{"id":129205,"date":"2024-11-23T15:00:16","date_gmt":"2024-11-23T08:00:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=129205"},"modified":"2024-11-23T15:00:16","modified_gmt":"2024-11-23T08:00:16","slug":"this-is-why-lucy-has-been-the-face-of-human-evolution-for-the-last-50-years","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hotvideos24.online\/?p=129205","title":{"rendered":"This is why Lucy has been the face of human evolution for the last 50 years"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script>\r\n<ins class=\"adsbygoogle\"\r\n     style=\"display:block\"\r\n     data-ad-format=\"fluid\"\r\n     data-ad-layout-key=\"-fb+5w+4e-db+86\"\r\n     data-ad-client=\"ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     data-ad-slot=\"7910942971\"><\/ins>\r\n<script>\r\n     (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});\r\n<\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-testid=\"prism-GridColumn\" style=\"--grid-column-span-xxs:var(--grid-columns);--grid-column-span-xs:var(--grid-columns);--grid-column-span-sm:var(--grid-columns);--grid-column-span-md:20;--grid-column-span-lg:16;--grid-column-span-xl:16;--grid-column-span-xxl:14;--grid-column-start-xxs:auto;--grid-column-start-xs:auto;--grid-column-start-sm:auto;--grid-column-start-md:3;--grid-column-start-lg:5;--grid-column-start-xl:5;--grid-column-start-xxl:6\">\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao MvWXB TjIXL aGjvy ebVHC \">The first clue that the fossilized human ancestor known as Lucy would be a global phenomenon came at a Paris airport in December 1974. While passing through customs, paleoanthropologist <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/50790\">Donald Johanson<\/a> introduced the wrapped parcels in his bag as fossils from Ethiopia, and a customs official replied, \u201cYou mean Lucy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Just a few weeks earlier, Johanson and his team had discovered the bones of a small adult female, who appeared to be a long-lost member of our family tree. The ancient skeleton had yet to be examined and analyzed by researchers, but a press release had been enough to catapult her toward becoming arguably the most well-known fossil in history.<!-- -->\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">At the time, there was \u201csignificant broad interest in human origins,\u201d Johanson says. Finds by the Leakey family and other scientists in South Africa had begun filling in the human story, suggesting that early ancestors evolved upright posture millions of years ago in Africa, followed later by large brains and the ability to use tools.<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Yet the fossils unearthed so far were fragmentary\u2014a skull here, a partial foot there. And they dated to no more than 1.75 million years old, significantly younger than humans\u2019 most distant ancestors were suspected to be.<!-- -->\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \"><a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/lucy-facts-on-early-human-ancestor\">Lucy<\/a> would go on to set records in age and completeness, while confirming ideas about humans\u2019 evolutionary transition to upright walking. Other fossils have since surpassed her in achievements, but Lucy remains a household name 50 years later. The fossil\u2019s scientific story has been entwined with a cultural one from the very beginning.<\/p>\n<div class=\"oLzSq QrHMO fnRUo pvsTF EhJPu vPlOC zNYgW OsTsW RMeqy daRVX ISNQ sKyCY eRftA acPPc MENS nFwaT MCnQE mEeeY SmBjI xegrY rPLsU iulOd NIuqO zzscu lzDCc aHUBM IEgzD OjMNy eQqcx SVqKB GQmdz jaoD VWDdR ONJdw vrZxD OnRTz gbbfF roDbV GPGwb oMlSS gfNzt oJhud eXZcf zhVlX \">\n<div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage GpQCA lZur asrEW \" data-testid=\"prism-inline-image\">\n<figure class=\"kzIjN GNmeK pYrtp dSqFO \" data-testid=\"prism-figure\">\n<div class=\"lZur \" data-testid=\"prism-copyright-wrapper\"><picture data-testid=\"prism-picture\"><source media=\"(max-width: 374px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=374&amp;h=288, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=748&amp;h=576 2x\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 375px) and (max-width: 413px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=413&amp;h=318, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=826&amp;h=636 2x\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 414px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=718&amp;h=553, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=1436&amp;h=1106 2x\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Visitors standing before a short, skeletal reconstruction of &quot;Lucy&quot;\" class=\"hsDdd vBqtr KrDt itslR zFTjo hakZw HlUVI UbGlr \" data-testid=\"prism-image\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg\" id=\"A7Y1GP\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><button aria-label=\"Open Fullscreen\" class=\"mLASH egFzk qXWHA ScoIf XbEWk jIRH nkbp OJpwZ hUQGO wSPfd ofvJb lIDy YIauu gGlNh ARCOA kyjTO xqlN gWRci aNnIu GDslh LjPJo RpDvg YYtC rTpcz EDgo UVTAB hswTp sXtkB AAqU fctVp ENhiS xjUSk NatTH NqeUA dZTKY QMxMQ LpcJi wardV kcRqD fhCRd MYLFX RkJsE iEOQC yaNWn ZUpvj HoXXr \" data-testid=\"prism-ImageViewer_ExpandButton\" type=\"button\"><span class=\"CSJky pdAzW JSFPu \"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\" \" data-testid=\"prism-iconography\" height=\"1em\" role=\"presentation\" viewbox=\"0 0 48 48\" width=\"1em\" data-icon=\"view-fullscreenEnter\"><path fill=\"currentColor\" d=\"M6.48 11.24V16h3.04V9.52H16V6.48H6.48v4.76M32 8v1.52h6.48V16h3.04V6.48H32V8M6.48 36.76v4.76H16v-3.04H9.52V32H6.48v4.76m32-1.52v3.24H32v3.04h9.52V32h-3.04v3.24\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><figcaption>\n<div class=\"nMMea bNYiy Mjgpa dGwha DDmxa jgKNG RGHCC aBIU PriDW lZur \" data-testid=\"prism-caption\">\n<div class=\"HXPPJ barbu yKsXL IzgMt VcHIt uhSzI YGNMU cRAsZ xqMcl QtRul \"><span class=\"hsDdd OOSI GpQCA lZur VlFaz \" data-testid=\"prism-truncate\"><span><span class=\"gtOSm FbbUW tUtYa vOCwz EQwFq yCufu eEak Qmvg nyTIa SRXVc vzLa jgBfc WXDas CiUCW kqbG zrdEG txGfn ygKVe BbezD UOtxr CVfpq xijV soGRS XgdC sEIlf daWqJ \">A reconstruction of Lucy&#8217;s skeleton stands on display at the Senckenberg Nature Museum in Frankfurt, Germany. Over the years, researchers have debated how much time she spent <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/110210-lucy-feet-walked-feet-science-afarensis-fossil\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">walking around on the ground<\/a> on two legs versus <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/pages\/article\/121026-australopithecus-afarensis-human-evolution-lucy-scapula-science\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">climbing trees<\/a>. <\/span><\/span><\/span><\/div>\n<p><span class=\"gtOSm FbbUW tUtYa vOCwz EQwFq yCufu eEak Qmvg nyTIa SRXVc vzLa jgBfc WXDas CiUCW kqbG zrdEG txGfn ygKVe BbezD UOtxr CVfpq xijV soGRS XgdC sEIlf daWqJ YNujN JGtjI aZFDu rkKLh \">Photograph by Danita Delimont, Alamy Stock Photo<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<h2 class=\"RxNCg ykkUm PvZ nIjPJ PMXYp LmsHF SfAHY mNgye lNbol LBPRq \">The lore of Lucy\u2019s discovery<\/h2>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">On November 24, 1974, Johanson was searching for fossils of ancient human relatives or hominins in an area called Hadar in the Afar region of Ethiopia, when he noticed a forearm bone eroding out of a hillside. Collecting the bone and returning to camp, Johanson and the field team celebrated that evening, singing along to the popular Beatles song, \u201cLucy in the Sky With Diamonds\u201d (or so the story goes). The next day, they excavated the rest of the hominin remains in 110-degree heat and started calling the skeleton Lucy. In scientific circles, she\u2019s would later be known as <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/humanorigins.si.edu\/evidence\/human-fossils\/fossils\/al-288-1\">AL 288-1<\/a>, and in Ethiopia, as Dinkinesh, which mean \u201cyou are marvelous\u201d in Amharic.<!-- -->\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Piecing together her lower jaw, skull fragments, vertebrae, ribs, arms, a pelvis, and legs, the team collected approximately 40 percent of Lucy\u2019s skeleton. She appeared to be a fully grown adult, yet stood just over a meter tall.<!