>1. Objectives Dinosaur fossils were first discovered from Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in 1960s, mainly including fossil bones and teeth from the Cretaceous. Only one dorsal vertebra and one ischium were reported from the Late Jurassic at Jiangshan Island of Fangchenggang City in 2007. During the construction of high-speed railway project in June 2021, many dinosaur fossils were uncovered from the Upper Jurassic Dongxing Formation in Dongxing City of Guangxi, with dominated fossil bones, several tracks and a tooth. This is the first discovered dinosaur locality in Dongxing, and the first discovery of dinosaur tracks in Guangxi.

Denisovans are a hominin group primarily known through genomes or proteins, but their precise morphological features remain elusive because of the fragmentary nature of the discovered fossils. Here, we report 95 endogenous proteins retrieved from a nearly complete cranium from Harbin, China, dating to at least 146,000 years ago and previously assigned to a new species, Homo longi. This individual has three Denisovan-derived amino acid variants and clusters with Denisova 3, suggesting that the Harbin individual belongs to a Denisovan population. This study fills the gap between morphological and molecular evidence, enhancing our understanding of Denisovans' spatiotemporal dispersal and evolutionary history.

A new mamenchisaurid sauropod dinosaur, Jingia dongxingensis gen. et sp. nov. from the Upper Jurassic of Southernmost China is reported here. The holotype consists of partly preserved dorsal, sacral, and caudal vertebrae, left and right ulna, and right femur. Anatomical comparison and phylogenetic analysis indicate that the new taxon belongs to Mamenchisauridae and bears a unique combination of characteristics, such as the ratio of the length of the neural spine to the narrowest width of the neural arch of the dorsal vertebra is about 4.4; sacral centrum is opisthocoelous with shallow depression exists on the lateral surface; centrum of anterior caudal vertebrae are amphicoelous, and the articular surfaces are transversely compressed; the anterolateral and anteromedial processes of the ulna are generally perpendicular in proximal view. Phylogenetically, Jingia dongxingensis gen. et sp. nov. is located at the later diverged position in Mamenchisauridae. This discovery increases the diversity of Mamenchisauridae and provides additional information to help understand the evolutionary radiation of eusauropods in China. It also indicates that this lineage is more competitive than penecontemporaneous neosauropods to dominate the Late Jurassic of East Asia.

Geoheritage represents typical geological phenomena formed through internal and external geological processes during the Earth's long evolution. It serves as a carrier of crucial information regarding the Earth's evolution, the origin of life, and changes in the geographic environment. Additionally, it is a valuable geological resource for human utilization. In order to provide essential information for the scientific protection and utilization of geoheritage resources, this paper summarizes and further categorizes the types, grades, and distribution characteristics of geoheritage in China based on extensive firsthand data obtained from recent investigations. The results can be summaried in four aspects: (1) As of the end of 2018, a total of 7,267 important geoheritage sites (including global, national, and provincial levels) have been discovered and surveyed in China. Among them, there are 3,154 geoheritage sites of basic geology, 3,935 geoheritage sites of geomorphic landscape, and 178 geoheritage sites of geological disaster. They can be further categorized into 13 classes and 46 sub-classes, such as stratigraphic sections, rock profiles, rock and soil landforms, and earthquake relics. (2) Through expert evaluations and comparative studies, there are 218 Grade I (global level) geoheritage sites, 1,919 Grade II (national level) geoheritage sites, 4,732 Grade III (provincial level) geoheritage sites, and 398 Grade IV (below provincial level) geoheritage sites in China. (3) Geoheritage in China are mainly distributed in five regions: Southwest China, East China, Central China, Northwest, and North China. The geoheritage sites of basic geology are mainly distributed in the Southwest China, Central China, East China, Northwest China, and North China, with the Southwest China having the highest number, accounting for approximately 27%. The geoheritage sites of geomorphic landscape are mainly distributed in the Southwest China, Northwest China, East China, Central China, and North China, with the Southwest China having the highest number, accounting for approximately 29%. The geoheritage sites of geological disaster are mainly distributed in the Southwest China, Northwest China, and Central China, with the Southwest China having the highest number, accounting for approximately 47%. (c) 2023 Beijing Normal University. Publishing services by Elsevier B.V. on behalf of KeAi Communications Co. Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http:// creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

