Interviewee: Chris Stringer. Human origins expert Chris Stringer describes the lower region of a Neandertal's head. DNAi Location: Applications > Human origins> Comparisons > Bones > The Neandertals head: Part 2)

So there's the middle of the face. On the lower jaw they lack this chin development, they tend to have very big front teeth. The skull shape, although it's a big brain, the skull is relatively longer and lower than our skull, and viewed from behind it's got almost a spherical shape. They also have little anatomical details I've mentioned, in the ear bones, believe that in this part of the skull here and at the back of the skull there are differences in the muscle insertions, some of which we don't understand too well what they signify, but they're certainly consistently there in Neandertal fossils. So, even from fairly small parts of the skull we can usually recognize a Neandertal as distinct from a modern human.

neandertal fossils,chris stringer,skull shape,ear bones,human origins,spherical shape,anatomical details,location applications,front teeth,neandertals,dnai,neanderthals,lower jaw,interviewee,insertions,brain

Theora Video   MPEG 4 Video