{"id":129392,"date":"2019-01-07T18:47:49","date_gmt":"2019-01-07T16:47:49","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/virtual-images-reveal-secrets-of-an-ancient-fossils-brain-and-inner-ear-the-conversation\/"},"modified":"2019-01-07T18:47:49","modified_gmt":"2019-01-07T16:47:49","slug":"virtual-images-reveal-secrets-of-an-ancient-fossils-brain-and-inner-ear-the-conversation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.myza.co.za\/press\/virtual-images-reveal-secrets-of-an-ancient-fossils-brain-and-inner-ear-the-conversation\/","title":{"rendered":"Virtual images reveal secrets of an ancient fossil’s brain and inner ear | The Conversation"},"content":{"rendered":"

Virtual images reveal secrets of an ancient fossil’s brain and inner ear<\/a>: <\/p>\n

"Little Foot's" skull and a 3-D rendering of the endocast.<\/span> Beaudet et al. 2019 Journal of Human Evolution<\/span><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Little Foot is one of the oldest known hominins in southern Africa. This almost complete skeleton, belonging to the genus Australopithecus<\/em>, dates back more than three million years. It was found in 1994 in the Sterkfontein Caves near Johannesburg in South Africa, which form part of the \u201cCradle of Humankind\u201d.<\/p>\n

We know quite a lot about the genus Australopithecus<\/em>, thanks to hundreds of fossil remains found in Africa. We know that it consisted of several species, some of them possibly living at the same time, and that these species consumed a high diversity of food. <\/p>\n

But unfortunately, because the fossils are often fragmented, we still don\u2019t know exactly what Australopithecus\u2019<\/em> brain looked like, how they walked or why they evolved in certain ways.<\/p>\n

Now a combination of Little Foot\u2019s relatively intact skull and a high-tech scanning technique called microtomography has helped us reveal some of the answers.<\/p>\n

My colleagues and I used microtomography to virtually investigate Little Foot\u2019s skull. This technique relies on the use of a scanner that allows us to access very fine details \u2013 a few micrometers at a time. We explored various anatomical structures of the skull and, more particularly, the brain imprints and the inner ear.<\/p>\n

We then compared what we found to other Australopithecus<\/em> specimens, and to fossil remains belonging to different groups: Paranthropus<\/em> and early Homo<\/em>. These are geologically younger, which allowed us to track evolution.<\/p>\n

The brain and the inner ear are also interesting interfaces between fossil hominins and their physical and social environment. Through these studies, we can present and explore new scenarios about how our ancestors lived and evolved.<\/p>\n

Studying brain imprints<\/h2>\n

The brain cannot fossilise. That means that any understanding of hominin brain evolution relies on analysing the imprints of the brain that are preserved on the inside of our skulls, also known as the endocast.<\/p>\n

The endocast can deliver information about the size, shape and organisation of the brain, as well as the vascular system that feeds it. Despite the presence of some cracks and the fact that some parts of the skull are deformed, the Little Foot\u2019s endocast is relatively complete and preserves clear imprints of the brain.<\/p>\n