The aim of the book is to present original and though-provoking essays in human paleontology and prehistory, which are at the forefront of human evolutionary research, in honor of Professor Yoel Rak (a leading scholar in paleoanthropology).¿ ¿The volume presents a collection of original papers contributed by many of Yoel's friends and colleagues from all over the globe.

Maximizes understanding of fundamental processes in human evolution

1 Why Was Human Evolution So Rapid.- 2 Wallace's Controversy with Darwin on Man's Mental Evolution, on the Position of the Natives in Human Evolution and his Anticipation of Cultural Evolution, as Distinct from Biological Evolution.- 3 Man's Place in Past and Future Evolution: A Historical Survey of Remarkable Ideas.- 4 The Paleoecology of the Upper Ndolanya Beds, Laetoli, Tanzania, and Its Implications for Hominin Evolution.- 5 The Australopithecine Brain: Controversies Perpetual.- 6 Posture, Locomotion and Bipedality: The Case of the Gerenuk (Litocranius walleri). 7 Canine Height and Jaw Gape in Catarrhines with Reference to Canine Reduction in Early Hominins.-8 Paranthropus: Where Do Things Stand? 9 Feeding Behavior and Diet in Paranthropus Boisei: The Limits of Functional Inferences from the Mandible.- 10 Aspects of Mandibular Ontogeny in Australopithecus afarensis.- 11 Middle Pleistocene Homo crania from Broken Hill andPetralona: Morphology, Metric Comparisons, and Evolutionary Relationship.-12 Thermoregulation in Homo erectus and Neanderthals: A Reassessment Using a Segmented Model.-13 Behavioral Differences between Near Eastern Neanderthals and the Early Modern Humans from Skhul and Qafzeh: An Assessment Based on Comparative Samples of Holocene Humans.- 14 The Acheulo-Yabrudian - Early Middle Paleolithic Sequence of Misliya Cave, Mount Carmel, Israel.- 15 A 3-D Look at the Tabun C2 Jaw.-16 The Dentition of the Earliest Modern Humans: How 'Modern' Are They?.- 17 Talking Hyoids and Talking Neanderthals.- 18 3D Reconstruction of the Spinal Posture of the Kebara 2 Neanderthal.- 19 Brother or Other? The Place of Neanderthals in Human Evolution.