-- -->\u00a0<\/p>\n<div class=\"oLzSq QrHMO fnRUo pvsTF EhJPu vPlOC zNYgW OsTsW RMeqy daRVX ISNQ sKyCY eRftA acPPc MENS nFwaT MCnQE mEeeY SmBjI xegrY VvTxJ iulOd NIuqO zzscu lzDCc aHUBM hbvnu OjMNy eQqcx SVqKB GQmdz jaoD iShaE ONJdw vrZxD OnRTz gbbfF roDbV kRoBe oMlSS gfNzt oJhud eXZcf zhVlX \">\n<div>\n<div class=\"prism-commerce-container VKWa uMOq zYIfP JWnqE hsDdd lZur TPpRg NoUSU igcMP DtJWr QgBvn DFdlJ WRJzh GncOR dePeJ WdEvu LRKrZ qsCyh sDkEV tRUvJ vfgxB ociKu FeayO IOfvt RcyCh CpheS xMLxR ZWLsD OORPA UVJuH sOydf VTxHd hGand ZiTJ vOQON aygTJ NzAWG OejfS jfBYg fDzwm jzmm usAIt risvF PCBpE fOyKp lICdk ClHI TBmkq bztlJ sxSDk FELyU tCzGV JMHqu RcIjh yeJKB HByAZ WlrAp NXcCQ GthuU ZNHlY raGQJ ojgJ ykgPT yATrP \" data-testid=\"prism-card\"><a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA hsDdd cBQOR tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE GpQCA lZur BOsoU YMZw dihEb srtah LmIPo JzlZQ VbrfA zZsl kjmkg OwbFk QuuaM tOHqz GfDiz rCJMb HxCWP \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/nghistorysubs.nationalgeographic.com\/pubs\/NG\/NGH\/NGH_Holiday_Onsite_Gift_Aug24.jsp?cds_page_id=280478&amp;cds_mag_code=NGH&amp;id=1730489972865&amp;lsid=43061439328077486&amp;vid=1&amp;cds_response_key=I4HC2HOL1&amp;cmpid=int_org=ngp::int_mc=website::int_src=ngp::int_cmp=ngh_holiday24::int_add=inarticlepromostacked\" aria-label=\"LIMITED TIME OFFER\" aria-describedby=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"GpQCA lZur Rnci kOMGa qiJyR \" data-testid=\"prism-ratio-frame\">\n<div class=\"FvQLF iLTd NqeUA UzzHi iWsMV \"><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"\" class=\"hsDdd \" data-testid=\"prism-image\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/eb577a2a-7871-4ba3-9bb3-fee72bcd6a8c\/NGH-13203_1080x720-1.jpg\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><\/a><\/p>\n<div class=\"QGHKv iVcn avodi rEPuv ICwhc ibBnq seFhp WtEci nkdHX \">\n<div class=\"VZTD rEPuv QXDKT UoVV vQyvj ZXUVE UPesc mbPGx AMmMo \" data-testid=\"prism-meta\">\n<p><span class=\"OqqjT PFoxV eBpQD fZrHq GpQCA lZsYi lkzRK soMma MbHDC KdWtx \" id=\"LIMITEDTIMEOFFERsubtitle\">The perfect gift for the history buff in your life. Give now and get a FREE TOTE BAG.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">(<a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucy-tree-fall-human-ancestor\"><i class=\" \">Here\u2019s one theory on how Lucy died<\/i><\/a>.)<\/p>\n<div class=\"oLzSq QrHMO fnRUo pvsTF EhJPu vPlOC zNYgW OsTsW RMeqy daRVX ISNQ sKyCY eRftA acPPc MENS nFwaT MCnQE mEeeY SmBjI xegrY rPLsU iulOd NIuqO zzscu lzDCc aHUBM IEgzD OjMNy eQqcx SVqKB GQmdz jaoD VWDdR ONJdw vrZxD OnRTz gbbfF roDbV GPGwb oMlSS gfNzt oJhud eXZcf zhVlX \">\n<div>\n<div class=\"InlineImage GpQCA lZur asrEW \" data-testid=\"prism-inline-image\">\n<figure class=\"kzIjN GNmeK pYrtp dSqFO \" data-testid=\"prism-figure\">\n<div class=\"lZur \" data-testid=\"prism-copyright-wrapper\"><picture data-testid=\"prism-picture\"><source media=\"(max-width: 374px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=374&amp;h=513, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=748&amp;h=1026 2x\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 375px) and (max-width: 413px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=413&amp;h=567, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=826&amp;h=1134 2x\"\/><source media=\"(min-width: 414px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=718&amp;h=986, https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=1436&amp;h=1972 2x\"\/><img decoding=\"async\" alt=\"Fossilized bones displayed in anatomical position atop a black cloth in a glass case. A man's reflection can be seen in the glass as he examines the bones.\" class=\"hsDdd vBqtr KrDt itslR zFTjo hakZw HlUVI UbGlr \" data-testid=\"prism-image\" draggable=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg\" id=\"GettyImages-76363247\"\/><\/picture><\/div>\n<p><button aria-label=\"Open Fullscreen\" class=\"mLASH egFzk qXWHA ScoIf XbEWk jIRH nkbp OJpwZ hUQGO wSPfd ofvJb lIDy YIauu gGlNh ARCOA kyjTO xqlN gWRci aNnIu GDslh LjPJo RpDvg YYtC rTpcz EDgo UVTAB hswTp sXtkB AAqU fctVp ENhiS xjUSk NatTH NqeUA dZTKY QMxMQ LpcJi wardV kcRqD fhCRd MYLFX RkJsE iEOQC yaNWn ZUpvj HoXXr \" data-testid=\"prism-ImageViewer_ExpandButton\" type=\"button\"><span class=\"CSJky pdAzW JSFPu \"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" xmlns:xlink=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/1999\/xlink\" aria-hidden=\"true\" class=\" \" data-testid=\"prism-iconography\" height=\"1em\" role=\"presentation\" viewbox=\"0 0 48 48\" width=\"1em\" data-icon=\"view-fullscreenEnter\"><path fill=\"currentColor\" d=\"M6.48 11.24V16h3.04V9.52H16V6.48H6.48v4.76M32 8v1.52h6.48V16h3.04V6.48H32V8M6.48 36.76v4.76H16v-3.04H9.52V32H6.48v4.76m32-1.52v3.24H32v3.04h9.52V32h-3.04v3.24\"\/><\/svg><\/span><\/button><figcaption>\n<div class=\"nMMea bNYiy Mjgpa dGwha DDmxa jgKNG RGHCC aBIU PriDW lZur \" data-testid=\"prism-caption\">\n<p><span class=\"hsDdd OOSI GpQCA lZur VlFaz \" data-testid=\"prism-truncate\"><span><span class=\"gtOSm FbbUW tUtYa vOCwz EQwFq yCufu eEak Qmvg nyTIa SRXVc vzLa jgBfc WXDas CiUCW kqbG zrdEG txGfn ygKVe BbezD UOtxr CVfpq xijV soGRS XgdC sEIlf daWqJ \">Lucy toured the U.S. in 2007 and made her first public appearance ever\u00a0at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Texas. The exhibition drew criticism among the museum community and others who\u00a0argued that the fossil is too fragile to be moved from Ethiopia.<\/span><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span class=\"gtOSm FbbUW tUtYa vOCwz EQwFq yCufu eEak Qmvg nyTIa SRXVc vzLa jgBfc WXDas CiUCW kqbG zrdEG txGfn ygKVe BbezD UOtxr CVfpq xijV soGRS XgdC sEIlf daWqJ YNujN JGtjI aZFDu rkKLh \">Photograph by Dave Einsel, Getty Images<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">The volcanic rock layers sandwiching the fossils dated her to 3.2 million years old\u2014almost <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1002\/ajpa.21183\">doubling the age<\/a> of what was then the oldest known human ancestor. Beyond that, the next oldest skeleton at the time dated to only 100,000 years old. Such an ancient, complete specimen <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/archive.nationalgeographic.com\/national-geographic\/1976-dec\/flipbook\/796\/\">was remarkable<\/a>. Lucy hit all the superlatives, science writer for the <i class=\" \">New York Times<\/i> Boyce Rensberger remembers, \u201cthe oldest and most complete.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"EkqkG IGXmU nlgHS yuUao lqtkC TjIXL aGjvy \">Based on the fragmented remains of her skull and other finds at Hadar, Lucy seemed to have a small, chimpanzee-sized brain and projecting face, but the rest of her skeleton indicated a fully erect, human-like posture. In 1978, Johanson and colleagues officially <a class=\"zZygg UbGlr iFzkS qdXbA WCDhQ DbOXS tqUtK GpWVU iJYzE \" data-testid=\"prism-linkbase\" href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/biostor-193077\">assigned her to a new species<\/a>, <i class=\" \">Australopithecus afarensis<\/i> (the southern ape from the Afar in Latin), and declared she was proof our ancestors walked on two legs before evolving large 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While passing through customs, paleoanthropologist <a href=\\\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/50790\\\">Donald Johanson<\/a> introduced the wrapped parcels in his bag as fossils from Ethiopia, and a customs official replied, \u201cYou mean Lucy?\u201d\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html1\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Just a few weeks earlier, Johanson and his team had discovered the bones of a small adult female, who appeared to be a long-lost member of our family tree. The ancient skeleton had yet to be examined and analyzed by researchers, but a press release had been enough to catapult her toward becoming arguably the most well-known fossil in history.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html2\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"At the time, there was \u201csignificant broad interest in human origins,\u201d Johanson says. Finds by the Leakey family and other scientists in South Africa had begun filling in the human story, suggesting that early ancestors evolved upright posture millions of years ago in Africa, followed later by large brains and the ability to use tools.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html3\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Yet the fossils unearthed so far were fragmentary\u2014a skull here, a partial foot there. And they dated to no more than 1.75 million years old, significantly younger than humans\u2019 most distant ancestors were suspected to be.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html4\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/lucy-facts-on-early-human-ancestor\\\">Lucy<\/a> would go on to set records in age and completeness, while confirming ideas about humans\u2019 evolutionary transition to upright walking. Other fossils have since surpassed her in achievements, but Lucy remains a household name 50 years later. The fossil\u2019s scientific story has been entwined with a cultural one from the very beginning.