OK - we've brought up two important points which will come into play in this matter:
1. European empire building led to an idea that some human races were more advanced than others, including on the evolutionary ladder (NOTE: this false idea was not limited to European civilizations);
2. Anthropology, still a young science at the time, was exploring the possibility that there was a "missing link" between modern humans and other primates.
These two ideas were in vogue when Piltdown Man was "discovered" in 1912. As we have seen in the Wikipedia article, this "discovery" was nothing more than a fraud which included, most significantly, a human ape with an orangutan's jaw. But, many people were anxious to jump onto the bandwagon and declare that Piltdown Man was the "find of the century" and the "missing link" between modern humans and other primates.
Piltdown Man became famous and scientific journals around the world were fooled by this hoax. Some people even built their careers on Piltdown Man, arguing that it was indeed a correct part of the fossil record and that it was the missing link.
Soon after 1912, when the "discovery" was excavated, it was the most famous skull in the world.
How was the hoax exposed? We'll examine that tommorrow.
Have a great and fraud free day.
http://www.tauskvega.com
-------------->>>>>>>>>>>>>gene tausk
1. European empire building led to an idea that some human races were more advanced than others, including on the evolutionary ladder (NOTE: this false idea was not limited to European civilizations);
2. Anthropology, still a young science at the time, was exploring the possibility that there was a "missing link" between modern humans and other primates.
These two ideas were in vogue when Piltdown Man was "discovered" in 1912. As we have seen in the Wikipedia article, this "discovery" was nothing more than a fraud which included, most significantly, a human ape with an orangutan's jaw. But, many people were anxious to jump onto the bandwagon and declare that Piltdown Man was the "find of the century" and the "missing link" between modern humans and other primates.
Piltdown Man became famous and scientific journals around the world were fooled by this hoax. Some people even built their careers on Piltdown Man, arguing that it was indeed a correct part of the fossil record and that it was the missing link.
Soon after 1912, when the "discovery" was excavated, it was the most famous skull in the world.
How was the hoax exposed? We'll examine that tommorrow.
Have a great and fraud free day.
http://www.tauskvega.com
-------------->>>>>>>>>>>>>gene tausk
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