Human Ancestor May Put Twist in Origin Story, New Studies Say

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/09/110908-apes-humans-evolution-australopithecus-sediba-lee-berger-science/

Ker Than

for National Geographic News

Published September 8, 2011

In the last month archeologists have found two million year old fossils of bones. Archeologists do not know what animal the bones belong to but they do know that the unidentified thing has both characteristics of modern day humans and primates aka monkeys.  They think this unknown species could be in one of the stages through which modern day humans evolved.  There are some things they know for sure of the findings, they know that what the human ancestors were a boy about 15 years old and a 30 year old woman.  They also know that the unknown species died because they fell down a deep crevice which is basically a crack in the land.  They know the woman lived longer then the boy.  Archeologists found that the woman’s hands were similar to humans except that the thumb was longer.  Also, from the feet they could tell that could walk standing up but didn’t do it all the time. in conclusion I hope they found out more about this unknown specs and how they lived in the past.  

How Do Historians Learn About the 
                       Past

Historians learn about the past in multiple ways.  Historians learn about the past in these five ways.  First, they collect information from a variety of sources.  The two kinds sources used by historians are primary and secondary.  An example of a primary source is an official document.  A book is a kind of secondary source.   After collecting information, historian then put their information into categories.  Two examples of categories are written and non-written information.  The third step is to evaluate the sources used by looking at whether the information collected is correct.  Another way to evaluate information from different sources is to answer the 5 W’s – who, what, where, when, and why.   The fourth step is to interpret the information and decide what it all means.  Last but not least, the historian shares with the world what they have found by writing a book or article.  Another way for an historian to share their information is to give a lecture or speech.  These are the five main steps used by historians to learn about the past.

In the past, where did humans tend to settle and why

In the past, humans looked for the best place to settle based on the climate.   Since most people where farmers places where it was very cold or blazing hot all the time were not their main the targets to settle.   People looked for somewhere to settle with a warm climate with a lot of rain for the crops.  in a good climet zone the settle looked for land that is  level because it if better for farming.In conclusion, people tended to settle where they could farm successfully most of the year.

What is History and why do we study it?

 When I think of history, I think of the past.   I think history is mostly about important events that happened in the past.  I think history is also about people who started something very big, like a war, or accomplished something great.  For example, Christopher Columbus is an important person from history because he discovered America.  History is about dates, times, and places.  To be precise history is about important events that happened on a certain day at a certain time in the past.  History is very important and we study it for several reasons.  One reason we study history is to learn about our ancestors and understand what they lived through and experienced.  We also study history to see what mistakes people made in the past so that we don’t make them again in the future.   I think we can use the past to predict our future too. A quote I thought fit the questions was "If you don't like the past change it" by William L. Burton i think this quote means is if you did not like what happened in the past don't try to do it again in the future.  In conclusion, history is not just a bunch of facts there without a reason.  People did not just spend years to find out about the world’s history for no reason.  People study the past to get information that they can share with the world and help make sure we do not make the same mistakes as people did before.

First humanities project of the year

Virginia State flag

Flag of indonesian

In the last few days in humanities class we got to make a presentation on two countries: one from which our passport is from and the other from someplace where we lived or would like to live.  Then we had a list of what we had to put on our presentation poster.  For example, we had to list the population of the country and show the flag.   One of the two countries I chose was Indonesia because for one it is very different then other the places I have been.  But,  the main reason I chose Indonesia is because I lived there for three of years my life and I loved it.   The other country I chose was America, but that is such a big country that I chose a state.  I picked Virginia because I have family there and I visit them often. 

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