Paper Summary:

The paper reviews the controversy whether Homo sapiens and Neanderthals interbred or Neanderthals were driven to extinction by the arrival of anatomically modern Homo sapiens. The research shows that the Neanderthals were a species genetically similar to modern Homo sapiens with brains as large or larger. The paper notes that Neanderthals were also shown to be rugged survivors, but the research is consistent in emphasizing that they could not compete with the superior technologies and social arrangements of Homo sapiens. The paper concludes that the DNA studies suggest that Neanderthals did not interbreed with Homo sapiens.

Outline:
Introduction
Review and Discussion
Conclusion

From the Paper:

"The manner in which the Neanderthals prospered and then died out has been the focus of an increasing amount of research in recent years, and with good reason. According to Tattersail (1999), "Perhaps no extinct species in the entire human fossil record is as germane to the understanding of those origins as is Homo neanderthalensis. There is certainly no better way in which we Homo sapiens can judge our own uniqueness in the living world than by measuring ourselves against the Neanderthals and their achievements". The popular conception of Neanderthals by many people today is one of brutish-looking, fur-clad cavemen wielding clubs and dragging their women by the hair into caves for fun and games, yet the conceptions are misguided."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Bisson, M. S. (2004). "The Neanderthal's Necklace: In Search of the First Thinkers." Journal of the Royal Anthropological Institute 10(3):710-11.
• "Camp find extends Neanderthal timeline." (2006). ABC News Online: Reuters. [Online]. Available: http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200609/s1740994.htm
• Christian, David. Maps of Time: An Introduction to Big History. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press, 2004.
• Graham-Rowe, Duncan. (2005). "The first complete reconstruction of a Neanderthal." Mousterian (Neanderthal) Sites. Online]. Available: http://donsmaps.com/mousterian. html.
• Hoffecker, John F. A Prehistory of the North: Human Settlement of the Higher Latitudes. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 2005.

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