"Lucy's Baby," an Important Australopithecus Afarensis Fossil from Northern Ethiopia,includes

question 46

Multiple Choice

"Lucy's baby," an important Australopithecus afarensis fossil from northern Ethiopia,includes a complete skull,mandible,and face.What is an important outcome of this find?

• A) It indicates that Au. afarensis had a prolonged childhood period of slow brain growth.
• B) It has a human-like skull and upper body, unlike Lucy.
• C) It is the first fossil hominid child found alongside its mother.
• D) It was found to have a large cranial capacity but was not bipedal, drawing into question how these traits develop in childhood.
• E) It sheds light on growth processes in human ancestors, including brain and dental development.

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Definitions:

Continental Rifting

The process by which a continent stretches and splits along a rift zone, potentially leading to the formation of a new ocean basin.

Passive Margin

A continental margin that is not associated with plate boundaries and hence experiences little seismic activity.

Subduction

The process by which one tectonic plate moves under another plate and dives into the mantle, often causing volcanic activity.

Accretionary Prism

A geological structure formed by the accumulation of sediment and oceanic crust scraped off a subducting oceanic plate at a convergent plate boundary.