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"66ce831c-a84d-4452-a1af-e53463742f35\",\"cntnt\":{\"cmsType\":\"image\",\"ariaLabel\":\"image\",\"align\":\"contentWidth\",\"belowParagraph\":true,\"envNme\":\"prod\",\"flags\":{\"hideTitle\":true,\"hideAssetSource\":true},\"qryStr\":\"userab=ng_pw_copy-287*variant_b-1127&forceMode=fitt\",\"mrkup\":\"\",\"placement\":\"inline\"},\"type\":\"inline\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html5\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"The lore of Lucy\u2019s discovery\"},\"type\":\"h2\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html6\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"On November 24, 1974, Johanson was searching for fossils of ancient human relatives or hominins in an area called Hadar in the Afar region of Ethiopia, when he noticed a forearm bone eroding out of a hillside. Collecting the bone and returning to camp, Johanson and the field team celebrated that evening, singing along to the popular Beatles song, \u201cLucy in the Sky With Diamonds\u201d (or so the story goes). The next day, they excavated the rest of the hominin remains in 110-degree heat and started calling the skeleton Lucy. In scientific circles, she\u2019s would later be known as <a href=\\\"https:\/\/humanorigins.si.edu\/evidence\/human-fossils\/fossils\/al-288-1\\\">AL 288-1<\/a>, and in Ethiopia, as Dinkinesh, which mean \u201cyou are marvelous\u201d in Amharic.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html7\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Piecing together her lower jaw, skull fragments, vertebrae, ribs, arms, a pelvis, and legs, the team collected approximately 40 percent of Lucy\u2019s skeleton. She appeared to be a fully grown adult, yet stood just over a meter tall.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html8\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"(<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucy-tree-fall-human-ancestor\\\"><i>Here\u2019s one theory on how Lucy died<\/i><\/a>.)\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"a8d58d95-5945-493c-b12b-788049a17127\",\"cntnt\":{\"cmsType\":\"image\",\"ariaLabel\":\"image\",\"align\":\"contentWidth\",\"belowParagraph\":true,\"envNme\":\"prod\",\"flags\":{\"hideTitle\":true,\"hideAssetSource\":true},\"qryStr\":\"userab=ng_pw_copy-287*variant_b-1127&forceMode=fitt\",\"mrkup\":\"\",\"placement\":\"inline\"},\"type\":\"inline\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html9\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"The volcanic rock layers sandwiching the fossils dated her to 3.2 million years old\u2014almost <a href=\\\"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1002\/ajpa.21183\\\">doubling the age<\/a> of what was then the oldest known human ancestor. Beyond that, the next oldest skeleton at the time dated to only 100,000 years old. Such an ancient, complete specimen <a href=\\\"https:\/\/archive.nationalgeographic.com\/national-geographic\/1976-dec\/flipbook\/796\/\\\">was remarkable<\/a>. Lucy hit all the superlatives, science writer for the <i>New York Times<\/i> Boyce Rensberger remembers, \u201cthe oldest and most complete.\u201d\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html10\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Based on the fragmented remains of her skull and other finds at Hadar, Lucy seemed to have a small, chimpanzee-sized brain and projecting face, but the rest of her skeleton indicated a fully erect, human-like posture. In 1978, Johanson and colleagues officially <a href=\\\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/biostor-193077\\\">assigned her to a new species<\/a>, <i>Australopithecus afarensis<\/i> (the southern ape from the Afar in Latin), and declared she was proof our ancestors walked on two legs before evolving large brains.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html11\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Yet even at the time, Lucy wasn\u2019t the most controversial or earthshattering discovery in the history of human origins science. While she demonstrated that upright walking was an early hallmark of an African lineage, Africa had already been recognized as humanity\u2019s birthplace for decades, as had the idea that upright posture preceded big brains.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html12\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Lucy\u2019s cultural significance quickly expanded even beyond her scientific status. From the start, she had all the makings of an icon\u2014her catchy nickname, her dramatic discovery. But perhaps most importantly, she had an enthusiastic narrator in Johanson. It proved to be a winning combination.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html13\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"What propelled Lucy to stardom?\"},\"type\":\"h2\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html14\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"By 1974, <a href=\\\"https:\/\/leakeyfoundation.org\/about-us\/the-leakey-family\/\\\">the Leakey family<\/a>\u2014Mary, Louis, and their son <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/richard-leakey-trailblazing-conservationist-and-fossil-hunter-dies-at-77\\\">Richard<\/a>\u2014had been unearthing ancestors for over a decade. Their discoveries of several skulls, stone tools, and other fossils from Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania and the shores of Lake Turkana, Kenya, had appeared in <i>National Geographic<\/i> and other magazines.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html15\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Despite frequently appearing in the news, ancestors found by the Leakeys with nicknames like <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/the-species-that-domesticated-itself\\\">Dear Boy and Nutcracker Man<\/a> had never achieved such star power. \u201cThere just weren't any fossils that people in the United States or Europe were connecting to,\u201d says <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.kayereed.com\/\\\">Kaye Reed<\/a>, a paleoanthropologist at Arizona State University.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html16\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"(<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/taung-child-human-ancestor\\\"><i>How did scientists almost miss the \u2018missing link\u2019 fossil?<\/i><\/a>)\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html17\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Lucy\u2019s journey from an unknown in Ethiopia\u2019s highlands to the kind of celebrity that gets recognized in an airport puzzles even Johanson. \u201cI've been turning it over in my mind,\u201d he admits, \u201ctrying to figure out what it was that attracted such an enormous amount of attention.\u201d&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html18\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Perhaps one facet is her exceptionally human nickname, which Johanson calls \u201caffectionate and easy to remember.\u201d Or maybe it has to do with the fact that the discovery \u201cis a partial skeleton,\u201d he muses, \u201cand it can therefore be recognized as an individual.\u201d\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html19\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Others credit Johanson himself for \u201ctirelessly\u201d engaging in public communication of science. Indeed, Johanson\u2019s book, <i>Lucy: The Beginnings of Humankind <\/i>published in 1981, catapulted up the bestseller list. The book led to appearances on programs like Good Morning America and a <i>NOVA<\/i> series \u201cIn Search of Human Origins,\u201d filmed in Ethiopia. \u201cLargely, we owe it to Johanson\u2019s writings, interviews, and lectures,\u201d says <a href=\\\"https:\/\/alemsegedlab.uchicago.edu\/\\\">Zeray Alemseged<\/a>, a paleoanthropologist at the University of Chicago.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"a709f1c3-52e9-4e1c-a3fb-0dba0a6927eb\",\"cntnt\":{\"cmsType\":\"image\",\"ariaLabel\":\"image\",\"align\":\"pageWidth\",\"belowParagraph\":true,\"envNme\":\"prod\",\"flags\":{\"hideTitle\":true,\"hideAssetSource\":true},\"qryStr\":\"userab=ng_pw_copy-287*variant_b-1127&forceMode=fitt\",\"mrkup\":\"\",\"placement\":\"inline\"},\"type\":\"inline\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html20\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"At just 31 years old when he found Lucy, the young Johanson appeared equally at ease in front of a camera wandering the high desert as he did seated beside Walter Cronkite on primetime. Later media accounts described Johanson as \u201ca man of great natural grace\u201d and \u201cIndiana Jones in Armani.\u201d However, he recalls that he \u201cwas very awkward and much too technical\u201d at first, before receiving guidance from science communicator Carl Sagan.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html21\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"The combined factors of the nickname, completeness, and Johanson\u2019s approach came together to paint Lucy as relatable. Far from treating her as a pile of dusty old bones, Johanson personalized her. In documentaries, for example, he often subtly reminds the viewer that she was once a living, breathing individual, referring to her discovery site not as merely the place where he came across her fossils, but also as \u201cthe very spot where she died all those years ago\u201d in the <i>NOVA<\/i> series.