I'm going to put this in
Is It Science?, because in conjunction with past changes in this estimate it does raise questions about whether we're really improving our knowledge or are just continually changing our minds in line with the latest evidence. For instance, this is from
Study moves chimp-human split to 4 million years ago in Reuters three years ago:
Reuters writes:
Chimpanzees and humans split from a common ancestor just 4 million years ago -- a much shorter time than current estimates of 5 million to 7 million years ago, according to a study published on Friday.
First the split was 5-7 million years ago (and who knows what it was before that), then it was 4 million years ago, then it was 5 million years ago, now it's 8 million years ago. Aren't these guys just making it up as they go along?
-- | Percy |
| EvC Forum Director |