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Science 10 July 2009:
Vol. 325. no. 5937, pp. 136 - 139
DOI: 10.1126/science.325_136
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News Focus

Paleoanthropology:

Bringing Hominins Back to Life

Michael Balter

As the number of hominin fossil discoveries has exploded in recent years, researchers and paleoartists alike have been working overtime to refine their visions of what our ancestors looked like. In the past, because of gaps in the fossil record, paleoartists tended to represent early humans as half-chimp and half-human. But recent finds, including candidate hominins dated to 5 million to 7 million years ago, have spurred demand by museum directors and magazine editors for increasingly lifelike, three-dimensional hominin recreations. The interplay between art and science makes reconstruction a two-way street. Some researchers argue that reconstructions influence how scientists view ancient hominins and interpret their behavior. Yet the comfort level about reconstructions varies among scientists.

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)