--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived…" description: "\"“Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close to 2 million years, making it the most durable human species ever. This record is unlikely t..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg" --- # Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close… ![“Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close to 2 million years, making it the most durable human species ever. This record is unlikely to be broken even by our own species. It is doubtful whether Homo sapiens will still be around a thousand years from now, so 2 million years is…” quote by Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg) > ““Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close to 2 million years, making it the most durable human species ever. This record is unlikely to be broken even by our own species. It is doubtful whether Homo sapiens will still be around a thousand years from now, so 2 million years is really out of our league.”” [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Homo erectus survived 2 million years, far longer than Homo sapiens likely will, highlighting human fragility and the limits of our species. **In simple terms:** Our species may not last as long as earlier humans. Key Takeaway Consider long‑term impact. Themes evolution anthropology future Mood thoughtful serious Type philosophical inspirational When to use this quote - climate change - technological disruption - ethical considerations - intergenerational responsibility Key Concepts species longevity environmental risk Questions to Reflect On - What actions can extend our species' future? - How should we value short‑term vs long‑term goals? A Different Perspective Human progress may be short‑lived despite advances. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Evolution](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) [Homo sapiens](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/homo-sapiens/) [Million years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/million-years/) [Thousand years](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thousand-years/) ## Related quotes > [Are the different species defined by paleontologists - Homo erectus, Homo neanderthalensis and ourselves, Homo sapiens - all part of the same gene pool…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryan-sykes/are-the-different-species-defined-by-paleontologists-homo-erectus/) [Bryan Sykes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryan-sykes/) > [“Seventy thousand years ago, Homo sapiens was still an insignificant animal minding its own business in a corner of Africa. In the following millennia…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/seventy-thousand-years-ago-homo-sapiens-was-still-an-insignificant/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“For the entire course of evolution leading from our primitive mammalian forebears of a hundred million years ago to the single lineage that threaded…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-o-wilson/for-the-entire-course-of-evolution-leading-from-our-primitive/) [Edward O. Wilson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-o-wilson/) > [A billion homo sapiens are added every 11 years to the planet. The hypertrophy of a single species pushes other life-forms out of bed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonard-sweet/a-billion-homo-sapiens-are-added-every-11-years-to-the-planet-the/) [Leonard Sweet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonard-sweet/) > [It took nature 100 million years to make the ape stand up and become Homo sapiens. It took us only 10,000 to make knowing obsolete.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sugata-mitra/it-took-nature-100-million-years-to-make-the-ape-stand-up-and-become/) [Sugata Mitra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sugata-mitra/) > [I think we were colonized by aliens 250,000 years ago, and they genetically altered our DNA to be primates into homo erectus and humans.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-jourgensen/i-think-we-were-colonized-by-aliens-250-000-years-ago-and-they/) [Al Jourgensen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-jourgensen/) > [Asian Homo erectus died without issue and does not enter our immediate ancestry (for we evolved from African populations); Neanderthal people were collateral cousins,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-jay-gould/asian-homo-erectus-died-without-issue-and-does-not-enter-our/) [Stephen Jay Gould](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-jay-gould/) > [“Homo Cannot Erectus”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/adham-t-fusama/homo-cannot-erectus/) [Adham T. Fusama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/adham-t-fusama/) > [“Because of the varying conditions in settlement places, humans evolved. Those in Europe and western Asia became Homo neanderthalensis or Neanderthals (man from the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/read-trepreneur/because-of-the-varying-conditions-in-settlement-places-humans-evolved/) [Read trepreneur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/read-trepreneur/) > [We are probably one of the last generations of Homo sapiens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/we-are-probably-one-of-the-last-generations-of-homo-sapiens/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Humans nowadays completely dominate the planet not because the individual human is far smarter and more nimble-fingered than the individual chimp or wolf, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/humans-nowadays-completely-dominate-the-planet-not-because-the/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“An algorithm is a methodical set of steps that can be used to make calculations, resolve problems and reach decisions. An algorithm isn’t