In Search of Our Ancient Ancestors

In Search of Our Ancient Ancestors PDF Author: Anthony Adolph
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1473849225
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description
A top genealogist “shows how genetics helps and how it roots each of us in this magnificent story of Life on Earth in the most meaningful way imaginable.”—Reunite Magazine “What a fine long pedigree you have given the human race.”—Charles Darwin to Charles Lyell, 1863 How distantly are we related to dinosaurs? How much of your DNA came from Neanderthals? How are the builders of Stonehenge connected to great-grandpa? According to science, life first appeared on Earth about 3,500 million years ago. Every living thing is descended from that first spark, including all of us. But if we trace a direct line down from those original life forms to ourselves, what do we find? What is the full story of our family tree over the past 3,500 million years, and how are we able to trace ourselves so far back? From single-celled organisms to sea-dwelling vertebrates; amphibians to reptiles; tiny mammals to primitive man; the first Homo sapiens to the cave painters of Ice Age Europe and the first farmers down to the Norman Conquest, this book charts not only the extraordinary story of our ancient ancestors but also our 40,000-year-long quest to discover our roots, from ancient origin myths of world-shaping mammoths and great floods down to the scientific discovery of our descent from the Genetic Adam and the Mitochondrial Eve. “Having read it I’m still slightly shell-shocked by the range of topics that he covers, from the origins of the universe and life on Earth to the present-day DNA analysis that aims to answer some of our questions about our past. And everything in between!”—LostCousins

In Search of Our Ancient Ancestors

In Search of Our Ancient Ancestors PDF Author: Anthony Adolph
Publisher: Casemate Publishers
ISBN: 1473849225
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 292

Get Book Here

Book Description
A top genealogist “shows how genetics helps and how it roots each of us in this magnificent story of Life on Earth in the most meaningful way imaginable.”—Reunite Magazine “What a fine long pedigree you have given the human race.”—Charles Darwin to Charles Lyell, 1863 How distantly are we related to dinosaurs? How much of your DNA came from Neanderthals? How are the builders of Stonehenge connected to great-grandpa? According to science, life first appeared on Earth about 3,500 million years ago. Every living thing is descended from that first spark, including all of us. But if we trace a direct line down from those original life forms to ourselves, what do we find? What is the full story of our family tree over the past 3,500 million years, and how are we able to trace ourselves so far back? From single-celled organisms to sea-dwelling vertebrates; amphibians to reptiles; tiny mammals to primitive man; the first Homo sapiens to the cave painters of Ice Age Europe and the first farmers down to the Norman Conquest, this book charts not only the extraordinary story of our ancient ancestors but also our 40,000-year-long quest to discover our roots, from ancient origin myths of world-shaping mammoths and great floods down to the scientific discovery of our descent from the Genetic Adam and the Mitochondrial Eve. “Having read it I’m still slightly shell-shocked by the range of topics that he covers, from the origins of the universe and life on Earth to the present-day DNA analysis that aims to answer some of our questions about our past. And everything in between!”—LostCousins

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors PDF Author: Carl Sagan
Publisher: Ballantine Books
ISBN: 0307801039
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 528

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Book Description
NATIONAL BESTSELLER • “Exciting and provocative . . . A tour de force of a book that begs to be seen as well as to be read.”—The Washington Post Book World World renowned scientist Carl Sagan and acclaimed author Ann Druyan have written a Roots for the human species, a lucid and riveting account of how humans got to be the way we are. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors is a thrilling saga that starts with the origin of the Earth. It shows with humor and drama that many of our key traits—self-awareness, technology, family ties, submission to authority, hatred for those a little different from ourselves, reason, and ethics—are rooted in the deep past, and illuminated by our kinship with other animals. Sagan and Druyan conduct a breathtaking journey through space and time, zeroing in on critical turning points in evolutionary history, and tracing the origins of sex, altruism, violence, rape, and dominance. Their book culminates in a stunningly original examination of the connection between primate and human traits. Astonishing in its scope, brilliant in its insights, and an absolutely compelling read, Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors is a triumph of popular science.

Ancestors in Our Genome

Ancestors in Our Genome PDF Author: Eugene E. Harris (Professor)
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199978034
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 249

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Book Description
Geneticist Eugene Harris presents us with the complete and up-to-date account of the evolution of the human genome.

Prehistoric Investigations 2

Prehistoric Investigations 2 PDF Author: Christopher Seddon
Publisher: Glanville Publishers, Incorporated
ISBN: 9781739251994
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
AN OMNIBUS EDITION OF THE 'IN SEARCH OF' SERIES The 'In Search of' series of twelve 12,000-word Kindle short reads has been a highly successful follow-up to Christopher Seddon's full-sized works 'Humans: from the Beginning', 'Prehistoric Investigations', and 'Astronomy: from the Beginning'. Now, for the first time, all twelve short reads are available in a single, printed volume. FEATURING: THE FIRST HOMININS Before the first humans came the age of the australopithecines - apes that walked upright like humans, but with brains no larger than those of chimpanzees. HOMO ERECTUS In the late nineteenth century, Dutch anthropologist Eugène Dubois found the first example of an extinct human that had lived significantly before Homo sapiens. THE ACHEULEAN HAND AXE A multifunction tool that remained in use, more or less unchanged, for 1,750,000 years. PILTDOWN MAN The story of the most notorious hoax in the history of palaeoanthropology. MUDDLE IN THE MIDDLE How Homo sapiens emerged into a world shared with Neanderthals, Denisovans, and 'hobbits'. FIRST USE OF FIRE Darwin described the discovery of fire as "probably the greatest, excepting language, ever made by man" - but how was it made? GLANVILLE PUBLICATIONS COVER DESIGN: Vici Macdonald NEANDERTHALS The term has been used in a negative context for decades, but why do Neanderthals get such a bad rap? EARLY FUNERARY PRACTICES Mourning and remembering the dead is a very ancient part of the human condition, but it may not be confined to modern or even archaic humans. THE ORIGINS OF HOMO SAPIENS How our understanding of human origins has developed over the centuries, from the Great Chain of Being to modern theories. PREHISTORIC ART The discovery of the first cave art shattered nineteenth-century perceptions that the people of that era were primitive savages. EARLY SEAFARERS The oldest-known boats are only around 12,000 years old, but seafaring could predate the emergence of modern humans. EARLY METALLURGY For most of their existence, humans made tools from stone and bone. How did they learn about copper, bronze, and iron?

