From Biped to Strider : The Emergence of Modern Human Walking, Running, and Resource Transport

The inspiration for this volume of contributed papers stemmed from conversations between the editors in front of Chuck Hilton's poster on the determinants of hominid walking speed, presented at thel998 meetings of the American Association of Physical Anthropologists (AAPA). Earlier at those meetings, Jeff Meldrum (with Roshna Wunderlich) had presented an alternate interpretation of the Laetoli footprints based on evidence of midfoot flexibility. As the discussion ensued we found convergence on a number of ideas about the nature of the evolution of modem human walking. From the continuation of that dialogue grew the proposal for a symposium which we called From Biped to Strider: the Emergence of Modem Human Walking. The symposium was held as a session of the 69th annual meeting of the AAPA, held in San Antonio, Texas in 2000. It seemed to us that the study of human bipedalism had become overshadowed by theoften polarized debates over whether australo­ pithecines were wholly terrestrial in habit, or retained a significant degree of arboreality. Striders, Runners, And Transporters / Charles E. Hilton And D. Jeffrey Meldrum -- Knuckle-walking And The Origin Of Human Bipedalism / David R. Begun -- A New Hypothesis On The Origin Of Hominoid Locomotion / Yvette Deloison -- Functional Interpretation Of The Laetoli Footprints / Peter Schmid -- Fossilized Hawaiian Footprints Compared With Laetoli Hominid Footprints / D. Jeffrey Meldrum -- In What Manner Did They Walk On Two Legs? An Architectural Perspective For The Functional Diagnostics Of The Early Hominid Foot / Gilles Berillon -- The Behavioral Ecology Of Locomotion / Patricia Ann Kramer -- Bipedalism In Homo Ergaster : An Experimental Study Of The Effects Of Tibial Proportions On Locomotor Biomechanics / Laura Tobias Gruss And Daniel Schmitt -- The Running-fighting Dichotomy And The Evolution Of Aggression In Hominids / David Carrier -- Age, Sex, And Resource Transport In Venezuelan Foragers / Charles E. Hilton And Russell D. Greaves -- Mobility And The Locomotor Skeleton At The Foraging To Farming Transition / Marsha D. Ogilvie -- Uplifted Head, Free Hands, And The Evolution Of Human Walking / Henry M. Mchenry. Edited By D. Jeffrey Meldrum And Charles E. Hilton. Based On A Symposium Which Was Held As A Session Of The 69th Annual Meeting Of The Aapa Held In San Antonio, Texas, In 2000. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. The study of human bipedalism has been overshadowed by many polarized debates. One dispute concerns whether or not australopithecines were wholly terrestrial or retained a degree of arboreality. Another deliberation focuses on the bipedalism of australopithecines compared to modern humans: was it similar, intermediate in nature, or unique? Because of the preoccupation with discussions such as these, the significant fact that modern human walking is more than locomotion on two legs has been underemphasized. This volume focuses on the pattern and process of the transition to the modern form of human locomotion, with its adaptations for a striding stiff-legged gait, efficiency of running, and economy of resource transport. This emerging group of contributors spanning the fields of anthropology, biology and anatomy debate issues such as: -When and in what sequence did these morphological traits appear? -What were the changes in the bio-behavioral complex of hominin locomotor evolution? -What were the implications for the enhancement and expansion of hominin mobility? Front Matter....Pages i-xiii Striders, Runners, and Transporters....Pages 1-8 Knuckle-Walking and the Origin of Human Bipedalism....Pages 9-33 A New Hypothesis on the Origin of Hominoid Locomotion....Pages 35-47 Functional Interpretation of the Laetoli Footprints....Pages 49-62 Fossilized Hawaiian Footprints Compared with Laetoli Hominid Footprints....Pages 63-83 In What Manner Did They Walk on Two Legs?....Pages 85-100 The Behavioral Ecology of Locomotion....Pages 101-115 Bipedalism in Homo ergaster : An Experimental Study of the Effects of Tibial Proportions on Locomotor Biomechanics....Pages 117-134 The Running-Fighting Dichotomy and the Evolution of Aggression in Hominids....Pages 135-162 Age, Sex, and Resource Transport in Venezuelan Foragers....Pages 163-181 Mobility and the Locomotor Skeleton at the Foraging to Farming Transition....Pages 183-201 Uplifted Head, Free Hands, and the Evolution of Human Walking....Pages 203-210 Back Matter....Pages 211-213