Why is the study of Australopithecus in the field of Human evolution?
How is it possible to know, thanks to only one bone or some fragments of skull, whether it's a new species or an individual of an already known species?
With fossils, how do we make the difference between two individuals of two different species and two individuals of the same species but with different anatomical features?
Why did we find more fossils and more complete fossils of Au. afarensis than other Australopithecus?
How do you define that all the species mentioned in this chapter belong to the genus Australopithecus? Does Kenyanthropus platyops belong to the Australopithecus genus or not?
Why did sexual dismorphism decrease during evolution?
Why did the brow bridge "disappear" over time?
Why is there a strong focus on teeth evolution? Can we consider that they evolve in a relatively fast manner?
Why are tools important? How do they help with survival?
Is the evolution of teeth related to the use of tools?
How are we sure that the skeletons were recomposed correctly?

Chap_3 Final questions

Imagine that a new hominin fossil is discovered. Knowing that this new fossil is relatively incomplete (only few bones or some fragments of skull), how can scientists be sure that this individual belong to a new species or not?
Could you explain why there is such a strong focus on teeth evolution in your book?
Why did sexual dismorphism decrease during evolution? (indeed, we noticed in your book that there is a strong dismorphism in apes, such as gorillas, whereas in hominins it tended to reduce over time ; today, Homo sapiens has a low sexual dismorphism)
Could you specify why the study of Australopithecus is so important in the field of Human evolution?

OHS 2019 Chap3