a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/an-algorithm-is-a-methodical-set-of-steps-that-can-be-used-to-make/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Writing was born as the maidservant of human consciousness, but is increasingly becoming its master. Our computers have trouble understanding how Homo sapiens talks,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/writing-was-born-as-the-maidservant-of-human-consciousness-but-is/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“technology. Homo sapiens is an obsolete algorithm. After all, what’s the advantage of”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/technology-homo-sapiens-is-an-obsolete-algorithm-after-all-what-s-the/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Archaic humans paid for their large brains in two ways. Firstly, they spent more time in search of food. Secondly, their muscles atrophied. Like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/archaic-humans-paid-for-their-large-brains-in-two-ways-firstly-they/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## More by Yuval Noah Harari > [“For similar reasons, archaic humans did not initiate any revolutions. As far as we can tell, changes in social patterns, the invention of new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/for-similar-reasons-archaic-humans-did-not-initiate-any-revolutions/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Today the main source of wealth is knowledge. And whereas you can conquer oil fields through war, you cannot acquire knowledge that way.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/today-the-main-source-of-wealth-is-knowledge-and-whereas-you-can/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“How do you cause people to believe in an imagined order such as Christianity, democracy or capitalism? First, you never admit that the order…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/how-do-you-cause-people-to-believe-in-an-imagined-order-such-as/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [I think the basic thing that happened is we have lost our story. Humans think in stories, and we try to make sense of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/i-think-the-basic-thing-that-happened-is-we-have-lost-our-story/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas chimpanzees spend five hours a day chewing raw food, a single hour suffices for people eating cooked food. The advent of cooking enabled…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-chimpanzees-spend-five-hours-a-day-chewing-raw-food-a-single/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“the Chinese air-purification market is booming.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/the-chinese-air-purification-market-is-booming/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas liberalism merged with the milder versions of nationalism to protect the unique experiences of each human community, evolutionary humanists such as Hitler identified…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-liberalism-merged-with-the-milder-versions-of-nationalism-to/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Corporations, money and nations exist only in our imagination. We invented them to serve us; why do we find ourselves sacrificing our lives in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/corporations-money-and-nations-exist-only-in-our-imagination-we/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Small children in affluent societies often dislike showering, and it takes them years of education and parental discipline to adopt this supposedly attractive custom.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/small-children-in-affluent-societies-often-dislike-showering-and-it/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Ever more scholars see cultures as a kind of mental infection or parasite, with humans as its unwitting host. Organic parasites, such as viruses,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/ever-more-scholars-see-cultures-as-a-kind-of-mental-infection-or/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Soviet Communism was a fanatical and missionary religion. A devout Communist could not be a Christian or a Buddhist, and was expected to spread…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/soviet-communism-was-a-fanatical-and-missionary-religion-a-devout/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Whereas religion asks us to believe in something, money asks us to believe that other people believe in something”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/whereas-religion-asks-us-to-believe-in-something-money-asks-us-to/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Terrorists are like a fly that tries to destroy a china shop. The fly is so weak that it cannot budge even a single…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/terrorists-are-like-a-fly-that-tries-to-destroy-a-china-shop-the-fly/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“Yet what happens if the greedy shoemaker increases his profits by paying employees less and increasing their work hours? The standard answer is that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/yet-what-happens-if-the-greedy-shoemaker-increases-his-profits-by/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) > [“A natural order is a stable order. There is no chance that gravity will cease to function tomorrow, even if people stop believing in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/a-natural-order-is-a-stable-order-there-is-no-chance-that-gravity/) [Yuval Noah Harari](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) [Explore all 1,200 Yuval Noah Harari quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/) ## More Evolution quotes > [I rap when I'm rich. I rap when I'm broke. I rap when I'm bullshit in the street. I rap about only having one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/killer-mike/i-rap-when-i-m-rich-i-rap-when-i-m-broke-i-rap-when-i-m-bullshit-in/) [Killer