Lucynis one of the most famous of our long-ago ancestors. I’m not talkingnabout a human named Lucy, I’m talking a LOT longer ago than that!
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nLucynlived more than three million years ago!
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nLucynis the name for the collection of several hundred pieces of bonesnthat once made up almost half of a hominin (ancestor of modernnhumans) that we call Australopithecus afarensis. She andnothers of her kind were a bit taller than a yardstick (or meternstick)—Lucy is estimated to have been 3 feet 7 inches tall—and tonweigh 60 to 70 pounds (around 29 kilograms). They walked upright likenmodern humans but had small brains like non-human apes.
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nLucynwas found on this date in 1974, in Ethiopia, in Africa.
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nDonaldnJohanson and other scientists made the discovery, which was quicklynand widely publicized. Why did the archeologists call the skeletonnLucy? At the time of the discovery, the Beatles song Lucy in thenSky with Diamonds was playing loudly and repeatedly on a tapenplayer at the archeological camp.
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nChecknout…
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Lucy compared to modern human. |
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- Younmight enjoy this “musical study guide” aboutnthe 3.2 million year old Lucy.
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- Forna ton more info on early humans, browse the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History’s “What Does It Mean to be a Human?” website.
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nAlsonon this date:
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nAnniversary of the first observation of the transit of Venus
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Rollerball (1975): Timeless Sci-Fi Classic