本文报道了新近发现于河北宣化地区土城子组的恐龙足迹化石及沉积环境.为确定足迹化石的地质年代、土城子组的沉积环境及足迹化石属种,本文在对恐龙足迹化石层及其上、下地层进行剖面测制、沉积相划分和沉积环境分析的基础上,对化石层上覆凝灰岩层进行了LA-ICPMS锆石U-Pb测年,并对保存较好的足迹化石进行了测量和对比研究工作.研究结果表明,土城子组底部为冲积扇扇中沉积环境,足迹化石上、下地层则表现为河流相沉积环境,而足迹化石的赋存层位形成于滨湖相沉积环境,发育暴露构造并含有大量裸子植物碎屑化石.凝灰岩锆石U-Pb加权平均年龄为152.3±0.3 Ma(MSWD=0.00106),说明化石层位于土城子组一段,时代属于晚侏罗世钦莫利期(Kimmeridgian)中晚期.已发现的足迹化石以兽脚类三趾型足迹为主,包括跷脚龙足迹属(Grallator)、安琪龙足迹属(Anchisauripus)和实雷龙足迹属(Eubrontes),其次为一些疑似蜥脚类恐龙足迹,是华北北缘土城子组中群落丰富度最高的恐龙足迹点,其中一处或许为中国北方面积最大的恐龙足迹点.因此,我们认为宣化-下花园盆地土城子组一段以河流、湖泊相沉积环境为主,当时裸子植物繁茂,恐龙动物群庞大,偶尔存在火山喷发活动.新发现的宣化恐龙足迹不仅填补了宣化-下花园地区恐龙足迹化石的空白,也丰富了燕辽地区土城子组生物群的组合面貌,为土城子组内年代地层划分及陆相J/K界线的确定提供了新的证据.

震惊世界的盐井沟化石 早在150年前,万州就因盛产"龙骨"(远古哺乳动物如大象、熊猫、犀牛、野牛等骨骼化石)闻名.1870年,英国古生物学家研究了上海中药铺中产自重庆万州的部分"龙骨",并命名了东方剑齿象、中国貘、中国爪兽等物种,这象征着中国古脊椎动物研究的开始.

简要介绍了北京周口店北京直立人发现的过程、已发现的化石材料、现存的化石材料及首批复制的头盖骨模型.描述了北京直立人的主要形态特征,讨论了直立人与现代人在形态特征上的差异,认为包括北京直立人在内的东亚地区直立人是一个灭绝的支系,没有留下后代,不是现代东亚人或中国人的直系祖先.大约在2.0 Ma前,直立人起源于非洲的匠人或能人,而后走出非洲扩散到欧洲和亚洲.非洲的直立人约在90万a前演化为先驱人,约在60万a前演化为海德堡人,约在30万a前演化为尼安德特人、丹尼索瓦人和包括现代人在内的智人.推测从非洲向欧洲扩散的海德堡人后来有可能演化为尼安德特人,而向亚洲扩散的海德堡人后来可能演化为丹尼索瓦人和智人.讨论了北京直立人的分类位置和名称有效性问题,认为亚种不可能单独存在,必须有2个或2个以上的亚种才有效.当前需进一步深化研究北京直立人,探讨周口店的直立人与爪哇岛的直立人究竟有无差别.如果二者没有差别,那么周口店发现的直立人北京亚种(Homo erectus pekinensis)就不是有效名称,应直接归于直立人(Homo erectus),称为"发现于北京的直立人"(Homo erectus unearthed from Beijing).如果二者差异明显,有2种处理方法:一是直接提升为种,称为"北京人"(Homo pekinensis);二是保持现状,仍然称为"直立人北京亚种"(Homo erectus pe-kinensis),但印尼爪哇岛发现的直立入学名需作变动,应称为"直立人直立人亚种"(Homo erectus erectus).

