If the results are accurate, then human colonizations of the Philippines and surrounding regions were even more complex than we thought up to now.

Chris Stringer

There are enough fossils showing distinctive features to rule out the possibility these are unusual or aberrant modern humans

unusual fossils modern

This in turn may reinforce the idea that the successful spread of modern humans from Africa after about 60,000 years ago played at least a role, if not the most significant role, in the physical extinction of other forms of humans outside of Africa, however, at least some of those other forms of human did not go completely extinct, since their DNA lives on in us today through ancient interbreeding between the archaic and early modern populations. This leaves open the fascinating possibility that even floresiensis might have contributed some of its DNA to living groups in the region, if there was at least a short overlap between floresiensis and sapiens about 50,000 years ago.

The Harbin skull is the most important fossil I've seen in 50 years. It shows how important East Asia and China is in telling the human story.

We've only just begun what will be years of studying this fascinating fossil.

I think the Science paper is a remarkable technical achievement and opens up many possibilities for future work in Eurasia on caves with no Neanderthal( or Denisovan) fossils.

Many temperate areas that currently have little or no archaic fossil human record may now be able to contribute to building a population history of Neanderthals, Denisovans and - who knows ? - yet other human lineages.