Mike](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/killer-mike/) > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. And many of the same genes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/at-the-deepest-level-all-living-things-that-have-ever-been-looked-at/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [“A question for Christians who accept evolution: When did we gain a "soul"? Did Homo habilis have a soul? Homo ergaster? Did God only…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-g-mcafee/a-question-for-christians-who-accept-evolution-when-did-we-gain-a/) [David G. McAfee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-g-mcafee/) > [If the polymer chain assumes a helicoidal conformation in the crystalline state, and if it does not contain asymmetric carbon atoms, it can be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giulio-natta/if-the-polymer-chain-assumes-a-helicoidal-conformation-in-the/) Giulio Natta > [“Genetics is a science full of gods, Mr. Sanchez.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/valeria-luiselli/genetics-is-a-science-full-of-gods-mr-sanchez/) [Valeria Luiselli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/valeria-luiselli/) > [We became Homo sapiens not that long ago, from the scientific perspective, and we've retained a lot of our beast nature. We've done all…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wangechi-mutu/we-became-homo-sapiens-not-that-long-ago-from-the-scientific/) [Wangechi Mutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wangechi-mutu/) > [Guns have little or nothing to do with juvenile violence. The causes of youth violence are working parents who put their kids into daycare,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-delay/guns-have-little-or-nothing-to-do-with-juvenile-violence-the-causes/) [Tom DeLay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-delay/) > [The fact -- not theory -- that evolution has occurred and the Darwinian theory as to how it occurred have become so confused in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-gaylord-simpson/the-fact-not-theory-that-evolution-has-occurred-and-the-darwinian/) [George Gaylord Simpson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-gaylord-simpson/) > [Perhaps no order of mammals presents us with so extraordinary a series of gradations as this \[step by step, from humans to apes to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-huxley/perhaps-no-order-of-mammals-presents-us-with-so-extraordinary-a/) [Thomas Huxley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-huxley/) > [Evolution happens in jumps, very rapidly.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marilyn-ferguson/evolution-happens-in-jumps-very-rapidly/) [Marilyn Ferguson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marilyn-ferguson/) > [The true nature of soul is right knowledge, right faith and right conduct. The soul, so long as it is subject to transmigration, is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/virchand-gandhi/the-true-nature-of-soul-is-right-knowledge-right-faith-and-right/) [Virchand Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/virchand-gandhi/) > [“Toshiaki learned that all living organisms were governed by their DNA. He was impressed by perfection of this system.Why did existence have the ability…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hideaki-sena/toshiaki-learned-that-all-living-organisms-were-governed-by-their-dna/) Hideaki Sena > [The shelves of many evangelicals are full of books that point out the flaws in evolution, discuss it only as a theory, and almost…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francis-collins/the-shelves-of-many-evangelicals-are-full-of-books-that-point-out-the/) [Francis Collins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francis-collins/) > [I'm all about evolution. I'm the first person to judge myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/the-weeknd/i-m-all-about-evolution-i-m-the-first-person-to-judge-myself/) [The Weeknd](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/the-weeknd/) > [The next evolution of content marketing is not more content; it's better distribution.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-penn/the-next-evolution-of-content-marketing-is-not-more-content-it-s/) [Chris Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-penn/) [Browse all 6,185 Evolution quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/evolution/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close to 2 million years, making it the most durable human species ever. This record is unlikely to be broken even by our own species. It is doubtful whether Homo sapiens will still be around a thousand years from now, so 2 million years is really out of our league.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Yuval Noah Harari" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-there-for-close-to-2-million/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Evolution" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-there-for-close-to-2-million/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a65/yuval-noah-harari-100_thousand-years_homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-th_1232971.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived there for close to 2 million years, making it the most durable…” — Yuval Noah Harari", "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": "Yuval Noah Harari", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yuval-noah-harari/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "“Homo erectus, ‘Upright Man’, who survived...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-there-for-close-to-2-million/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yuval-noah-harari/homo-erectus-upright-man-who-survived-there-for-close-to-2-million/#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 } } ] } ```