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Human evolution: The astounding new story of the origin of our species

1 April 2020

Forget the simple out-of-Africa idea of how humans evolved. A huge array of fossils and genome studies has completely rewritten the story of how we came into being.

Our ancestors may have run a million years earlier than we thought

13 March 2020

We thought hominins evolved to run around 2 million years ago – but a study of the famous Lucy's species, Australopithecus afarensis, suggests she could run too

Monty Python's Silly Walk is exactly 6.7 times more silly than normal

10 March 2020

An analysis of a classic Monty Python sketch suggests the Minister of Silly Walks has a walking style 6.7 times more variable, or silly, than normal walking

Same-sex attraction isn't an evolutionary paradox - here's why

5 February 2020

Our explanations for how same-sex attraction evolved are wrong – it's the spectrum of sexuality that is important, says Andrew Barron

A skull suggests humans have been getting piercings for 12,000 years

27 January 2020

The teeth of a man who lived in prehistoric Africa are worn in a way that suggests he had three facial piercings, the second oldest such find in the world

DNA from ancient skeletons reveals a lost branch of modern humans

22 January 2020

DNA from four skeletons found in Cameroon has revealed a mystery branch of early modern humans, suggesting we may need to rethink our species' family tree

Martin Rees: We will become a new species by expanding beyond Earth

18 December 2019

Heading into deep space will lead to a new species of human evolving, says the UK Astronomer Royal - and could pave the way to immortals who can conquer the galaxy

D’oh! Why human beings aren’t as intelligent as we think

11 December 2019

Human attempts to define intelligence are largely motivated by a desire to prove we have more of it – but a look at the world around us suggests a different story

Think you understand how evolution works? You're probably wrong

11 December 2019

A common misconception is that evolution naturally selects for biological complexity, eventually creating advanced organisms like us. That couldn't be further from the truth