for a minute there I thought we discovered hominids alive today. Phrasing!
Ditto. The BBC writer could have specified "new extint human-like species discovered", or "Fossils of new human-like species discovered".
New human-like species discovered
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Re: New human-like species discovered
#22entirely off-topic: 'Naledi' means 'star' (the celestial kind) in both Tswana and Sotho - 2 of South Africa's 11 official languages[1].
1. Also included: English and Afrikaans. South Africa is a pretty diverse place https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Languages_of_South_Africa
Re: New human-like species discovered
#23Awesome to see the Rising Star Expedition on HN! I was working in Johannesburg while the expedition was active and my partner managed, through a serious of very fortunate events to become a caver on the expedition. Here she is carrying up some of the first bones they extracted - https://i.imgur.com/IfT4PQz.jpg.
For those of you interested, the expedition was sponsored by National Geographic, and there was/is a fairly extensive blog (http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/blog/rising-star-expedi...) covering most of the details. When they first started pulling up the fossils, the excitement was palpable - http://voices.nationalgeographic.com/2013/11/11/video-first-....
The expedition occurred nearly two years ago, and there were so many bones still left in the catchment that they left many behind.
Incidentally, though the article says it was scientists who discovered the fossils - they were actually discovered by amateur cavers. The Cradle of Humankind (so named because there are so many similar catchments in the surrounding area) has a massive system of caves and some of the most hardcore amateur cavers in the world.
Re: New human-like species discovered
#24for a minute there I thought we discovered hominids alive today. Phrasing!
Exactly. I clicked, incredulous and excited at what news this is! While still fascinating, I'll admit I was just a tiny bit disappointed.
Re: New human-like species discovered
#25for a minute there I thought we discovered hominids alive today. Phrasing!
When I read that title, I automatically assumed it to be an extinct human-like race, filling in another gap of human evolution history. Maybe whoever wrote that title thought the same, and failed to realize that ordinary people would construe it otherwise.
Re: New human-like species discovered
#26Something I've never understood (since highschool some 30 years ago) is; when getting partial skeletons perhaps from only a single individual, how can they claim new species? I mean what's diff with that and some hypothetical future anthropoligist looking at siberian with roundish skull thicker brow ridges and that of six foot tall masai with long face and then a sub 5 foot native peruvian and declaring them all different species?
Re: New human-like species discovered
#27The last picture of with all the girl scientists makes me stupidly proud.
Re: New human-like species discovered
#28Earlier quoted context omitted.
Taking a tour through the mines in Potosi, Bolivia, was enough to convince me to never enter an enclosed, underground space again. I can't imagine how these people deal with the claustrophobia, oppressive heat, and painfully conspicuous lack of oxygen their work entails.
Caves and mines are different. Most caves in northern US are at 46-49F all year around which is quite comfortable for strenuous activities. There is never lack of oxygen. Caving is likely the second most demanding physical activity I was involved in (most demanding being mountaineering). For most people being in complete dark, surrounded by rock on all sides is probably even bigger psychological challenge than physic…
A hard-core caving buddy of mine once took me on a couple cave expeditions of increasing difficulty, though they were easy for him. As a newbie, I was more than a little uncomfortable. It is a totally new way of seeing the world around you, and by no means a natural experience. I have much respect for those who do it regularly. Just make sure you don't call them spelunkers, which is a much tamer tourists-only approach. When doing real caving, even the "simple" caves, the psychological and physical requirements are much more than you'd at first expect.
Re: New human-like species discovered
#29A number of paleoanthropologists are skeptical of the claims.
They say that the bones look like H.erectus and that some of the more bizarre claims sound "tailored for the media"
Re: New human-like species discovered
#30Here is a short video of caver Rick Hunter squeezing through one of the tunnels to the Dinaledi Chamber. Not for the claustrophobic. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTPRx8xVafE
Spelunkers - is the reason he's not wearing a helmet down to the lack of available space?
To be clear, there is a big difference between "spelunking" and real "caving." I haven't met a caver yet who like being called a spelunker.