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html22\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Human origins in the spotlight\"},\"type\":\"h2\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html23\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Having such a personable ancestor helped thrust the science of human origins further into the spotlight than ever before. Harnessing the momentum, Johanson set up a non-profit institute called the <a href=\\\"https:\/\/iho.asu.edu\/about\/history\\\">Institute of Human Origins<\/a> in Berkeley, California, in 1981. In addition to research and fieldwork, he decided that public outreach should be a pillar of the organization from the start.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html24\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Lucy provided a window through which to educate people, a way to reach out to both children and adults \u201cand just say, this is what we do,\u201d one of the Institute\u2019s first faculty members, Reed, recalls.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html25\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Not everyone valued Johanson\u2019s public-facing persona, however, causing a rift within the institute, as some researchers accused him of prioritizing public relations above science. The dispute ended with the departure of several geologists and a relocation to Arizona State University in 1997. That year, Johanson\u2019s colleague William Kimbel <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.phoenixnewtimes.com\/news\/the-man-who-loved-lucy-6422824\\\">argued in the <i>Phoenix New Times<\/i><\/a> that if scientists doing the work \u201care not in the position to communicate the results to the public, something is wrong.\u201d So outreach, fundraising, and research continued progressing in tandem.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html26\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"These efforts channeled funding toward fieldwork that helped <i>A. afarensis<\/i> become one of the best-represented species of human relative in the world. With over 400 specimens recognized across half a dozen sites in Ethiopia and Kenya, the majority of <i>A. afarensis <\/i>fossils come from Hadar, and researchers continue searching. Newer discoveries, including <a href=\\\"https:\/\/royalsocietypublishing.org\/doi\/10.1098\/rstb.2010.0070\\\">several mostly-complete skulls<\/a>, &nbsp;have shown that the species lasted from 3.9 to 3 million years ago and ate a generalized diet, making them more flexible than previous hominins.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html27\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"(<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/what-killed-the-hominins-of-al-333\\\"><i>What killed the hominins of AL 333?<\/i><\/a>)\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html28\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"What is Lucy\u2019s legacy?\"},\"type\":\"h2\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html29\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Today\u2019s human evolution researchers are the generation raised by Lucy. <a href=\\\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1070879\\\">Chris Campisano<\/a>, a paleoanthropologist at Arizona State University, remembers reading Johanson\u2019s book in high school for a summer project, sparking his interest in searching for hominin fossils in Africa. Now, he leads the research at Hadar. Reflecting on the trajectory, Campisano remarks, \u201cI never would have guessed that on the 50th anniversary of Lucy\u2019s discovery, I\u2019d be leading the project.\u201d&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html30\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Today, the institute that Lucy built still leads paleoanthropological research around the world. Combining education with fundraising to support research, the impact has proliferated far beyond Hadar.&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html31\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"The fossil\u2019s stardom has had a \u201cdomino effect,\u201d says Alemseged, who is Ethiopian and first met Lucy while working at the National Museum of Ethiopia in Addis Ababa, where she is currently stored in a specially constructed safe.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html32\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Alemseged was a postdoc at the Institute when he guided the first-ever Ethiopian-led team to the site of Dikika, just across the Awash River from Hadar. There, he found a <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/nature05047\\\">remarkably complete child of Lucy\u2019s species<\/a>, <i>A. afarensis<\/i> he named Selam, meaning \u201cpeace\u201d in Amharic. Only about 2.4 years old when it died, the child was quickly dubbed \u201c<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucys-baby-worlds-oldest-childfound-by-fossil-hunters\\\">Lucy\u2019s Baby<\/a>\u201d\u2014despite having lived 200,000 years before Lucy.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html33\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"(<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/120328-lucy-fossil-foot-science-australopithecus-trees-evolution\\\"><i>Who were Lucy\u2019s neighbors?<\/i><\/a>)\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html34\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Amid the ever-growing collection of <i>A. afarensis<\/i> fossils, Lucy remains at the center. \u201cIt's very difficult to not make reference to Lucy when you talk of new discoveries,\u201d Alemseged says, adding that she has become the \u201cbenchmark\u201d against which all other fossils are compared. \u201cYou find something and people ask, is it older or younger than Lucy? Taller or shorter than Lucy?\u201d&nbsp;\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html35\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Lucy is no longer the oldest or the most complete human ancestor. The 7-million-year-old <a href=\\\"https:\/\/humanorigins.si.edu\/evidence\/human-fossils\/species\/orrorin-tugenensis\\\"><i>Sahelanthropus tchadensis<\/i><\/a> and the 6-million-year-old <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/scitable\/knowledge\/library\/the-earliest-hominins-sahelanthropus-orrorin-and-ardipithecus-67648286\/\\\"><i>Orrorin tugenensis<\/i><\/a> vie for the oldest title, while the skeleton of \u201c<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/150401-little-foot-fossil-dated-archaeology-science\\\">Little Foot<\/a>\u201d, an <i>Australopithecus<\/i> from South Africa, is over 90 percent complete.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}},{\"id\":\"html36\",\"cntnt\":{\"mrkup\":\"Yet Lucy\u2019s icon status has yet to be repeated. As \u201cLittle Foot\u201d suggests, scientists have tried nicknaming their finds, from \u201cArdi\u201d short for <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/ardipithecus-we-meet-at-last\\\"><i>Ardipithecus<\/i><\/a> to \u201c<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/homo-naledi-human-evolution-science\\\">Neo<\/a>\u201d and \u201c<a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.livescience.com\/child-of-darkness-homo-naledi-discovered.html\\\">Child of Darkness<\/a>\u201d for various specimens of South Africa\u2019s <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/related\/9362e6e2-1db7-3b16-9e60-2fdcf2b03290\/homo-naledi\\\"><i>Homo naledi<\/i><\/a>. These monikers haven\u2019t caught on widely, however, and in the sky with diamonds, Lucy remains.\"},\"type\":\"p\",\"style\":{}}],\"cid\":\"drn:src:natgeo:unison::prod:69de5716-6228-468a-b31b-10bfcee1fa0b\",\"cntrbGrp\":[{\"contributors\":[{\"displayName\":\"Paige Madison\"}],\"title\":\"By\",\"rl\":\"Writer\"}],\"mode\":\"richtext\",\"enableAds\":true,\"endbug\":true,\"hsImmrsvLd\":true,\"isMetered\":false,\"isUserAuthed\":false,\"isTruncated\":false,\"isEntitled\":false,\"freemiumContentGatingEnabled\":true,\"premiumContentGatingEnabled\":false,\"gated\":true,\"mdDt\":\"2024-11-22T17:15:30.063Z\",\"schma\":{\"athrs\":[{\"name\":\"Paige Madison\"}],\"cnnicl\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucy-human-evolution-discovery\",\"kywrds\":\"lucy, human evolution, Lucy Australopithecus afarensis, the mother of humanity, paleoanthropology, human origins\",\"lg\":\"https:\/\/assets-cdn.nationalgeographic.com\/natgeo\/static\/default.NG.logo.dark.jpg\",\"pblshr\":\"National Geographic\",\"abt\":\"Human Ancestors\",\"sclDsc\":\"Paleontologists unearthed the iconic fossil in 1974. Today, her legacy remains just as much cultural as it is scientific.