{POE} Question 2

Question 2: Digital Literacy and information

Information fluency skills to analyze the ground breaking archaeological findings (Homo Naledi) by Professor Lee Berger from Wits University.

Information Fluency

Information fluency can be described as skills needed not only to search, gather information and evaluate, but to create useful knowledge that will help to solve problems. The five (5) Information Fluency process are: Ask, Acquire, Analyze, Apply and Assess. The information fluency process may be used to analyze this groundbreaking archeological as follows;

Step 1: Ask

Relevant questions must be asked in order to receive relevant information. One you should ask about it, is what does species fossils belongs to and how this new information could contribute to knowledge already acquired that relates to this species; relevant questions must be asked about the fossil.

The questions:

ë  How do you know that this is a new species?

ë  How do you know it belongs in the genus Homo?

ë  Where does Homo Naledi fit within the human lineage?

ë  Could Homo Naledi be a pathological modern human?

ë  How can we be sure that the different features are not just variation among different individuals?

ë  Do these fossils prove that humans originated in South Africa?

ë  How were the fossils found?

ë  How many Hominin fossils are there in the Dinaledi Chamber?

ë  Why are there no other fossils apart from the hominins?

ë  Do the hominin fossils occur as complete skeletons?

Step 2: Acquire

Information is acquired by scientists leading the expectations. This is done by studying the fossil in a professional manner in order to acquire information such as how old the fossil is.

Step 3: Analyze

One must analyze the information which has been acquired in order to organize and arrange it. One must make the decision whether the information acquired about the fossil is trustworthy and if it can be used to make assumptions about the theory of evaluation.

Facts about the Homo Naledi sapiens:

ë  Homo Naledi has a small brain case. So far 1 550 recovered separate bones and bone fragments from the floor surface of the cave chamber, and from a one small excavation near a bone concentration in the back of the chamber.

ë  The ribcage and shoulders and pelvis are also similar to the earlier Homo sapiens.

ë  The legs and feet of Naledi indicate that the fossil was tall.

ë  Homo Naledi looks more original and the teeth are more similar to chimpanzees.

ë  The measurements of the Homo Naledi sapiens brain were 1.5 meters tall 45 kilograms.

ë  South African is limited in finding fossils where they were preserved, not necessarily across the whole area that human ancestors existed when they were alive.

Step 4: Apply

One must apply the information acquired. If the information can be used by scientists to further their studies in their human species.

Step 5: Assess

One must assess whether the process of analyzing the groundbreaking archeological findings could have been carried out effectively, for example by using more advanced technology to study the remains.

Additional Information

ë  According to Lee, B. 2015 stated that scientists and researchers, led by Wits University Professor Lee Berger, believe they have unearthed a new species of human relative in the world’s richest hominid fossil site, the Cradle of Humankind.

ë  Homo Naledi is a previously-unknown species of extinct hominid discovered within the Di-Naledi Chamber of the Rising Star cave system, Cradle of Humankind, South Africa by Professor Lee Berger.

ë  This species is characterised by body mass and stature similar to small-bodied human populations but a small Endocrinal volume similar to Australopithecus.

ë  The while primitive dentition is generally small and simple in occlusion morphology.

ë  Homo Naledi exhibits a human like foot and lower limb, and these human like aspects are contrasted in the postprandial with a more primitive or Australopithecus-like trunk, shoulder, pelvis and proximal femur.

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