University of Buffalo: Ancient Human Arrived in South America in Multiple Waves - Essay Sample

Ancient human arrival in South Africa in multiple waves topic has gained a lot of popularity attracting intensive debates. More concern is given to the timing and the nature of the people of America. More research has been focusing mainly on gene flow models which have led to having conflicting results. However, use of three-dimensional geometric morphometric data will help in understanding the impacts of population divergence and hence easily understand the ancestry of South Americans that is found in the global human history.

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The arrival of the human race in South America in multitude waves may have been caused by the situ processes during the Holocene. This is the time when the South Americans who had several variations within groups later subdivided resulting from the colonization of the Americans. On the other hand, the subdivision may have resulted from natural selection or genetic drift that took place in small isolated groups. Basing our argument on the genetic material, we can understand the recurrent gene flow that took place between the Americans and Asia which was later accompanied by the initial colonization of the whole continent. The early Paleoamericans within-group variation is within the contemporary global population range although among cranial group differentiation in South America is higher. Hence from this, the cranial diversity is as a result of multiple waves that joined Americans from Northeast Asia. Every wave of the migrants brought with itself a different biological diversity. This is well supported by the average cranial shape that is found with the South Americans bearing stronger affinities with Polynesian populations and Australasian that with the Native American groups or the East Asian.

In addition, the genomic data and the contemporary Native Americans give a clear picture about the dispersal into the gene flow that existed within the Americans thus supporting the multiple waves. On the other hand, the multidimensional entry that tends to explain the genetic variation of the current Arctic groups and Palearctic. Consequently, the multidimensional scaling basing its arguments on the craniometrical distance metrics show the divergent cranial shape affinities existing between the Lagoa Santa Paleoamericans with other world populations. This makes the Paleoamericans lie halfway among the cluster of the population from Asia, Africa, and Australia. Hence the multidimensional scaling results tend to claim that the South Americans entered into multiple waves. This is based on their differences between the East Asia and other Native American populations.

Furthermore, research shows that the Northeast Asia was occupied during the last glacial maximum in a continuous period. Such spatiotemporal dynamics offered a good opportunity for the various population to the substructure and emerged within Beringia and Siberia hence coming out as diverse groups forming the source of the Native Americans ancestry. On the other hand, various dispersal from Africa that resulted from gene flow and differentiation from Asia may have caused the genetic signature that was found in the Asian source population and later result to other Native Americans populations.

However, basing arguments on fossils comes out to be irrelevant as fossil specimens only give morphological properties and the geographical location. To get the accurate information about population history, arguments must be based on using the reference of the other populations. This can be made easier but at first assuming that the South Americans share a common ancestor with the nearest people in terms of geographical locations. On the other hand, focusing on different aspects of cranial shape covariance which is based on the functional criteria and developmental basis helps in getting different cranial shapes that would later give important information of the population history signal.

Another point to note, it is not advisable to base population source claims on a modified method from ecology that does not exist in the anthropological setting which may at the end give false results. This may appear to be different and awkward since past research has emphasized the use of similarities between the morphology of the living people and the morphology of the prehistoric skeletons from the Americans. By basing our claims on such criteria, we can end up having accurate results that will justify that the South Americans came in multiple waves. On the other hand, it is important to look at the existing population as descendants that may arise from possible branches in a related theoretical tree and later use the finding to come up with mature claims of where the sample and the tree may have come from. With this type of research model and approach, we can be able to tell clearly whether South American arrived in multiple waves or not. When using this approach, only possible patterns of relatedness will be considered and not predetermined models of dispersal.

Use of geometric data and situ process have tried to show the possibility of the South Americans arriving in multiple waves. However, this is accompanied by a lot of caution as basing arguments from fossils specimens only give morphological properties and the geographical location. To get the accurate information about population history, arguments must be based on using the reference of the other populations. However, intensive research needs to be conducted in coming up with a clear claim of whether the South Americans arrived in multiple waves or not. This can easily be achieved through combining both gene and morphological knowledge in an attempt to come up with accurate and reliable results.

Work Cited

University of Buffalo. "Ancient humans arrived in South America in multiple waves: Contrary to prevailing thought, the work suggests that there were at least two, if not more, waves of people entering South America." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 24 February 2017. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/02/170224121748.htm>.