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Human Origins Exhibit Entrance

What Does It Mean To Be Human?

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To be I.
I am I, nothing more or less.
All I do, see, feel, and think is human, for it exists within I.

- Jacob, Earth

To be human means to love one another for reasons other than just because of instinct. To have of justice, right, wrong, fair as God does.

- Lewis Thurston, Newberg, Oregon

To be human is being smart and we are more advanced then animals and have more skills then animal.

- Rithik, Johannesburg

Being human means to be empathetic, help one another, to love and to learn about who they are as a person, learn about their culture and be a good person.

- JC, Virginia

To be human means you live for the promise of tomorrow with only the guarantee of today. You laugh, you cry, you fail and you succeed. Being human is more than just existing, explore every opportunity and every possibility. Your purpose is just ahead.

- Corey, Louisville,KY

Who knows ?

- Sulejman, Albania

to be human is to have humility. to be human is to think and to feel. to allow yourself to just be.

- lalalal, dahood

Since you are reading this i assume you are human therefore to be human is simply to be.

- Marcos Escobar, Long Beach, Ny

big variety of foods
the way we communicate
upright position

- ZK, PLYMOUTH

To be human is to be greatly overwhelmed by millions of conflicting or confusing emotions at once and to figure out how to handle them.

- Emma, California

To be human is to have morals and beliefs. To be human is to be loved and to feel happy. To be human is to live your life in the best way possible.

- Kami, Richmond

What is a hairless dog or a tree to a neuron? Is a bird a flue or computer a chip? Human existence is a unique experience.

- Allen Cross, 59601

Featured Research

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image of Homo floresiensis; LB1, skeleton

'Hobbits' on Flores, Indonesia

New digs and geological dating in Liang Bua Cave, Indonesia, show that Homo floresiensis, nicknamed the “hobbit” for its small size, became extinct around 50,000 years ago – tens of thousands of years earlier than originally thought.

For Teachers

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AP Biology Curriculum Materials

Are you an AP Biology teacher? Click here for freely downloadable curriculum materials aligned to the AP learning objectives that use human case studies to teach core evolutionary principles and a resource to help teachers create a comfortable and supportive classroom environment for teaching evolution.

Lesson Plans

Comparison of Human and Chimp Chromosomes (Grades 9-12)

Investigating Common Descent: Formulating Explanations and Models (Grades 9-12)

Human Evolution: Religious Perspectives

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The Hall of Human Origins offers a welcoming place to explore one of the most exciting areas of science, the study of human evolution. Despite strong public interest in the science, however, many people find this topic troubling when viewed from a religious perspective. Representatives of diverse religious communities encourage a larger, more respectful understanding of both the scientific evidence and religious belief.

Featured Media

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Rock or stone tool

How To Tell a Rock from a Stone Tool

How can you tell if a rock is actually an early stone tool? Watch this video to find out.

Video Thumbnail of Rick Potts from "Designing the Exhibition"

Designing the Exhibition

This video takes you behind-the-scenes into the process of designing and building the Smithsonian's Hall of Human Origins.

Fun Facts

What can lice tell us about human evolution?

Humans have three kinds of lice living on our bodies - lice that inhabit our heads, bodies, and pubic area. Researchers found that the DNA of head and body lice - which actually have special adaptations for living on our clothing - diverged from each other around 190,000 years ago, indicating that humans began making and wearing clothing around this time.