As one of the most complete archaic human fossils, the Harbin cranium provides critical evidence for studying the diversification of the Homo genus and the origin of Homo sapiens. However, the unsystematic recovery of this cranium and a long and confused history since the discovery impede its accurate dating. Here, we carried out a series of geochemical analyses, including non-destructive X-ray fluorescence (XRF), rare earth elements (REE), and the Sr isotopes, to test the reported provenance of the Harbin cranium and get better stratigraphic constraints. The results show that the Harbin cranium has very similar XRF element distribution patterns, REE concentration patterns, and Sr isotopic compositions to those of the Middle Pleistocene-Holocene mammalian and human fossils recently recovered from the Harbin area. The sediments adhered in the nasal cavity of the Harbin cranium have a Sr-87/Sr-86 ratio of 0.711898, falling in the variation range measured in a core drilled near the Dongjiang Bridge, where the cranium was discovered during its reconstruction. The regional stratigraphic correlations indicate that the Harbin cranium was probably from the upper part of the Upper Huang-shan Formation of the Harbin area, which has an optically stimulated luminescence dating constraint between 138 and 309 ka. U-series disequilibrium dating (n = 10) directly on the cranium suggests that the cranium is older than 146 ka. The multiple lines of evidence from our experiments consistently support the theory that the Harbin cranium is from the late Middle Pleistocene of the Harbin area. Our study also shows that geochemical approaches can provide reliable evidence for locating and dating unsystematically recovered human fossils, and potentially can be applied to other human fossils without clear provenance and stratigraphy records.

