New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’
In 1912, palaeontologist Arthur Smith Woodward and amateur antiquarian and solicitor Charles Dawson announced the discovery of a fossil that supposedly provided a link between apes and humans: Eoanthropus dawsoni (Dawson's dawn man). The publication generated huge interest from scientists and t...
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| Materyal Türü: | Makale |
| Dil: | English |
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The Royal Society
2016-01-01
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| Seri Bilgileri: | Royal Society Open Science |
| Konular: | |
| Online Erişim: | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.160328 |
| _version_ | 1828303825217257472 |
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| author | Isabelle De Groote Linus Girdland Flink Rizwaan Abbas Silvia M. Bello Lucia Burgia Laura Tabitha Buck Christopher Dean Alison Freyne Thomas Higham Chris G. Jones Robert Kruszynski Adrian Lister Simon A. Parfitt Matthew M. Skinner Karolyn Shindler Chris B. Stringer |
| author_facet | Isabelle De Groote Linus Girdland Flink Rizwaan Abbas Silvia M. Bello Lucia Burgia Laura Tabitha Buck Christopher Dean Alison Freyne Thomas Higham Chris G. Jones Robert Kruszynski Adrian Lister Simon A. Parfitt Matthew M. Skinner Karolyn Shindler Chris B. Stringer |
| author_sort | Isabelle De Groote |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | In 1912, palaeontologist Arthur Smith Woodward and amateur antiquarian and solicitor Charles Dawson announced the discovery of a fossil that supposedly provided a link between apes and humans: Eoanthropus dawsoni (Dawson's dawn man). The publication generated huge interest from scientists and the general public. However, ‘Piltdown man's’ initial celebrity has long been overshadowed by its subsequent infamy as one of the most famous scientific frauds in history. Our re-evaluation of the Piltdown fossils using the latest scientific methods (DNA analyses, high-precision measurements, spectroscopy and virtual anthropology) shows that it is highly likely that a single orang-utan specimen and at least two human specimens were used to create the fake fossils. The modus operandi was found consistent throughout the assemblage (specimens are stained brown, loaded with gravel fragments and restored using filling materials), linking all specimens from the Piltdown I and Piltdown II sites to a single forger—Charles Dawson. Whether Dawson acted alone is uncertain, but his hunger for acclaim may have driven him to risk his reputation and misdirect the course of anthropology for decades. The Piltdown hoax stands as a cautionary tale to scientists not to be led by preconceived ideas, but to use scientific integrity and rigour in the face of novel discoveries. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-13T14:00:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-b3b51b49262d477d8468fe4bb94e88b1 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2054-5703 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-13T14:00:17Z |
| publishDate | 2016-01-01 |
| publisher | The Royal Society |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Royal Society Open Science |
| spelling | doaj.art-b3b51b49262d477d8468fe4bb94e88b12022-12-22T02:44:04ZengThe Royal SocietyRoyal Society Open Science2054-57032016-01-013810.1098/rsos.160328160328New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’Isabelle De GrooteLinus Girdland FlinkRizwaan AbbasSilvia M. BelloLucia BurgiaLaura Tabitha BuckChristopher DeanAlison FreyneThomas HighamChris G. JonesRobert KruszynskiAdrian ListerSimon A. ParfittMatthew M. SkinnerKarolyn ShindlerChris B. StringerIn 1912, palaeontologist Arthur Smith Woodward and amateur antiquarian and solicitor Charles Dawson announced the discovery of a fossil that supposedly provided a link between apes and humans: Eoanthropus dawsoni (Dawson's dawn man). The publication generated huge interest from scientists and the general public. However, ‘Piltdown man's’ initial celebrity has long been overshadowed by its subsequent infamy as one of the most famous scientific frauds in history. Our re-evaluation of the Piltdown fossils using the latest scientific methods (DNA analyses, high-precision measurements, spectroscopy and virtual anthropology) shows that it is highly likely that a single orang-utan specimen and at least two human specimens were used to create the fake fossils. The modus operandi was found consistent throughout the assemblage (specimens are stained brown, loaded with gravel fragments and restored using filling materials), linking all specimens from the Piltdown I and Piltdown II sites to a single forger—Charles Dawson. Whether Dawson acted alone is uncertain, but his hunger for acclaim may have driven him to risk his reputation and misdirect the course of anthropology for decades. The Piltdown hoax stands as a cautionary tale to scientists not to be led by preconceived ideas, but to use scientific integrity and rigour in the face of novel discoveries.https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.160328eoanthropushuman evolutiongeometric morphometricsdna |
| spellingShingle | Isabelle De Groote Linus Girdland Flink Rizwaan Abbas Silvia M. Bello Lucia Burgia Laura Tabitha Buck Christopher Dean Alison Freyne Thomas Higham Chris G. Jones Robert Kruszynski Adrian Lister Simon A. Parfitt Matthew M. Skinner Karolyn Shindler Chris B. Stringer New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ Royal Society Open Science eoanthropus human evolution geometric morphometrics dna |
| title | New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ |
| title_full | New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ |
| title_fullStr | New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ |
| title_full_unstemmed | New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ |
| title_short | New genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created ‘Piltdown man’ |
| title_sort | new genetic and morphological evidence suggests a single hoaxer created piltdown man |
| topic | eoanthropus human evolution geometric morphometrics dna |
| url | https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/pdf/10.1098/rsos.160328 |
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