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Dartians to Martians Addendum 530 NATURE VOL. 239 OCTOBER 27 1972 jumeaux (Zwillingszapfen)" and the which was written by a former play­ African great apes and man show re­ sense in which Cajal used "spongio­ wright (Robert Ardrey), was eagerly markable similarities in chromosome blast", and so on. read by many who were impatient to and protein structure; but be concludes A translation of Greeff's introduction read any kind of summary of the dis­ that these are due to parallel evolution. is included. The references are more cussion of human origins. There is no He does not consider the possibility that conveniently placed at the end of the justification, however, for "popu­ some of the morphological similarities chapters instead of, as in the original, larizing" material not yet established between Propliopithecus, Ramapithe­ in footnotes. Useful additions are a list as scientifically sound. It is therefore cus, Australopithecus and Homo might of Cajal's papers on the visual system unfortunate that Kurten should have be parallel developments. Further, of vertebrates and invertebrates; a name based his book on the poorly supported . Kurten overlooks the fact that it is and a subject index, so that one can hypothesis that the ancestors of man very unlikely that similar amino-acid quickly glean a summary of Cajal's com­ and the apes separated more than 35 sequences will arise independently in mentaries on various authors, other million years ago. This flaw greatly two animal species, and that such animals and types of cells. The original reduces the value of an otherwise changes are accessible to mathematical plates are very well reproduced con­ enjoyable book which quite neatly sum­ treatment. The possibilities of parallel sidering the difficulties of copying and marizes human evolution from the evolution in mammalian dental and reducing the size of the figures. Com­ Australopithecines ("Dartians") on­ cranial anatomy can be estimated only pared with my copy of the 1894 edition wards. The reader is largely presented crudely and subjectively. Some sero­ there is, however, an occasional slight with opinions, not facts, and this can­ logists-such as Sarich-have admit­ loss of definition of some of the not be justified merely as a means of tedly taken the opposite view that the finer processes of the cells. Ironically avoiding complexity. fossil record can be largely ignored this sometimes makes them more It rarely emerges from the text that when constructing evolutionary trees, closely resemble what may at first be the author's opinions are based on a and have concluded that the ancestors seen in a Golgi preparation. handful of fossil fragments of Proplio­ of African apes and man separated B. B. BOYCOTT pithecus and· Ramapithecus which are only five million years ago. This view supposed to represent 30--35 million is just as reprehensible as the claim that years of human evolution before the fossils can tell us all we need to Australopithecus. A sense of propor­ know; neither approach is desirable. Dartians to Martians tion could have been kept by illus­ Let us hope that the readers of this Not from the Apes. By Bjorn Kurten. trating all of these fragments on one book, on seeing the section suggesting Pp. viii+ 183. (Victor Gollancz: Lon­ page. Such is the "historical evidence" that man might develop as a new don, June 1972.) £1.75. of which Kurten states : "I am afraid species on Mars, will realize that Kurten BJORN KURTEN already has an estab­ that we cannot dispense with key should not be taken seriously. R. D. MARTEN lished reputation as the author of read­ characteristics; fortunately the teeth able books on vertebrate palaentology, give us all the necessary ones as far as such as The Age of the Dinosaurs and apes and man are concerned." Kurten Pleistocene Mammals of Europe. In does admit, however, that the scientist Addendum Not from the Apes, he has turned his "cannot reconstruct a hitherto unknown animal on the basis of a single tooth or IN Dr Cornwall's review of the Atlas hand to the vexed question of human of Animal Bones for Prehistorians, evolution. He attempts to explain to the even the whole tooth row .... This is the situation with Ramapithecus." One of A rcheologists and Quaternary Geolo­ layman a subject which is still the gists (Bilingual Bones, Nature, 238, 474; centre of animated discussion among the few illustrations in this book shows a "reconstruction" of the entire skull 1972), the name of the author, Elizabeth the experts, who are generally reluc­ Schmid, was unfortunately omitted. We stage of of Ramapithecus! tant to write such books at this apologize for this oversight. research. This is why African Genesis, Kurten is, of course, aware that the Editorial, Advertising and Publishing Offices of NATURE MACMILLAN JOURNALS LIMITED 4 LITTLE ESSEX STREET, LONDON WC2R 3LF HOW TO BUY NATURE Telephone Number: 01-836 6633. Telegrams: Phusis London WC2R 3LF Telex 262024 Volumes start in January, March, May, July, September and November, but subscriptions may begin at any time. MACMILLAN JOURNALS LIMITED 711 NATIONAL PRESS BUILDING postal price per subscription is : The direct WASHINGTON DC 20004 Telephone Number: 202-737 2355. Telex 64280 12 MONTHS• (52 issues per title) International Advertisement Manager Surface mail PETER R. KAVANAGH UK and U.S.A. and worldwide Canada MACMILLAN JOURNALS LIMITED 4 LITTLE ESSEX STREET, LONDON WC2R 3LF Nature (Friday) £14 $48 Telephone Numbers : UK 01-836 6633. USA 202-737 2355 Nature+ Subscription Department $83 Nature Physical Science £24 MACMILLAN JOURNALS LIMITED HANTS Nature+ BRUNEL ROAD, BASINGSTOKE. Nature New Biology £24 $83 Telephone Number: Basingstoke 29242 All three editions £29.50 $108 Classified advertisements T. G SCOTT & SON, LIMITED Annual Index £1 $3 1 CLEMENTS INN, LONDON WC2A 2ED Telephone Number: 01-242 6264101-405 4743 •Rates for shorter periods pro rata (minimum three months) Telegrams: Textualist London WC2A 2ED (Charge for delivery by air mail on application) Registered as a newspaper at the Post Office Copyright © Macmillan Journals Limited, October 27 1972 © 1972 Nature Publishing Group.
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