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David Lordkipanidze always loved detective stories.
That's what drew him to anthropology, in particular
to paleoanthropology, the study of fossilized,
erect, biped mammals, or hominids. Exactly how
and when these human ancestors left Africa and
dispersed has been debated for decades. Lordkipanidze,
deputy director of the Georgian State Museum in
Tbilisi, in the Republic of Georgia, has played
a major role in unraveling the ongoing mystery.
It was long believed that these migrating hominids
had rather large brains and used fairly sophisticated
tools. Then, between 1999 and 2001, Lordkipanidze
and his team unearthed skulls and tools in Dmanisi,
Georgia. They were presumed to be the earliest
Homo erectus outside of Africa. The 1.7-million-year-old
fossils have smaller brains and long, ape-like
arms and probably used the primitive tools found
at the site.
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It wasn't until Lordkipanidze spent four months
as a Fulbright Scholar at Harvard University,
however, that he was able to shed new light on
human dispersal from Africa. There, he compared
his team's results with the Harvard's rich collection
of fossil casts and consulted with other experts
in paleoanthropology. Lordkipanidze also lectured,
visited, and participated in seminars at Harvard,
the University of Michigan, the University of
Illinois, and the Natural History Museum of New
York, all of which helped confirm his findings.
He continued to develop valuable connections with
organizations such as the National Geographic
Society; its magazine produced a cover story on
the Dmanisi find and the Leakey Foundation, a
sponsor of his team's project since 1999.
However, for Lordkipanidze the benefits of his
intensive months in the United States go far beyond
professional contacts. "The biggest impact
of my stay was seeing the organization and efficiency
of American institutions and the broad public
support here for science. Georgia is a country
in transition from the Soviet model, where everything
was decided for us, to a model that requires more
initiative.
"Before coming, I knew many of the experts
and their institutions, but during this stay I
got to see the labs and meet not just scientists
but trustees. My dream is to build something closer
to the American system of scientific management,
including nonprofit organizations that can help
support it. This was a very important period of
my life in which I felt pushed to accomplish more."
Shortly after returning home, Lordkipanidze realized
a dream; the highly regarded magazine Science
ran a feature on these discoveries that may provide
the missing link in human evolution between Africa,
Asia and Europe. He was also promoted to deputy
director of the Georgia State Museum. As for the
long term, his collaborations continue. The National
Geographic Society is sending another editor to
Georgia, and the fellows and trustees of the Leakey
Foundation will make a site visit and field trips
to Dmanisi in 2003.
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