On 11-Mar-2005, Scott Weiser wrote:

This
biometric measurement suggests that they are not the same organism.

There you go, assuming that all scientists are stupid. You've done it
before, you'll do it again.

The fact is that you think you're an expert on morphology because
you read a dictionary definition that you obviously don't understand.
Those of us that are trained in science and engineering _know_ that
morphological characteristics, such as form and structure, can be
independent of size.

I've long ago lost count of how many analyses of structures I've done
that are independent of dimension (I'm a structural engineer). My
master's thesis topic was on risk (mentioned before) and featured
an analysis of the National Building Code for risk parameters. The
structures investigated were all non-dimensional. All dimensions
are normalized out of the model.

Aero-and hydrodynamics work is almost always non-dimensional. Airfoils
are very well defined in _form_ (search on NACA airfoils for examples)
but are not specified as having dimensions. The coefficients (lift,
drag, Reynold's number, Mach number etc) are all dimensionless.
Engineers in this area are able to compare and contrast different
airfoil designs without resorting to dimensional information, working
entirely with the _form_ and non-dimensional coefficients.

In the realm of paleoanthropology, the most recent news has been about
Homo Florensiensis. Skeletal remains found in Indonesia have been
causing quite a stir. Teuku Jakob, an Indonesian paleontologist has
claimed that the skull is simply that of a microcephalic H. sapiens.
However, Dean Falk of Florida State U, has analysed the brain cast
of H. florensiensis and compared it to brain casts of pygmies,
microcephalic H. sapiens and to H. erectus. This was published in
"Science" in the past couple of weeks and she was interviewed on
Discovery Channel. The brain casts show the characteristics typical
of the various species and types. She was able to show that the
H. florensiensis was not a microcephalic and that the its lobes were
closest to H. erectus. These brain casts were _not_the_same_size_.
They don't have to be the same size to be morphologically similar.

Form and structure are not dependent on dimension as you naively
assume.

You have made the ridiculous claim that biometry is a subset of
morphology - PROVE IT.


They are hominids - human ancestors, ***early humans*** not human beings. It
says so in the web page.

Interesting that you excised the QUOTE from the Smithsonian website which
clearly refers to them as "***earlier humans***."

What excising? You still can't read - a kindergarden kop pretending to
be an editor.

"The phylogenetic tree below shows one reconstruction of the relationships
among early human species, as we best know them today."

Any ambiguity about the use of the term "human" aside - you are still wrong.

Every one of the species that you listed as an early human (including all
australopithicines, the paranthropus and homo species) for which adequate
skeletal remains have been found share one significant characteristic -
THEY ALL WALKED ERECT. You're still wrong, dickhead.

Give it up, you're beaten.

Speak for yourself, dickhead.

Mike