Although almost all human populations nowadays rely on domesticated plants and animals to survive, plant domestication represent only 5% of the time our species exists in the planet.

Teeth, unlike bones, do not heal if damaged. That’s because teeth actually evolved from fish scales, which were appropriated as teeth at the time of the origin of jawed fishes, 420 million years ago.

We shared the planet with our close relatives, the Neandertals. Neandertals went extinct around 35 thousand years ago, but several events of admixture occurred before then. Modern populations from Europe and Asia have up to 5% of their genes inherited from Neandertals.

By 2050, US life expectancy will be above 80 years. During the 13th century, life expectancy in Europe was only about 30 years. Even 50 years ago, there was still great disparity across the globe, with African countries having life expectancy below 40 years, while Europe and North America’s were above 60 years.

The human brain at rest consumes about 260 calories per day. This represents 20% of our average resting metabolic rate, making our big brains the most expensive organ in our body.

Lucy, the most famous Australopithecus afarensis, represents one of the many species that make up our evolutionary tree. She lived in Africa about 3.5 million years ago, and her brain size was roughly the same as a modern chimpanzee’s.

Across all of the Americas, almost 800 languages are spoken nowadays, showing the importance of communication for our species and the different cultures that live on the continent. Most of these languages are in danger of disappearing in the next generation.