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Science 12 June 1998:
Vol. 280. no. 5370, p. 1714
DOI: 10.1126/science.280.5370.1714
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Research Commentaries

PALEONTOLOGY:
Hominid Brain Evolution: Looks Can Be Deceiving

Dean Falk

What is the evolutionary history of the human brain? Conventional wisdom holds that cranial capacity began to increase rapidly about 2 million years ago, almost doubling in size, then leveling off in the modern era. In her research commentary, Falk discusses results presented in the same issue by Conroy et al. that cast doubt on this neat picture. By means of computed tomography, the reseachers were able to measure accurately the cranial capacity of a new specimen of Australopithecus africanus. The measured value is significantly less than expected, and Falk suggests this will cause a major reevaluation of previous measurements of hominid skulls and a profound alteration in the understanding of brain evolution.

The author is at the Department of Anthropology, State University of New York, Albany, NY 12222, USA. E-mail: d.falk{at}albany.edu

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