Early humans began spreading from Africa to other parts of the world by about 1.8 million years ago. Within 100,000 years, they reached China. This discovery was made by Human Origins Program researchers working in collaboration with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Hubei Institute of Cultural Relics. At excavation sites in China’s Nihewan Basin, the team found stone tools like this hammerstone, evidence of animal butchery, and animal footprints.