--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: To investigate the history of man's…" description: "\"To investigate the history of man's development, the most important finds are, of course, hominid fossils.\" — Richard Leakey" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png" --- # To investigate the history of man's development, the most… ![“To investigate the history of man's development, the most important finds are, of course, hominid fossils.” quote by Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png) > “To investigate the history of man's development, the most important finds are, of course, hominid fossils.” [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote emphasizes that fossil discoveries are the most crucial evidence for understanding human evolution. **In simple terms:** Fossils are key to learning about human origins. Key Takeaway Prioritize fossil evidence. Themes science history anthropology evolution Mood informative inquisitive Type educational scientific When to use this quote - research - education - museum exhibits - academic curricula - public outreach Key Concepts paleontology archaeology human development Questions to Reflect On - What other evidence complements fossils in studying evolution? - How can we make fossil findings accessible to the public? A Different Perspective Fossils alone cannot tell the whole story without interdisciplinary data. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [History](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/history/) [Hominids](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hominids/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) ## Related quotes > [A child-like man is not a man whose development has been arrested; on the contrary, he is a man who has given himself a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aldous-huxley/a-child-like-man-is-not-a-man-whose-development-has-been-arrested-on/) [Aldous Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aldous-huxley/) > [“Man’s development requires his capacity to transcend the narrow prison of his ego, his greed, his selfishness, his separation from his fellow man, and,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/erich-fromm/man-s-development-requires-his-capacity-to-transcend-the-narrow/) [Erich Fromm](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/erich-fromm/) > [There were plenty of other hominids, but they disappeared, probably because humans exterminated them, but nobody knows for sure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/there-were-plenty-of-other-hominids-but-they-disappeared-probably/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [To me it begins and ends with these psychedelic substances. The synergy of the psilocybin in the hominid diet brought us out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/terence-mckenna/to-me-it-begins-and-ends-with-these-psychedelic-substances-the/) [Terence McKenna](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/terence-mckenna/) > [part of the humor of living on this backward planet is listening to the hominids rationalize their predations.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-anton-wilson/part-of-the-humor-of-living-on-this-backward-planet-is-listening-to/) [Robert Anton Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-anton-wilson/) > [Like other organisms, humans have a certain genetic endowment (apparently varying little in the species, not a surprise considering its recent separation from other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/like-other-organisms-humans-have-a-certain-genetic-endowment/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [The entire hominid collection known today would barely cover a billiard table, ... the collection is so tantalizingly incomplete, and the specimens themselves often…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-reader/the-entire-hominid-collection-known-today-would-barely-cover-a/) John Reader > [I think we're going to move from a Homo sapiens into a Homo evolutis: ... a hominid that takes direct and deliberate control over…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/juan-enriquez/i-think-we-re-going-to-move-from-a-homo-sapiens-into-a-homo-evolutis/) [Juan Enriquez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/juan-enriquez/) > [“Hominids are all the Neanderthals, australopithecines, Homo habili, Homo erecti, etc., the upright-walking apes of which we are the only surviving species.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-quirk/hominids-are-all-the-neanderthals-australopithecines-homo-habili-homo/) [Joe Quirk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-quirk/) > [Hominids typically haven't so much adapted to change, as they have accommodated to it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ian-tattersall/hominids-typically-haven-t-so-much-adapted-to-change-as-they-have/) [Ian Tattersall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ian-tattersall/) > [We spent an enormous amount of time as hominids and as primates living as hunter-gatherers. That is the natural way for us to live,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spencer-wells/we-spent-an-enormous-amount-of-time-as-hominids-and-as-primates/) [Spencer Wells](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spencer-wells/) > [Because I am interested in the growth and development of early hominids, I play with my kids, you know, looking at their teeth or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zeresenay-alemseged/because-i-am-interested-in-the-growth-and-development-of-early/) [Zeresenay Alemseged](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zeresenay-alemseged/) > [The fact that all our ape cousins - chimpanzees, gorillas and orangutans - can acquire signs - is powerful evidence that our hominid ancestors'…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roger-fouts/the-fact-that-all-our-ape-cousins-chimpanzees-gorillas-and-orangutans/) [Roger