In eastern Asia, several Middle-Late Pleistocene human fossils, such as the Dali, Jinniushan, Hualongdong, and Harbin crania, evidently resemble each other and are phylogenetically closer to H. sapiens than to H. neanderthalensis or other archaic humans.1Ni X. Ji Q. Wu W. et al.Massive cranium from Harbin establishes a new Middle Pleistocene human lineage in China.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100130)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100130Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar The Harbin cranium is the best preserved of this group. It shows a mosaic combination of plesiomorphic and apomorphic features. Here, we suggest that the Harbin skull should be recognized as a new species of Homo. Order Primates Linnaeus, 1758Suborder Anthropoidea Mivart, 1864Superfamily Hominoidea Gray, 1825Family Hominidae Gray, 1825Tribe Hominini Gray, 1825Genus Homo Linnaeus, 1758Homo longi sp. nov. Ji & Ni(Figure 1) The species name is derived from the geographic name Long Jiang, which is a common usage for the Heilongjiang Province and literally means "dragon river." An undistorted and almost complete cranium (HBSM2018-000018(A)). The specimen was donated to Hebei GEO University (HGU) in 2018. The repository is the Geoscience Museum of HGU, Shijiazhuang, China. The holotype of Homo longi sp. nov. has been deposited in the ZooBank database (http://zoobank.org/) with Life Science Identifier urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:B2179E99-5CDF-44DA-A1F1-A2BBAFB47185. Middle Pleistocene, upper part of the Upper Huangshan Formation (∼138–309 ka), near the Dongjiang Bridge in Harbin City, Heilongjiang Province, China. A reliable minimum U-series age is 148±2 ka.2Shao Q. Ge J. Ji Q. et al.Geochemical locating and direct dating of the Harbin archaic human cranium.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100131)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100131Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar Differing from all the other named Homo species by presenting a combination of the following features: an extinct hominin massive in size with a very large maximum cranial length, nasio-occipital length and supraorbital torus breadth; cranial vault long and low, with receding frontal, evenly curved parietal contour, and rounded occipital contour; no sagittal keeling; upper face extremely wide, with large and almost square orbits; facial height low relative to the upper facial breadth; supraorbital torus wide, massively developed, and gently curved. Interorbital area wide, with a flat and recessed nasal saddle; cheekbone flat and low, with a shallow canine fossa; no maxillary inflation; nasal aperture wide inferiorly and almost triangular; cranial lateral walls nearly parallel, without lateral expansion at the parietal prominence; occipital torus weak, without suprainiac fossa; palate in U-shape, with shallow and thick alveolar bone; incisor sockets angled, suggesting the presence of alveolar prognathism; mastoid process large, inclining forward and inward; tympanic plate anteroinferior surface flat and moderately thick; styloid process fused to the tympanic. The Harbin cranium is massive in size, larger than all other known-archaic humans.1Ni X. Ji Q. Wu W. et al.Massive cranium from Harbin establishes a new Middle Pleistocene human lineage in China.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100130)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100130Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar The endocranial capacity is estimated as ∼1,420 ml, falling in the range of H. sapiens and Neanderthals, and larger than other Homo species such as H. erectus, H. naledi, H. floresiensis, and even some H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis. The Harbin cranium is relatively long and low and lacks the globularity of the modern human braincase. The frontal is receding, and the parietal is evenly curved. The supraorbital torus is massive and continuous, and the postorbital constriction is much deeper than in H. sapiens. The large endocranial volume of Harbin cranium is reflected in more parallel side walls of the temporals and parietals, but the cranium lacks the H. sapiens-like parietal bosses. The thickness of the supraorbital torus is proportionally much greater than that of later H. sapiens. The Harbin cranium does also share some similarities with H. sapiens. Its facial height is very low, the zygomaxillary region is flat with a shallow canine fossa, and the overall prognathism is reduced, showing a similar condition to recent humans. The basion angle-nasion angle plot indicates that the Harbin cranium is much closer to H. sapiens than to H. erectus and H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis, and the face is hafted onto the braincase with reduced prognathism. In its combination of traits Harbin is more like fossils attributed to early H. sapiens, such as Jebel Irhoud 1 and Eliye Springs, than to later members of our lineage. There are very small angular tori inferiorly on the parietals, proportionally much smaller than those in H. erectus. The occipital has a relatively rounded lateral profile, presenting a less flexed form than that typical of H. erectus. The occipital torus is almost absent, much weaker than in H. erectus. The face is relatively low, and lacks the anterior projection typical of H. erectus. Postorbital constriction is also proportionally shallower than in most members of H. erectus. The tympanic bone of the Harbin cranium is flat and thin, and lacks the robusticity typical of H. erectus. The Harbin cranial vault lacks the parasagittal flattening and keeling found in some H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis. The occipital bone lacks the angulation and strong transverse torus. The face is relatively low, and lacks the anterior projection as in the Broken Hill, Petralona, Bodo, and Arago fossils. Postorbital constriction is also proportionally shallower than in most members of H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis. The cheekbones do not show the Neanderthal-like inflation found in large specimens of H. heidelbergensis/H. rhodesiensis. Compared with Neanderthals, the Harbin cranium also has a massive and curved supraorbital torus, with strong lateral thickness. Postorbital constriction of the Harbin cranium is proportionally deeper than those of Neanderthals. The occipital surface lacks both a "chignon" and a centrally developed suprainiac fossa typical of Neanderthals. The zygomaxillary angle is somewhat larger than in Neanderthals and approaches that of H. sapiens, indicating a less medial projection of the midface. The zygomaxillary area is flattened and without maxillary inflation. The single molar tooth is huge by Neanderthal standards. H. antecessor is much smaller than the Harbin cranium, with weaker supraorbital development, much smaller endocranial volume, narrower upper face width, and much smaller M.2Shao Q. Ge J. Ji Q. et al.Geochemical locating and direct dating of the Harbin archaic human cranium.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100131)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100131Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar Differing from the Dali cranium, Harbin lacks sagittal keeling and presents proportionally larger and almost square orbits, overall thinner and smoother supraorbital tori with a weaker superciliary arch, and weaker lateral thinning. The Jinniushan cranium has a similar cranial capacity (∼1,390 ml) to the Harbin, but is more gracile. Harbin has a proportionally broader anterior maxillary region, larger and squarer orbits, thicker supraorbital tori, and a larger molar than the Jinniushan. The recently described Hualongdong skull belonged to an adolescent individual. It resembles the Dali cranium and differs from the Harbin in presenting strong frontal sagittal keeling and thick supraorbital tori with a strong superciliary arch. Compared with the Harbin and Dali, the Hualongdong skull has a proportionally narrower and longer face, narrower nasal aperture, and shallower canine fossae. Some of these differences may be due to the younger age of the Hualongdong individual. The Xuchang cranium has a much larger cranial capacity, but a wider, lower braincase with reduced bone thickness. Its supraorbital tori are much thinner, and its mastoid processes are much smaller. The supraorbital torus of the Maba partial cranium is thinner and more curved, the nasal bone more projecting, and the frontal and parietal are thinner than in the Harbin cranium. The orbital shape and projecting upper nasal region of the Maba cranium look particularly similar to those of Neanderthals. Overall, the Harbin cranium shows a distinctive combination of apomorphic and plesiomorphic features. These features present a clear diagnosis, supporting the Harbin cranium as a new species of Homo, which is distinctive from other designated Middle-Late Pleistocene human taxa, such as H. sapiens, H. erectus, H. neanderthalensis, and H. heidelbergensis/rhodesiensis. The Dali cranium was initially proposed as a subspecies of H. sapiens (H. s. daliensis) by Xinzhi Wu, but Wu abandoned the subspecies name and called the cranium "archaic H. sapiens" in his later publications.3Wu X. Middle Pleistocene human skull from Dali, China.Palaeontol. Sin. N. Ser. D. 2020; 13: 1-205Google Scholar It was also suggested to be a subspecies of H. heidelbergensis (H. h. daliensis),4Manzi G. Humans of the Middle Pleistocene: the controversial calvarium from Ceprano (Italy) and its significance for the origin and variability of Homo heidelbergensis.Quat. Int. 2016; 411: 254-261https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2015.12.047Crossref Scopus (47) Google Scholar or should be raised to the species level (H. daliensis).5Etler D.A. Homo erectus in East Asia: human ancestor or evolutionary dead-end?.Athena Review. 2006; 4: 37-50Google Scholar The Hualongdong cranium shows a lot of interesting similarities with the Dali cranium. Based on our morphological comparisons and the phylogenetic analyses,1Ni X. Ji Q. Wu W. et al.Massive cranium from Harbin establishes a new Middle Pleistocene human lineage in China.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100130)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100130Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar we suggest that both the Dali and Hualongdong crania should be referred to H. daliensis. The Harbin cranium, on the other hand, shows clear diagnostic features differing from the Dali and Hualongdong crania. Here, we raise a new species name for the Harbin cranium to reflect these significant differences. Given the sister-group relationship between the Harbin cranium and the Xiahe mandible,1Ni X. Ji Q. Wu W. et al.Massive cranium from Harbin establishes a new Middle Pleistocene human lineage in China.The Innovation. 2021; 2 (this issue, 100130)https://doi.org/10.1016/j.xinn.2021.100130Abstract Full Text Full Text PDF Google Scholar it is possible that both specimens belong to H. longi sp. nov. Further human fossils from the Middle Pleistocene of China and neighboring areas will test this idea. The authors declare no competing interests.

