# More evidence of neaderthal/modern interbreeding?



## littlemissattitude (Sep 23, 2003)

This is one of my favorite debates in physical/biological anthropology: did Neaderthals and modern humans have little hybrid babies? The conventional wisdom is that they didn't, but a couple of researchers are fairly convinced that they did - and keep on finding evidence that they say supports their claim. Now they've found these remains in a cave in Romania that carbon-date to 34,000 to 36,000 years old. I'll be interested to see how the other side rebuts this. Erik Trinkaus, the lead researcher on this, has good credentials - Washington University of St. Louis is a top anthropology school that does a lot of cutting edge research. I've read a couple of his books, and he seems to know his subject.

I found this report on yahoo.com.




> Earliest Modern Humans Found in Romanian Cave
> 
> 
> _By Maggie Fox, Health and Science Correspondent_
> ...


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## Brian G Turner (Sep 23, 2003)

This is very interesting - and I am also very much in the "inter-breeding" camp. 

My main cue (and interest) in the subject was a letter in New Scientitst, that pointed out that it would make more sense if the pale skin colour of the northern Europeans actually evolved first in Neanderthals, who were specifically adapted for that harsh cold environment - and that the gene later entered the darker-skinned cro-magnon population as they followed the retreat of the glaciers.

The way it was originally experssed was so salient, that I am personally quite convinced that there is a very good and rational argument in there.

Otherwise you have black African's suddenly turning white for no good reason, as opposed to a longer period of specific environmental adaption for Neanderthals.


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