Yves Coppens
Encyclopedia
Yves Coppens is a French anthropologist
. He graduated from the University of Rennes
. He has studied ancient hominid
s and has had multiple published works on this topic, and has also produced a film.
Coppens is one of the co-discoverers of Lucy
. Richard Dawkins
says in The Ancestor's Tale
: "In his native France, Yves Coppens is widely cited as the co-discoverer of Lucy
along with Donald Johanson
and Maurice Taieb
.The "Rift Valley theory", proposed and supported by the Dutch primatologist Adriaan Kortlandt
, became better known when it was later espoused and renamed by Coppens as the "East Side Story". However this paradigm has been challenged by the discovery by Michel Brunet
' s team of Australopithecus bahrelghazali
(Abel) and Sahelanthropus tchadensis
(Toumaï) in Chad
(2 500 km to west rift walley
The asteroid
172850 Coppens
is named in his honour.
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
. He graduated from the University of Rennes
University of Rennes
The University of Rennes was a French university located in the city of Rennes. It was established by the union of the 3 faculties of the city in 1885. In 1969, it was divided in two new universities:* the University of Rennes 1...
. He has studied ancient hominid
Hominidae
The Hominidae or include them .), as the term is used here, form a taxonomic family, including four extant genera: chimpanzees , gorillas , humans , and orangutans ....
s and has had multiple published works on this topic, and has also produced a film.
Coppens is one of the co-discoverers of Lucy
Lucy (Australopithecus)
Lucy is the common name of AL 288-1, several hundred pieces of bone representing about 40% of the skeleton of an individual Australopithecus afarensis. The specimen was discovered in 1974 at Hadar in the Awash Valley of Ethiopia's Afar Depression. Lucy is estimated to have lived 3.2 million years...
. Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins
Clinton Richard Dawkins, FRS, FRSL , known as Richard Dawkins, is a British ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author...
says in The Ancestor's Tale
The Ancestor's Tale
The Ancestor's Tale is a 2004 popular science book by Richard Dawkins, with contributions from Dawkins' research assistant Yan Wong. It follows the path of humans backwards through evolutionary history, meeting humanity's cousins as they converge on common ancestors...
: "In his native France, Yves Coppens is widely cited as the co-discoverer of Lucy
Australopithecus afarensis
Australopithecus afarensis is an extinct hominid that lived between 3.9 and 2.9 million years ago. A. afarensis was slenderly built, like the younger Australopithecus africanus. It is thought that A...
along with Donald Johanson
Donald Johanson
Donald Carl Johanson is an American paleoanthropologist. Along with Maurice Taieb, and Yves Coppens he is known for the discovery of the skeleton of the female hominid australopithecine known as "Lucy", in the Afar Triangle region of Hadar, Ethiopia.-Early years:Johanson was born in Chicago,...
and Maurice Taieb
Maurice Taieb
Maurice Taieb, is a French geologist and paleoanthropologist who discovered the Hadar formation, recognised its potential importance to paleoanthropology and founded the International Afar Research Expedition...
.The "Rift Valley theory", proposed and supported by the Dutch primatologist Adriaan Kortlandt
Adriaan Kortlandt
Prof. Dr. Adriaan Kortlandt was a Dutch ethologist.He was famous for his work on displacement activities and the hierarchy of instincts. Already in the thirties he realised the common characteristics between instincts in humans and other animals...
, became better known when it was later espoused and renamed by Coppens as the "East Side Story". However this paradigm has been challenged by the discovery by Michel Brunet
Michel Brunet
Michel Brunet may refer to:* Michel Brunet , Canadian historian* Michel Brunet , French paleontologist* Michel Brunet , Canadian skater...
' s team of Australopithecus bahrelghazali
Australopithecus bahrelghazali
Australopithecus bahrelghazali is a fossil hominin that was first discovered in 1993 by the paleontologist Michel Brunet in the Bahr el Ghazal valley near Koro Toro, in Chad, that Brunet named Abel...
(Abel) and Sahelanthropus tchadensis
Sahelanthropus tchadensis
Sahelanthropus tchadensis is an extinct hominid species that is dated to about . Whether it can be regarded as part of the Hominina tree is unclear; there are arguments both supporting and rejecting it...
(Toumaï) in Chad
Chad
Chad , officially known as the Republic of Chad, is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic to the south, Cameroon and Nigeria to the southwest, and Niger to the west...
(2 500 km to west rift walley
The asteroid
Asteroid
Asteroids are a class of small Solar System bodies in orbit around the Sun. They have also been called planetoids, especially the larger ones...
172850 Coppens
172850 Coppens
172850 Coppens is a main belt asteroid. It was discovered by Jean-Claude Merlin on March 3, 2005 at Tenagra II Observatory. 172850 Coppens is named after Yves Coppens, an internationally known paleoanthropologist....
is named in his honour.
External links
See also
- A Species OdysseyA Species OdysseyA Species Odyssey is a 90-minute french documentary film directed by Jacques Malaterre first broadcasted on January 7th 2003 on France 3.- Facts :* Title: L'Odyssée de l'espèce* Directed by: Jacques Malaterre...