\",\"sclImg\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/c5a99ce7-fd4b-4df4-b210-ca166cdc7218\/h_00000202008477_16x9.jpg?w=1200\",\"sclTtl\":\"This is why Lucy has been the face of human evolution for the last 50 years\"},\"sctn\":\"Science\",\"wrdcnt\":2085,\"upsell\":{\"upsell\":{\"id\":\"43c9a5c3-6a15-4a14-8cf0-16e207b98984\",\"cmsType\":\"ImmersiveLeadTile\",\"title\":\"LIMITED TIME OFFER\",\"ctas\":[{\"text\":\"GIVE A GIFT\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/nghistorysubs.nationalgeographic.com\/pubs\/NG\/NGH\/NGH_Holiday_Onsite_Gift_Aug24.jsp?cds_page_id=280478&cds_mag_code=NGH&id=1730489972865&lsid=43061439328077486&vid=1&cds_response_key=I4HC2HOL1&cmpid=int_org=ngp::int_mc=website::int_src=ngp::int_cmp=ngh_holiday24::int_add=inarticlepromostacked\",\"target\":\"_blank\"}],\"image\":{\"crps\":[{\"nm\":\"raw\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/eb577a2a-7871-4ba3-9bb3-fee72bcd6a8c\/NGH-13203_1080x720-1.jpg\"}],\"rt\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/eb577a2a-7871-4ba3-9bb3-fee72bcd6a8c\/NGH-13203_1080x720-1.jpg\",\"src\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/eb577a2a-7871-4ba3-9bb3-fee72bcd6a8c\/NGH-13203_1080x720-1.jpg\"},\"campaignName\":\"20241101_NGH_Holiday_Inarticlepromo_stacked\"}},\"dt\":\"2024-11-22T17:17:02.209Z\",\"prismData\":{\"mainComponents\":[{\"name\":\"Body\",\"props\":{\"body\":[[{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"The first clue that the fossilized human ancestor known as Lucy would be a global phenomenon came at a Paris airport in December 1974. While passing through customs, paleoanthropologist \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Donald Johanson\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/50790\"}},\" introduced the wrapped parcels in his bag as fossils from Ethiopia, and a customs official replied, \u201cYou mean Lucy?\u201d\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Just a few weeks earlier, Johanson and his team had discovered the bones of a small adult female, who appeared to be a long-lost member of our family tree. The ancient skeleton had yet to be examined and analyzed by researchers, but a press release had been enough to catapult her toward becoming arguably the most well-known fossil in history.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"At the time, there was \u201csignificant broad interest in human origins,\u201d Johanson says. Finds by the Leakey family and other scientists in South Africa had begun filling in the human story, suggesting that early ancestors evolved upright posture millions of years ago in Africa, followed later by large brains and the ability to use tools.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Yet the fossils unearthed so far were fragmentary\u2014a skull here, a partial foot there. And they dated to no more than 1.75 million years old, significantly younger than humans\u2019 most distant ancestors were suspected to be.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Lucy\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/lucy-facts-on-early-human-ancestor\"}},\" would go on to set records in age and completeness, while confirming ideas about humans\u2019 evolutionary transition to upright walking. Other fossils have since surpassed her in achievements, but Lucy remains a household name 50 years later. The fossil\u2019s scientific story has been entwined with a cultural one from the very beginning.\"]},{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Image\",\"props\":{\"link\":{},\"caption\":{\"title\":\"\",\"credit\":\"Photograph by Danita Delimont, Alamy Stock Photo\",\"source\":\"\",\"text\":\"A reconstruction of Lucy's skeleton stands on display at the Senckenberg Nature Museum in Frankfurt, Germany. Over the years, researchers have debated how much time she spent <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/110210-lucy-feet-walked-feet-science-afarensis-fossil\\\" target=\\\"_blank\\\">walking around on the ground<\/a> on two legs versus <a href=\\\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/pages\/article\/121026-australopithecus-afarensis-human-evolution-lucy-scapula-science\\\" target=\\\"_blank\\\">climbing trees<\/a>. \",\"lines\":3,\"showMoreText\":\"Read More\",\"showLess\":false},\"image\":{\"id\":\"A7Y1GP\",\"showCopyright\":\"Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.\",\"alt\":\"Visitors standing before a short, skeletal reconstruction of \\\"Lucy\\\"\",\"src\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg\",\"sources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=374&h=288\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=748&h=576\"},\"max\":374,\"nativeWidth\":374},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=413&h=318\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=826&h=636\"},\"max\":413,\"min\":375,\"nativeWidth\":413},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=718&h=553\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e216342b-0644-4cbf-a98d-9fa5aa592fe2\/A7Y1GP.jpg?w=1436&h=1106\"},\"min\":414,\"nativeWidth\":718}]},\"disableFullscreen\":false},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"align\":\"full\",\"alignXxs\":\"full\"}}},{\"type\":\"h2\",\"content\":[\"The lore of Lucy\u2019s discovery\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"On November 24, 1974, Johanson was searching for fossils of ancient human relatives or hominins in an area called Hadar in the Afar region of Ethiopia, when he noticed a forearm bone eroding out of a hillside. Collecting the bone and returning to camp, Johanson and the field team celebrated that evening, singing along to the popular Beatles song, \u201cLucy in the Sky With Diamonds\u201d (or so the story goes). The next day, they excavated the rest of the hominin remains in 110-degree heat and started calling the skeleton Lucy. In scientific circles, she\u2019s would later be known as \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"AL 288-1\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/humanorigins.si.edu\/evidence\/human-fossils\/fossils\/al-288-1\"}},\", and in Ethiopia, as Dinkinesh, which mean \u201cyou are marvelous\u201d in Amharic.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Piecing together her lower jaw, skull fragments, vertebrae, ribs, arms, a pelvis, and legs, the team collected approximately 40 percent of Lucy\u2019s skeleton. She appeared to be a fully grown adult, yet stood just over a meter tall.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"CommercePromo\",\"props\":{\"layout\":\"standard\",\"headline\":\"LIMITED TIME OFFER\",\"descriptionRichText\":\"\",\"imageSrc\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/eb577a2a-7871-4ba3-9bb3-fee72bcd6a8c\/NGH-13203_1080x720-1.jpg\",\"imageRatio\":\"16x9\",\"actionLabel\":\"GIVE A GIFT\",\"actionHref\":\"https:\/\/nghistorysubs.nationalgeographic.com\/pubs\/NG\/NGH\/NGH_Holiday_Onsite_Gift_Aug24.jsp?cds_page_id=280478&cds_mag_code=NGH&id=1730489972865&lsid=43061439328077486&vid=1&cds_response_key=I4HC2HOL1&cmpid=int_org=ngp::int_mc=website::int_src=ngp::int_cmp=ngh_holiday24::int_add=inarticlepromostacked\",\"immersive\":false,\"colorMode\":\"light\",\"campaignName\":\"20241101_NGH_Holiday_Inarticlepromo_stacked\",\"tint\":2,\"backed\":true,\"subtitle\":\"The perfect gift for the history buff in your life. Give now and get a FREE TOTE BAG.\",\"actionTarget\":\"_blank\",\"linkWithin\":true,\"elevation\":1,\"inlineId\":\"commerce-promo-inline\",\"className\":\"prism-commerce-container\",\"dividerEnabled\":false},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"align\":\"center\",\"alignXxs\":\"full\"}}},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"(\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Here\u2019s one theory on how Lucy died\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucy-tree-fall-human-ancestor\"}},\".)\"]},{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Image\",\"props\":{\"link\":{},\"caption\":{\"title\":\"\",\"credit\":\"Photograph by Dave Einsel, Getty Images\",\"source\":\"\",\"text\":\"Lucy toured the U.S. in 2007 and made her first public appearance ever&nbsp;at the Houston Museum of Natural Science in Texas. The exhibition drew criticism among the museum community and others who&nbsp;argued that the fossil is too fragile to be moved from Ethiopia.\",\"lines\":3,\"showMoreText\":\"Read More\",\"showLess\":false},\"image\":{\"id\":\"GettyImages-76363247\",\"showCopyright\":\"Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.\",\"alt\":\"Fossilized bones displayed in anatomical position atop a black cloth in a glass case. A man's reflection can be seen in the glass as he examines the bones.\",\"src\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg\",\"sources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=374&h=513\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=748&h=1026\"},\"max\":374,\"nativeWidth\":374},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=413&h=567\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=826&h=1134\"},\"max\":413,\"min\":375,\"nativeWidth\":413},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=718&h=986\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6f666610-81b8-462a-9e7c-b613484f7533\/GettyImages-76363247.jpg?w=1436&h=1972\"},\"min\":414,\"nativeWidth\":718}]},\"disableFullscreen\":false},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"align\":\"full\",\"alignXxs\":\"full\"}}},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"The volcanic rock layers sandwiching the fossils dated her to 3.2 million years old\u2014almost \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"doubling the age\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/doi\/abs\/10.1002\/ajpa.21183\"}},\" of what was then the oldest known human ancestor. Beyond that, the next oldest skeleton at the time dated to only 100,000 years old. Such an ancient, complete specimen \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"was remarkable\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/archive.nationalgeographic.com\/national-geographic\/1976-dec\/flipbook\/796\/\"}},\". Lucy hit all the superlatives, science writer for the \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"New York Times\"]},\" Boyce Rensberger remembers, \u201cthe oldest and most complete.