In short, this is an unprecedented moment in paleoanthropology. For the first time in the history of science, a form has been distinguished by its genes and nothing else. Can it therefore be considered a species?
From The Secret World of Denisovans: The Epic Story of the Ancient Cousins to Sapiens and Neanderthals by Silvana Condemi and François Savatier
As that very brief passage points out, Denisovans have been defined by their genes. Actual skeletal remains have been minimal. Genes can sometimes be a blueprint that wasn't actually followed in construction. Therefore, our understanding of Denisovans is very limited, and will be expanded―knock on wood―by further discoveries. Ideas will have to be revised.
Still, they were a very significant find, and a recent one. The finger bone fragment from which they were identified was only found in 2010. Yet the largest portion of the world's population is probably related to them, if distantly.
This is a good book. It has to take some rather arcane biological subjects and make then comprehensible to the lay reader. At the same time, it's respectful to the general public in a way that surprises me for a book published in 2025.
It also has beautiful, hand-drawn illustrations from Benoit Clarys, who seems to be very familiar with this kind of subject.
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