Introduction
Piltdown Man is one of the most controversial fossils in world history where bone fragments made up of a jawbone, teeth, and skull were presented early human fossilized remains. The Piltdown fossils were found in 1912, and they were believed to be the earliest Englishman and the missing connection between humans and apes. According to a study conducted in the 1950s, Piltdown fossil's jawbone was found to replicate that one of a modern ape and not fossil as it was stated earlier (Begun, 2003). Scientific analysis showed that Piltdown fossils were stained by chemicals to appear as if they existed many centuries ago. Even though Piltdown Man became very controversial, the fossil's skull cap looked genuine, but no confirmations were made to assert it.
Piltdown Man was regarded as a scientific hoax where respected scientists claimed that Piltdown fossils were unknown early humans' remains (Stringer, 2012). Scientists spent years trying to fit Piltdown fossils into human evaluation records. The fossil remains had been discovered by some workers digging a pit in Piltdown, England. The bones were handed over to Charles Dawson and other notable scientists for analysis. After five years of the fossil analysis, Sir Arthur Keith discovered that the braincase of fragments was primitive. However, the characteristics were remarkably human. The discovery of Piltdown Man became very controversial, raising concerns among scientists across the globe. The fossils were generally agreed to be from a specimen of the earliest known sapient man; nevertheless, people had to contradict the disputatious jawbone's opinions.
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Question 1
The Piltdown man fit Darwin’s theory of evolution. His skull was of the present day, and the jaw was ancient which showed the man to be an ape with a developed brain. A canine tooth was later discovered at the Piltdown, which fit the reconstruction that had been done on the Piltdown man’s right jaw. It was similar to that of an ape, and the level was degradation was accurate. According to Charles Darwin, humans had evolved from ape-like ancestors originating from primates to modern men ( Films Media Group, 2014). However, when Piltdown was compared to Australopithecus , the earliest human ancestor discovered in South Africa, there was no similarity. Australopithecus revealed that the apelike mandible shrunk before the brain size increased which contradicted the Piltdown man fossil.
Question 2
In the late 1930s, a new chemical analysis was conducted by Kenneth Oakley, an English geologist, and Paleontologist. The scientific method used to expose Piltdown fossil as fake is known as fluorine testing. In this Chemical analysis test, the fossil bones are made to absorb fluorine from water and soil (Peppe and Deino, 2013). Based on the scientific method, fossils that have absorbed the same amount of fluorine are expected to have existed in the same soil for an equal period. The scientific research conducted by Kenneth Oakley disclosed that the Piltdown Man’s skull and jaw seemed to have an equal amount of fluorine. It was an indication that they had an equivalent lifespan and belonged to the same soil. The test result also revealed that Piltdown Man was younger than it was thought. It was predicted that Piltdown Man might have lived about 50,000 years ago rather than 500,000 years as it had been expected. The finding has shown that the fossil a mere throwback rather than a missing link, as indicated earlier.
Question 3
The Piltdown Man hoax's exposure did not prove the prediction of human evolution and Darwin's Theory of Evolution as wrong. Scientists Joseph and Oakley appraised the fossils and found the teeth had been polished to seem aged. Further, the bones had been washed over with paint to resemble the dirt where they were found. Based on Oakley's chemical analysis, Piltdown's teeth and jaw were found to have different ages with the skull, thus showing that remain were mere old bones and not fossils. It therefore, cannot be used as an accurate measure of Darwin’s theory.
References
Begun, D. R. (2003). Planet of the apes. Scientific American , 289 (2), 74-83.
Films Media Group. (2014). Your inner monkey . Films on Demand . https://fod.infobase.com/PortalPlaylists.aspx?wID=106564&xtid=60726.
Peppe, D. J., & Deino, A. L. (2013). Dating rocks and fossils using geologic methods. Nature Education Knowledge , 4 (10), 1.
Stringer, C. (2012). The 100-year mystery of Piltdown Man. Nature , 492 (7428), 177-179.
Wong, K. (2012). First of our kind. Scientific American , 306 (4), 30-39.
