In a cave in southern Siberia, DNA reveals that Neanderthals once spent time there, along with another group of early humans: Denisovans. Previously a mystery, with only fragments of fossils found in the Denisova Cave, ancient DNA has allowed scientists to genetically identify the Denisovans and uncover surprising new information that many modern humans have both Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA.
 
Tom Higham, Professor of Scientific Archaeology at the University of Vienna, is at the forefront of this discovery. He has been working at Denisova Cave for the last decade with a team of researchers using new molecular methods to learn about the Denisovans, find out where and when they lived, how they interacted with Neanderthals and modern humans, and why they disappeared. In this video, Higham shares his research.

Briana Pobiner, paleoanthropologist and educator at Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History, moderates the program, which aired September 15, 2022, as a webinar in the HOT (Human Origins Today) Topic series.

Learn more about the HOT Topic series and get info about upcoming webinars on the museum's Events for Adults page: https://naturalhistory.si.edu/events/...

The Smithsonian's Human Origins Program: https://humanorigins.si.edu/