February 1, 2015

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The Neandertal Mystique

Our heavy-browed cousin remains the most fascinating member of the human family

By Kate Wong

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For the cover story of the February Scientific American I return to one of my favorite subjects: our mysterious cousins the Neandertals. This time I take stock of recent findings that bear on the question of how the cognitive abilities of Neandertals compare with anatomically modern humans. It’s an intriguing area of research, not least because in addition to illuminating the Neandertal mind, such investigations can help reveal what factors allowed anatomically modern humans—our kind—to succeed where other members of the human family failed.

Just as fascinating is the long history of Neandertal studies, which date back to the 19th century. Indeed the Neandertals are the best known of our extinct relatives. Yet they remain the most hotly debated. To see how this debate has played out over the years, check out the links below.

“Was the Cave Man a House-Builder?,” by J. Reid Moir; September 1, 1926.

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“Neanderthal Man Not Our Ancestor,” by G. Elliot Smith; August 1, 1928.

“Neanderthal Man,” by J. E. Weckler; December 1, 1957.

“The Multiregional Evolution of Humans [Preview],” by Alan G. Thorne and Milford H. Wolpoff; April 1, 1992.

“The Emergence of Modern Humans [Preview],” by Christopher B. Stringer; December 1, 1990.

“Who Were the Neandertals?,” by Kate Wong; April 21, 2000.

“How We Came to Be Human,” by Ian Tattersall; May 17, 2006.

“The Mysterious Downfall of the Neandertals,” by Kate Wong; July 20, 2009.

“Neandertal Genome Study Reveals That We Have a Little Caveman in Us,” by Kate Wong; May 6, 2010.

“Did Neandertals Think Like Us?,” by The Editors; May 1, 2010.

“Neandertal Brains Retained Infantile Shape [Podcast],” by Karen Hopkins; November 9, 2010.

“Caveman Couture: Neandertals Rocked Dark Feathers,” by Kate Wong; September 18, 2012.

“Sex with Other Human Species Might Have Been Secret of Homo Sapiens’s Success,” by Kate Wong; September 18, 2012.

“Ancient Engraving Strengthens Case for Sophisticated Neandertals,” by Kate Wong; September 3, 2014.

Kate Wong is an award-winning science writer and senior editor for features at Scientific American, where she has focused on evolution, ecology, anthropology, archaeology, paleontology and animal behavior. She is fascinated by human origins, which she has covered for nearly 30 years. Recently she has become obsessed with birds. Her reporting has taken her to caves in France and Croatia that Neandertals once called home to the shores of Kenya’s Lake Turkana in search of the oldest stone tools in the world, as well as to Madagascar on an expedition to unearth ancient mammals and dinosaurs, the icy waters of Antarctica, where humpback whales feast on krill, and a “Big Day” race around the state of Connecticut to find as many bird species as possible in 24 hours. Wong is co-author, with Donald Johanson, of Lucy’s Legacy: The Quest for Human Origins. She holds a bachelor of science degree in biological anthropology and zoology from the University of Michigan. Follow her on Bluesky @katewong.bsky.social

More by Kate Wong
Scientific American Magazine Vol 312 Issue 2This article was published with the title “The Neandertal Mystique” in Scientific American Magazine Vol. 312 No. 2 ()
doi:10.1038/scientificamerican022015-5b3q44aUw9tX6NCjigTwMO
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