Name: DNA clues to our inner neanderthal
Uploaded: 2011-08-30T15:14:56Z
Duration: 16 min 44 s
Description: Sharing the results of a massive, worldwide study, geneticist Svante Pääbo shows the DNA proof that early humans mated with Neanderthals after we moved out of Africa. (Yes, many of us have Neanderthal DNA.) He also shows how a tiny bone from a baby finger was enough to identify a whole new humanoid species.

Sharing the results of a massive, worldwide study, geneticist Svante Pääbo shows the DNA proof that early humans mated with Neanderthals after we moved out of Africa. (Yes, many of us have Neanderthal DNA.) He also shows how a tiny bone from a baby finger was enough to identify a whole new humanoid species.

DNA clues to our inner neanderthal

Genetic studies show that every human alive today descends from a small group that left Africa around 50,000 years ago. DNA evidence proves that early modern humans interbred with Neanderthals and other now-extinct relatives, leaving traces in our genomes. A tiny fragment of bone even led scientists to discover the Denisovans, an entirely new human species. Despite these ancient encounters, there are almost no absolute genetic differences between people from different continents.