Becoming Human: Unearthing Our Earliest Ancestors

Becoming Human: Unearthing Our Earliest Ancestors is a three-part NOVA's documentary series investigating the recent discoveries transforming our understanding of our human origins. In the first episode, it explores the fossil of "Selam," also known as "Lucy's Child" and examines the factors that caused us to split from the other great apes. In the second episode, it investigates the first skeleton that really looks like us - "Turkana Boy" - a complete specimen of Homo erectus, examines the key innovations that helped early humans thrive, and tells these early humans' migration out of Africa. And in the third episode, it examines why modern humans (Homo sapiens) survived while our other ancestral cousins like the Neanderthals died out. The final episode also examines whether modern humans interbred with Neanderthals by decoding of the Neanderthals genome.


Becoming Human: Episode 1 - First Steps
This episode explores the fossil of "Selam," also known as "Lucy's Child" and examines the factors that caused us to split from the other great apes.

Becoming Human: Episode 2 - Birth of Humanity
This episode investigates the first skeleton that really looks like us - "Turkana Boy" - a complete specimen of Homo erectus, examines the key innovations that helped early humans thrive, and tells these early humans' migration out of Africa.

Becoming Human: Episode 3 - Last Human Standing
This episode examines why modern humans (Homo sapiens) survived while our other ancestral cousins like the Neanderthals died out.



Web. Becoming Human
Becoming Human brings together interactive multimedia, research and scholarship to promote greater understanding of the course of human evolution
www.becominghuman.org

Film.. Origins of Us
This is a BBC documentary series presented by Dr. Alice Roberts, showing how we evolved away from our ape cousins to become the adaptable, successful species we are today.
www.infocobuild.com/books-and-films/science/origins-of-us-bbc.html
Film The Ape That Took Over The World
In 2001, scientists announced an amazing discovery: the oldest skull of a human ancestor ever found.
documentaries-plus.blogspot.com/2011/01/ape-that-took-over-world.html
Film The Day We Learned to Think
At a dig in South Africa the discovery of a small piece of ochre pigment, 70,000 years old, has raised some very interesting questions.
documentaries-plus.blogspot.com/2011/01/day-we-learned-to-think.html
Film Walking with Cavemen
This talks about the story of human evolution from Australopithecus afarensis to Homo sapiens.
www.infocobuild.com/books-and-films/nature/walking-with-cavemen.html