Hominids Research Paper

Hominids had to adapt to survive. One of the physical adaptions that gave hominids an advantage was bipedalism. This occurred because of environmental changes. According to Pollard, Rosenberg and Tignor. The world was experiencing its forth ice age. The climate in Africa was experiencing a warming and cooling phase. From South Africa North of the Ethiopian Highlands the cooling a drying forced forests to contract and the Savannahs to spread.

It was in this region that apes stopped living in the trees and had to learn to live in the Savannas and adapted to using two feet. Being bipedal increased survival by being able to use their arms for carrying food over long distances and avoiding predators. It also helped them migrate with ease as needed. Hominids also developed opposable thumbs. As their observations and memory

Big game animals migrated to new norther land areas for greener pastures, and the hunter and gathers followed. These shifts in climate forced plants, animals and hominids to move to areas where the shifts had been minimal. They also migrated to areas were water was readily available (The Origins Of Civilizations).

Hominid populations started to grow and the hunters and gathers could not sustain the growth in numbers. With the land warming they were able to modify nature to fit their needs. Using human labor and the tools they developed they were able to start domesticating plants and animals, their communities started to grow. As the population grew, more and more attention was given to the grain harvest, which eventually led to the conscious and systematic cultivation. This led to a population growth, because they were able to produce more food. People started to settle in villages and social relations changed