Fossil Finds

There is plenty of room for argument and knowledgeable assumption about the implications of fossil finds. Even the best fossil record provides largely random snapshots of points in time rather than a complete record. Much of what we would immediately like to know is simply not conserved in the fossil record. However, the extensive outlines of human descent are surprisingly well reputable and, in a sense, the disagreements are about details. Controversy relates to whether …

…on the right. In Leakey's view, the most important "missing link" is still to be found. Currently, new discoveries and reconsideration of older scientific dating techniques are challenging the view that Homo erectus is only 1.6 or 1.7 million years old. Some of the new but contentious dates may require extending the species life of Homo erectus well beyond 2 million years. A new dating technique makes some specimens found in Asia appear much older than formerly thought.