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Tom Higham
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The World Before Us: The New Science Behind Our Human Origins Hardcover – August 24, 2021

by Tom Higham (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 185 ratings
See all formats and editions
A fascinating investigation of the origin of humans, based on incredible new discoveries and advanced scientific technology
 
“Conveys the thrill of archaeological discovery.”—Alexander Larman, The Observer

“Packs in startling discoveries, impressive insights and the occasional debunking of a foolish idea.”—Michael Marshall, New Scientist
 
Fifty thousand years ago, Homo sapiens was not the only species of humans in the world. There were also Neanderthals in what is now Europe, the Near East, and parts of Eurasia; Hobbits (H. floresiensis) on the island of Flores in Indonesia; Denisovans in Siberia and eastern Eurasia; and H. luzonensis in the Philippines. Tom Higham investigates what we know about these other human species and explores what can be learned from the genetic links between them and us. He also looks at whether H. erectus may have survived into the period when our ancestors first moved into Southeast Asia.
 
Filled with thrilling tales of recent scientific discoveries, this book offers an engaging synopsis of our current understanding of human origins and raises new and interesting possibilities—particularly concerning what contact, if any, these other species might have had with us prior to their extinction.
Previous page
  1. Print length
    320 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Yale University Press
  4. Publication date
    August 24, 2021
  5. Dimensions
    6.13 x 1.06 x 9.25 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    0300259220
  7. ISBN-13
    978-0274759989
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“Fascinating and deeply researched. Higham conveys the thrill of archaeological discovery eruditely and accessibly.”—Alexander Larman, The Observer

“A fascinating insight into groups belonging to the same Homo genus as us that lived alongside us for much of their existence. . . . Higham devotes whole chapters, sometimes multiple chapters, to each extinct hominin group. He packs in startling discoveries, impressive insights and the occasional debunking of a foolish idea.”—Michael Marshall, New Scientist

“A clear and lucid account of how to study archaic DNA. [Higham] tells an engaging story.”—Felipe Fernández-Armesto, Literary Review

“A brilliant exposition of the way in which archaeology and science are completely changing our understanding of early humans. This is essential reading for all interested in our early ancestors and the sheer excitement of their discovery.”—Barry Cunliffe, author of The Scythians and Europe Between the Oceans: 9000 BC–AD 1000

“The World Before Us ventures far beyond fossils and archaeology into the realm of today’s multidisciplinary science. This is a magnificent tour de force making cutting-edge science easily understandable and profoundly entertaining at the same time.”—Brian Fagan, author of A Little History of Archaeology and World Prehistory

“From lab bench to trench, The World Before Us offers a personal tour of the newest science in palaeoanthropology. Higham’s work on some of the most important and remarkable fossils ever found imbues his account with fascinating detail.”—Rebecca Wragg Sykes, author of Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death, and Art

“A brilliant distillation of the ideas and discoveries revolutionizing our understanding of human evolution. Tom Higham introduces us to a complex world of many human species, whose genes and deeds live on in us today.”—Chris Gosden, author of Prehistory: A Very Short Introduction

“A bang-up-to-date insider’s review of a critical period in the emergence of modern humans. It also provides fascinating, intelligible and authoritative glimpses into a wide variety of new technologies.”—Ian Tattersall, coauthor of The Accidental Homo sapiens: Genetics, Behavior, and Free Will

About the Author

Tom Higham is professor of archaeological science at the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art at the University of Oxford and director of the Oxford Radiocarbon Accelerator Unit.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Yale University Press (August 24, 2021)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 320 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0300259220
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0274759989
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.38 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.13 x 1.06 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 185 ratings