\u201d\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Based on the fragmented remains of her skull and other finds at Hadar, Lucy seemed to have a small, chimpanzee-sized brain and projecting face, but the rest of her skeleton indicated a fully erect, human-like posture. In 1978, Johanson and colleagues officially \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"assigned her to a new species\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/biostor-193077\"}},\", \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Australopithecus afarensis\"]},\" (the southern ape from the Afar in Latin), and declared she was proof our ancestors walked on two legs before evolving large brains.\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"type\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\",\"className\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\"},\"className\":\"natgeo-ad\",\"placeholders\":{\"compact\":{\"size\":[300,250]},\"regular\":{\"size\":[300,250]}},\"initSelf\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"}}},[{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Yet even at the time, Lucy wasn\u2019t the most controversial or earthshattering discovery in the history of human origins science. While she demonstrated that upright walking was an early hallmark of an African lineage, Africa had already been recognized as humanity\u2019s birthplace for decades, as had the idea that upright posture preceded big brains.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Lucy\u2019s cultural significance quickly expanded even beyond her scientific status. From the start, she had all the makings of an icon\u2014her catchy nickname, her dramatic discovery. But perhaps most importantly, she had an enthusiastic narrator in Johanson. It proved to be a winning combination.\"]},{\"type\":\"h2\",\"content\":[\"What propelled Lucy to stardom?\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"By 1974, \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"the Leakey family\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/leakeyfoundation.org\/about-us\/the-leakey-family\/\"}},\"\u2014Mary, Louis, and their son \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Richard\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/richard-leakey-trailblazing-conservationist-and-fossil-hunter-dies-at-77\"}},\"\u2014had been unearthing ancestors for over a decade. Their discoveries of several skulls, stone tools, and other fossils from Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania and the shores of Lake Turkana, Kenya, had appeared in \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"National Geographic\"]},\" and other magazines.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Despite frequently appearing in the news, ancestors found by the Leakeys with nicknames like \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Dear Boy and Nutcracker Man\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/the-species-that-domesticated-itself\"}},\" had never achieved such star power. \u201cThere just weren't any fossils that people in the United States or Europe were connecting to,\u201d says \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Kaye Reed\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.kayereed.com\/\"}},\", a paleoanthropologist at Arizona State University.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"(\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"How did scientists almost miss the \u2018missing link\u2019 fossil?\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/taung-child-human-ancestor\"}},\")\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"kvps\":{\"pos\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream-1\"},\"type\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream\",\"className\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream\"},\"className\":\"natgeo-ad\",\"placeholders\":{\"compact\":{\"size\":[320,50]},\"regular\":{\"size\":[728,90]}},\"initSelf\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"}}},[{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Lucy\u2019s journey from an unknown in Ethiopia\u2019s highlands to the kind of celebrity that gets recognized in an airport puzzles even Johanson. \u201cI've been turning it over in my mind,\u201d he admits, \u201ctrying to figure out what it was that attracted such an enormous amount of attention.\u201d\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Perhaps one facet is her exceptionally human nickname, which Johanson calls \u201caffectionate and easy to remember.\u201d Or maybe it has to do with the fact that the discovery \u201cis a partial skeleton,\u201d he muses, \u201cand it can therefore be recognized as an individual.\u201d\"]},{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"ContentPromo\",\"props\":{\"cards\":[{\"headline\":\"Who were the Flores \u2018hobbits\u2019? Here's what we know about this ancient human species\",\"image\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/f14a3668-b693-4aef-8508-1674f1ca7710\/NationalGeographic_957333_square.jpg\",\"link\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/hobbits-flores-mystery-human-evolution\",\"imageRatio\":\"1x1\",\"tags\":[{\"value\":\"SCIENCE\",\"type\":\"text\"}],\"imageSources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/f14a3668-b693-4aef-8508-1674f1ca7710\/NationalGeographic_957333_square.jpg?w=195&h=195\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/f14a3668-b693-4aef-8508-1674f1ca7710\/NationalGeographic_957333_square.jpg?w=390&h=390\"},\"max\":767,\"nativeWidth\":195},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/f14a3668-b693-4aef-8508-1674f1ca7710\/NationalGeographic_957333_square.jpg?w=220&h=220\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/f14a3668-b693-4aef-8508-1674f1ca7710\/NationalGeographic_957333_square.jpg?w=440&h=440\"},\"min\":768,\"nativeWidth\":220}],\"type\":\"floating\",\"inline\":true},{\"headline\":\"The 11 most astonishing scientific discoveries of 2023\",\"image\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6cbf6fab-7513-4362-9467-341d17356284\/F0187830-Black_holes_merging_illustration_square.jpg\",\"link\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/premium\/article\/11-astonishing-scientific-discoveries-2023\",\"imageRatio\":\"1x1\",\"tags\":[{\"value\":\"SCIENCE\",\"type\":\"text\"}],\"imageSources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6cbf6fab-7513-4362-9467-341d17356284\/F0187830-Black_holes_merging_illustration_square.jpg?w=195&h=195\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6cbf6fab-7513-4362-9467-341d17356284\/F0187830-Black_holes_merging_illustration_square.jpg?w=390&h=390\"},\"max\":767,\"nativeWidth\":195},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6cbf6fab-7513-4362-9467-341d17356284\/F0187830-Black_holes_merging_illustration_square.jpg?w=220&h=220\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/6cbf6fab-7513-4362-9467-341d17356284\/F0187830-Black_holes_merging_illustration_square.jpg?w=440&h=440\"},\"min\":768,\"nativeWidth\":220}],\"type\":\"floating\",\"inline\":true},{\"headline\":\"Your tile floor may contain human fossils\",\"image\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e9ad65c9-9813-4719-8ccc-ef465418b7c5\/Unknown-2__square.jpg\",\"link\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/premium\/article\/travertine-tile-floor-human-hominin-fossil\",\"imageRatio\":\"1x1\",\"tags\":[{\"value\":\"HISTORY & CULTURE\",\"type\":\"text\"}],\"imageSources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e9ad65c9-9813-4719-8ccc-ef465418b7c5\/Unknown-2__square.jpg?w=195&h=195\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e9ad65c9-9813-4719-8ccc-ef465418b7c5\/Unknown-2__square.jpg?w=390&h=390\"},\"max\":767,\"nativeWidth\":195},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e9ad65c9-9813-4719-8ccc-ef465418b7c5\/Unknown-2__square.jpg?w=220&h=220\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/e9ad65c9-9813-4719-8ccc-ef465418b7c5\/Unknown-2__square.jpg?w=440&h=440\"},\"min\":768,\"nativeWidth\":220}],\"type\":\"floating\",\"inline\":true}],\"title\":\"You May Also Like\",\"dividerEnabled\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"align\":\"center\"}}},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Others credit Johanson himself for \u201ctirelessly\u201d engaging in public communication of science. Indeed, Johanson\u2019s book, \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Lucy: The Beginnings of Humankind \"]},\"published in 1981, catapulted up the bestseller list. The book led to appearances on programs like Good Morning America and a \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"NOVA\"]},\" series \u201cIn Search of Human Origins,\u201d filmed in Ethiopia. \u201cLargely, we owe it to Johanson\u2019s writings, interviews, and lectures,\u201d says \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Zeray Alemseged\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/alemsegedlab.uchicago.edu\/\"}},\", a paleoanthropologist at the University of Chicago.