It has recently become clear that several human lineages coexisted with Homo sapiens during the late Middle and Late Pleistocene. Here, we report an archaic human fossil that throws new light on debates concerning the diversification of the Homo genus and the origin of H. sapiens. The fossil was recovered in Harbin city in northeastern China, with a minimum uranium-series age of 146 ka. This cranium is one of the best preserved Middle Pleistocene human fossils. Its massive size, with a large cranial capacity (similar to 1,420 mL) falling in the range of modern humans, is combined with a mosaic of primitive and derived characters. It differs from all the other named Homo species by presenting a combination of features, such as long and low cranial vault, a wide and low face, large and almost square orbits, gently curved but massively developed supraorbital torus, flat and low cheekbones with a shallow canine fossa, and a shallow palate with thick alveolar bone supporting very large molars. The excellent preservation of the Harbin cranium advances our understanding of several less-complete late Middle Pleistocene fossils from China, which have been interpreted as local evolutionary intermediates between the earlier species Homo erectus and later H. sapiens. Phylogenetic analyses based on parsimony criteria and Bayesian tip-dating suggest that the Harbin cranium and some other Middle Pleistocene human fossils from China, such as those from Dali and Xiahe, form a third East Asian lineage, which is a part of the sister group of the H. sapiens lineage. Our analyses of such morphologically distinctive archaic human lineages from Asia, Europe, and Africa suggest that the diversification of the Homo genus may have had a much deeper timescale than previously presumed. Sympatric isolation of small populations combined with stochastic long-distance dispersals is the best fitting biogeographical model for interpreting the evolution of the Homo genus.

