UO Professor Argues Against Paleontologist's Human Evolution Theory

            Digging in the dirt of East Africa for ancient monkey remains, University assistant professor Stephen R. Frost discovered that famed South African paleontologist Elisabeth Vrba's controversial theories about human evolution may be wrong.

            Using data collected from antelope fossils, Vrba, a professor of paleontology at Yale University, saw a jumpstart in antelope evolution about 2.5 million years ago, Frost said. She chalked the jumpstart up to climate change, Frost said, and theorized the same explained human evolution during the same period.

            This theory is based on Habitat Theory, which says climate drives plant distribution, which in turn drives the evolutionary formation of new species.

            "It's sort of a sexy topic in this day and age," Frost said.

            During his research in East Africa, Frost studied monkey fossils from the same period in three different locations. He was looking for a similar pattern of new species formation in monkeys that Vrba said happened in humans.

            "What I found was the monkeys do not have a turnover pulse," Frost said. Their rate of extinction and speciation didn't change even though climate did, he said.

            Frost studied the monkey fossil record because it was more complete than the human fossil record. He said that monkey adaptation to environments is similar to human adaptation as opposed to antelope, which Vrba studied.

            Although her theory doesn't explain human evolution, Frost said, "that's not to say that climate hasn't been critical in human adaptation and human experience."

            Frost said he did his research in East Africa because there is more genetic and linguistic diversity there than anywhere else in the world and the vast majority of human evolution occurred there.

            "I think that understanding or appreciating that is understanding the way Africa is," Frost said. The presentation was part of a series of events, Celebrating East Africa, during International Education Week, which ran November 6-10.

            Frost, an assistant anthropology professor at the University, made his argument during his presentation, "Ancient stones and bones in East Africa: humans, monkeys, and climate change," at the Erb Memorial Union's International Resource Center at 2 p.m.

            "It is very interesting to me that he is saying, 'Dr. Vrba, your hypothesis is not holding up across the board,'" said University anthropology major Dan Cameron "The climate change theory is not a sufficient explanation for the modern human," audience member Erik Fisher said. "There must have been competition."

Link to the original article in the Oregon Daily Emerald: www.dailyemerald.com/2.2374/uo-professor-argues-against-paleontologist-s-human-evolution-theory-1.201045