\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Image\",\"props\":{\"link\":{},\"caption\":{\"title\":\"\",\"credit\":\"Photograph by Martin Meissner, AP Photo\",\"source\":\"\",\"text\":\"Lucy shares similar features with both humans and chimpanzees. Another reconstruction of her appearance is shown on display at the Neanderthal Museum in Mettmann, Germany, in 2019.\",\"lines\":3,\"showMoreText\":\"Read More\",\"showLess\":false,\"wrapperProps\":{\"columnConfig\":{\"span\":{\"base\":100,\"md\":20,\"lg\":16,\"xxl\":14},\"start\":{\"md\":3,\"lg\":5,\"xxl\":6}},\"className\":{\"esc\":\"kGyAC\",\"QWb\":\"HkWF\"}}},\"image\":{\"id\":\"AP19184573317500\",\"showCopyright\":\"Please be respectful of copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited.\",\"alt\":\"A head-on view of an ape-like reconstruction of Lucy.\",\"src\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg\",\"sources\":[{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=374&h=274\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=748&h=548\"},\"max\":374,\"nativeWidth\":374},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=413&h=303\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=826&h=606\"},\"max\":413,\"min\":375,\"nativeWidth\":413},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=718&h=527\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=1436&h=1054\"},\"max\":767,\"min\":414,\"nativeWidth\":718},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=718&h=527\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=1436&h=1054\"},\"max\":1024,\"min\":768,\"nativeWidth\":718},{\"src\":{\"x1\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=1280&h=939\",\"x2\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/89773afe-56c2-438e-8a19-d4f1e94ba8cc\/AP19184573317500.jpg?w=2560&h=1878\"},\"min\":1025,\"nativeWidth\":1280}]},\"disableFullscreen\":false},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"align\":\"full\",\"alignXxs\":\"full\",\"gridDisplayMode\":\"full\"}}},[{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"At just 31 years old when he found Lucy, the young Johanson appeared equally at ease in front of a camera wandering the high desert as he did seated beside Walter Cronkite on primetime. Later media accounts described Johanson as \u201ca man of great natural grace\u201d and \u201cIndiana Jones in Armani.\u201d However, he recalls that he \u201cwas very awkward and much too technical\u201d at first, before receiving guidance from science communicator Carl Sagan.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"The combined factors of the nickname, completeness, and Johanson\u2019s approach came together to paint Lucy as relatable. Far from treating her as a pile of dusty old bones, Johanson personalized her. In documentaries, for example, he often subtly reminds the viewer that she was once a living, breathing individual, referring to her discovery site not as merely the place where he came across her fossils, but also as \u201cthe very spot where she died all those years ago\u201d in the \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"NOVA\"]},\" series.\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"kvps\":{\"pos\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream-2\"},\"type\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream\",\"className\":\"fitt-article-inline-outstream\"},\"className\":\"natgeo-ad\",\"placeholders\":{\"compact\":{\"size\":[320,50]},\"regular\":{\"size\":[728,90]}},\"initSelf\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"}}},[{\"type\":\"h2\",\"content\":[\"Human origins in the spotlight\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Having such a personable ancestor helped thrust the science of human origins further into the spotlight than ever before. Harnessing the momentum, Johanson set up a non-profit institute called the \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Institute of Human Origins\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/iho.asu.edu\/about\/history\"}},\" in Berkeley, California, in 1981. In addition to research and fieldwork, he decided that public outreach should be a pillar of the organization from the start.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Lucy provided a window through which to educate people, a way to reach out to both children and adults \u201cand just say, this is what we do,\u201d one of the Institute\u2019s first faculty members, Reed, recalls.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Not everyone valued Johanson\u2019s public-facing persona, however, causing a rift within the institute, as some researchers accused him of prioritizing public relations above science. The dispute ended with the departure of several geologists and a relocation to Arizona State University in 1997. That year, Johanson\u2019s colleague William Kimbel \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"argued in the \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Phoenix New Times\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.phoenixnewtimes.com\/news\/the-man-who-loved-lucy-6422824\"}},\" that if scientists doing the work \u201care not in the position to communicate the results to the public, something is wrong.\u201d So outreach, fundraising, and research continued progressing in tandem.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"These efforts channeled funding toward fieldwork that helped \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"A. afarensis\"]},\" become one of the best-represented species of human relative in the world. With over 400 specimens recognized across half a dozen sites in Ethiopia and Kenya, the majority of \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"A. afarensis \"]},\"fossils come from Hadar, and researchers continue searching. Newer discoveries, including \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"several mostly-complete skulls\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/royalsocietypublishing.org\/doi\/10.1098\/rstb.2010.0070\"}},\", \",\"\u00a0\",\"have shown that the species lasted from 3.9 to 3 million years ago and ate a generalized diet, making them more flexible than previous hominins.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"(\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"What killed the hominins of AL 333?\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/what-killed-the-hominins-of-al-333\"}},\")\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"type\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\",\"className\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\"},\"className\":\"natgeo-ad\",\"placeholders\":{\"compact\":{\"size\":[300,250]},\"regular\":{\"size\":[300,250]}},\"initSelf\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"}}},[{\"type\":\"h2\",\"content\":[\"What is Lucy\u2019s legacy?\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Today\u2019s human evolution researchers are the generation raised by Lucy. \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Chris Campisano\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/search.asu.edu\/profile\/1070879\"}},\", a paleoanthropologist at Arizona State University, remembers reading Johanson\u2019s book in high school for a summer project, sparking his interest in searching for hominin fossils in Africa. Now, he leads the research at Hadar. Reflecting on the trajectory, Campisano remarks, \u201cI never would have guessed that on the 50th anniversary of Lucy\u2019s discovery, I\u2019d be leading the project.\u201d\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Today, the institute that Lucy built still leads paleoanthropological research around the world. Combining education with fundraising to support research, the impact has proliferated far beyond Hadar.\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"The fossil\u2019s stardom has had a \u201cdomino effect,\u201d says Alemseged, who is Ethiopian and first met Lucy while working at the National Museum of Ethiopia in Addis Ababa, where she is currently stored in a specially constructed safe.