Neanderthal faces were not adapted to cold

From Physorg

"Neanderthal faces had prominent cheekbones and wide noses previously thought to have developed in extremely cold periods because large sinuses were needed to warm air as it was inhaled. One problem with this theory is that modern people such as the Inuits, and other mammals living in Arctic regions have not developed large sinuses, and their sinuses are often smaller, and another problem is that it has never been proven that Neanderthal sinuses were larger."

Neanderthals and early modern humans had same lifespan

From Past Horizons

"A new study by a Washington University in St. Louis suggests life expectancy was probably the same for early modern and late archaic humans and did not factor in the extinction of Neanderthals."

Ancient humans, dubbed 'Denisovans', interbred with us

From the BBC (includes video)

"Scientists say an entirely separate type of human identified from bones in Siberia co-existed and interbred with our own species.

The ancient humans have been dubbed "Denisovans" after the caves in Siberia where their remains were found."

Neanderthals: how needles and skins gave us the edge on our kissing cousins

From the Guardian

"On the ground floor of the Natural History Museum in London, arrays of Formica-covered cabinets stretch from floor to ceiling and from one end of the great building to the other. Some of nature's finest glories are stored here: pygmy hippo bones from Sicily, mammoth tusks from Siberia and skulls of giant sloths from South America.

Many treasures compete for attention, but there is one sample, kept in a small plywood box, that deserves especial interest: the Swanscombe skull. Found near Gravesend last century, it is made up of three pieces of the brain case of a 400,000-year-old female and is one of only half-a-dozen bits of skeleton that can be traced to men and women who lived in Britain before the end of the last ice age. Human remains do not get more precious than this."

Asian Neanderthals, Humans Mated

From Discovery

"Early modern humans mated with Neanderthals and possibly other archaic hominid species from Asia at least 100,000 years ago, according to a new study that describes human remains from that period in South China.

The remains are the oldest modern human fossils in East Asia and predate, by over 60,000 years, the oldest previously known modern human remains in the region."

And in related news from the Toronto Star

"There’s a touch of Neanderthal in Ozzy Osbourne. That’s now a scientific fact.
Osbourne, the hard-living rocker who used to down four bottles of Cognac a day, is among the first people in the world to get his entire genome sequenced."

Out of Asia? Ancient ancestor of modern man walked Sahara 39million years ago

From the Daily Mail

"The human family tree may have to be rewritten after scientists found evidence that the ancient ancestors of humans, apes and monkeys evolved in Asia - rather than Africa - tens of millions of years ago.

The astonishing claim follows the discovery of four species of early primate in the Sahara desert, dating back 39 million years."

Biodiversity hotspot enabled Neanderthals to survive longer in south east of Spain

Over 14,000 years ago when most of Europe was covered in ice and snow during the last ice age of the Pleistocene Neanderthals were able to survive in the very southern tip of the Iberian peninsula in the region of Gibraltar for much longer than elsewhere in Europe because of the plant and animal biodiversity in this "refuge". An international team has reconstructed the landscape near Gorham's cave in Gibraltar by analysing paleobotanical data from geological deposits.

The biodiversity in the area was "unique" compared to the rest of Europe at the time (much of which was under masses of thick ice anyway) and enabled the Neanderthals to survive here 10,000 years longer than in the rest of Europe.

Neanderthal weaponry lacked projectile advantage

The Neanderthals of course are the most successful species of humans so far in that they were around on the planet for a lot longer than us and recent discoveries have begun to dispel the myths that Neanderthals were knuckle dragging morons. However despite being able to produce sophisticated tools and weapons the modern humans had a key advantage over them, projectile weapons.

Anthropologists have analysed the skeletons of early modern men and Neanderthals and found that the latter lack the backward displacement of the shoulder joint that results in overhead throwing activities. Without thrown overhead a projectile weapon has much greater speed and range. While the Neanderthals probably did still throw spears and other weapons modern humans who did throw overhead had a definite advantage. Steve Churchill, an associate professor of evolutionary anthropology at Duke University, said "perhaps their...short, squat body build with short and massive limbs was not conducive to using throwing-based hunting technology".