
studied only in primates, cetaceans & bats.
We provide evidence of complex syntactic vocalizations in a small social
mammal: Procavia capensis.
We adopted 3 algorithms, commonly used in genetic sequence analysis &
information theory, to examine the order of syllables in hyrax calls.
Syntactic dialects exist, and the syntax of hyrax calls is significantly
different between different regions in Israel.
Call syntax difference is positively correlated to geographical distance
over short distances.
No correlation is found over long distances, which may reflect limited
dispersal movement.
These findings indicate that rich syntactic structure is more common in
the vocalizations of mammalian taxa than previously thought and suggest
the possibility of vocal production learning in the hyrax.


http://www.nytimes.com/2012/04/24/science/hyrax-songs-have-orderly-syntax-r
esearchers-say.html

Looks Like a Rodent, Croons Like a Bird
JAMES GORMAN 19.4.12

The hyrax is a bit Seussian, however. It looks something like a rabbit,
something like a woodchuck.
Its closest living relatives are elephants, manatees and dugongs.
And male rock hyraxes have complex songs like those of birds, in the sense
that males will go on for 5 or 10' at a stretch, apparently advertising
themselves.
One might have expected that the hyrax would have some unusual qualities -
the animals' feet, if you know how to look at them, resemble elephants'
toes, the experts say.
And their visible front teeth are actually very small tusks.
But Arik Kershenbaum cs (2012 Proc R Soc B) have found something more
surprising. Hyraxes' songs have something rarely found in mammals: syntax
that varies according to where the hyraxes live, geographical dialects in
how they put their songs together.
Bird songs show syntax, this ordering of song components in different
ways, but very few mammals make such orderly, arranged sounds.
Whales, bats & some primates show syntax in their vocalizations, but
nobody really expected such sophistication from the hyrax - it was thought
that the selection of sounds in the songs were relatively random.

Hyraxes are common in Africa & the Middle East, and there are quite a lot
of them where Mr Kershenbaum lives.
He kept hearing their songs: "I simply don't believe that these complex
songs can be totally random."
They recorded hyraxes around Israel, and analyzed the make-up of the songs
using mathematical techniques drawn from genetic
analysis. They found a complex syntax that did vary.
They suspect that the dialects may be carried by males when they leave
their home territory as they mature, and that changes in dialect come as
other hyraxes copy the songs imperfectly or improvise.
Their songs are not like those of birds, as you might imagine by the way
scientists have broken down the notes, or syllables, of hyrax arias.
The 5 kinds of sounds are the wail, chuck, snort, squeak & tweet.
Syntax, Mr.Kershenbaum said, is one of the building blocks of language.
Not that he or anyone else is saying that the hyraxes are talking to one
another, or to us, or have anything like language.
The songs, he says, probably don't carry any information in their
arrangement of sounds, although the males may make them longer & more
complicated to attract females, showing off their songs the way other
animals might show off elaborate plumage or large antlers.
Even so, finding such complex vocal arrangements outside of whales, bats &
primates is significant, and may suggest that syntax is present in other
mammals as well.

Aha! So THAT is why the iodine all disappeared. I heard that's why there
are no unicorns too.


On Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 2:48 PM, Marc Verhaegen <m_verhaegen@...>wrote:

> **
>
>
> Thanks a lot, Elaine & Heather. I was thinking of answering them, but it's
> apparently a creationist text:
> "Such high requirements for I- in an environment depleted of this
> element, do not have a logical explanation. Unless sometimes in the
> distant past, the top soil of planet earth contains significant levels
> of I- and meeting these high requirements for I- sufficiency could then
> be achieved with any diet. The theory of evolution does not offer an
> intellectually satisfying answer to this paradox. However, the Biblical
> account of the origin of the world through creation 6000 years ago
> followed by the fall of man and the flood fits very well the current
> situation. According to the biblical narrative, the Creator declared
> planet earth and everything in it perfect. Therefore, the original
> planet earth contained a top soil rich in I, and all elements required
> for perfect health of Adam, Eve and their descendants. A rebelled
> archangel was expelled from God¹s Habitation for attempting a hostile
> takeover (Isaiah 14:12-15). His name was Lucifer before the attempt
> (Isaiah 14:12) and Satan after his expulsion (Luke 10:18). Satan
> deceived Eve into believing that she could become a goddess by
> disobeying her Creator (Genesis 3:4,5). A sequence of events followed,
> culminating in the worldwide flood 4500 years ago. Following this
> episode, the receding waters washed away the top soil with all its
> elements into oceans and seas. The new top soil became deficient in I
> and most likely other essential elements, whose essentialities are
> still unknown. Mountainous areas became the most I-deficient because
> the receding waters were the most rapid over the steep slopes, eroding
> deeper into the soil. The post-deluvian worldwide I deficiency may be a
> reminder to mankind of the flood, their fallen state and their need for
> a Redeemer."
>
> --marc
>
> Op 25/04/12 19:50 schreef Heather Twist <HeatherTwist@...>:
>
> >LOL. That iodine thing was one of the reasons I started looking at
> >"shoreline diets" to begin with. There are a handful of dietary needs that
> >are just "off" for humans, compared to most animals. We also tend to hoard
> >copper, which is something that happens in Orkney sheep, who eat a lot of
> >seaweed. And of course the Omega 3's. Humans have to work really hard to
> >get the right diet, if they live inland. What is weird is that so few
> >people notice that. Pretty much every food study I've seen, the healthier
> >people eat shoreline foods.
> >
> >
> >On Wed, Apr 25, 2012 at 3:59 AM, Elaine Morgan
> ><elaine@...>wrote:
> >
> >> **
> >>
> >>
> >> The authors of this paper expressed their puzzlement that the human need
> >> for iodine was greater than would have been expected, and
> >> commented that nobody had been able to think of an explanation.
> >>
> >> Elaine
> >>
> >> Orthoiodosupplementation: Iodine Sufficiency Of The Whole Human Body
> >>
> >> Guy. E. Abraham M.D.1, Jorge D. Flechas M.D.2 and John C. Hakala R.Ph.3
> >>
> >> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >
> >
> >
> >--
> >Heather Twist
> >http://eatingoffthefoodgrid.blogspot.com/
> >
> >
> >[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
> >
> >
> >
> >------------------------------------
> >
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> >
> >
> >
>
>
>



--
Heather Twist
http://eatingoffthefoodgrid.blogspot.com/


[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]