The Origin of Species: Homo sapiens Style

New DNA analysis of 2000 year old bones in South Africa points to an earlier emergence of Homo sapiens, from around 350-260kya, much earlier than the previously estimated 200kya. Through the use of mitochondrial DNA, researchers were able to use this data, along with a revised human mutation rate of 1.25e-8 per base pair per generation, to more accurately estimate the split of the Homo sapiens species. This analysis coincides with findings from another study conducted at the Jebel Irhoud site on fossil remains that estimated the origin of Homo sapiens to be ~300kya.



https://www.sciencenews.org/article/ancient-boys-dna-pushes-back-date-earliest-humans