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Yuanmou Man
Yuanmou Man (, ''Homo erectus yuanmouensis'') is a subspecies of '' H. erectus'' which inhabited the Yuanmou Basin in Yunnan Province, southwestern China, roughly 1.7 million years ago. It is the first fossil evidence of humans in China, though they probably reached the region by at least 2 million years ago. Yuanmou Man is known only from two upper first incisors presumed to have belonged to a male, and a partial tibia presumed to have belonged to a female. The female may have stood about in life. These remains are anatomically quite similar to those contemporary early ''Homo'' in Africa, namely '' H. habilis'' and '' H. (e?) ergaster''. Yuanmou Man inhabited a mixed environment featuring grassland, bushland, marshland, and forest dominated by pine and alder. They lived alongside chalicotheres, deer, the elephant '' Stegodon'', rhinos, cattle, pigs, and the giant short-faced hyaena. The site currently sits at an elevation of . They manufactured simple cores, flakes, chopp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Early Pleistocene
The Early Pleistocene is an unofficial epoch (geology), sub-epoch in the international geologic timescale in chronostratigraphy, representing the earliest division of the Pleistocene Epoch within the ongoing Quaternary Period. It is currently estimated to span the time between 2.580 ± 0.005 annum, Ma (million years ago) and 0.773 ± 0.005 Ma. The term Early Pleistocene applies to both the Gelasian, Gelasian Age and the Calabrian (stage), Calabrian Age. While the Gelasian and the Calabrian have officially been defined by the International Union of Geological Sciences (IUGS) to effectively constitute the Early Pleistocene, the succeeding Chibanian and Tarantian ages have yet to be ratified. These proposed ages are unofficially termed the Middle Pleistocene and Late Pleistocene respectively. The Chibanian provisionally spans time from 773 ka to 126 ka, and the Tarantian from then until the definitive end of the whole Pleistocene, c. 9700 BC in the 10th millennium BC. Notes {{Ge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lithic Flake
In archaeology, a lithic flake is a "portion of rock (geology), rock removed from an objective piece by percussion or pressure,"Andrefsky, W. (2005) ''Lithics: Macroscopic Approaches to Analysis''. 2d Ed. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press and may also be referred to as simply a ''flake'', or collectively as debitage. The objective piece, or the rock being reduced by the removal of flakes, is known as a lithic core, core.Andrefsky, W. (2005) ''Lithics: Macroscopic Approaches to Analysis''. 2d Ed. Cambridge, Cambridge University Press Once the proper tool stone has been selected, a percussor or pressure flaker (e.g., an antler Tine (structural), tine) is used to direct a sharp blow, or apply sufficient force, respectively, to the surface of the stone, often on the edge of the piece. The energy of this blow propagates through the material, often (termination type, but not always) producing a Hertzian cone of force which causes the rock to fracture in a controllable fashion. Since c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Conglomerate (geology)
Conglomerate () is a sedimentary rock made up of rounded gravel-sized pieces of rock surrounded by finer-grained sediments (such as sand, silt, or clay). The larger fragments within conglomerate are called clasts, while the finer sediment surrounding the clasts is called the matrix. The clasts and matrix are typically cemented by calcium carbonate, iron oxide, silica, or hardened clay. Conglomerates form when rounded gravels deposited by water or glaciers become solidified and cemented by pressure over time. They can be found in sedimentary rock sequences of all ages but probably make up less than 1 percent by weight of all sedimentary rocks. They are closely related to sandstones in origin, and exhibit many of the same types of sedimentary structures, such as tabular and trough cross-bedding and graded bedding.Boggs, S. (2006) ''Principles of Sedimentology and Stratigraphy.'', 2nd ed. Prentice Hall, New York. 662 pp. Friedman, G.M. (2003) ''Classification of sediments and s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impurities, such as a reddish or brownish colour from small amounts of iron oxide. Clays develop plasticity (physics), plasticity when wet but can be hardened through Pottery#Firing, firing. Clay is the longest-known ceramic material. Prehistoric humans discovered the useful properties of clay and used it for making pottery. Some of the earliest pottery shards have been radiocarbon dating, dated to around 14,000 BCE, and Clay tablet, clay tablets were the first known writing medium. Clay is used in many modern industrial processes, such as paper making, cement production, and chemical filtration, filtering. Between one-half and two-thirds of the world's population live or work in buildings made with clay, often baked into brick, as an essenti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Silt
Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension (chemistry), suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel when dry, and lacks Plasticity (physics), plasticity when wet. Silt can also be felt by the tongue as granular when placed on the front teeth (even when mixed with clay particles). Silt is a common material, making up 45% of average modern mud. It is found in many river deltas and as wind-deposited accumulations, particularly in central Asia, north China, and North America. It is produced in both very hot climates (through such processes as collisions of quartz grains in dust storms) and very cold climates (through such processes as glacial grinding of quartz grains.) Loess is soil rich in silt which makes up some of the most fertile agricultural land on Earth. However, silt is very vulnerable to erosion, and it has poo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Member (geology)
A stratigraphic unit is a volume of rock of identifiable origin and relative age range that is defined by the distinctive and dominant, easily mapped and recognizable petrographic, lithologic or paleontologic features ( facies) that characterize it. Units must be ''mappable'' and ''distinct'' from one another, but the contact need not be particularly distinct. For instance, a unit may be defined by terms such as "when the sandstone component exceeds 75%". Lithostratigraphic units Sequences of sedimentary and volcanic rocks are subdivided on the basis of their shared or associated lithology. Formally identified lithostratigraphic units are structured in a hierarchy of lithostratigraphic rank, higher rank units generally comprising two or more units of lower rank. Going from smaller to larger in rank, the main lithostratigraphic ranks are bed, member, formation, group and supergroup. Formal names of lithostratigraphic units are assigned by geological surveys. Units of form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau
The Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau or Yungui Plateau () is a highland region located in southwest China. The region is primarily spread over the provinces of Yunnan and Guizhou. In the southwest, the Yungui is a true plateau with relatively flatter highland areas, while in the northeast, the Yungui is a generally mountainous area of rolling hills, gorges, and karst topography. Geography Definition Under the strictest definition, the Yungui Plateau stretches from the Red River Fault in Yunnan in the southwest to the Wuling Mountains in Hunan in the northeast. This plateau region includes most of eastern Yunnan and most of Guizhou. It is common, however, for much of the rest of Yunnan and surrounding highland areas to be referred to as part of the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau even where there are no plateau-like characteristics. Under the broader definition of the Yungui Plateau, the provinces would include not only Yunnan and Guizhou but also Gulin County and the southernmost ex ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tibetan Plateau
The Tibetan Plateau, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or Qingzang Plateau, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central Asia, Central, South Asia, South, and East Asia. Geographically, it is located to the north of Himalayas and the Indian subcontinent, and to the south of Tarim Basin and Mongolian Plateau. Geopolitically, it covers most of the Tibet Autonomous Region, most of Qinghai, western half of Sichuan, Southern Gansu provinces, southern Xinjiang province in Western China, Bhutan, the Administrative divisions of India, Indian regions of Ladakh and Lahaul and Spiti district, Lahaul and Spiti (Himachal Pradesh) as well as Gilgit-Baltistan in Pakistan, northwestern Nepal, eastern Tajikistan and southern Kyrgyzstan. It stretches approximately north to south and east to west. It is the world's highest and largest plateau above sea level, with an area of . With an average elevation exceeding and being surrounded by imposing mountain ranges that har ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
In Situ
is a Latin phrase meaning 'in place' or 'on site', derived from ' ('in') and ' ( ablative of ''situs'', ). The term typically refers to the examination or occurrence of a process within its original context, without relocation. The term is used across many disciplines to denote methods, observations, or interventions carried out in their natural or intended environment. By contrast, ' methods involve the removal or displacement of materials, specimens, or processes for study, preservation, or modification in a controlled setting, often at the cost of contextual integrity. The earliest known use of ''in situ'' in the English language dates back to the mid-17th century. In scientific literature, its usage increased from the late 19th century onward, initially in medicine and engineering. The natural sciences typically use methods to study phenomena in their original context. In geology, field analysis of soil composition and rock formations provides direct insights into Earth' ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Stone Tool
Stone tools have been used throughout human history but are most closely associated with prehistoric cultures and in particular those of the Stone Age. Stone tools may be made of either ground stone or knapped stone, the latter fashioned by a craftsman called a flintknapper. Stone has been used to make a wide variety of tools throughout history, including arrowheads, spearheads, hand axes, and querns. Knapped stone tools are nearly ubiquitous in pre-metal-using societies because they are easily manufactured, the tool stone raw material is usually plentiful, and they are easy to transport and sharpen. The study of stone tools is a cornerstone of prehistoric archaeology because they are essentially indestructible and therefore a ubiquitous component of the archaeological record. Ethnoarchaeology is used to further the understanding and cultural implications of stone tool use and manufacture. Knapped stone tools are made from cryptocrystalline materials such as chert, f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Institute Of Vertebrate Paleontology And Paleoanthropology
The Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology (IVPP; ) of People's Republic of China, China is a research institution and collections repository for fossils, including many dinosaur and pterosaur specimens (many from the Yixian Formation). As its name suggests, research is focused on both paleontology, paleontological topics and those relating to human prehistory. The institution, located in Beijing, grew out of the Cenozoic Research Laboratory in 1929 and is its own institution under the Chinese Academy of Sciences. Its staff have increasingly worked internationally, participating in the China-Canada Dinosaur Project from 1986 to 1991 and authoring or coauthoring forty-five ''Nature (journal), Nature'' and ''Science (journal), Science'' articles from 1999 to 2005. Notable paleontologists who have been affiliated with the IVPP include Yang Zhongjian (also known as C. C. Young), Dong Zhiming, Meemann Chang and Zhao Xijin. See also * List of museums in China Re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Yuanmou County
Yuanmou County (; Yi script, Chuxiong Yi script: , International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) is under the administration of the Chuxiong Yi Autonomous Prefecture, in the north of Yunnan province, China. It borders Wuding County to the east, Lufeng, Yunnan to the south, Dayao County to the west, Huili of Sichuan to the north, Mouding County to the southwest, and Yongren County to the northwest. The famous Yuanmou Man was found in Yuanmou County in 1965. Administrative divisions Yuanmou County has 3 towns and 7 townships. ;3 towns * Yuanma, Yunnan, Yuanma () * Huangguayuan, Yunnan, Huangguayuan () * Yangjie, Yunnan, Yangjie () ;7 townships Climate Tourist Resources Besides the big discovery of Yuanmou Man, Yuanmou County is also famous for its Tulin, which literally means earth forest. It is a natural landscape composed of earth columns or pillars forming like immense forest. The unique landscape was formed by geological movement and soil erosion one or two million years ago. It ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
