Fraud Fossils Found in Piltdown

The Piltdown man was the first fossilized being to be found in England in the early 1900’s. It was an epic discovery for the people of England because up until that point there had been no early remains of ancient beings in England, just in places like Africa, Asia, France and Germany. The man that found the fossilized man was Charles Dawson who was an amateur archaeologist seeking fame and recognition. The jaw of the fossil was very ape-like in its shape but had teeth like a human, leading to the conclusion that this being could be the connection between humans and apes. Dawson brought a well renowned geologist, Sir Arthur Smith Woodward, to work with him in digging for more fossils at Piltdown. He believed that Piltdown man was a crucial step in to finding more about the ancient English ancestors. For years, Dawson Woodward and a few others dug and found multiple parts of the fossilized being and a few others. Scientist cheered for the findings of these fossilized bones. For about forty years, these fossils were held in the Natural History Museum under fierce guard where few cool analyze or view the bones. In 1953, a thorough test on the fossils proved that Piltdown was a hoax and the bones had been altered. The teeth were filed down to look human, the skull was only about 100 years old, and the jaw belonged to a female orangutan, not an ancient male. The, up to forty, findings at Piltdown were proven to be forged and planted there. Dawson was the first and prime suspect do to the fact that he found most of the “fossils” particularly the first and last findings.

Naturally as humans we all make mistakes and in the case of the Piltdown man it was no different. Steps were not taken by the scientific community to prove or disprove the authenticity of the fossils which then lead to more astonishment when 40 years later they were discovered as falsified. This falsification lead to the argument that if fossils could be faked that the whole theory of evolution could be a fraud theory. In the case of Piltdown man, some scientists were skeptical but many scientist flat out accepted the remains as a ground breaking finding, that being said I think that is why they didn’t try to disprove it. Scientists wanted so badly to find ancient English remains that they didn’t want the fossils to be fake. The discovery of the fossils being a hoax rocked the scientific community but it bettered their skills to test and question all findings to authenticate and prove them. It just forced scientist to be more careful and diligent in their work and to not except something as true without consistent evidence to prove true.

To reveal that the skull was a fraud scientist looked at every inch and crevice of the skull to find inconsistencies. First, they used a fluorine absorption test only to prove that the fossils were way younger than they perceived, less than 100,000 years old. They discovered that the jaw bone was female and belonged to an orangutan with the teeth filed down to look human, viewed by a microscope to see even the small scrapes. This was proven by the scratch marks found all around the teeth. The jaw was also altered by making cuts with a steel knife or blade to hide the tell-tale signs of ape jaw structure. To make the bones look older in outer appearance, they were stained making them look aged or brown in color.

I absolutely believe there is no way to remove the “human” aspect from science. Without humans, there wouldn’t be the study of living things or how things work or life in general, and it’s that curiosity that lead to the knowledge we have today. Yes, it was human mistake that lead to the believing of the Piltdown man but it was also human curiosity and study to prove the fossils fraud. The human mind is a mystery in itself and with it mankind has discovered, proven and disproven many things and I think if we removed the human aspect from science we would plateau in our findings, discoveries and knowledge.

Personally, I think a life lesson about not taking things at face value is research for essays. Many people still think Wikipedia is a reliable source, when in reality anyone can change the information on the site in question. This reminds me of how Dawson took items and changed them to seem like real fossils. The life lesson is to check your resources before you believe the message portrayed. Do your own research on the source and make sure the information you are reading is the truth. Cliché as it is, don’t judge a book by its cover, can also be applied to this as well.

Planent of the Apes...With different Locomotor skills!

1. Lemurs
a. Lemurs are only found on the Comoro and Madagascar Islands.
Some have been found to live in the dry and hot areas but the     majority live in the rainforest where it is overgrown and there are plenty of tree and more food. Lemurs like to eat mostly flowers, leaves and insects. They adapt very easily so they use any environment to their advantage.

b. A lemur's locomotor pattern is how it jumps from branch to branch on the trees balancing themselves with their extra long tails. Unlike their primate cousins, lemurs use their arms and legs only to grab onto branches.

c. Lemur's locomotor patterns have adapted with the environment by the way their tails are used to provide them with more balance instead of being used as an extra limb. Also, how their arms and legs have adapted to move them swiftly and efficiently from treetop to treetop.


