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Bipedalism, canine tooth reduction, and obligatory tool use

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 February 2005

C. Loring Brace
C. Loring Brace*
Affiliation:
Museum of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI48109
*
[email protected]
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Abstract:

Bipedalism in the earliest hominid specimens is always accompanied by the reduction of projecting canine teeth. Body size is smaller than chimpanzees or humans, but molar teeth are markedly larger. Use of a pointed stick for defensive purposes on the one hand, and digging for USOs on the other, may be why bipedalism was selected for. Passing such learned behavior to the next generation may have played a role in selecting for language.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 27 , Issue 4 , August 2004 , pp. 507 - 508
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2004

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