In Search of Ancient Kings

In Search of Ancient Kings PDF Author: Brian Willson
Publisher: Univ. Press of Mississippi
ISBN: 149683447X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 202

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Book Description
The Egúngún society is one of the least-studied and written-about aspects of African diasporic spiritual traditions. It is the society of the ancestors, the society of the dead. Its primary function is to facilitate all aspects of ancestor veneration. Though it is fundamental to Yorùbá culture and the Ifá/Òrìṣà tradition of the Yorùbá, it did not survive intact in Cuba or the US during the forced migration of the Yorùbá in the Middle Passage. Taking hold only in Brazil, the Egúngún cult has thrived since the early 1800s on the small island of Itaparica, across the Bay of All Saints from Salvador, Bahia. Existing almost exclusively on this tiny island until the 1970s (migrating to Rio de Janeiro and, eventually, Recife), this ancient cult was preserved by a handful of families and flourished in a strict, orthodox manner. Brian Willson spent ten years in close contact with this lineage at the Candomble temple Xango Cá Te Espero in Rio de Janeiro and was eventually initiated as a priest of Egúngún. Representing the culmination of his personal involvement, interviews, research, and numerous visits to Brazil, this book relates the story of Egúngún from an insider’s view. Very little has been written about the cult of Egúngún, and almost exclusively what is written in English is based on research conducted in Africa and falls into the category of descriptive and historical observations. Part personal journal, part metaphysical mystery, part scholarly work, and part field research, In Search of Ancient Kings illuminates the nature of Egúngún as it is practiced in Brazil.

Ancestors

Ancestors PDF Author: Alice Roberts
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 1471188035
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 230

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Book Description
An extraordinary exploration of the ancestry of Britain through seven burial sites. By using new advances in genetics and taking us through important archaeological discoveries, Professor Alice Roberts helps us better understand life today. ‘This is a terrific, timely and transporting book - taking us heart, body and mind beyond history, to the fascinating truth of the prehistoric past and the present’ Bettany Hughes We often think of Britain springing from nowhere with the arrival of the Romans. But in Ancestors, pre-eminent archaeologist, broadcaster and academic Professor Alice Roberts explores what we can learn about the very earliest Britons, from burial sites and by using new technology to analyse ancient DNA. Told through seven fascinating burial sites, this groundbreaking prehistory of Britain teaches us more about ourselves and our history: how people came and went and how we came to be on this island. It explores forgotten journeys and memories of migrations long ago, written into genes and preserved in the ground for thousands of years. This is a book about belonging: about walking in ancient places, in the footsteps of the ancestors. It explores our interconnected global ancestry, and the human experience that binds us all together. It’s about reaching back in time, to find ourselves, and our place in the world. PRE-ORDER CRYPT, THE FINAL BOOK IN ALICE ROBERTS' BRILLIANT TRILOGY – OUT FEBRUARY 2024.

Ancestors in Search of Descendants

Ancestors in Search of Descendants PDF Author: Frederick Lamp
Publisher: Qcc Art Gallery Press Bayside New York
ISBN: 9781936658367
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description


Meeting the Family

Meeting the Family PDF Author: Donovan Webster
Publisher: National Geographic Books
ISBN: 1426205732
Category : Genealogy
Languages : en
Pages : 308

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Book Description
Relates the author's DNA-guided quest for his ancestry, which took him through time and across continents, learning lessons about evolution, genetics, and the amazing diversity of human culture along the way.

Into the House of the Ancestors

Into the House of the Ancestors PDF Author: Karl Maier
Publisher: Wiley
ISBN: 9780471295839
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 292

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Book Description
Experience Africa's vibrant and volatile struggle at the crossroads between tradition and modernity . . . INTO THE HOUSE OF THE ANCESTORS "Rich . . . fascinating." --The New York Times Book Review "A master of eyewitness description and of the telling interview, [Maier] has unearthed Africa's hidden heroes and heroines." --Financial Times "Maier has written a sensitive and complex narrative. . . . excellent descriptions of the lives and experiences of both ordinary and extraordinary individuals in different parts of Africa." --Richard Leakey, The Times (London) "A remarkable book. . . . It is no easy task to articulate an intangible undercurrent in an area so geographically large and culturally diverse, but Maier has succeeded admirably. Maier gives us hope that [the Africans] can rebound and even thrive. Highly recommended." --Library Journal

Awesome Ancient Ancestors

Awesome Ancient Ancestors PDF Author: Elizabeth Levy
Publisher: Scholastic Paperbacks
ISBN: 9780590107952
Category : Juvenile Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 156

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Book Description
Introduces the earliest humans to live in North America, and discusses hunters and gatherers, prehistoric art, the Olmecs, the Mound Builders, the Maya, the cliff-dwellers of the Southwest, and the city of Cahokia.