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Alemseged was a postdoc at the Institute when he guided the first-ever Ethiopian-led team to the site of Dikika, just across the Awash River from Hadar. There, he found a \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"remarkably complete child of Lucy\u2019s species\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/articles\/nature05047\"}},\", \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"A. afarensis\"]},\" he named Selam, meaning \u201cpeace\u201d in Amharic. Only about 2.4 years old when it died, the child was quickly dubbed \u201c\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Lucy\u2019s Baby\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/lucys-baby-worlds-oldest-childfound-by-fossil-hunters\"}},\"\u201d\u2014despite having lived 200,000 years before Lucy.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"(\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Who were Lucy\u2019s neighbors?\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/120328-lucy-fossil-foot-science-australopithecus-trees-evolution\"}},\")\"]}],{\"type\":\"inline\",\"content\":{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"type\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\",\"className\":\"fitt-article-inline-box\"},\"className\":\"natgeo-ad\",\"placeholders\":{\"compact\":{\"size\":[300,250]},\"regular\":{\"size\":[300,250]}},\"initSelf\":true},\"context\":{},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"}}},[{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Amid the ever-growing collection of \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"A. afarensis\"]},\" fossils, Lucy remains at the center. \u201cIt's very difficult to not make reference to Lucy when you talk of new discoveries,\u201d Alemseged says, adding that she has become the \u201cbenchmark\u201d against which all other fossils are compared. \u201cYou find something and people ask, is it older or younger than Lucy? Taller or shorter than Lucy?\u201d\",\"\u00a0\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Lucy is no longer the oldest or the most complete human ancestor. The 7-million-year-old \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Sahelanthropus tchadensis\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/humanorigins.si.edu\/evidence\/human-fossils\/species\/orrorin-tugenensis\"}},\" and the 6-million-year-old \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Orrorin tugenensis\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nature.com\/scitable\/knowledge\/library\/the-earliest-hominins-sahelanthropus-orrorin-and-ardipithecus-67648286\/\"}},\" vie for the oldest title, while the skeleton of \u201c\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Little Foot\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/culture\/article\/150401-little-foot-fossil-dated-archaeology-science\"}},\"\u201d, an \",{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Australopithecus\"]},\" from South Africa, is over 90 percent complete.\"]},{\"type\":\"p\",\"content\":[\"Yet Lucy\u2019s icon status has yet to be repeated. As \u201cLittle Foot\u201d suggests, scientists have tried nicknaming their finds, from \u201cArdi\u201d short for \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Ardipithecus\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\/article\/ardipithecus-we-meet-at-last\"}},\" to \u201c\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Neo\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/history\/article\/homo-naledi-human-evolution-science\"}},\"\u201d and \u201c\",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[\"Child of Darkness\"],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.livescience.com\/child-of-darkness-homo-naledi-discovered.html\"}},\"\u201d for various specimens of South Africa\u2019s \",{\"type\":\"a\",\"content\":[{\"type\":\"i\",\"content\":[\"Homo naledi\"]}],\"attrs\":{\"href\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/related\/9362e6e2-1db7-3b16-9e60-2fdcf2b03290\/homo-naledi\"}},\". These monikers haven\u2019t caught on widely, however, and in the sky with diamonds, Lucy remains.\"]}]],\"blockquote\":{\"disableQuotationMark\":true,\"simple\":true},\"dateline\":null,\"datelineSeparator\":\"\u2014\",\"wordCount\":1762,\"className\":\"PrismArticleBody SingleColumn\"},\"config\":{\"gridDisplayMode\":\"none\"},\"usesArticleObject\":true}],\"topComponents\":[{\"name\":\"Ad\",\"props\":{\"ad\":{\"type\":null,\"className\":null},\"initSelf\":true},\"config\":{}},{\"name\":\"ArticleLead\",\"props\":{\"alignCaptionToBody\":true,\"className\":\"SplitLead\",\"colorMode\":\"dark\",\"ctaSize\":\"m\",\"description\":\"Paleontologists unearthed the iconic fossil in 1974. Today, her legacy remains just as much cultural as it is scientific.\",\"disableForMobile\":true,\"enableBackgroundColor\":true,\"focalPointX\":\"\",\"focalPointY\":\"\",\"hasByline\":true,\"image\":{\"caption\":{\"credit\":\"Photograph by Thomas Ernsting, laif\/Redux\",\"source\":\"\",\"text\":\"A reconstruction of Lucy at the Hessisches Landesmuseum Darmstadt Museum in Germany shows what the ancient hominin might have looked like. 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These herbivorous dinosaurs are commonly observed amongst Late Cretaceous fossil records in the Northern Hemisphere, but are infrequently found in Southern Hemisphere locations.\"},\"rchTtl\":{\"markup\":\"GettyImages-89164985\"}},\"sections\":[{\"name\":\"Science\",\"id\":\"2af51eeb-09a8-3bcf-8467-6b2a08edb76c\",\"type\":\"sources\",\"uri\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\"}],\"headline\":\"Rare fossils reveal stunning scene from dinosaur's last days\",\"link\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/premium\/article\/rare-fossils-reveal-stunning-scene-from-final-days-dinosaurs\"},{\"description\":\"To unearth the secrets of an ancient human relative, paleoanthropologist Lee Berger had to squeeze through a chute seven and a half inches wide\u2014the length of a pencil.\",\"img\":{\"crps\":[{\"nm\":\"raw\",\"aspRto\":0.7816725087631448,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"16x9\",\"aspRto\":1.7777777777777777,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_16x9.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"3x2\",\"aspRto\":1.5,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_3x2.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"square\",\"aspRto\":1,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_square.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"2x3\",\"aspRto\":0.6666666666666666,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_2x3.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"3x4\",\"aspRto\":0.75,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_3x4.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"4x3\",\"aspRto\":1.3333333333333333,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_4x3.jpg\"},{\"nm\":\"2x1\",\"aspRto\":2,\"url\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2_2x1.jpg\"}],\"rt\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2.jpg\",\"src\":\"https:\/\/i.natgeofe.com\/n\/aecae6e4-9042-4033-a122-6f3b5cda6b41\/NationalGeographic_2316058_crop2.jpg\",\"altText\":\"a fragmented human-like skeleton surrounded in a circular pattern by hundreds of small bone fragments grouped by kind.\",\"crdt\":\"Photograph by Robert Clark\",\"dsc\":\"Fossils from the Rising Star cave system surround the skeleton of Homo naledi. 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group of people stand in silhouette as they watch the VSS Unity during a test flight.\",\"crdt\":\"Photograph by GENE BLEVINS, AFP\/Getty Images\",\"dsc\":\"The VSS Unity is seen during a test flight on December 13, 2018, in Mojave, California.\",\"ttl\":\"GettyImages-1072502814\",\"rchDsc\":{\"markup\":\"The VSS Unity is seen during a test flight on December 13, 2018, in Mojave, California.\"},\"rchTtl\":{\"markup\":\"GettyImages-1072502814\"}},\"sections\":[{\"name\":\"Science\",\"id\":\"2af51eeb-09a8-3bcf-8467-6b2a08edb76c\",\"type\":\"sources\",\"uri\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/science\"}],\"headline\":\"Why this company sent ancient human fossils into space\",\"link\":\"https:\/\/www.nationalgeographic.com\/premium\/article\/ancient-human-fossils-space-virgin-galactic\"},{\"description\":\"Othniel Marsh and Edward Cope each discovered troves of dinosaur fossils in the 19th century\u2014but grew obsessed with bringing each other down in the Bone 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black and white photo of three men at a dinosaur excavation site with a giant dinosaur bone.\",\"crdt\":\"Photograph by Universal History Archive, Getty Images\",\"dsc\":\"The giant bones of a mammoth being unearthed from Bone Cabin Quarry, a dinosaur quarry near Laramie, Wyoming near historic Como Bluff, United States of America. 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Today, her legacy remains just as much cultural as it is scientific.\",\"id\":\"drn:src:natgeo:unison::prod:69de5716-6228-468a-b31b-10bfcee1fa0b\",\"mdfdDt\":\"2024-11-22T17:15:30.063Z\",\"ttl\":\"This is why Lucy has been the face of human evolution for the last 50 years\",\"sctn\":\"Science\",\"sclDsc\":\"Paleontologists unearthed the iconic fossil in 1974. 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