Neanderthals were a species of early humans adapted to the Ice Age, with distinct physical characteristics and advanced technology. They lived in small tribal groups and had a complex language. With DNA easily extractable from fossils, there is potential for their genome to be sequenced and for Neanderthals to be revived, presenting ethical issues.
Neanderthals are an extinct species of the genus Homo, which includes humans and many of our ancestors and their evolutionary spin-offs. Neanderthals only existed between about 130,000 and 24,000 years ago and can be thought of as early humans adapted to the harsh climates of the Ice Age. They were relatively short (average height 5′ 5″ for males, a few inches for females) but well built. Indeed, mutual exposure between Neanderthals and early modern humans may have contributed to the popular mythological notion of a dwarf. Neanderthals had low, flat, elongated skulls, protruding halves of their faces, a braincase 10% larger than humans, and a couple of dozen other physical characteristics that make them distinct from modern humans, as well as rejecting the notion that Neanderthals were just a subspecies of Homo sapiens.
Neanderthals never existed in large numbers; scientists believe there have never been more than 10,000 individuals at any given time. About 400 Neanderthal fossils have been found, some with preserved portions of soft tissue, allowing access to the genetic material. Like other members of the genus Homo, Neanderthals lived in tribal groups ranging from about 20 to 200 members.
As the most recent Homo species to go extinct, Neanderthals were advanced in their technology and culture over earlier species such as Homo habilis or Homo erectus. Their stone industry is referred to as Mousterian and featured sharp double-edged weapons, including axes, scrapers, spears, and more. There is also some evidence that Neanderthals made spears to use as projectiles, a practice normally associated only with our own species, Homo sapiens. Neanderthals engaged in other complex activities normally associated with modern humans: ritual burials, sophisticated shelters, using fire, and skinning animals. Like some human groups, there is also evidence that they practiced mortuary cannibalism, perhaps a side effect of food shortages in the European and Asian tundra.
There is strong anatomical and genetic evidence that Neanderthals had a more complex language or form of speech than just grunting. They possessed a hyoid bone, which connects the tongue to the larynx, allowing for a much greater range of tongue and larynx movements than in other primates. Studies of Neanderthal ears from fossils suggest sensitivity to a range of sounds, and DNA extracted from the bones show the presence of the same version of the FOXP2 gene as modern humans, a gene known to play an important role in human speech.
Since Neanderthals haven’t been extinct for a long time, their DNA is easily extracted from the right bones, and the Neanderthal genome is thought to be sequenced in the near future. This opens up the possibility of reviving Neanderthals, by synthesizing their complete genome and injecting it into a fertilized egg and growing the resulting fetus into a human womb. The Neanderthal revival would be one of the greatest scientific achievements in all of history, but it presents a challenging set of ethical issues.
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