This paper makes an introduction to the dating ages of the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary in South China,based on the Nanbiancun section in Guangxi and the Daposhang section of Guizhou.The Nanbiancun section of Guangxi falls into the slope,gravity-flow sedimentary facies,and the conodont sequence is somewhat chaotic.Although the D-C boundary was fixed between'Bed 56'and'Bed 57',the so-called'bed'numbers are actually the conodont sampling numbers.'Bed 55'to'Bed 58'are a single shell-limestone,from which 4 conodont samples were collected.The paper believes that it is unacceptable and unscientific in theory to place the D-C boundary within the shell-limestone.It is unreasonable to separate the brachiopod individuals into 2 parts,that is to place the lower part in the Upper Devonian,and the Upper part in the Lower Carboniferous.The samples used for dating were taken from'Bed 58'and'Bed 66',which are clearly higher than the occurrence position of Siphonodella sulcata(conodonts)in the profile.It is clear that the D-C boundary age of(361.0±4.1)Ma obtained by them is neither credible nor desirable.The Daposhang section in Guizhou falls into the sedimentary facies of deep-water basin,and it is the only section in China yields both the Wocklumeria Fauna and the Gattendorfia Fau-na.Liu et al.(2012)collected a tuff sample for dating from the D-C event bed of 2-4 black shale at the basal part of the Wangyou Formation and obtained a zircon U-Pb concordant age of(359.6±1.9)Ma.This age is close to,but older than the D-C boundary age of(358.9±0.4)Ma given by International Commission on Stratigraphy(2020).Superficially,this age seems credible and acceptable,but its error is huge,and the data is not precise enough to make the final word now.It is necessary to collect again samples from the Daposhang section in order to verify the accuracy of the age.Personally,it is acceptable that the age of the D-C boundary is about(358.9±0.4)Ma,and that the age of the D-C event bed ranges from 360.0 to 361.0 Ma.

详细介绍了 8 Ma以来全球气候变化的规律,研究表明地球上主要发生过3次冷气候事件:第一次冷气候事件大约发生在距今7 Ma,一股强烈的干冷气流刮过欧洲大陆,穿越赤道地区直达非洲大陆,使得原始森林开始萎缩,面积的缩小导致古猿与人类发生演化分异;第二次冷气候事件大约发生在距今4.2 Ma,那时干冷气候持续发展,非洲大陆的原始森林进一步萎缩,并逐渐演化为稀树草原,出现了南方猿人和傍人;第三次冷气候事件大约发生在距今2.3 Ma,全球气候变化波动较大,冷-暖气候交替发育,地球上出现了真正意义上的人(人属),并逐渐演化成现代人.根据目前的研究,人类的起源和演化与古地理、古环境和古气候变化密切相关,人类演化历史大致可分为7个时期:撒海尔猿人—原初猿人时期、地居猿人时期、南方猿人—傍人时期、能人—鲁道夫人时期、匠人—直立人时期、先驱人—海德堡人时期和智人时期.

