Every summer, millions of Americans make trips to their local zoo. Here we find that some of our closest animal relatives are separated from us by the constraints of captivity. There is a glass wall between us and animals we share defining traits with. What organism defined the rift between humans and the monkeys behind the glass? I believe through evolution our upper hand has been defined by bipedalism and the extensive use of tools. Two traits that define us as “humans” and had some say in the gap between us and our close relatives who today reside in zoos. We must consider how these qualities made us less primitive to find out how we became independent from these animals. To first explain what defines us as humans, we should look at the occurrence of hominins. A Hominin is technically defined as “Any member of the family Hominidade including all species of Australopithecus and Homo.” (Boyd and Silk: A7) This definition does not give us true insight on what made Hominins different from the Miocene primates. Hominins differed greatly from the earth’s apes. Looking back at the last ancestors of humans, we find, through fossils, evidence of bipedalism and difference in tooth size were the biggest differences. (Boyd and Silk: 238) These unique traits hint that Hominins were the first human-like organisms.…show more content… This difference can be found by studying the pelvis of the Australopithecus Afarensis. “…The australopithecine pelvis is flattened and flared like that of the modern human. These features increase the efficiency of bipedal walking.” (Boyd and Silk: 239) But how does this feature, that categorizes us as human, make us more efficient then Miocene primates? Being bipedal may be just as efficient as being quadrupedal but it also a tactic to reaching food, keeping cool, and carrying more. (Boyd and Silk:
