Environment

Missing Link Found - The Evolution Mystery of Humans gets a Boost

by Samir Joshi | May 19, 2009 at 08:47 am

743 views | 71 Recommendations | 8 comments

Scientists have unveiled a 47-million-year-old fossilized skeleton of a monkey hailed as the missing link in human evolution which could revolutionize the understanding of human evolution.

The discovery of the 95%-complete 'lemur monkey' - dubbed Ida - is described by experts as the "eighth wonder of the world".

They say its impact on the world of paleontology will be "somewhat like an asteroid falling down to Earth".

This is some kind of information "palaeontologists can normally only dream of".

The beautifully preserved remains of a 47-million-year-old, lemur-like creature have been unveiled in the US. The preservation is so good, it is possible to see the outline of its fur and even traces of its last meal.

The fossil, nicknamed Ida, is claimed to be a "missing link" between today's higher primates - monkeys, apes and humans - and more distant relatives.

But some independent experts, awaiting an opportunity to see the new fossil, are skeptical of the claim. And they have been critical of the hype surrounding the presentation of Ida.

The fossil was launched amid great fanfare at the American Museum of Natural History in New York, by the city's mayor.

Fossil in Virtual Reality - http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/natur...

I am sure Mr. Charles Darwin would have been very happy and interested upon this discovery.

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Jarrett Martineau

at 08:48 on May 19th, 2009

Last week it was a 35-million-year-old statue and now it's a 47-million-year-old fossil...I wonder what next week will bring!

Samir Joshi

at 09:19 on May 19th, 2009

Very True... The millionaires (in terms of their ages) are raising their heads again!

sara star

at 08:52 on May 19th, 2009

Long live Ida, and the mysteries she can unravel.

Samir Joshi

at 09:19 on May 19th, 2009

Yeah, lets hope that we are able to deduce something useful from this discovery.

Amy Judd

at 11:48 on May 19th, 2009

Wow, amazing!

Samir Joshi

at 23:29 on May 19th, 2009

Yeah indeed. The work done by the paleontologists is commendable and I would be more than glad if some substantial info is unearthed from this discovery.

SaraCurran

at 01:42 on May 20th, 2009

I spent yesterday morning reading everything I could find on this! excellent :)

The Grayheck (not verified)

at 19:44 on May 20th, 2009

This story just keeps me in awe. The response from Mr Christian himself, Mr answering to a greater father has had a little twist-about on that issue. Are you kidding me? Bush was elected TWICE because of the Christian right. He totally snubbed Al Gore on the global warming, in essence snubbing science itself. Now he has moved the Bible from his desk to his bookshelf next to the Dan Brown books? Quite a backslider:

http://www.socoolaz.com/article/World_News/World_News/Scientific_Missing_Link_Found_Bush_Family_Celebrate_in_Texas/30261