This paper deals with the speciation,phylogeny and zonation of Protognathodus (conodonts) in details and puts more attention to the Pr.collinsoni-Pr.kockeli lineage in particular.Pr.meischneri Morphotype 2 with no node give rise to Pr.collinsoni by developing a single node orally either on the outer cup or on the inner cup,and then Pr.collinsoni with a single oral should gives rise to an unknown form with 2 oral nodes,rather than directly to Pr.kockeli with one row of oral nodes on each side of the cup respectively.It is obvious that there might be a missing link between Pr.collinsoni and Pr.kockeli.In addition,the Pr.collinsoni-Pr.kockeli lineage is clearly interrupted by the D-C event,and the first occurrence of Pr.kockeli should be after the event.Thus,the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary could not be defined by the first appearance of Pr.kockeli.According to their evolutionary relationship and stratigraphic distribution,six zones can be roughly recognized: the Lower meischneri zone,the Upper meischnei zone,the collinsoni zone,the unknown zone,the kockeli zone and the kuehni zone.We prefer placing Devonian-Carboniferous boundary (DCB) at the base of the kuehni zone to placing DCB at the base of the kockeli zone,because the base of the kuehni zone is consistent with the base of the sulcata zone.

简要介绍了人类的基本概念与定义、现代人的人体结构特征以及人类的远亲和近邻,阐明了"将今论古"研究方法在化石人类学研究中的重要性,强调人类与其他动物一样,其起源和演化研究应该遵循"同源、共祖、单系"的基本原则.

As we know,a eustatic fall of sea level took place by the end of Devonian,that is,the D-C event,when most of the Late Devonian conodonts were extinct,but only a few genera of conodonts dodged the event and survived to Early Carboniferous,such as Siphonodella and Protognathodus.Nevertheless,their evolutionary lineages were affected and interrupted by the D-C event,for example,the praesulcata M.3-praesulcata M.4 lineage in genus Siphonodella and the collinsoni-kockeli lineage in genus Protognathodus were interrupted by the D-C event.The first occurrence of both Siphonodella praesulcata M.4 and Protognathodus kockeli is only the lowermost occurrence in stratigraphic sense,rather than the first appearance in evolutionary sense.The present research believes that the taxa of Siphonodella are widely distributed over the world,very rich and colorful,and they are much better than those of Protognathodus to study their speciation,phylogeny and zonation.In present paper,ten conodont zones can be recognized: the Lower praesulcata zone,the Middle praesulcata zone,the Upper praesulcata zone,the sulcata zone,the Lower duplicata zone,the Upper duplicata zone,the Lower sandbergi zone,the Upper sandbergi zone,the crenulata zone and the isosticha zone.Thus,the Siphonodella zonation proposed by Saodberg et al.(1978) and Ziegler et al.(1984a,1984b) proved to be credible,recognizable and acceptable.The definition of the Devonian-Carboniferous boundary proposed by the International Working Group in 1979 is certainly correct.It is not necessary to revise the D-C boundary definition made in 1979,again.We insist on the D-C boundary definition made in 1979 and recommend that the D-C boundary should be still defined by the first appearance of Siphonodella sulcata in the praesulcata-sulcata lineage.