Fouts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roger-fouts/) > [Are we the first hominids? I really, really, really doubt it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ridley-scott/are-we-the-first-hominids-i-really-really-really-doubt-it/) [Ridley Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ridley-scott/) > [In a sense, I never got over Robert Lowell's History. A flawed, infinitely brilliant project I never tire of going back to. It's a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andre-naffis-sahely/in-a-sense-i-never-got-over-robert-lowell-s-history-a-flawed/) [Andre Naffis-Sahely](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andre-naffis-sahely/) ## More by Richard Leakey > [I would hazard a guess that we have found fossilized human remains of at least a thousand different specimens in South and East Africa,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/i-would-hazard-a-guess-that-we-have-found-fossilized-human-remains-of/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [It has taken biologists some 230 years to identify and describe three quarters of a million insects; if there are indeed at least thirty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/it-has-taken-biologists-some-230-years-to-identify-and-describe-three/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [Sadly, I am not able to take part in the fieldwork myself so much anymore, as both of my legs were amputated following an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/sadly-i-am-not-able-to-take-part-in-the-fieldwork-myself-so-much/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [Elephants can live to an age of up to 70 or 80 years and they have a good memory. It could be they come…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/elephants-can-live-to-an-age-of-up-to-70-or-80-years-and-they-have-a/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [Along the borders to Ethiopia and Somalia, anarchy reigns, the police and military have retreated quite some distance.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/along-the-borders-to-ethiopia-and-somalia-anarchy-reigns-the-police/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [To me it's a question of being able to look backward and give the present a root... To give meaning to where we are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/to-me-it-s-a-question-of-being-able-to-look-backward-and-give-the/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [I, too, am convinced that our ancestors came from Africa.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/i-too-am-convinced-that-our-ancestors-came-from-africa/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [I have been raised to believe in freedom of thought and speech. If a minority wishes to accept that position it's their right. What…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/i-have-been-raised-to-believe-in-freedom-of-thought-and-speech-if-a/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [One should not forget that there are very few surviving items from this period, often just single, small bones, a tooth, a sliver of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/one-should-not-forget-that-there-are-very-few-surviving-items-from/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [For fossils to thrive, certain favorable circumstances are required. First of all, of course, remnants of life have to be there. These then need…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/for-fossils-to-thrive-certain-favorable-circumstances-are-required/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [The language of art is powerful to those who understand it, and puzzling to those who do not. What we do know is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/the-language-of-art-is-powerful-to-those-who-understand-it-and/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [We are bipedal apes, and it should not be surprising to see that fact reflected in the way our ancestors lived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/we-are-bipedal-apes-and-it-should-not-be-surprising-to-see-that-fact/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [The land is not in the least bit fertile and yet the cattle herds grow larger and larger. A cow represents capital investment here.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/the-land-is-not-in-the-least-bit-fertile-and-yet-the-cattle-herds/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [The world's five thousand extant languages are products of our shared ability, but the five thousand cultures they create are separate from each other.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/the-world-s-five-thousand-extant-languages-are-products-of-our-shared/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) > [We hope to find more pieces of the puzzle which will shed light on the connection between this upright, walking ape, our early ancestor,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/we-hope-to-find-more-pieces-of-the-puzzle-which-will-shed-light-on/) [Richard Leakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) [Explore all 47 Richard Leakey quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/) ## More Development quotes > [Philosopher is a dictator who modifies accepted standards with his thoughts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ilkin-santak/philosopher-is-a-dictator-who-modifies-accepted-standards-with-his/) [Ilkin Santak](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ilkin-santak/) > [The image of blacks usually is one of people who are suffering from hunger, unemployment, and poverty. The idea of them as agents and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/grace-lee-boggs/the-image-of-blacks-usually-is-one-of-people-who-are-suffering-from/) [Grace Lee Boggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/grace-lee-boggs/) > [A lot of times I'll show someone a technique I got really good with, but I didn't put all the hours in. I didn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eddie-bravo/a-lot-of-times-i-ll-show-someone-a-technique-i-got-really-good-with/) [Eddie Bravo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eddie-bravo/) > [Thoroughly understand what it is to understand, and not only will you understand the broad lines of all there is to be understood but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bernard-lonergan/thoroughly-understand-what-it-is-to-understand-and-not-only-will-you/) [Bernard Lonergan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bernard-lonergan/) > [All our efforts to defeat poverty and pursue sustainable development will be in vain if environmental degradation and natural resource depletion continue unabated.