Day 2 - 327 -- What's in a Name?

The Google doodle today took me back to several books I've read over the years -- all about anthropology. One of my favourites 'Lucy's Child 'was written by paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson and co-authored with James Shreeve. These are special members of my anthropology and primatology collection. The Doodle today notes that it is the 41st anniversary of the discovery of the skeletal fragments of an early hominid that became known to the world as Lucy. Now, there is music in the naming of those remains. Johanson noted that the Beatles' song, 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds' played repeatedly in camp on the night of the discovery. So, two of my major interests intersected there.

The closest I've come is a display of castings of the original bone pieces displayed at the British Museum. Even that was quite moving. This individual was called australopiticus afarensis -- a very short hominid that seems to have used bipedal locomotion. Very cool. She was found in the Afar region of Ethiopia and while the skeleton is only 40% complete, this is more than is often found for fossils that are 3.2 million years old. The story of the discovery, almost by accident when people were ready to believe they'd find nothing that they'd hoped to find at that dig, is fascinating. I'd recommend it to anyone interested in the science of life. (if you'd like other suggestions besides those related to Lucy, I'd gladly point you to a few titles).

In honour of this being from the very distant past and the current people who took part in the discovery, I've chosen a song that speaks to the area where it all occurred. You could also look at Day 36 for the Beatles' song that led to her name. Enjoy!

Africa -- Toto