Human Evolution through Developmental Change
Since Darwin's time, the natural selection of adult features has been emphasized as the dominant factor directing human evolution. In recent years, however, evolutionary scientists have recognized variations in the growth and development of individuals as an indispensable ingredient of evolutionary change.The chapters in Human Evolution through Developmental Change reflect two major strands of research in the study of human heterochrony, the change in the timing and rate of development of individuals. First, paleoanthropological evidence culled from the remains of infant and juvenile hominid fossils held in the world's museums has provided valuable new insights into the way naturally selected traits come about. Second, remarkable strides in molecular biology over the past twenty years have allowed scientists to confirm evolutionary relationships between species and test the relationships of new evolutionary patterns to changes in the rate of development at a variety of levels, from molecules to organ systems.Editors Nancy Minugh-Purvis and Kenneth J. McNamara have organized the chapters of the book into three sections. The first section considers theoretical applications of heterochronic methods to the hominid fossil record. The second section considers the relationship of developmental change to various aspects of hominid life history, including cognitive, sexual, and structural developments. The third section provides a chronological survey of heterochronic change in the hominid fossil record from the Pliocene to late Pleistocene eras. Human Evolution through Developmental Change will be a valuable resource for scientists and students of developmental biology, physical and social anthropology, and paleontology who wish to understand current views on the underlying mechanisms of human evolution. Evolutionary developmental biology: where embryos and fossils meet -- Shape and stage in heterochronic models -- Multivariate approaches to development and evolution -- Are some heterochronic transformations likelier than others? -- Sequential hypermorphosis: stretching ontogeny to the limit -- Animal domestication and heterochronic speciation: the role of thyroid hormone -- The role of heterochrony in primate brain evolution -- Brain evolution by stretching the global mitotic clock of development -- Natural selection and the evolution of hominid patterns of growth and development -- Sexual dimorphism and ontogeny in primates -- Life-history evolution in miocene and extant apes -- Dental development and life history in hominid evolution -- An assessment of radiographic and histological standards of dental development in chimpanzees -- Evolutionary relationships between molar eruption and cognitive development in anthropoid primates -- Enamel microstructure in hominids: new characteristics for a new paradigm -- Cranial growth in Homo erectus -- Peramorphic processes in the evolution of the hominid pelvis and femur -- Heterochrony and the evolution of the Neandertal and modern human craniofacial form -- Adolescent postcranial growth in Homo neaderthalensisBetween the incisive bone and premaxilla: from African apes to Homo sapiens -- Heterochronic change in the neurocranium and the emergence of modern humans