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kofi-annan/all-our-efforts-to-defeat-poverty-and-pursue-sustainable-development/) [Kofi Annan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kofi-annan/) > [Many humanists have argued that happiness involves a combination of hedonism and creative moral development; that an exuberant life fuses excellence and enjoyment, meaning…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-kurtz/many-humanists-have-argued-that-happiness-involves-a-combination-of/) [Paul Kurtz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-kurtz/) > [When they started to drain a swamp where birds and fish had lived, for a new housing development down the road from his apartment,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maile-meloy/when-they-started-to-drain-a-swamp-where-birds-and-fish-had-lived-for/) [Maile Meloy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maile-meloy/) > [Close contact between science and the practice of collective farms and State farms creates inexhaustible opportunities for the development of theoretical knowledge, enabling us…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/trofim-lysenko/close-contact-between-science-and-the-practice-of-collective-farms/) [Trofim Lysenko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/trofim-lysenko/) > [The chances are that you have already come to believe that happiness is unattainable. But men have attained it. And they have attained it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-bennett/the-chances-are-that-you-have-already-come-to-believe-that-happiness/) [Arnold Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-bennett/) > [Firstly, economic globalisation has brought prosperity and development to many countries, but also financial crises to Asia, Latin America and Russia, and increasing poverty…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anna-lindh/firstly-economic-globalisation-has-brought-prosperity-and-development/) [Anna Lindh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anna-lindh/) > [They are the gateway for our modern esthetic development, the prophets of the new time. They are most of all, the primitives of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsden-hartley/they-are-the-gateway-for-our-modern-esthetic-development-the-prophets/) [Marsden Hartley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsden-hartley/) > [Here we were talking about economic development, about investing billions of dollars in various programs, and I could see it wasn't billions of dollars…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/muhammad-yunus/here-we-were-talking-about-economic-development-about-investing/) [Muhammad Yunus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/muhammad-yunus/) > [Probably the greatest single obstacle to the progress and happiness of the American people lies in the willingness of so many men to invest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-d-rockefeller/probably-the-greatest-single-obstacle-to-the-progress-and-happiness/) [John D. Rockefeller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-d-rockefeller/) > [Without a vision there is no possibility of creating something larger than what al-ready exists. An entrepreneur has to be able to bring something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-robbins/without-a-vision-there-is-no-possibility-of-creating-something-larger/) [Tony Robbins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-robbins/) > [I've developed a huge regard for Toyota for its environmental awareness, for its immense commitment to research and development in this field, and for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maurice-strong/i-ve-developed-a-huge-regard-for-toyota-for-its-environmental/) [Maurice Strong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maurice-strong/) Browse all 4,447 Development quotes ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "To investigate the history of man's development, the most important finds are, of course, hominid fossils.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Richard Leakey" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-development-the-most-important/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Development" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-development-the-most-important/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/b45/richard-leakey-14374_development_to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-deve_1120890.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“To investigate the history of man's development, the most important finds are, of course, hominid fossils.” — Richard Leakey", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Richard Leakey", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-leakey/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "To investigate the history of man's...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-development-the-most-important/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-leakey/to-investigate-the-history-of-man-s-development-the-most-important/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```