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Donald Johanson Quotes


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Quotes by Donald Johanson

Showing 21-30 of 38 Quotes by Donald Johanson

Normally, we are happy to find a fragment of jaw, a few isolated teeth, a bit of an arm, a bit of a skull. But to find associated body parts is extremely rare.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Arm Associated Bit Body Extremely Few Find Fragment Happy Isolated Normally Parts Rare Skull Teeth

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I realized immediately that this was a terribly important discovery, but I didn't realize how important it would be until we had spent a lot of time in the laboratory studying it.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Discovery Had How Immediately Important Laboratory Lot Realize Realized Spent Studying Terribly Time Until Would

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This was the most important discovery I had ever made in my life. It was a discovery which has irrevocably changed my whole life's direction. It immediately elevated me to the status of one of the world's leading anthropologists.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Changed Direction Discovery Elevated Ever Had Immediately Important Leading Life Made Me Most My Life Status The Most Important Which Whole World

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Lucy brought with her an image of our human ancestors that you don't get when you find a jaw or an arm bone or a leg bone. Here was 40 percent of a single skeleton.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Ancestors Arm Bone Brought Find Get Her Here Human Image Leg Lucy Our Percent Single Skeleton You

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But it really wasn't until three to four years later, when we had an opportunity in the lab to make very detailed observations, and comparisons with other fossil discoveries, that we realized she was a new species of human ancestor.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Ancestors Comparisons Detailed Discoveries Fossil Four Had Human Lab Later Make New Observations Opportunity Other Realized Really She Species Three Until Very Years

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When I realized, in 1978, that Lucy did represent a new species of human ancestor, and that I had an opportunity to name this new species, I realized this was a revolutionary step in understanding human origins.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Ancestors Did Had Human Lucy Name New Opportunity Origins Realized Represent Revolutionary Species Step Understanding

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I think that many of my ideas are correct, but I'll bet you, before my death other discoveries will be made that will prompt me to alter various ideas I have about human evolution.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: About Alter Before Bet Correct Death Discoveries Evolution Human Human Evolution Ideas Made Many Me Other Prompt Think Various Will You I Think

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What makes us human depends on what place on our evolutionary path we're talking about. If you go back six million years ago, what makes us human is that we were walking upright. That's all. If you go to 2.6 million years ago, it's the fact that we're designing and making stone tools.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: About Back Depends Designing Evolutionary Fact Go Human Makes Making Million Million Years Our Path Place Six Stone Talking Tools Upright Us Walking Were Years Years Ago You

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What's changed is we now have good anatomical, geological, archaeological evidence that Neanderthals are not our ancestors. When I wrote 'Lucy,' I considered Neanderthals ancestors of modern humans. We have gone back twice the age of Lucy, six million years. And we see that upright bipedal walking goes back that far in time.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Age Ancestors Back Changed Considered Evidence Far Geological Goes Gone Good Humans Lucy Million Million Years Modern Now Our See Six Time Twice Upright Walking Wrote Years

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I don't think we interbred with the Neanderthals at all. There are some people who think that there was some level of interbreeding. I think that we look so biologically different, that we looked and we acted so different, and we culturally were so different that we would not have had interbreeding between two species.

~Donald Johanson

Topics: Acted Between Biologically Different Had Level Look Looked People Some Some People Species Think Two Were Who Would I Think

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Biography

Nationality: American

Type: Scientist

Born: June 28th, 1943

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