2. Spider Monkey
a. They are typically found in the tropical rain forests around Mexico, and South and Central America. Like the lemur, the spider monkey finds its meals in the trees. They like to eat spiders, fruit, bird eggs and plants. As a survival technique, the spider monkey has acquired a loud screech to alert of danger, which can echo throughout the forest.

b. Their locomotor pattern is the way they use all five limbs to travel; two arms, two legs, and one strong tail. They have an abbreviated thumb and long fingers to assure a tight grip on the branches. They also use their tail to grip onto branches if they need a little extra reach.

c. Adaption has occurred do to the tall forest environment, by making their tails a truly useful limb, helping with travel and food collection. By having the tail, the spider monkey is able to hang from a branch and collect food with both hands and feet if necessary. Their elongated fingers also gift them with speed and agility.

 3. Baboon
a. The majority of baboons love dry climates and can be seen in the Savanna but some have also been known to hang around the rain forest. They eat simply; fruits, grass, birds and rodents. Unlike the lemurs and spider monkeys, baboons like to hangout on the ground but they do venture into a tree for sleep and protection from predators.

b. Baboons walk on the ground on all fours or quadrupedally. They are semi-terrestrial creatures which means they walk on ground during the day and by night they climb the tress to sleep, which is the main reason they don't require a tail. They don't have a long tail like their primate cousins because they don't need it for travel or for balance because they are always on the ground.

c. Environment plays a big part in the baboons adaption because unlike the other primates he doesn't need a tail to swing from the trees. He only sleeps in the trees so he has a big butt instead so he can sit on his rock and branches.


4. Gibbons
a. Also known as a lesser ape, do to their small frame, the gibbons are found in the sub-tropical and tropical rain forests of South, East and Southeast Asia. They enjoy anything from birds and their eggs to spiders and flowers and fruits. They live solely in the treetops and are quick in transport and to avoid predators.

b. Gibbons locomotor patterns appears more advanced than those of his primate cousins in their ability to walk upright (using their arms like a tightrope walker to keep balance) on branches. But majority of the time they brachiate or swing under branches with a hand over hand motion.

c. The gibbons adapted to their environment by having strong, long arms to keep them traveling through the treetops to find food and shelter. There is really no necessity to go to the ground for any reason but their ability to walk upright helps them avoid predators when they are lower to the ground.

5. Chimpanzee
a. They can be found in the woodlands, grasslands, and rain forests of Africa. Chimps mostly feast on fruits and plants in true vegetarian form. They live their lives very nonchalant and peaceful, roaming their territories day in and day out.

b. The locomotor patterns of a chimpanzee is mostly walking around. Walking upright or walking on all fours (called knuckle walkers, same as gorillas). With their long and strong arms they can also swing from branches to travel, find food, or to sleep in trees.

c. They adapted to their environment by being able to swing from trees as well as being able to walk both upright and quadrupedally, which helps them in both the grasslands and the forests and for both leisure and survival.


Each primate has distinctive but very similar traits but do to their completely different environments, they have adapted or enhanced certain traits to work in their favor. Which leads me to believe that environment has drastic influence on traits of a certain species. We see in each of these primates how hands and feet are used in different ways depending on location and tail usage or lack there of. Its very interesting to see the differences and similarities in traits in such similar but opposite animals.  

Completely Different? Maybe Not!

1. Species with Homologous Traits:
       a. Two different species that possess homologous traits are dolphins and humans. Dolphins and humans happen to both be mammals but one lives in the ocean and the other on dry land. Dolphins seemingly have the structure of a fish but are actually more closely related to human anatomy surprisingly.
       b. When looking from the outside, a dolphins fin and a humans arm look completely different, but when looking internally you find undeniable similarities. Each structure possesses the same bone formation; phalanges, carpals, ulna, radius and humerus. These structures in the dolphin help it move swiftly through the water and to communicate with other dolphins. A humans arm, as we all know, use are arms to lift, grab, climb, hold, etc.
       c.  Some say that, humans at one point in evolution went through a semi-aquatic state but then evolved to survive on land. In my opinion its possible that apes evolved from dolphin-like creatures and then we evolved from apes .

 

2. Species with Analogous Traits

        a. Two species with analogous traits are the dolphin and the shark. I like to use the dolphin again because of its similarities to both fish and mammal.

        b. Dolphin and sharks obviously have very similar body structures; a dorsal fin, two pectoral fins, and a dorsal fin. On both animals the fins act in the same ways to move the animal and keep it agile and swift in the water.

        c. Even with such obvious similarities, these two ocean dwellers cannot have a common ancestor because one is a mammal (breathes air) and one is a fish (has gills).

 



Mission Impossible: Can you Decipher this Code?

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