Low Brainer: Ancient Skull Shows Early Primates Didn't Need Big Brains

Tuesday, June 23, 2009 - 17:07 in Paleontology & Archaeology

Compared with other mammals, primates--from lemurs to humans--have huge brains. But scientists still don't know exactly why--or even when--our brains ballooned. A new study, published yesterday in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, postulates that even without big brains, early primates were able to do a lot of primatelike things--a finding that calls into question many of the prevailing evolutionary theories. [More] ...

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