The complex evolution of homo sapiens - 1,000,000 to 30,000 years ago

The evolution of you. 1,000,000 years ago to 30,000 years ago.
Thanks to boneclones for the brilliant skulls! Use discount code 'stefan' for $20 off your order.

Huge thanks as always to my patrons!

Artwork by Ettore Mazza:

Music by Tom Fox:

Voiceover by Alexander Doddy:

Sources: Anyone can view, not just patrons.

Disclaimer: Use my videos as a rough guide to a topic. I am not an expert, I may get things wrong. This is why I always post my sources so you can critique my work and verify things for yourselves. Of course I aim to be as accurate as possible which is why you will only find reputable sources in my videos. Secondly, information is always subject to changes as new information is uncovered by archaeologists.

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[marloelefant]

Imagine you're walking through the forest and suddenly, there is a guy holding a spoon talking to himself with a row of human skulls besides him... 😀

[thomasmills]

This man is living the dream. Sitting around the woods on a nice day in his hoodie hat and boxers just enjoying the day talking into a spoon about ancient history. ...thats the life.

[darrensmith]

"everyone who comes into my house asks about the skulls" is a pretty funny statement. I'd be worried if someone came into your house and didn't ask about "the skulls"

[patrickoconnor]

I can’t express how much I appreciate your videos. I was raised in a religious family, went to a private religious school and was never taught a realistic version of evolution and especially human evolution. Thank you for helping me expand my understanding of the reality and complexity of our ancestors. Thank the gods for YouTube and the internet to help people like me access this information. The evidence of evolution makes it a fact in my world view. And it’s so amazing to me. Thank you again for being one of many creators to help me understand my gaps in knowledge of these topics.

[coffeepot]

This might sound weird, but one time i had to have a magnetic scan of my entire skull in preparation for an eye muscle surgery.
And it was so strange that for a brief moment, i could see my own skull on a screen.
Every memory in life and who i am as a person, contained within a fragile calcium shell.

[JexsamX]

"Everyone coming into my house always asks about the skulls." That's a hell of a sentence.

[rickrichards]

Stefan, I was stuck in a religion that caused me to deny evolution for 35 years. I escaped and am a free thinker today. I appreciate that YOU are creating this easily digestible and informative content to educate people like me providing evidence based thinking that challenges young earth creationism.

[zarvoc]

I can’t get enough of your videos, what a find!
I love your sense of humor too, you don’t take yourself too seriously.
I’m learning so much, thank you, thank you!!!
-Beth

[HoH]

The quality of this video and its attention to detail is fantastic. Loved it.

[abrahamrovansek]

This is a strange thing to comment, but that was an actually good and relative sponsor that actually, in someway added to the video.

[cosmoplakat]

This mash-up of various hominid species reminds me of cichlid evolution. These fish are the largest family of vertebrates on earth with approximately 2500 species. The Rift Valley lakes in Africa contain most species (about 1500-1800), all of which evolved from a single lineage. In Lake Victoria alone, it's thought that the 500+ species have all evolved within the last 10, 000-15, 000 years, and the spectacular differences in size, color, behavior and specialized physical traits are stunning to say the least. Evolution is so amazing.

[moxiebombshell]

I can't begin to properly capture the joy I feel when I get a notification that you've got a new video up. Cheers!

[MartinPantovic]

Literally the first time ever I've seen such a good ad placement on YouTube.

[lotfibouhedjeur]

You can easily tell Stefan is a genuinely all-around good guy.

[bagbroch]

My favorite thing about your videos is how you add in the little controversial points and make it a point to add them and also say that they’re controversial. Such a great channel!

[dyadica]

I think most people imagine a long continuous trek when we talk about hominid migrations. But the average speed of movement to go 5000 kilometers in, say, 10, 000 years is very slow. If each day, when they woke up, they moved their campfire over a meter or two, that would do it. I suspect long term migrations are more a once a generation relocation of the next generation to a fresh spot, ten or twenty kilometers away. Perhaps punctuated with longer journeys lasting a few days.

[silviac]

Stefan, I've watched many of your videos but I don't usually leave comments. I'm a researcher, clearly older than you, not in History or Anthropology. This is you at your best. Clear, honest, complete account of the state of the art, easily understandable to lay people like me. Keep it up!

[LimeyLassen]

"Sometimes you just have to do a cannibalism"
- Guy in the woods surrounded by skulls, talking to himself

[Flightle]

The visual that has made the most sense to me (as a couch sitting lay person) is similar to a time-lapse of a tide pattern or hydrology pattern. Growth, collapse, a different random growth, collapse, growth, collapse, EXPLOSION of growth. The visuals of how Papua New Guinea populations could have 2% carry over DNA from ancient populations makes sense when you think about how not every collapse HAD to be a total collapse. Small pockets perhaps continued to exists making your job and job of all future researchers infinitely more complex! Thank you so much for these videos. Truly the most entertaining and though provoking content that I enjoy.

[jeremiasrobinson]

As an artist, I am quite globby. The highest development of human consciousness manifests itself as a plastic spoon.