Paleontology questions

Interbreeding between Neanderthals with modern humans took place several times. Neanderthal-derived DNA was found in the genome of contemporary populations in Europe and Asia, it accounts for 1–4% of modern genomes. Neanderthal genes are absent from most modern populations in sub-Saharan Africa.

Neanderthals had large cranial capacity (1,600 cm3), which was larger than that of modern humans. Compared to modern humans, neanderthals had shorter legs and bigger bodies - this was likely an adaptation to preserve heat in cold climates. Larger eye sockets suggest that their eyesight may have been better than that of modern humans.

Neanderthals are named after the first site where their fossils were discovered in the mid-19th century – it was a river valley in Germany named Neanderthal. Neanderthal remains were found in Europe (early range), as well as Southwest, Central, and Northern Asia (late range).

The name of homo erectus indicates that it was the first human ancestor which was bipedal.

The name of homo habilis indicates that it was the first human ancestor which used and created stone tools.

The name “homo sapiens” was introduced in 1758 by Carl Linnaeus.

The initial research works and discoveries of dinosaur fossil sites and their tracks in Mongolia started in the 1920s. Throughout this time, there have been many national and international field expeditions conducted in the country, and more than 80 genera of dinosaurs have been found in the Mongolian Gobi Desert.

The oldest known findings of dinosaurs are about 230 million years old. Paleontologists think that the early dinosaur genus Eoraptor resembles the common ancestor of all dinosaurs; if this is true, its traits suggest that the first dinosaurs were small, bipedal predators.