Human Evolution Symposium Attracts World's Leading Scientists To Stony Brook

Richard Leakey Convenes Major Conference

STONY BROOK, N.Y. — The 3rd Annual Human Evolution Symposium held at Stony Brook University in October, saw the world's leading scholars assembled to discuss the origins of the human lineage in Africa . The symposium was convened by Richard Leakey, Visiting Professor of Anthropology at Stony Brook and the world's foremost paleontologist and conservationist.

The goal of this third Stony Brook Human Evolution Workshop was to bring together a group of international scientists from many disciplines to try and obtain a clearer appreciation and understanding of the major forces and events that shaped the root of the human lineage. Human-like fossils and archaeological artifacts can be traced back as far as some 2.5 million years ago in East and South Africa . These fossils and the archaeological traces are usually attributed to the earliest members of the human genus, Homo. However, there is good reason to suspect that these remains lack critical features that would describe them as being truly human. If such suspicions are correct, then the earliest evidence for humans is found only substantially later–at about 1.8 million years ago.

The symposium, which was arranged in the Wang Center Theater, focused on critical issues related to human evolution. Dr. Leakey commented, “We hope to resolve some of the outstanding issues of debate, and to identify productive new avenues for future research.” New discoveries and data continue to be made and aggregated in the quest to better appreciate our evolutionary history, and while these new discoveries are exciting, the understanding of the evolutionary root of the genus Homo remains characterized by more questions that solid answers. The symposium covered the human fossil record, the archaeological record, and the palaeoclimatic and palaeoenvironmental records from the standpoint of the geological, vertebrate palaeontological, and isotopic data.

Stony Brook has taken a leadership role in the examination of issues related to human evolution and sustainability. Dr. Leakey has convened a series of conferences to explore such issues, including last year's World Environmental Forum, which examined the potential global impact of climate change.

In addition to Dr. Leakey, the notable scientists who appeared, included Leslie Aiello, President of the Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research; Robert Blumenschine, Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center of Evolutionary Studies at Rutgers University; Christopher Dean, Professor of Anatomy at University College London; Craig Feibel, Associate Professor of Geological Sciences at Rutgers University; John Fleagle, Distinguished Professor of Anatomical Sciences at Stony Brook; Frederick Grine, Professor and Chair of the Department of Anthropology at Stony Brook; William Junger, Professor of Anatomical Sciences at Stony Brook; Meave Leakey, Research Professor at Stony Brook University, John Shea, Associate Professor of Anthopology at Stony Brook, Philip Tobia, Professor Emeritus of Anatomy and Human Biology at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg; and Randall Susman, Professor of Anatomical Sciences at Stony Brook.