Are the Neanderthal Really our ancestors?

Question

1) the fossils of the neanderthal all mostly had a very degenerative and debilitating back disease or massive arthritis in the back and hip area. causing them to hunch over

2) their bone mass was 5X bigger than ours, hence making it less likely to break a bone.

3) because of their bone size they had much more muscle mass than we do today. Meaning that they were much more stronger than we are now.

These are all scientifically proven. So prove to me how we would have evolved into smaller, and weaker beings than our ancestors.

Here's my back up:

http://personales.com/mexico/guadalajara/RV1960/neander.htm
http://www.jacksonsnyder.com/arc/Essays%206/Neaderthal.htm

Answer 1

So easy even a caveman can do it

Answer 2

We have a common ancestor, but took a different evolutionary route. At some point after the ice age, when modern man left Africa, they came to Europe and found Neanderthal, who had been living there, we co-existed for about 40,000 years. Now either modern man killed off Neanderthal, due to being more sophisticated, or there was interbreeding and we absorbed them.

Answer 3

Neanderthals are not our ancestors. My understanding is that Neanderthals and Humans diverged from a common ancestor about six-hundred-thousand years ago. Neanderthals coexisted with some of our ancestors, such as Homo Erectus. Until roughly thirty thousand years ago modern Homo Sapians and Neanderthals existed simultaneously and many experts suspect modern humans contributed to their extinction. There is a possibility that someday a Neanderthal corpse might be discovered with enough frozen soft tissue genetically intact to allow extensive DNA analysis (as has happened with mammoths and mastodons). Unfortunately for science, Neanderthals buried their dead and the necessary frozen corpse has yet to be found. If and when a Neanderthal's DNA is analyzed, we will be far better able to determine when their ancestors diverged from ours.

Answer 4

Actually, unless I'm completely mistaken, it's believed that modern humans did NOT come from Neanderthals, since evidence has not shown Neanderthals to have existed outside of Europe... again, unless I'm completely mistaken. Either way, just because another species in the "Homo" genus had different physical traits than modern humans do now, does not disprove that humans came from them. Modern humans were able to prosper because of their larger, more complex brains; they had the gift of language, and were better able to adapt to a wide variety of climates and circumstances. They didn't NEED to be physically larger or stronger, when they were able to problem-solve using those large brains and work together. Bigger isn't always better... which is why you see so many nerdlingers you knew in school with successful jobs and large incomes and jocks you knew in school working at gas stations.

Answer 5

Who said Neaderthals were our ancestors? They are beleived to have lived alongside CroMagnon man, but to have died out, while CroMag lived on, producing us. A new theory is coming to light that what might have happened was that CroMag and Neaderthals interbred and produced Homo Sapien sapien...

Also, you confuse strength with evolving. Thats not the case. Just because we are evolved, doesnt mean we would get stronger or taller or whatever. Evolution also doesnt favor intelligence. This explains why the average family of an intellectual couple is 2.3, while the average size of the family of a person from a trailer park is 15.9.

Answer 6

Well you just said they had debilitating back problems. The ones without those problems or in lesser degrees would have succeed causing us to evolve more upright. Also They may have been much stronger but size reduces adaptability and requires more food. In lean times the smaller individuals would be able to survive on less food.

Think about this: What your describing has many feautures like a gorilla. Who was the more succesfull species? Gorilla's or Man?

Answer 7

More cousins than ancestors. The human family tree is quite complex; there was a good article on the subject in Scientific American a few months back. The driving force in human evolution is of course intelligence, which is such a profound advantage for survival that it overwhelms issues such as physical size or strength.

Answer 8

Modern sciences seems to be saying that the neanderthals are our cousins, not our ancestors. The two groups of neanderthals and homo sapeins probably did not interbreed much nor successfully due to genetic differences.

Answer 9

It's called evolution. The world has changed drastically since the time of the Neanderthals. We no longer have to hunt and gather all of our food, our homes are heated for use, so no chopping firewood every day, and we aren't braving and ice age of the remnants of one. They're a separate species, but all one big Homo family.

Answer 10

Funny you should ask, since the area where the proof lays is in the section which was ONCE ancient Egypt, Palestine, Zebulon, and Galilee,now Israel. (around the Galilee of Jesus' time) What WAS, "isn't," and is WHY the science is called EVOLUTION............We "evolve" from other states of "existances" over millions of years, THUS adapting to our ENVIRONMENT..............

What makes you think most of the human race still "isn't" as "neanderthals?" This species, though having progressed in many areas STILL "acts," "behaves" and lives in states of persistant psychoses of which lives revolve around them in everyday living. Despite the FACTS, this species lives in constant DENIAL, creating all manner of "beliefs" so as not to have to look at the truth. That is was not a HOLY God of heaven which created it, but a FALLEN one who FORMED our species of an ANIMAL of the Lord of Creations own as HOSTS. It is WHY you see mankind always using it's resources to create even more destructive WEAPONS rather than spending those MILLIIONS on helping another.........

As for "evolving{" into "smaller" and "weaker" beings, the environment today is not as harsh as it once WAS.......

Answer 11

Nah. From what I've read, they were on an alternate branch of the evolutionary tree, which died out. Nowdays, people are trying to find out if Neanderthals could possibly have interbred with the humans that were around at the same time they were.