Friday, October 21, 2005

Paleoanthropology in Chad



The above is a picture of Sahelanthropus tchadensis, the seven million year old fossil from Chad. Recently a new paleoanthropology department (the first)was opened in Chad. According to BBC News:

The new palaeontology department will have space for 46 students, as well as a hi-tech laboratory to analyse fossils.

The head of the new unit, Dr Mackaye Hassane Taisso, set out his ambitions for the future.

"Listen, Toumaï is seven million years old, so our ambition is to find something older," he told the BBC.

"If we find a fossil about 10 million years old, that would be great. We are placing the bar very high, but we need to."