回顾了中国化石人类学的研究历史,阐述了中国古人类化石发现的时间、地点、特征及分类,充分肯定了中国化石人类学研究在国际古人类学研究中所作的贡献及科学地位.介绍了中西学者对于人类起源与演化研究的认识差异和不同观点,分析了产生分歧的主要原因:① 长期以来,中国乃至亚洲一直没有发现海德堡人化石,绝大多数观点认为海德堡人从来就没有到达过亚洲,因此亚洲不存在海德堡人阶段;② 古老型智人或现代人的定义或概念不明确,有观点认为古老型智人就是"早期智人",又有观点认为古老型智人是指介于直立人与现代人之间的古人类,定义混乱.建议将中国人类演化历史划分为6个阶段,即前南方猿人阶段、南方猿人阶段、能人阶段、直立人阶段、先驱人—海德堡人阶段、智人阶段.

简要回顾了国际古人类学的研究历史与现状,阐明人类对于自身的发展有一个漫长的了解过程,认识到人类并不是“上帝”创造之物,而是像其他生物一样,一步一步逐渐发展到现今阶段.认为“人猿过渡”仅是一个哲学概念,在自然科学研究中不能将早期人类的演化阶段称为“人猿过渡阶段”,再将Australopithecus译为“南方古猿”并不合适,因此建议将其中文学名译为“南方猿人”,将Sahelanthropus的中文学名译为“撒海尔猿人”,将Orrorin的中文学名译为“原初猿人”,将Ardipithecus的中文学名译为“始祖地居猿人”.明确提出“复系”和“副系”的概念不科学,而是提倡“同源、共祖、单系”的概念.

科学界普遍认为海德堡人是现代人、尼安德特人以及神秘的“杰尼索娃人”的共同祖先.就在海德堡人发现之后25年,即1933年,中国东北哈尔滨的一位农民被日本军队强征去当劳工,在修建东江桥时发现了1件非常奇怪的人头化石,该化石显得十分粗壮,而且眉骨特别厚.这位农民虽然对海德堡人一无所知,但意识到这件人头化石可能非常珍贵,没有将其交给日本兵,而是偷偷地带回家,包裹好后扔进了自家的水井中,连夜用土将水井封埋.2017年,他的孙子在桂林遇见了季强并讲述了此事,经劝说,将这件人头化石捐献给了河北地质大学,永久性收藏于该校的地球科学博物馆.这件人头化石十分完整,许多形态特征与欧洲发现的海德堡人非常相似.目前,季强正在组建研究团队,对这件珍稀的古人类头颅化石开展研究.研究成果有望改变人们对人类发展历史的认识.

化石保护工作是一项非常重要而又复杂的工作,涉及到国土资源、海关、公安、司法等各个领域,既要维护国家的利益,又要考虑到社会大众的权益,管理中最关键性工作就是对于"重点保护古生物化石"与"一般保护古生物化石"的界定,以及化石分级标准的建立.论文简要解释了"古生物""化石"及"标本"三种术语之间概念的差异性,认为保护的对象是化石,化石产地与化石标本应采用不同的保护措施和标准.建议根据科学价值将化石标本分为三类五级,再根据数量和保存状况分别给出分值标准.化石产地也分为三类五级,再根据科学价值、丰富性、多样性、分布规模和保存现状分别给出标准.

根据数百件赵氏小盗龙(Microraptor zhaoianus)、顾氏小盗龙(Microraptorgui)、赫氏近鸟龙(Anchiornis huxleyi)和圣贤孔子鸟(Confuciusornis sanctus)标本的观察研究,在数理统计的基础上,获得几点认识:(1)顾氏小盗龙与赵氏小盗龙为同物异名,赵氏小盗龙为有效名称;(2)在研究的标本中,只有部分标本可以观察到这些物种的跖骨部分保存有羽毛印痕;(3)此种现象应该是恐龙的性双形现象,而不是所谓的“四翼恐龙”;(4)这种现象表明,这些物种与今鸟类的关系较远,它们应该是恐龙向鸟类进化中的绝灭旁支;(5)在恐龙向鸟类演化的过程中,应该存在一个“滑翔”阶段,而不是“四翼恐龙”阶段.