About the author

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Tom Higham

Tom Higham

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Tom Higham is Professor of Scientific Archaeology at the University of Vienna. He specialises in radiocarbon dating of archaeological sites using accelerator mass spectrometry. For many years he has worked on the Palaeolithic, or Old Stone Age, particularly on the emergence of Homo sapiens, their later interaction with Neanderthals and other types of humans living in Eurasia. He has worked for the last few years on the Denisovans, a recently discovered human species in eastern Eurasia.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
185 global ratings
Book good, packing for shipment terrible
3 Stars
Book good, packing for shipment terrible
The book arrived quickly, the book content is fine.The packing for shipment leaves MUCH to be desired. Whoever put it in the box ripped the back dustcover mostly off.
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Top reviews from the United States

Space Nerd
5.0 out of 5 stars Great perspective on our ancestor hominids
Reviewed in the United States on June 4, 2023
Verified Purchase
There is a lot of great information about our ancestors, especially Neanderthals and Denisovans, and especially in terms of DNA. The information can be a little random in terms of time periods and locations, but the author includes a map at the beginning of several chapters to help with context.
One person found this helpful
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B. Ingersoll
4.0 out of 5 stars Slightly Uneven but Still Worth Reading
Reviewed in the United States on January 14, 2023
Verified Purchase
This is essentially a survey of the current state of paleoanthropology, from the perspective of one individual. The topics jump around a bit and are not necessarily in chronological order, from the oldest hominins to us, but they are nevertheless engaging. The best passages in this book involve topics in which the author is personally invested; perhaps had he focused more on his own area of expertise, and his own insights, this might have been a stronger book. Not that I regretted reading it at all.
4 people found this helpful
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RTM
5.0 out of 5 stars New Discoveries in the Science of Human Origins
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2021
Verified Purchase
Tom Higham, a leading scientist in this field, gives readers an engaging and understandable summary of recent developments in learning about the evolution of our species. As Higham states, "Our understanding of the crucial period in late human evolution (200,000 to 50,000 years ago) has transformed fundamentally in little more than a decade". Higham takes the reader along for an intellectual tour of this subject. The "Out of Africa" story about our ancestors making a single migration and then replacing other species of archaic humans has become much more complex, based on pioneering field work and laboratory methods, which are described in this book. Higham discusses how several different species of humans were discovered, and how modern humans (us) coexisted and sometimes interbred with them. I learned a lot from this well written book, and highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in this subject.
27 people found this helpful
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Rabab Khaja
5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome Isights
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2022
Verified Purchase
I liked the scientific expertise and analysis that were offered in this book. The scientific jargon were simplified enough for the laymen to grasp the core, yet not too simplified to lose the meaning. It’s a story of us, how we came to be, ever since we left Africa, isolated then regrouped, interbred, and introgressed and hybridized to become who we are today, with all the advantages and disadvantages that the process entailed. Great read for everyone who likes to broaden his/her perspective of understanding a great deal of oneself.
3 people found this helpful
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Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Who are we?
Reviewed in the United States on April 29, 2022
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This is one of the best books on the origins of modern man that I've read. Well done with right mix of technical language and terms laymen such as myself can understand. My wish? Either find a living hobbit or enough DNA we can read to know more about them. The truth is far more amazing than anyone could imagine.
4 people found this helpful
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Eric Maroney
4.0 out of 5 stars No Genus Homo
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2022
Verified Purchase
Tom Higham’s The World Before Us: The New Science Behind Our Human Origins is an both an excellent overview, and detailed account (!) of some of the more recent work done in archeology and ancient genetics which has fundamentally altered our view of human origins. We are, I believe, on the cusp of even more amazing discoveries about our early ancestors and hominid cousins. In the near future, the idea of completely separable “species” of the genus homo will lose all functional meaning.
One person found this helpful
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BK
5.0 out of 5 stars well done survey of where we are with understanding our orgins..
Reviewed in the United States on March 19, 2022
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genetics, erxcavations, artifacts, complexities, DNA in ancient dirt [if it's cold enough & we are lucky ] Good nearly current survey.. money well spent

BK
4 people found this helpful
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Robert E. Townsend
5.0 out of 5 stars A MUST READ
Reviewed in the United States on September 9, 2021
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Well written and very well researched. A must for any open mind.
6 people found this helpful
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