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Human Origins Exhibit Entrance

What Does It Mean To Be Human?

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Being human means that you are a Homo sapien

- Ana, USA

it means to have certain values and be original

- mishonda polk, 4912 monarch

Every single individual has their own unique set of experiences that make them who they are. Still, as a whole, humans have the capacity to innovate, believe, dream, try, create, teach, learn, care, communicate, and collaborate unlike any other species.

- Brooke, Connecticut

To love. God first, others second, self last. John 3:16.

- David, Maryland

To understand, to fight, we thrive, and most importantly we fail. Weather it is together or alone we fail and learn from our mistake.

- Frank, Illinois

To be human is to be made in the image of God. To have the fullest ability to be creative, think, and feel emotions in a complex and nuanced way.

- Isabel, USA

I think being human means to have the freedom of knowledge and curiosity to discover more. Humanity is not the most moral specices and that is because we don't know what consciousness really is. Also if you haven't baked cookies then you are NOT a human.

- Hamza, Palestine

to live life to the fullest

- anita miller, losangeles

The only character that distinguishes human from other animals is his ability to creat or interpret symbols.

- Jamshid, Los Angeles,CA

To have faith.

- Alexis, South Carolina

Being human is being in the image of God.

- Charlotte, SC

Being human means being beautiful art, mind-numbingly beautiful art.

- Kai, NYC

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

Chickens, chimpanzees, and you - what do they have in common?

All modern humans are 99.9% similar to one another in the part of the human genome that codes for proteins. In equivalent areas of the genome, we are 98.8% genetically similar to chimpanzees, 75% genetically similar to chickens, and even 60% genetically similar to banana trees! Humans share large portions of our genome with other organisms due to similar basic functions across the animal kingdom.